GLK 250 Turbo Failure
 

All,
I have a 2013 GLK 250 with 62000 miles on it. I purchased it in 2015 with 30,000 miles CPO.
It ran with no issues for past 2 yrs. 2 months back had a check engine light come on. But in 2 days it went off and it came back on about 10 days back.
Its been on/off for about two times in last 10 days.

Yesterday I took it to a mechanic to check out the codes. It had about 6-7 codes regarding mass flow sensor, system too lean and turbo.

The mechanic ran the diagnostics and said that the turbo has failed, it is not drawing enough air and that the end shaft has too much play in it.

From driving perspective - Sometimes I feel that car is not accelerating fast enough and sometimes it feels okay. Other than that I have not noticed any changes - no abnormal sound or feeling.

The mechanic is asking for $3000 + tax for repair.

My questions are:
1. Is this an usual issue on these cars? Has anybody else had to deal with failed turbo?
2. What is the usual cost to replace a turbo?
3. Will this be an ongoing issue i.e. I fix turbo and something else fails?
4. Does the explanation by mechanic make sense?

I dont have warranty so i am considering my options. The mechanic mentioned that this issue is common with these cars. I tried googling around and cant find much about people talking about having this issue.

If you don't already know, you know now that owning a five year old MB is a crap shoot with regards to major system failures\repairs----cost of ownership Bud!
PS: What difference does it make now when 100 other cars in the world may have the same failure!

$3k for a turbo replacement on a Mercedes does not seem out of line and even sounds a bit low to me. Turbos spin at around 250,000 rpm so any machining flaw or balance issue will make itself know. Yes, it is unusual for it to fail at just 60k miles but it happens. There could be ongoing issues if the impeller sent metal fragments into the cylinders.

End shaft play sounds like a bearing failure and I would be asking why the bearings failed. Was there an issue with the oil supply? I would also be asking if the turbo vanes impacted the housing and threw metal bits down the intake. Did the oil seals fail and was it sending oil into the cylinders - not so much a problem on diesel as it is on gas engines.

Does the mechanic work on a lot of these Mercedes diesels? Does he know it is a two stage turbo? I don't have the terminology, but could it be the part that switches between the high and low pressure turbo modes?

IMHO the emissions and control systems on these new diesel engines is over-complicated, expensive and prone to failure. I ditched mine and went to a gasser. I miss the torque but I have a lot less to fail and it's cheaper when it does.

That's doesn't sound right - no modern car should be having major systems failures at 5 years. And traditionally Mercedes diesels run for hundreds of thousands of miles with nothing more than basic meintenance - at least until they added the new emissions crap.

Thanks for those inputs. I will try to learn more although the mechanic didnt seem too like when I asked him questions.
He said that he had seen a similar issue last year with the same model and it needed a new turbo.

As for what started this issue - I remember it started after my wife took it for a wash. I think the guy steam cleaned the engine compartment. The engine light came on after that but it went off after 2-3 days.
I asked the mechanic if the cleaning could have ruined the turbo in some way. But he said it was just a coincidence.

I really like the car but now i am contemplating of trading it in for some thing else.

So i went and showed it to a second guy and he said the problem is a tear in the hose. So when turbo tries to pressurize, all the air just escapes and leaks.
He showed me the tear (i will post a picture later), i cannot figure how the hose could crack (neither could the mechanic) and I could not figure how the previous mechanic could not catch it (its pretty visible).
He is asking for $430 (parts + labor). He said the turbo is fine, no issue with it.

I didnt get it fixed because I wanted to understand the vastly different diagnosis.

How could the previous mechanic figure out that there is a play in the shaft without opening up the whole engine compartment? Does Mercedes have some kind of diagnostic tool that can measure shaft play?

Appreciate your inputs!

I would take it to a dealer. The parts will come from them anyway.. Only difference will be labor and MB usually has a standard rate per job and should be able to quote you up front. Other plus, is that they will put car on their Star system and ensure there are no other problems. I wouldn't want mechanics that have hardly seen a GLK250, messing with my car engine.

I would probably take it to dealer as well but i want to be informed. There is no guarantee that Dealer will dial into the issue accurately - i have had such experience before and this community helped me to find the solution which i had to then go and tell dealer and help him fix my car.

Please see the attached picture. The cracked hose is on driver side where as the turbo seems to be on the passenger side. The cracked hose is going from somewhere under the engine (may be under the AC) and goes to front of the vehicle near the wheel. So i feel that hose has got nothing to do with Turbo. What do you guys think?

Secondly looks like in California the emission control warranty covers turbo for 7 years/60k miles. Anybody have experience with this?https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...c78787e066.png

Location of cracked hose

Just realized that this hose is the one going from 'charge cooler' to the 'charge manifold'. So i guess the https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...a5121dde34.png
was correct, the crack would cause leak and create all error codes i have been seeing.

That is an intercooler hose. $430 seems a bit high for a hose replacement, but it is a Mercedes.

The first mechanic is either an incompetent, a crook, or both.

i had the same issue, the larts was almost $400 cad. it not that hard to replace. maybe an hr shop labour

I am having similar issue. 4 months out of factory warranty but under CPO warranty. I'm told it's not covered under warranty because it's a hose and hoses wear out. At 35,000 miles, it seems way too soon to have a hose like this crack. Dealer wants $600 to replace one hose. I've priced the hoses at $244 right hose and $110 left hose, retail price. My feeling is early failure and should be covered by CPO anyhow. I used to be a Lexus guy and had great experiences with CPO coverage being complete and encompassing. This kind of limitations on CPO warranty from MB makes rethink CPO from Mercedes is not a good value. Only brand new full factory warranty is and that prices me out of MB. Too bad if they keep this up. Now I have to think about finding an independent mechanic and not which to go to every time I have a problem while under warranty. That's just not right IMHO.

Well get it repaired as soon as possible. In my case after the hose was fixed, I had to deal with a failed Exhaust Gas Temp sensor. After that was fixed, I had Diesel Particulate Filter Efficiency low. Dealer said it was because Particulate soot sensor was bad and had to replace it. I don't know if the issue is resolved because catalytic monitor drive cycle (OBD II) is not yet complete. big story short - get the hose fixed asap or you will end up with more issues and dollars.

Drove very little after the light came on. Will have it back today. Thanks for the advice. Sorry you had so many things happen to one system. Almost sounds like a cascade of problems starting with one item...I did learn from you that I should find an independent mechanic as well.

My hose was the driver side as well. I did read about a similar problem on a another site. I wonder if the other hose is as likely to fail soon. Mechanic said passenger hose looks OK. I contacted corporate and because of all factors in my situation they agreed to do a goodwill exception and cover the full $610. Now to worry about the other hose and find an independent mechanic in San Diego for non warranty items as well as oil changes and other basic maintenance. If anyone reading this knows San Diego, I'd appreciate a referral.

Seems a bit high as the intercooler itself is only $121.98 at rock auto and at MB Parts Pro
The outlet pipe is $73 at MBParts (204-528-25-82) The passenger side seems to be a lot more. at $272.55 (212-528-08-8) I would check out these numbers before ordering as they are from the NET. .

I know this thread is old, but I wanted to confirm what everyone has said--it was the driver's side intercooler hose. My wife has a 2014 GLK 250 (50,000 miles). On a road trip we got a P0101 code (mass air flow sensor). When we got home, the codes were P0101, P0171, P0113, and P0299. There was no noticeable performance issue--just the engine codes. I replaced the air filter and cleaned the mass air flow sensor, but the codes returned within an hour of driving. I then found this thread noting the problem with the intercooler hose splitting. Sure enough, the driver's side hose had two small slits (less than an inch each). I could not find the part at the major auto parts stores, so I have ordered a replacement (I just googled the part number suggested above: 204-528-25-82).
As a temporary fix, I cleaned the exterior of the hose with denatured alcohol to remove dirt and grease. Then I glued the tear shut with CA glue (superglue). Finally I wrapped the hose with heavy duty duct tape. The fix has held for two days with no return of the engine code. I'll replace with the new hose as soon as it arrives.
A few notes for anyone who is attempting the repair:
--There seems to be a bunch of alternate names for this part (intercooler hose, outlet pipe, charge hose, etc.). Just search for the part numbers above: Driver Side (204-528-25-82), Passenger's Side (212-528-08-8)
--The only way to access the hose is underneath the car. You must remove the splash shield in order to see it.
--There are two hoses that could be split, one on the passenger's and one on the driver's side. The driver's side is black and I think is more prone to splitting. The passengers side is red and made of a heavier duty material (thus the higher cost for a replacement).
--The hose is connected with a "Henn-type" connector. I had never seen one before and had no idea how to remove it. I could find nothing online explaining how to remove. If you search "Henn-type" you'll see that there is a special tool available. I just used a flathead screw driver. There are basically two metal wire clips that you pull out slightly, releasing the hose. Luckily I didn't break anything.
--Finally, I had a weird transmission issue that coincided with this. There would be a rough downshift from 3 to 2 to 1 whenever I stopped. I think it was probably unrelated, but I guess maybe the TCU could have adjusted itself due to a change in the way the car was handling without the turbo??? In any event, I reset the TCU and it appears to have fixed the problem.

@mandolinwalt, the part # I have found for the left side charge air hose is different from the one you have listed: https://parts.mbfm.com/p/Mercedes-Be...045282782.html
I apologize in advance if I am mistaken.

Hmmm...I'll guess I'll find out when the part arrives. The diagram that accompanies the part number I listed above definitely looks correct..


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...2a77d07ef4.png

Did you get the correct outlet pipe?

I know this is an old thread but did anyone with this problem hear a whooshing noise as rpms increased. I'm trying to help my daughter diagnose a noise. She has 67K on her Bluetec.

Hi,there new to this forum but that whooshing noise is probally the heater box warpage issue these GLKs have there’s a TSB for it. Basically remove the air box for the cabin filter in the engine bay and seal the edges with felt tape or duct tape and that should fix it. I’ll attach a photo
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...dd2523ad7.jpeg
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...65eac2a6a.jpeg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...fd089b17b.jpeg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...174017d45.jpeg

Thanks for the reply. I've considered this as a possibility also. She thinks the noise changes with engine rpms. I'm going to see her tomorrow and hopefully it'll be one of these two things. Thanks again for your input!