Hi guys, I was driving today and suddenly around a corner this piece shot out of under the car (2000/S430). i picked it up and managed to drive the car home (about one kilometer). it drove okay but i could hear low noise coming from the front wheel when it was spinning and maybe small vibration at steering wheel. no warning lights at the dashboards though. i checked under the car and there is oil under engine (not dripping on asphalt) and also the fallen part was oily too. any idea what this piece of metal gear was for? not sure if i should drive the car to my mechanic on Monday (10km). cheers

 

That is not a part from the car. It is part of a tool used to work on the car. I am absolutely sure that it has absolutely nothing to do with any noises, leaks, or vibrations that you are experiencing. If those symptoms are real they were certainly there before the tool fell out. My guess is that a mechanic working on the car dropped it and could not find the tool and just left it.

Bottom line...DRIVE the car to the dealer for service on the leak/vibration/noise.

K

 

agree with keith. That is a torx driver.

 

All those symptoms you describe. Were any of them there before you discovered "the tool". When is the last time you had the car worked on?

 

cheers for replies guys. i drove the car today and it turns out that you are absolutely right the piece of metal was from a tool left in the engine. i panicked because it saw the oily wet piece on the road. also this car has been giving us so much troubles recently that i have become paranoid i would not be surprised if a piece actually fell off this car! anyhow it helped me to look under the engine and discover the oil spill so i guess its back to the mechanic. there seems to be some sort of problem with either BAS or ABS as the brakes are very jerky and jumpy. they don't catch well and then they catch again. both the pads and disc are brand new so they can not be warped. cheers

 

Torx bit...hold on to it..you'll need it. Get a T27 also. Most screws on these cars take a T27 torx bit