check engine light on, vibrates in idle
Thread Starter
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Joined: May 2004
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check engine light on, vibrates in idle
We are having problems with my wife's 2000 ML320 with 60,000 miles on it. I'm wondering if any one has any suggestion on what could be the cause of the engine warning light and strong vibrations from the engine especially when the car is brought to a stop stopped. Putting the transmission into "P" reduces the vibration ony by a bit. When in motion I notice less vibration than in "P". Shifting to "N" doen't eliminate the probem either. We've had this vibration problem for 2 weeks but the check engine light only came on yesterday when the vibrations were more severe. The SUV is OK otherwise.
I would really appreciate your thoughts on this.
I would really appreciate your thoughts on this.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 4,781
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From: Boston
'05 A4 1.8TQM6
the MAF is fragile...or better yet, the sensors inside the MAF are sensitive. Possible something slipped through the air filter and made contact with the MAF and caused it to die.
MAF's are a common thing that trigger the CEL and get rough vibrations and slow pickup.
MAF's are a common thing that trigger the CEL and get rough vibrations and slow pickup.
Member
Joined: Jan 2003
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From: Chesapeake, Virginia
'11 C300
When my check engine light came on recently it was only a short while later that the engine started running roughly but I was able to make it to work. When I left work ran fine briefly then same thing and about two miles down the freeway I had no power and pulled off the freeway. I ended up being towed to the dealer and it was a plugged catalytic converter. '99ML 320 with 61k miles. Warranty covered it. Luckily we weren't in the middle of nowhere. I would get it in and get it checked. I had an MAF go bad on my wife's C280, kind of the same indications but not as severe.
Thread Starter
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Thanks Ottobon. My C class's MAF engine problem was not as noticable either. It was mainly difficulty with starting. Thre was no vibration. Seeing that it could be the catalytic converter I will definitely bring it in soon. ( By the way the CEL is now off and the vibration does not seem as bad. These changes (temporary?) were brought on by simply refilling the gas tank.) Any other idea out there?
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Junior Member
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 58
Likes: 1
From: San Francisco, CA
2005 SL55 AMG
this might be sacrilegious to a Mercedes forum, but I a similar problem on a Toyota - less vibration on idle, but on D it vibrates a lot, as if the RPM is *just* above stalling. It started as a very slight vibration, and i let it go on until it was basically stalling the car when it was idling.
The problem? An vacuum leak in the fuel induction system was causing air to leak out and fuel to pass intermittently to the engine. It's worth a try to see...
regards,
riz
The problem? An vacuum leak in the fuel induction system was causing air to leak out and fuel to pass intermittently to the engine. It's worth a try to see...
regards,
riz
Thread Starter
Newbie
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Just got back from the dealer. It WAS the MAF! The dealer fixed it under major warranty at no cost... This was a pleasant surprise. It would have been $582 Canadian. ( over $400 USD ) After reading all the posts I had a strong feeling it would be the MAF. I was tempted to buy the MAF and plug it in myself but am glad I went to the dealer for this one.
Thanks to all who helped. You guys are good!
Thanks to all who helped. You guys are good!
Thread Starter
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Joined: May 2004
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Weaker vibrations continued after the new MAF was replaced. Another trip to the dealer revealed 2 faulty spark plug cables and 2 spark plugs. Also malfunctioning tachometer (stuck at zero for the first few seconds after engine start up) not mentioned previously was related to the faulty cables. Trip computer is dead! Unfortunately both problems are not under warranty. Because of a shortage of parts at the dealership these problems have not been fixed yet. Does any one know how difficult the sparkplug job would be?
