New 03 e500, Problems?
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 238
Likes: 12
From: NorCal: San Jose - Stockton - Sacramento
97 SL600, 03 CLK55, 03 S55, 04 SL55, 05 C55, 07 R500
New 03 e500, Problems?
Hey Guys, This is my First Post On here. I Just bought a 2003 e500 with 150k miles from my uncle, and he said it has a few problems with it like, the primary cats are bad, it needs new motor mounts, and if the car sits for a few weeks the car looks like it was slammed on coilovers. Im Still trying to figure the airmatic problem(s) with the earlier year w211 by searching the forums. But i never heard of anyones primary cats going out, or the motor mounts. So if someone can enlighten me, that would be awesome! And if i end up do needing to buy new cats, how would that work and who can i get them from. i live in California, but im not to sure on the laws cali has on cats so, some .02 cents would be much appreciated! Thanks!
Super Member
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 666
Likes: 4
From: Boston, MA USA
03 E320 -wife's car now; 07 Porsche Boxster S - my toy
Suggest you find a good MB indy shop in your area if you're looking to save some $$ on these repairs. From what I've read on these forums, the airmatic system has its share of problems and also the motor mounts on these cars.
California pretty much sets the emission requirements and many other states follow their lead, so you may not be able to pass their emission inspections if your car is exceeding the limits. I don't live there so I can't tell you for sure.
Also, check with your uncle to get the story of what the problem is with the primary cats. You can also go to various parts store who provide a free service of checking for OBD2 codes -- depending on which code reader they use (and also the abilities of he person using it!) you can check the Readiness Monitors to see if they all pass (the ones for your car, not all 11 of them) -- the catalyst monitor is one of these. If it fails, then many things have to be checked, like the aft O2 sensor, running a gas analyzer to see what the cat is doing, looking for holes in the exhaust around the cat that would allow air to get in and throw off the readings, etc, etc.....
Good luck.
Regards,
paul...
California pretty much sets the emission requirements and many other states follow their lead, so you may not be able to pass their emission inspections if your car is exceeding the limits. I don't live there so I can't tell you for sure.
Also, check with your uncle to get the story of what the problem is with the primary cats. You can also go to various parts store who provide a free service of checking for OBD2 codes -- depending on which code reader they use (and also the abilities of he person using it!) you can check the Readiness Monitors to see if they all pass (the ones for your car, not all 11 of them) -- the catalyst monitor is one of these. If it fails, then many things have to be checked, like the aft O2 sensor, running a gas analyzer to see what the cat is doing, looking for holes in the exhaust around the cat that would allow air to get in and throw off the readings, etc, etc.....
Good luck.
Regards,
paul...
Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
From: Minnesota
1998 E430 Sport and 2003 E500
Primary cats are very typical on these cars. My '03 had the PS go bad at 70K (MB replaced under warranty - good to 80K), and you can find systems online or go straight to MB and they actually bolt on the entire side, including the cat, from header back.
Search the forum for "airmatic" and find many, many postings on problems and repairs. Comes with the territory on these cars. If it leaks down after days or weeks, but is in working order otherwise, I would leave it alone until it becomes a real nuisance. Mine happens to leak down at the rear DS - but only at 0 deg.F or less on the worst winter days. The rest of the time it is perfectly fine and performs fine.
No motor mounts issues on my '03, but no surprise as I had them done on our '98 last summer at 145K miles.
If you are a motorhead and handy with auto repair tools (as many of us are), you can probably fix a good portion of these issues yourself. If not, take paul's advice and get with a good indy shop (not MB dealer service) and knock the necessary stuff out - but be prepared to part with some $$.
Search the forum for "airmatic" and find many, many postings on problems and repairs. Comes with the territory on these cars. If it leaks down after days or weeks, but is in working order otherwise, I would leave it alone until it becomes a real nuisance. Mine happens to leak down at the rear DS - but only at 0 deg.F or less on the worst winter days. The rest of the time it is perfectly fine and performs fine.
No motor mounts issues on my '03, but no surprise as I had them done on our '98 last summer at 145K miles.
If you are a motorhead and handy with auto repair tools (as many of us are), you can probably fix a good portion of these issues yourself. If not, take paul's advice and get with a good indy shop (not MB dealer service) and knock the necessary stuff out - but be prepared to part with some $$.
