Hence the term "stealership."

Good job on replacing it and motoring on. Not too many are comfortable wrenching on their own cars these days, even more so MBs.

What did your old sensor look like compared to the new one? Cruddy and crusty and sooty?

 

Actually I gave the short story. That MB p/n 0009053504 is originally a Bosch product 0281006669. Not sold in the USA. Well sort of. Good luck finding it. Not for retail sale. Three conversations with Bosch USA tech support. They have it in network. They think it is for sale. It's not in the USA product catalog. Then they told me can be purchased through a Bosch Authorized Service Center (not a retailer). So they gave me one - that service center tried to order twice. They were told it was not available.

So then I called FCP Euro ... long discussion with them, explain it should be in the catalog as it is a common wear item. So their Mercedes product manager works it out, and they have it in their retail catalog - only seller in the USA, BTW. BUT ... seems like it is listed as Backorder. https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/mer...sch-0009053504. In the meantime of all this, I ordered the sensor from Latvia - I buy a lot of BMW OE parts from there. Price is $165 shipped, which is reasonable. 2 weeks after order, Latvia tells me they can't get it, for some reason. I finally broke down and ordered from a discount MB dealer $270 shipped. Which is also pretty ridiculous for a sensor. But I got tired of chasing my tail.

I'll install it on the weekend. Was planning on doing it when I did the 722.9 trans flush/change, but wifey needs to clear emissions inspection ASAP, so ...

Filippo

 

Ah, the plot thickens...

Keep us posted on progress, curious how it turns out.

 

Alright, so I changed the soot sensor. Here are a few photos. It's easy. You need to remove the driver-side rail plastic cover. It's 8mm metal washer bolts. Note at the front and back are single-use plastic clips. For all the intelligent things MB does ... this one is stupid. They play a minor role. My advice - clip the plastic cover so you can slide the single-use clips out. Then you just slide the cover back under when done.

Once removed, the soot sensor is on the driver side. You can see the photos with instructions below. Easy job. 30 minutes.

Filippo


Soot sensor

Remove plug, gently depress clip. Screwdriver can help. Do not remove the front-facing clip. That one goes to the sensor which is coming out.

Clip removed. 10mm plastic nuts hold box in place.

22mm wrench. If it resists, make sure wrench is pushed all the way on, and tap other end with a hammer to break loose.

New soot sensor installed.

Filippo

 

 

Well done, good sir, and thanks for posting pics. Hopefully this resolved your issues?

 

New to forum, but as I sit at the dealership, I await the mech to tell me the soot sensor is bad, again. I'm in US and they have paid for it all. In fact, the 1st time, the sensor broke apart and the had to replace it. Then, something broke apart with in the DEF system and they replaced all of it. No cost, which makes me happy lol. Then the CPU went out lol

I'm now waiting for them to replace the 2nd sensor in 10 months. They've been awesome at no cost and rental cars, but what the heck? Im hoping this thing finally stops making me come here. I have better things to do!

To the person above, I would send mercedes a bill. They should have covered it unless over 150k miles.

 

I have a 2014 GLK 250 Bluetec that has white smoke that smells like ammonia coming out of exhaust. Had local import shop replace inner cooler hose ($687.83) and the DPF ($398.50). Also they wanted to replace the DEF sensor for $2000. I chose not to replace the DEF sensor due to lack of available funds.

Drove car away and the smoke was still coming out of exhaust. I am gutted and furious.

Spoke to another friend who took his MB 350 Bluetec to dealer who wanted to rebuild the complete exhaust system for $15k. My car is not even worth $15k!
I have a service appointment with the MB dealer on Friday. Any chance they might make repairs with no charge since this seems to be an ongoing issue with this model?
Any info, advice, etc is greatly appreciated. If I cannot fix this car it may be going to the junk yard.

 

Don't take it to the junk yard, that's preposterous! I will give you $1k cash

Otherwise, if you want to keep your hard-earned money AND your sanity, stay away from the MB dealers. They will continue to throw expensive parts at it without any guarantee of success.

The DEF sensor job being $2k-ish is likely the entire AdBlue heater tank assembly being replaced. The dealership won't just replace the faulty sensor, pump, and heater which is inside the tank, they replace the entire tank assembly. Other users have had success changing out the DEF pump, sensor, and heating element.

There are a few threads here (such as this one) that document the parts needed and the process of replacing them. It won't cost you $2k and it should fix the issue.

Alternatives include a software retune that turns off AdBlue altogether. No more errors. In the meantime, don't give up and don't get discouraged. Start researching in this subforum and ask questions.

 

Hello all,
I am mostly active in the W205 (AMG C63s threads) but wanted to post an experience I just went thru with my GLK 250.

I was getting CEL's for Particulate filter as well as NOS sensors.
If was a pain in the a$$ at the start dealing with my SA,...

I stood at the dealership and had them print the CEL's , and 1 of them was for the Particulate Filter, and 2 for the NOS sensors (front and back)
For the life of me, I could not get them to understand that if the Particulate Filter is throwing a code, then it will most likely cause the NOS sensors to trip, as if there is an issue with it, the sensors jobs are to SENSE.

Since US law , states a 8 year , 80K mile warrenty for emissions issues, covering the particulate filter at its a major component. (but they still attempted to insist in order to get too the particulate filter) So basically wanted to charge me
1200.00 to replace sensors that were reporting CELs because the Particulate Filter was bad, before they would replace the particulate filter (which of course would be covered my EPA rules etc)

In the end, I purchased 3 NOS sensors, had a local shop replace them, cleared the CELs and then drove the car for 100+ miles, and no suprise , CEL comes back on.. Particulate Filter , and down stream NOS sensor.
They still tried to argue that since they did NOT replace the NOS sensors, that they cannot continue with looking at the Particulate Filter. At this point, I went bat ***** crazy on them, and then filed a complaint at corp, and opened a complaint on the dealership.

Needless to say, 3-4 days later, I got a call back that the repair will be covered, and to take in the car to get fixed. (I took to a different dealership, which was NOT affiliated with the other - non franchised dealership) and they took care of it all.

Nuts....

 

That's good information. I know my DPF is clean and I'm still getting the P2002 code. My technician is currently updating the software and hoping that will correct my nagging CEL. Any thoughts?

 

Did you replace or do anything with the NOS sensors ? I was charged 300+ to have then PAIRING them, which I got mixed responses from different techs on if that actually needed to be done, but who knows.

 

The previous owner had them replaced under warranty at about 50K. We purchased at 61K and have 80K on it now. Have had no issues whatsoever for the last 20K. My technician says all sensors were passing tests.

 

Particulate filters are cleaned all the time. Commercial truck places do it frequently. Have it cleaned at a fraction of the cost. ( , but there are diesel shops that will do it. I know shops in europe that simply use water while the vehicle is at full operating temperature, which creates steam and cleans the filter). Most DPFs never need changing. In the USA car owners are pretty clueless on this, in part because diesel cars are not common and emissions stuff is new (not a 70 year history). In Europe, plenty of shops clean the DPFs - diesel cars are common, and the servicing is good money for the shop while saving the owner the cost of a new DPF.

The problem, folks, is that you are dealing with dealerships. These folks charge $750 to replace a $250 soot sensor that takes 45 minutes to replace, which includes removing and reinstalling the undercarriage covers. It's one harness connection and one sensor screwed into the exhaust. I was quoted $1,300 to have a front leaking strut replaced. That's a $200 strut - $1,100 in labor for an hour of work.

The dealerships throw parts at everything and charge exorbitant rates. Mediocre repair shops will do the same, with less exorbitant rates. Many of these items don't fail.

On the intercooler hose (that's p/n 204-528-00-00). Mercedes dealer sold it to me this spring for $110. I replaced that also, inside of 45 minutes, which included jacking up the car, pulling the front undercarriage cover. It's two connections, out with the old and in with the new. These are known to fail. Who is paying $700 to have this replaced?!

The problem I've found in the Mercedes world (coming from BMW) is that there is 100x less community support and expertise on the cars. Sadly as a BMW guy, I also must say my wife's Mercedes GLK250 is better built than any equivalent late-model BMW. But the number of people that know how to work on these cars is few and far between. It really makes owning such cars past warranty very difficult.

If you do not have the skills to diagnose, the computer diagnostic tools and old-school mechanics tools to work on the cars, I suggest buying a high-quality warranty, or buying an equivalent car with a warranty, or moving to a car that may need less maintenance. Don't mean to be blunt or crass - just hate people getting screwed, and being open, honest, and direct is the best policy for me on this.

Filippo

Filippo

Filippo

 

I'm trying to gather a bunch of MB diesel owners in the US who've had to replace their soot particulate sensor at under 120,000 miles. In 2018, Mercedes Canada sent out a letter that extended the warranty on this part to 120,000 miles; probably forced by regulators there to do so. Obviously, Mercedes is well aware this is a defective part.

When my sensor recently failed at 81,500 (2014 GLK 250), I appealed to my dealer and Mercedes USA to cover this $980 fix (USA warranty expired at 80K), referring them to the extension in Canada. It did me little good as they refused.

There is one sure way to get MB to reimburse replacement costs on this sensor: having the NHTSA do the same thing that Canada did by compelling them to do so. If you would you be willing to sign onto a letter appealing to the NHTSA, please let me know.

Thanks.

 

I keep saying this - the dealer is the WRONG place to get your car serviced. I am not kidding, I had the car on the lift, under panel removed, one electrical connector for the soot sensor unplugged, soot sensor unscrews from exhaust pipe. Everything reversed, then car off lift. It's a leisurely 1 hour of work. The part is $250 (which I listed above). Any decent independent shop can do this for an hour of labor - it's like replacing an 02 sensor. They do this stuff all day long. Have them do your oil change, and bring them the soot sensor. Stop dealing with MB stealership quotes of $980. A $600/hr lawyer is not unplugging a harness and unscrewing a sensor for crying out loud ...

Same story for issues with OC and DPF. Get stuff cleaned by shops that deal with this stuff - you don't need $3,000 pipes replaced. Stop going to the MB dealers.

Filippo

 

100% correct in my opinion except for warranty work (obviously). Dealers have little or no interest in a "happy customer" beyond selling you your car because they know that they have a largely captive audience for service work. Many people seem to have a blind trust that the dealership knows best. In most cases that I'm aware of, dealerships tend to just throw parts at a problem ($ for them) and wait for you to come back if the problem remains unresolved - rinse and repeat (more $ for them).

A classic example of dealership (and MB) underhandedness. MB Canada has an extended warranty on the soot sensor - good stuff you would think. My wife's GLK250 threw a CEL recently and, as it's a low-mileage car, I thought there was a reasonable chance that the soot sensor might be the problem. Called my dealership and they told me that they would need to run a diagnostic, if the problem was the soot sensor I would pay nothing. If the soot sensor was ok I would have to pay for the diagnostic ($$). I confirmed this with MB Canada. So we have a part with a known problem, a CEL and the dealer still wants a shot at making money on the back of the customer.

If the CEL comes back (I cleared it) I'll have to go to an indy and check if it's the soot sensor. If it is, it's off to MB, if not it's on to Plan B. Thanks for the extended warranty guys!

 

My indie told me i need to replace the particulate matter sensor ($465) but told me it might be covered by the dealership.

I bring it to the dealership and ask if its covered, they say yes. After i brought it in, now they are saying its the soot particulate sensor, not covered under warranty ($950).

Are these the same sensors? is the dealership trying to screw me over?

 

I think that the two are the same sensor with different names. The SPS is covered in Canada but not in the US as far as I know.

Either the dealer intentionally misled you or the person who originally told you it was covered made a mistake. Take your pick. You might want to talk to the person who originally told you it was covered and ask what the "mistake" was and, as the part is obviously problematic, (Canadian warranty extension) would they be willing to contribute some/all of the cost as goodwill.

FYI - the notification that we received says " .....determined that a defect related to a motor vehicle emissions control system ..... initiated a voluntary warranty extension regarding the soot particulate sensor.....soot particulate sensor may fail and trigger an engine diagnostics warning ..... the repair measures will be performed free of charge....." The warranty applies to 2013-2015 vehicles with less than 193K kms (120K mi).

Good luck

Ooopps, just noticed that the full letter from MB was posted earlier in this thread.

 

This sensor failed and was replaced on my 2013 GL350 at 89,796 miles. Add me to the list for contacting the NHTSA.

William J.

 

Hi All,

Live in the U.S. and my 2014 GLK 250 just had this same soot sensor problem this year at about the 52Kmile mark. Dealer wanted to fix for $700-800ish here in Michigan. I left and thought I'd dig into it to see if it was something I could do myself so here I am. The dealer and mentioned nothing abt it being under the U.S. emission warranty that user "FLC63s" mentioned in his earlier post (8yr/80,000 mi) though it is clear I'd qualify presuming the warranty info is correct. I will attempt again with the dealer now that I am armed with the information previous posters have so graciously provided. If the dealer persists in charging for the repair then I will most likely take it to an independent MB repair shop. I would do the job myself as user "fmorelli" has done a nice job outlining the task but I am leary of just doing away with the one time clips. I am also going to contact the law firm that handled the diesel emission class action that I am sure you all have heard about. This sensor repair should at the very least be tacked onto that settlement. Could be a long shot but what the heck, I am a little annoyed at MB for not producing a similar bulletin for U.S. buyers as they did for Canada and a lot pissed at their trickery in the diesel scandal. Thanks to all the posters for the great information.

 

You should review the September 14, 2020 settlement between MB and USA. Link below:

https://mbworld.org/forums/register....753b5205d57a88

My dealer says all repairs to NOx sensors and other related items will be reimbursed by MB. The settlement also says we should receive up to 3,300 USD as well as warranty extension to 10 years/100,000 miles.

 

Hi there, great instruction, I have ML 250 with the same part under 000-905-03-32.. Unfirtuenaly, the dealer's cost of labor to change the part is $300 .. also can not find where is located in my ML250.? Any idea or, recommendation, on the procedure, what to look for or, what to be cautious for it, while changing..?
thank you in advance..

 

Mercedes diagnosed soot sensor. Ordered part from canadian ebay seller as I didn’t want to wait for part from Lithuania. Easy job. Undo the plastic bolt nuts in the center and pry down the cover so you don’t have to remove it by cutting the end clips. Took a bit of double jointed wiggling but easily doable without a lift. I used a floor Jack as I don’t fit under it without a few extra inches. Code fixed. Thanks to the above walkthrough

 

I am booked for March 2 at my local dealer to get this looked at. They confirmed the 10 year warranty.