guho

The SBC pump failed on my W211 E320 2003 and it is covered by Mercedes-Benz under the 10-year SBC warranty. No issue there. Now the dealer service dept. called me to tell me they could not bleed the fluid due to a defective bleeder valve. They quoted me $650 to replace it. Is this reasonable? I went in thinking my brake repair would be fully covered but now due to this bleeding valve it would still be a substantial amount to spend on an older vehicle. Thanks.

edwinwalke

The only bleeder valve I can think of is on the brake calipers. If they have a bleed screw that is frozen maybe they figure that they can sell you a new caliper and chalk it up to a bleed valve. However with SBC it could also have a bleeder valve on the pump but I would think that they have replaced it. They did replace the SBC pump?

I would ask them to show me the defective bleeder valve and if it is the bleed screw on the caliper they are incompetent or trying to rip you off.

guho

It is the one on the caliper and it is a stuck screw. MB says 'it will not budge'. How much is the cost of a new W211 caliper? For now I told them to try harder.

edwinwalke

Caliper front is $398 and rear is $290 for my 06 E320 CDI. They should be about the same.

If it was me I would keep telling them to try harder. They may have twisted off the bleed screw but they should be able to remove it with a little mechanical skill. However, most of these guys are parts changers and lack that kind of skill. They should have been able to see that the screw was frozen and try heating it or using some WD40 to loosen it.

gnma

If you can, take it to a local shop, have them "unbudge" the bleeder, pay them (how much can they ask for that task?), then take it back to MB for the SBC pump replacement.

This is assuming the car is roadworthy.

I'm curious, did your pump fail while driving? Tons of scary stories here with SBC failures.

Good luck!!

guho

The "BRAKE visit workshop" came up one day after starting the car. The brakes feel normal, so unless the difference is imperceptible they did not go to non-SBC backup mode. The pump made harsh noises as of recently. So probably what happened is that it still works a bit, but is not producing the correct pressures, which is detected by the onboard computer. Take this as pure speculation of someone without star diagnose system. Anyway, I hope the dealer gets his wd40 out and loosens the bleed valve screw instead of hitting me with an expensive caliper replacement.

gnma

okay, your "Brake visit workshop" is very different from the "Stop immediately!" type of error that comes up when folks experience a major problem with the SBC system. According to many of those that have experienced this, the car is VERY difficult to stop once this happens.

I'm very happy this did not happen to you.

PS, there's a DIY sticky post about resolving the "brake visit workshop" error. Did you take a look at that?

Taylor-Made'90

Rip-off... WD-40 will resolve this issue. They just don't want to get it 'loose'....

Efivehundred

PB Blaster also works well for loosening stuck threads and the like.

Is this dealership located in NJ?