2011 GLK350 ENGINE VIBRATION
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2011 GLK350
2011 GLK350 ENGINE VIBRATION
Merry Christmas guys!!! I have a 2011 GLK350 WITH 112K. It is the RWD model not the 4matic. I have replaced the engine mounts, trans mount, oil change, strut assemblies, steering lock, new battery, sway bar links, new tires, rear tailight connection, new air filters, new air filter ducts. New spark plugs NGK iridium. It's been running fine and super smooth. However after this cold front the engine shakes when I start it up. Sometimes it shakes enough to make sounds kind of like when the belt tensioner goes bad and it rattles type of noise. It does have a new belt as well. Any ideas on what it could be? The new spark plugs where put in about 3 weeks ago and I put them in. They were torqued to 20 ft pd of torque. If I remember correctly. However after that the suv was working fine just after the cold it shakes.
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2013 glk 350
Bad gas, try a different brand and go get Alcohol , HEAT brand works but is expensive for what you get. I buy it by the gallon at HD , easily use 1/4- a full gallon . I used to live in Europe and had to use a gallon every time I filled up . If it’s not bad gas, run codes. It could be many things .
when my plugs were done the plug boots broke, and a coil. It fired on 4 cilinders.
when my plugs were done the plug boots broke, and a coil. It fired on 4 cilinders.
Last edited by Mmr1; Dec 26, 2022 at 12:09 PM.
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2011 GLK350
Sounds good. I'll try different gas. There is no check engine light. I'll stop by tomorrow with mechanic to see if there are any codes or weird things going on that I can't see right away!!
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2014 GLK350 base model (active) ; 2001 E320 base (retired); 2001 Wrangler soft-top
There's a slim possibility the NGK plugs are fake.
I'm a member of a couple motorcycle forums (been riding 50+ years, no, no Harleys here). There are countless posts about folks complaining about the engine running bad shortly after a a plug change. The 1st question asked is, "are they NGK plugs"?
Do a Google search for "fake NGK" ... you'll get COUNTLESS articles and YouTube videos about this. Even the NGK website has a webpage dedicated to this, with lots of details.
This mostly occurs if the plugs were ordered online. If bought at a local reputable auto parts house, probably okay. However, if you rule out other potential causes, might pull a plug and check it. 👍
I'm a member of a couple motorcycle forums (been riding 50+ years, no, no Harleys here). There are countless posts about folks complaining about the engine running bad shortly after a a plug change. The 1st question asked is, "are they NGK plugs"?
Do a Google search for "fake NGK" ... you'll get COUNTLESS articles and YouTube videos about this. Even the NGK website has a webpage dedicated to this, with lots of details.
This mostly occurs if the plugs were ordered online. If bought at a local reputable auto parts house, probably okay. However, if you rule out other potential causes, might pull a plug and check it. 👍
Last edited by calder-cay; Dec 27, 2022 at 03:26 PM.
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2011 GLK350
Awesome to know. I bought the plugs at Auto Zone but either way it can happen. I'll check about that!! However I filled it up with gas and it seems to be running smooth again. I guess it might have had condensation in the tank I suppose.
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2006 Alfa Romeo Brera, 2010 GLK350, 2018 BMW 640i GT, 1997 Subaru SVX, 2012 Moto Guzzi Norge GT8V
There were counterfeit Tein S-Tech springs going around for a while. I got a set on Ebay. The seller was reluctant to give me a refund when I confronted him several months later. When I mentioned getting the FBI involved my refund showed up immediately.
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2013 W212 E350 RWD
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2011 GLK350
Still have vibrations on morning start!!!
So i still have vibrations in the morning when the engine is cold. Have filled up several times already with new premium gas. It is not cold anymore where I live. I live in south Texas. No check engine, nothing. New motor mounts, trans mount, NGk iridium plugs, new battery, new oil change about 3k miles ago, belt tensioner and both pulleys, new rotors, brakes, engine air filters. Looking into replacing the pcv stuff for peace of mind. Not sure what it could be? It goes away when it's warmed up by the way, however it wasn't like this before!!
Last edited by Chris1979; Jan 9, 2023 at 04:50 PM.
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2011 GLK350
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2011 GLK350
I'm actually thinking now of the Harmonic Balancer. It seems that the last owner hardly did any maintenance on it and I got stuck with it. I guess I'm just doing a bunch of preventative maintenance at this point. I daily drive this SUV so I'm trying to mitigate any future possible breakdowns. The coils with the boots will be done for sure.
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Why the Harmonic balancer ? Did you say it runs rough cold only , and different gas helped? Did you run codes ? I just got bad gas and put in a 1/2 gallon alcohol. I’ve been using alcohol , forever , since crap gas is forever !
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2011 GLK350
So an update for you guys about the vibrations!! The belt was routed wrong. Everything was right except where it goes under the water pump and on top of the idler pulley. The way it it was done before it went from over the water pump and under the idler pulley. Now the suv is very silent and even little noises went away. Lol 😂
So when you have vibrations on your SUV and you change a belt tensioner with the pulleys make sure the belt is routed right to avoid confusions about the vibrations or noises.
So when you have vibrations on your SUV and you change a belt tensioner with the pulleys make sure the belt is routed right to avoid confusions about the vibrations or noises.
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2006 Alfa Romeo Brera, 2010 GLK350, 2018 BMW 640i GT, 1997 Subaru SVX, 2012 Moto Guzzi Norge GT8V
At the risk of sounding like a jerk, how much $$$ stuff did you change after the belt and pulley that you really didn't need to? I'm glad you finally resolved it.
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2011 GLK350
Actually I just bought the tensioner and idle pulleys because the old tensioner was rattling. Also bought the belt of course. However everything else I bought that I stated in the beginning was preventative maintenance for me as it is my daily driver.
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Thanks for the follow-up!!
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Yes exactly, except when I bought the SUV the belt seemed to be already like that lol. So i had taken a picture like you said and just replaced it the same way. Thinking it was right lol
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So if the belt was originally routed (incorrectly) over the water pump, vs under it, then that means the pump was spinning "in reverse", which in my mind, based on water pumps I've seen (during my personal experience with engine teardowns), that pump was NOT truly pumping the flow of water.
Amazed the engine didn't fail 👍
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2011 GLK350
Okay, so it didn't occur to me earlier about these 2 sentences.
So if the belt was originally routed (incorrectly) over the water pump, vs under it, then that means the pump was spinning "in reverse", which in my mind, based on water pumps I've seen (during my personal experience with engine teardowns), that pump was NOT truly pumping the flow of water.
Amazed the engine didn't fail 👍
So if the belt was originally routed (incorrectly) over the water pump, vs under it, then that means the pump was spinning "in reverse", which in my mind, based on water pumps I've seen (during my personal experience with engine teardowns), that pump was NOT truly pumping the flow of water.
Amazed the engine didn't fail 👍
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A non-directional impeller will move coolant as long as it is turning. I don’t know what kind of impeller wheel the M272 water pump has, but that would be a bit unusual on an automotive engine. I’ve seen it on marine and industrial engines that come in CW and CCW versions. Maybe the MB cooling system is just so over designed that you got away with it.
I think the takeaway from this is that the serpentine belt can actually be threaded wrong and still appear to be right at quick glance. I don’t remember any other time I have seen this. When the belt is installed wrong it’s usually so loose the tensioner can’t tighten it or so tight then tensioner won’t retract far enough to catch it.
I keep belt routing diagrams for all my cars at the front of my maintenance records folder.
I think the takeaway from this is that the serpentine belt can actually be threaded wrong and still appear to be right at quick glance. I don’t remember any other time I have seen this. When the belt is installed wrong it’s usually so loose the tensioner can’t tighten it or so tight then tensioner won’t retract far enough to catch it.
I keep belt routing diagrams for all my cars at the front of my maintenance records folder.
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A non-directional impeller will move coolant as long as it is turning. I don’t know what kind of impeller wheel the M272 water pump has, but that would be a bit unusual on an automotive engine. I’ve seen it on marine and industrial engines that come in CW and CCW versions. Maybe the MB cooling system is just so over designed that you got away with it.
I think the takeaway from this is that the serpentine belt can actually be threaded wrong and still appear to be right at quick glance. I don’t remember any other time I have seen this. When the belt is installed wrong it’s usually so loose the tensioner can’t tighten it or so tight then tensioner won’t retract far enough to catch it.
I keep belt routing diagrams for all my cars at the front of my maintenance records folder.
I think the takeaway from this is that the serpentine belt can actually be threaded wrong and still appear to be right at quick glance. I don’t remember any other time I have seen this. When the belt is installed wrong it’s usually so loose the tensioner can’t tighten it or so tight then tensioner won’t retract far enough to catch it.
I keep belt routing diagrams for all my cars at the front of my maintenance records folder.
Used to work on high-power R.F. transmitters that put out 10,000 watts by means of a water-cooled klystron tube. The coolant pump to the heat exchanger was a large three-phase motor. If you got the phase wiring wrong the pump impeller would spin backwards but you wouldn't know it until you looked at the water flow guage in another room. Instead of the normal, and required, 21 or 22 gallons per minute it would only show about 13 g.p.m.
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M272 directional water pump
Last edited by calder-cay; Jan 20, 2023 at 07:29 PM.
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That’s a directional impeller. The vanes would be straight out from the center on a non-directional one. Directional ones are smaller, lighter, more efficient, use less power, less prone to erosion, everything you would want in a car. When reversed, it probably moved just enough coolant to keep the engine from overheating.
