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Seems like these are getting to the age where the plastic is getting brittle. Lots of questions around leaks and broken lines. So I have been losing coolant and tricking myself into thinking that I smell it in the cabin, fearing the worst with this vehicle. There was a leak on a coolant return line that I found with a pressure tester, I fixed with a hose clamp. Still loosing coolant, but could not find it. Last night went to top it off and think I found it. Question is it looks like the top of the radiator is cracked, as opposed to that hose leaking. Is that a common place for these to break? Or, is it more likely spraying from somewhere else? It amounts to about 16 oz every month.
any opinions are appreciated.
Driver side radiator mount.
So, under the plastic cap mount that holds this together, I finally found my leak. Send like it is coming up from here. Never seen that before. It is also a very slow, slight leak. Definitely some odor in the cabin of coolant.
Has anyone found a good writeup of replacement? There is some patchy info on YouTube, but nothing cohesive. Or, is it straightforward?
The solution is a new radiator, correct? This failure has been posted on this site before, I don't recall which vehicle model/year. Probably model year in the 20-teens, just a guess.
That, is my plan, i ordered one from FCP. Pretty inexpensive for OEM. I will keep digging for more replacement info. That seems like a really odd place to leak. I hope it does not blow up on me the next couple days.
It leaks because of cracks which develop near the plastic clip you removed. The radiator is held in place by the feature which fits inside the clip, so the perpetual vibration and shock loading of the radiator against its attachment is carried through the part which cracked.
Aftermarket radiator works just fine did it two years ago. Replacement procedure straight forward - bunch of plastic to remove, disconnect transmission cooling lines. Unscrew AC condenser. Put new one in.
Thanks, If I disconnect the AC Condenser, do I need a new one? Would any gas/ fluid be lost? If I disconnect the trans cooler, I will try to measure, collect the fluid. Is there an easy way to add it back? Any suggestions on what to use to plug the lines?
Pelican has some pretty good info, trying to piece it together with some other resources.
Any other parts I should be buying?
You don't need a condenser. Condenser attached to radiator, just unscrew mounting bolts, swap radiator and thats it. As long as you ac working do not remove ac lines.
I literally just had to order a new radiator today because coolant starting blowing out the plastic part of the radiator on the inlet right underneath the windshield fluid tank. I first thought it was the hose and replaced the hose only to find out it’s the plastic. I got the oem radiator part number 099-500-46-03 ordered and should arrive in a couple days… I looked at after market ones but feel like there has to be some reason sacrificing quality why they are half price. Dealer quoted me $800 to install the radiator, but would love to do it myself and save the money. I found a YouTube video where the guy took off the bumper. However it was the model before the x166. So any advice looks like it would help out a few members on here.
Pelican has some pretty good guides, Looking for 2014 Mercedes radiator replacement give some good results, various models of the same year give some good clues. I think I just need to get in there and break some plastic things and struggle w the condenser and transmission lines. I got a Nissen which is usually, often OEM. I would be curious to see the mfr on the one you got. I have had good luck with Nissen on BMW, Land Rover. I am planning on replacing some other lines when they break, so it will be a bit of a crap shoot as to what gets replaced.
Transmission lines using quick connects as much as coolant hoses. Just pull off stop ring and it goes out easy as ****...
There are plastic vent line for cooling system on top. That siht is fragile. I would buy the whole line ahead of repair because it is twice cheaper online.
and the connect on the engine side is fragile as well.
I will for sure let you know the manufacturer. It was normally $950 and the dealer was able to get me down to $750. If you have any success let me know. Still trying to find out if the bumper should come off
also wondering if I should replace lines 22-25 if I’m already in there….I think they are made of plastic and seem to fail.
I think 22 is the oil line, should be metal, if it is the one I am thinking of. Any of those easily accessible lines, I will probably replace the o rings in them, if they are leaking. I dont see that the bumper needs to come off. I think I have most of the plastic lines from an engine replacement.
I wonder if it makes sense to shore up the new radiator in the known weak spot, perhaps with epoxy or fiberglass or something? Or, is it better to just plan on a 5 year replacment?
I think 22 is the oil line, should be metal, if it is the one I am thinking of. Any of those easily accessible lines, I will probably replace the o rings in them, if they are leaking. I dont see that the bumper needs to come off. I think I have most of the plastic lines from an engine replacement.
I wonder if it makes sense to shore up the new radiator in the known weak spot, perhaps with epoxy or fiberglass or something? Or, is it better to just plan on a 5 year replacment?
This is my crack…. I looked online and they make a plastic welder made by Polyvance specifically for fixing radiator plastic. Every time I try to take a shortcut usually ends in disaster. Will start the project Friday afternoon. Best of luck to you as well.
I had the engine mounts replaced about years and 12k miles ago. I hardly drive this vehicle. I hope you are not right. I had the engine replaced and the mounts were almost an after thought for the shop.
I will for sure let you know the manufacturer. It was normally $950 and the dealer was able to get me down to $750. If you have any success let me know. Still trying to find out if the bumper should come off
also wondering if I should replace lines 22-25 if I’m already in there….I think they are made of plastic and seem to fail.
#22 is the Passenger side Turbo Cooler line (coolant, not oil) P/N 278-200-08-00. It is a Metal tube with a rubber hose flex joint,, the other PAS side turbo coolant hose is also metal, Aluminum I'm pretty sure. The Drivers side turbo coolant lines are plastic, both of them.
Last edited by Tiffany's GL450; Nov 10, 2021 at 09:35 AM.
Can anyone post the WIS to remove the radiator? Also possibly the front bumper… I know it might not be necessary but will probably make life a lot easier… any info would be great.
The condenser in front of the radiator, is that freon? I cannot see how to get the radiator out with out atleast loosening those connections. I have it about 30% out, but it is hung up on those line. It is very helpful to remove the ground from the alternator, buys a ton of space.
What happens if i remove the hard lines? need to refill the refrigerant?
You suppose to have two more radiators - one for intercooler and one for AC. The hoses attached with bolts and nuts are AC lines.
That is freon. You can disconnect those but you need to purge freon to atmosphere (it is under pressure) which is not really "legal", through low pressure side nipple. After that you either pay AC technician to fill your system or do it yourself, for that you would need ac gauges and vacuum pump from harbor freight. First you vacuum all system. Then fill it up with freon again.
Got er done, not too bad once I figured out how to get the radiator actually out. It took about 3 hours taking my time. Knowing the below it is sub 2 hours.
You do not need to remove anything related to the bumper, the top plastic cover snaps off, in front, but nothing in the way of bolts. Actually the bump has nothing to do with anything, the bolts on the X164 that hold the condenser and the radiator together are not on the X166.
The ground from the AC Compressor to the frame needs to be removed to gain room on the drivers side to clear the refrigerant lines. Its a 13mm and the invers torx, E something, forget what size.
You should remove all four of the transmission fluid lines that connect to the radiator and condenser. You need the space to get the old one out and the new on it. Does not lose any fluid of any volume.
You do not need to do anything with the turbo coolant lines, there is plenty of room, unless you were going to purge that as well.
When I removed the radiator, the pinch clips that connect it to the condenser would not release no matter what, I just took some wire cutters and cut up the plastic connects so it would pop off.
When installing the new radiator on to the condenser, use silicon on the above pinch clamps to get them to slid into each other.
It would extremely helpful to have a second person working from the top, while you are on the bottom, negotiating the radiator in and out of the vehicle, you really do need to see everything to get it placed.
When putting in the new o-rings on the coolant hoses, I used a ton of dielectric grease to get them to slide on. The bottom one, I had to heat up with a torch to soften it to get it go on. Wasted a lot time figuring that out.
Really, the only tools used are:
10mm socket
8mm socket
13mm socket for the ground strap, plus the E socket
Pliers and forceps for the fiddly clips on the transmission lines and the coolant hoses
There are a couple videos on youtube of X164, but this is much different due to trans and ac lines, far less space.
I took some pictures, but they are not that helpful.
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I did mine about a month ago. I had a hell of a time taking the radiator separated from the condenser. there is a tab on the bottom of the radiator that hooks onto the condenser and for the life of me, I could not get them separated. I had to remove them as a unit. When it came time to put it back in, I tried to put the condenser in first then the radiator. Now, I couldn't get the bottom of the radiator to fit into the pocket of the condenser. I had to put them together as a unit. I thought it would have been easier but it was a PITA. (and I did it at a friend's auto shop with a lift.
Those two clips on the bottom, plus the AC hoses in the way made it difficult to get everything back in for sure. That is where having a helper made a big difference. I would get one side in and while doing the other side it would pop out again. If you disconnected the AC, it would be super easy, plenty of space.
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