I woke up this morning to no power steering and my battery light on. Took a quick peak under the hood and saw my serpentine belt had come off and was just laying there, not shredded. I was trying to figure out why when I noticed my PS pulley was loose and that the connector to the engine had actually cracked. Any idea what could have caused this and if I can just replace the bracket? Also, I had been having a rough idle for a few weeks, could this have been related to the loose PS pulley?

 

I'm afraid that I don't have good news for you. The P/S pump attaches to the Timing Case Cover and I presume that's what you mean by the bracket. Besides needing a new P/S pump and attaching bolts, you have to replace the Timing Case Cover. This is not a DIY job.

Something must have happened that maybe you are not telling us. Have you had a serp. belt installed lately? Installing an undersized belt will result in exactly what happened to your engine, or someone put undue pressure on the pump.

 

I appreciate the reply. I was fearing for the worst when I couldn't find that bracket online. I did actually have a serpentine belt replaced about a year ago. The belt is a contitech multi rib 2390, which looks like it might just be for the 320. Could this be what caused it? Other than that I can't think of anything that happened. I made it home safely last night and when I went to back out last night I had no power steering... Also, how much am I looking at to replace the cover and chain? Might as well get both while they're under there

 

You are looking at 16 hrs. of labor, not including all the parts which are many. Alomost everything has to be stripped from the eng. including the entire oil pan, which requires special sealant. new bolts.

Then you have to decide who is going to do the job so decide wisely. If it's no brough to the right mech. you could have more problems than when you started. Replacing the chain is even a bigger decision. If it is not done absolutely according to the book (which requires special holding tools) you could wind up with bent valves.

 

I wonder how it broke in the first place?

 

did you ever end up fixing it yourself or getting the work done?


I had the same thing happen on my 2000 e55 amg a week after I bought it, which I believe has the same power steering pump (same as the e320).


Mine was indeed just a bracket the power steering pump bolts to that cracked. I bought a replacement at a junk yard, swapped it (very DIY ~30 minute job) and was fine for the last 7k miles, and it just happened again to my replacement pump.


I was searching to find a replacement bracket (again) and found this thread. I was curious to see I wasn't the only one.

 

I manufacture an upgraded front power steering pump bracket that unlike the pot metal waffle that Mercedes uses it is strong enough to hold the pump by the front mount only. Redesigned with a 3rd hole that mounts into the block, not just the timing chain cover. Endorsed by local Mercedes techs and thousands of tests miles without failure As of June 2021over 50 of these upgraded brackets in use without any failures. $250.00 including priority shipping. Motomorrelli@hotmail.com
or call 386 868 7978. Call for fastest service
ty

 

really, $200?

 

Yes, 199.00 shipped. They are a good amount of labor to make

 

Is that bracket compatible with a 2003 C240?Two consecutive visits to a shop and the cracked bracket has been the result

 

thank you in advance

 

sorry, somehow I'm not getting notifications yes it will work for your C240

 

Hey, our power steering pump bracket that is connected to the block on our T1 208 diesel MB motorhome has also broken. Would these brackets also fit this vehicle if we can find a welder? Not sure what to do!

 

Did you ever get your issue resolved?

 

Hi there. Wow. Sorry for such a delayed reply. No, our situation is still not resolved.

We have a 1990 Mercedes T1 208 diesel motorhome. A while back the bracket/mount for the power steering pump snapped off, leaving the vehicle without power steering and unmanageable/unsafe to drive. The bracket/mount was part of the engine block, but there is nowhere to weld/add another bracket to enable the current power steering pump to be powered (by the serpentine belt). As a short-term solution, we installed a shorter belt which bypassed the power steering unit, so the vehicle can still be moved (with difficulty).

We came up with an idea of purchasing a 12 v 200w motor that directly spun the power steering unit (via a flexible shaft coupling). We fitted that in situ with the existing hoses, appropriate wiring and a switch on the dashboard. The motor was powerful enough to spin the pump (quickly), but whenever the steering wheel was turned the motor cuts out. It appears the motor is not powerful enough.

We are now considering an alternative system, utilising a more powerful hydraulic pump unit (e.g. 12 v 1600w unit) that would be connected to the steering box. Our concern though is that a unit such as this may be too powerful.


The existing alternator on the motorhome is either 55A or 80A (based on what someone from Mercedes told me yesterday).

We are considering installing a hydraulic pump in the cabin somewhere, running hydraulic pipes to the steering box, powered by two batteries, that would need to be charged up somehow interchangeably (and preferably while driving). The vehicle already has a leisure battery and a battery-to-battery charger, which are factors to consider. In principle could this work? And, if so, what would be the best hydraulic pump/unit for the job? Are there any issues we have not considered?

Any assistance with this would be much appreciated. It's such a bespoke fix and we're reticent to give up completely. Noone else seems to have had this problem, at least not with the 208D T1.