Hi. 2001 black/taupe E320 with Eibach springs, Koni adjustable shocks set to the softest setting, AMG 17" chromed wheels and Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Pole Position tires. 95,000 miles, mostly freeway driving in Socal.

At about 70,000 miles, sometimes the car would shake at idle. Two tune-ups ago, I mentioned this and they found nothing. Happened again for about a week at around 80,000 miles. I figured it was bad gas or the idle set too low.

At 95,000, I had about 1 gallons of gas left per the display (meaning about 3 gallons, since they don't seem to count the last two). I turned the corner to go up a hill and the car seemed to stall some, and the engine started shaking again. It shakes at both idle and when driving.

I filled up with gas and the problem disappeared. A week later, with 3 gallons left per the display, the car was shaking again. I had to go to a wedding 20 miles away, and the whole way the car shook a lot and I had to put the car in 4th gear while on the freeway to keep RPM above 3,000, or 2nd gear when driving around 25 mph. In other words I had to keep RPM above 2,500 to get any power. In 5th gear, if I floored it, it would not respond.

After the wedding, I filled up (16.5 gallons at the pump) and the problem disappeared.

I'm about to take it in for servicing but I've go 8 gallons of fuel and the problem won't be back until I'm at less than 3 gallons. I want to take the car in when it is shaking, not now when it isn't doing anything.

I'm guessing it is a line from the fuel tank to the fuell pump that is cracked or something, since it only happens when fuel is low in the tank.

What do you think?

Also, need to replace brakes. The "break lining warning" light just came on. First, how much brake is left when the light comes on, and second, is there an aftermarket pad I can order online that is just as good as original equipment but with less dust?

Lastly, I'm on my 5th pair of tires. Each last about 22,000 miles. The last two pairs of Pirelli Pzero Rosso, and the current pair of Bridgestone, seem to lose about a pound of air each day, with left front being worse than right front. After two weeks, both front tires are down to under 10 lbs. The guy at the gas station told me that chromed wheels often lose their seal after a few years. Is this true? Do I need to get them rechromed, or is there another fix to this problem?

Oh, almost forgot. Seems to eat a quart of Mobile one each 2,000 - 2,500 miles. MB service guy told me it is normal. Seem normal to you guys?

I plan to keep the car until about 120,000 miles, then give it to my 14 yr. old who will be 16 then. It is in good shape inside and out. I paid $600 just four months ago to have all the dings removed.

 

hmmmm...my first thought for the piece on the vehicle shakes at idle is possibly broken/collapsed motor mounts and tranny mounts, but, the shaking part is very infrequent.

I just replaced my pads and rotors - I bought brembo slotted rotors and hawk pads at tirerack.com - I'm extremely pleased with the pads - minimal break and inexpensive.

 

Thanks VictoryLap...

I'll call Luke to check out those pads/rotors.

Re: shaking, it is definately not the mounts, as it ONLY happens when gas is at 3 gallons or less on the display (meaning 5 gallons or less in actuality).

 

i don't think is the mounts either. are you putting good gasoline, or just whatever gas station is on the way? personally i would stick with a good brand and always fill up there. since it does it when is very low on gas my guess would be bad gasoline. have you ever changed the fuel filter? also clean the throttle actuator.

 

Anyone know what % of pad is left when the warning light comes on the display panel? I'm guessing 10%??

 

Hey DunninLA - I don't know exactly what the percentage is when the message appears (brake lining wear-visit workshop) , but, the warning indicator will set-off when the pads are less than 2mm of pads left. yeah, check out tirerack.com, there's a toll-free number and ask for Jason (very knowledeble) - again, I was very please with the minimal break dust or no dust if any from the hawk pads - the brembo sport (slotted) rotors speak for itself - it took a lot of 'patience' to replace the rotors and pads - the tough part was getting the old rotors off - otherwise, the rest was easy - good luck!

 

Yes, I've had this problem with chrome rims. Over time, the chrome flakes/oxidizes and prevents the tire bead from sealing. Moisture in the air compressor when you fill the tire with air exacerbates the problem. The corrosion was mild enough in my case that filing the inside lip of the wheel cured it.

 

... which is why Mercedes prohibits use of chrome wheels.

 

my 420 came stock with chrome rims, and yes, that is the problem. the rim starts to rust and it bubbles the chrome - leaving space for the air to escape. i got a sweet deal on a set of AMG rims AND tires on ebay - $1K + about $60 for shipping. Good deals are out there - check craigslist too. regarding the shaking - is it only at idle? I get a little of that too. As far as burning oil goes - my car is just to 150K and I don't burn any oil at all.

 

OK, thanks for the confirmation re: Chromed wheels.

So I suppose I have the option of having them rechromed? I like the look of a chromed wheel with a black car.

Re: Shaking, I've got the car in for servicing now for new brakes. My guy felt the shaking when I took it in, but they cannot duplicate it up on the rack.

He said I have 96,000 miles on it, and it should get 12 new plugs at 100,000, so I authorized that $570 expense as there is a small chance that is the problem. Otherwise, he and I agreed the common sense thing to do is to just no let the gas get below 3 gallons.

 

i had the same problem at about 76k miles.....took it to the dealer and they replaced my lifters. I had the extended warranty so, that was covered.

 

Replaced lifters?

What year is yours? I had an extended warranty which expired end of November. The service concierge, or whatever you call the guy who authorized just out of warranty repairs, replaced my display unit free (I think it costs $1000) and I only paid labor of about $250.

Monday night the engine block symbol showed up on my display (not "Check Engine", but a picture of an engine block).

I'm taking it in today to see what the problem is. The shaking has been happening a long time, so hopefully they will do under warranty.

 

I have an 01 E430....after the lifters were replaced, the shake at idle was gone. I would like to know what that engine block represents; I've seen the radiator symbol but not the engine.

 

Well, it happened again with 4.1 gallons in the tank. And this time I noticed it happens after making quick turns to the right. Went away after being parked for an hour.

Came back the next day, again after going around a sweeping turn pulling some g's. this time really bad, could hardly keep the engine running, as though the engine were getting half gas, half air.

Took it in this morning. guy just called me to let me know it has something to do with fuel filter, gas tank, etc. $2,200 estimate.

I told him I'd call MB in New Jersey to argue that this started happening in Jan. 2006, when I took it in for rough idle and they replaced the motor mounts.

 

No luck with New Jersey. Rep there said since I didn't report that the motor mount replacement did not fully solve the rough idle back in Jan. 2006, that there is no way to authorize this repair under my extended warranty which ended November 2006. Said it seemed like a similar but unrelated issue.