Maverick1975

I have a noise in my engine that occurs at about 1500rpm and is particulalry noticeable when the engine is under stress, going up a hill for example.. From the drivers position it sounds like an annoying mechanical rattle and i actually got under car to check. Took to dealer and had their expert test drive it and he picked the noise straight away and siad it was called 'pinging' and is the result of the engine not getting the right fuel mix or something.

I have never used anything but 98 octane fuel in this car and sometimes the noise is not present (i rarely hear it if when the engine is cold) The noise only started at all after about 5000kms. The dealer said AMG are aware of the problem (and that it was a common issue with the 63 model engine!) and were allegedly working on some sort of fix but god knows what that is. Subsequent complaints to the dealer have not yielded anything except advice to never use anything except 98 octane - which i already use. They said sometimes i might get a dud batch of fuel that causes the noise but the noise is becoming too common to get tank after tnak of dud fuel - besides i go to different fuel stations to buy different fuel try and avoid that.

Has anyone got similar issues or a remedy??

onofew

I have the same exact problem with my 4500mi CLK63
Unfortunately California fuel is only 91 octane, but that is no excuse for the 63 motor to ping like an old car.
I tired several different brands of fuel, before took it in to service to be fixed.
I was told that they could not replicate the problem, while the car still pings like old beat-up car.
This is very frustrating.

CynCarvin32

Same on my S63.

The 6.2L motor is made to run on 100 oct (euro gas) and 93 oct (us gas). If you use gas of a lower grade the car will knock and ping at low RPM under load. For people like me in california 91 is all we get so the 6.2L motor just wont be at its best in my home state. I hear it reduces power as well.

onofew

I find it hard to believe that MB would put out a product that will not run properly with the available fuel on a give country.
I purchase my car from a Authorized dealer in Los Angeles.
91 oct is the highest grade of gasoline back the day I purchased the car till this day. This is not a grey market car.
If the 63 motors fuel requirements are beyond California pump gas, then MB should not be offer this motor to the general public.

Maverick1975

Pleased to report that i took my car into mercedes in my home town this time for its 10,000 km service and let them know about the pinging. They test drove it, picked up the noise straight away driving up a hill. They hooked it up to the computer and found that the ignition timing i think they called was off, made a software adjustment gave it back to me that afternoon and no more pinging. It now feels brand new again, very happy at this stage. I asked them if the changes they made would affect the performance of the car and they said that if anything it will be slightly faster! Certainly feels like a rocket ship again

transferred

onofew CynCarvin is right except US 93 is Euro 97/98 NOT 100.

onofew

So 6.2L motor is not built to run on 91 octane?
I don’t know about you guys but I drive my car every day, I live on a hill and the car is constantly pinging while I’m driving up. That can’t be good for the motor.

onofew

To satisfy my curiosity I filled my tank trick101 racing fuel, blended half and half with 91 pump gas. It is right around 96 oct
The pinging is gone and from seat of pants I can feel the car pulls much harder. It is so much more responsive.

Maverick1975

onofew you must be ecstatic to get rid of pinging, i virtually cried when i unleashed my ml63 with no annoying rattle and the slight increase in power. It was like driving it out of the showroom again for the first time!

Untertürkheim

For those who live in Germany, Shell and Aral have changed their "premium" from the standard 98 to 100. There is no way the car can ping with that octane!

onofew

I’m glad that the car can run at this level, but that is only masking the real issue.
In California super unleaded 91oct is what’s available at all the gas stations.
There are only a handful of gas stations that actually sell racing fuel and it costs $6.40 per gallon. I don’t think anyone including myself in California is willing to blend racing fuel for daily driving. It’s just not convenient and too expensive.

Untertürkheim

Why not just buy octane booster, it should be only $1 per bottle if you buy a case, and each bottle should treat a tank of gas.

onofew

Octane boosters don’t have the same effect as high octane fuel.
They don't always deliver what they claim
Also if they are used regularly you are taking the chance of damaging your sensors and catalytic converter.