New to me S55
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2003 S55 AMG
New to me S55
Hey guys,
Been looking for quite a long time at buying an E55 or S55 but one happened to fall in my lap a town over for what I felt was a good price. Car has 120K on it (yes I know very high mileage) it is a 2003 and I know the guy before me did not take care of it well in the year he owned it but prior to that all Mercedes dealer maintenance and looked to have been taken care of.
Now that I did the deed an bought the car I just wanted to see what you guys though I should look for now as a preventative measure if anything?
Also, this thing is a BLAST to drive. Only issue I am having is a slight problem with the F'in ABC system. Will try and get that sorted asap.
Been looking for quite a long time at buying an E55 or S55 but one happened to fall in my lap a town over for what I felt was a good price. Car has 120K on it (yes I know very high mileage) it is a 2003 and I know the guy before me did not take care of it well in the year he owned it but prior to that all Mercedes dealer maintenance and looked to have been taken care of.
Now that I did the deed an bought the car I just wanted to see what you guys though I should look for now as a preventative measure if anything?
Also, this thing is a BLAST to drive. Only issue I am having is a slight problem with the F'in ABC system. Will try and get that sorted asap.
Thread Starter
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2003 S55 AMG
Also, my issues with the ABC is the everything is great until you shut the car off then both front shocks sag down to basically nothing within a few minutes. Start the car back up and she raises to where she needs to be no issue. Sometimes I get the ABC dash warning and sometimes I dont. I was told the Pump was recently replaced and fairly certain it was then this happened.... Any thoughts? Could this be caused by improper bleeding? Both fronts would drop?
Member
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 212
Likes: 70
2003 S55 (SOLD) , 2012 S550
Congrats on the Car.
The Front Shocks sagging down will be either the Valve Block or the Internal Seals. More likely the Valve Block though since it is a common issue.
Flush the system with fresh fluid and see if it gets better as it removes the dirt. Also go ahead and buy 2 new filters. They made the filters catch smaller particles and if you still have the old style then it wont help.
As far as the mileage is concerned....120k is not much.... i am at 238k and she is still running strong.
Do all the maintenance and she will be fine. I would do ALL fluids right now....Oil and Filter (Correct MANN HU 718/5x...don't buy ANYTHING else)...Change the Supercharger Oil....change the Diff Oil and change and flush the brake system.
Good luck with her
The Front Shocks sagging down will be either the Valve Block or the Internal Seals. More likely the Valve Block though since it is a common issue.
Flush the system with fresh fluid and see if it gets better as it removes the dirt. Also go ahead and buy 2 new filters. They made the filters catch smaller particles and if you still have the old style then it wont help.
As far as the mileage is concerned....120k is not much.... i am at 238k and she is still running strong.
Do all the maintenance and she will be fine. I would do ALL fluids right now....Oil and Filter (Correct MANN HU 718/5x...don't buy ANYTHING else)...Change the Supercharger Oil....change the Diff Oil and change and flush the brake system.
Good luck with her
Member
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 111
Likes: 11
From: MD
2005 S55 AMG, 2005 S500
Hey guys,
Been looking for quite a long time at buying an E55 or S55 but one happened to fall in my lap a town over for what I felt was a good price. Car has 120K on it (yes I know very high mileage) it is a 2003 and I know the guy before me did not take care of it well in the year he owned it but prior to that all Mercedes dealer maintenance and looked to have been taken care of.
Now that I did the deed an bought the car I just wanted to see what you guys though I should look for now as a preventative measure if anything?
Also, this thing is a BLAST to drive. Only issue I am having is a slight problem with the F'in ABC system. Will try and get that sorted asap.
Been looking for quite a long time at buying an E55 or S55 but one happened to fall in my lap a town over for what I felt was a good price. Car has 120K on it (yes I know very high mileage) it is a 2003 and I know the guy before me did not take care of it well in the year he owned it but prior to that all Mercedes dealer maintenance and looked to have been taken care of.
Now that I did the deed an bought the car I just wanted to see what you guys though I should look for now as a preventative measure if anything?
Also, this thing is a BLAST to drive. Only issue I am having is a slight problem with the F'in ABC system. Will try and get that sorted asap.
If the car rises up when gear in D or R, then it is more likely valve block seal issue. Replace whole valve block or replace all o-rings in the valve block.
Sun
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2003 S55 AMG
That is exactly why I am stumped. I was told the valve block was replaced recently with a MB factory unit. Also, from what I have read this is not something I should take on myself and should have a dealer look at it.... Especially needing the scan tool to reset light and do the "rodeo" for bleeding system...?
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2017
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
2003 S55 AMG
Congrats on the Car.
The Front Shocks sagging down will be either the Valve Block or the Internal Seals. More likely the Valve Block though since it is a common issue.
Flush the system with fresh fluid and see if it gets better as it removes the dirt. Also go ahead and buy 2 new filters. They made the filters catch smaller particles and if you still have the old style then it wont help.
As far as the mileage is concerned....120k is not much.... i am at 238k and she is still running strong.
Do all the maintenance and she will be fine. I would do ALL fluids right now....Oil and Filter (Correct MANN HU 718/5x...don't buy ANYTHING else)...Change the Supercharger Oil....change the Diff Oil and change and flush the brake system.
Good luck with her
The Front Shocks sagging down will be either the Valve Block or the Internal Seals. More likely the Valve Block though since it is a common issue.
Flush the system with fresh fluid and see if it gets better as it removes the dirt. Also go ahead and buy 2 new filters. They made the filters catch smaller particles and if you still have the old style then it wont help.
As far as the mileage is concerned....120k is not much.... i am at 238k and she is still running strong.
Do all the maintenance and she will be fine. I would do ALL fluids right now....Oil and Filter (Correct MANN HU 718/5x...don't buy ANYTHING else)...Change the Supercharger Oil....change the Diff Oil and change and flush the brake system.
Good luck with her
As far as the MANN filter I actually just changed the oil and purchased the Mobil 1 filter which was the most expensive but when I went to put it on it seemed very cheaply made just a paper filter and the one I took off the car seemed to have almost a mesh material on the inner part of the filter vs the all paper mobil 1 filter. Can I just replace the filter from the top without draining the oil or do I have to drain before taking the filter off? I will switch out to the MANN filter if so...
Member
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 111
Likes: 11
From: MD
2005 S55 AMG, 2005 S500
That is exactly why I am stumped. I was told the valve block was replaced recently with a MB factory unit. Also, from what I have read this is not something I should take on myself and should have a dealer look at it.... Especially needing the scan tool to reset light and do the "rodeo" for bleeding system...?
Good luck!
Sun
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Member
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2003 S55 (SOLD) , 2012 S550
The 55k engines do indeed have forged internals so if you take care of them they will not fail you. The electronics and convenience features are a totally different story though. As far as the Mann filter. The Oil pump is a low pressure high volume pump so a paper filter will restrict way too much. The Mann is a fleece filter that will let the volume pass.
Good luck.
Good luck.
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2003 S55 AMG
UPDATE - Found out that the pump itself was replaced and the front block was "Removed, Cleaned and Reassembled" but I am still having the issue where car drops minutes after being shut off. No visible leaking on struts, maybe they did a sh*t job on "rebuilding" the block?
Member
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 111
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From: MD
2005 S55 AMG, 2005 S500
UPDATE - Found out that the pump itself was replaced and the front block was "Removed, Cleaned and Reassembled" but I am still having the issue where car drops minutes after being shut off. No visible leaking on struts, maybe they did a sh*t job on "rebuilding" the block?
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Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 443
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'03 S55 (79K miles)
you don't need special tools or scan tool for a rodeo.
UPDATE - Found out that the pump itself was replaced and the front block was "Removed, Cleaned and Reassembled" but I am still having the issue where car drops minutes after being shut off. No visible leaking on struts, maybe they did a sh*t job on "rebuilding" the block?
This is a straightforward repair. You don't need special tools to remove the front valve block to get it on a bench to get out the valves and replace the O-rings. Just remove the front plastic belly pan and wheel well liner to get access. Then simple open-end wrenches or flare wrenches to unscrew the 4 (or is it 5?) hoses and disconnect the 4 electrical connectors. The block is bolted to a carrier bracket with rubber bushings that help isolate noise. You unbolt from that and disconnect the cannon ball accumulator to get to the block itself. Once on the bench, remove the plastic cover/ retainer clips to get to the valves, which then simply twist and pull out. Good luck finding the best matching Viton O-rings. Very simple with only caution being to keep dirt out of the hose openings.
There's a great YouTube video demonstrating this.
When you are ready to replace just make sure you reattach all hydraulic lines and connectors and accumulator to their rightful places and reinstall. You do not need a special scan tool to run rodeo. Or I should say that I did not. I was careful to not let to much fluid drip out (capped the hoses with rubber glove fingers/elastic while they were disconnected. I simply used the up/down switch 20 or 30 times to bleed out bubbles.
You might as well also plan to do this before a complete ABC filter replacement.
Pentosin CHF-11S is the proper fluid.
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2003 S55 AMG
Thanks for all the info guys I have been looking into it for a few weeks now and think I can handle it no problem. Unfortunately but fortunately (if that makes any sense) the fluid was supposedly flushed and filter replaced when they put the new pump in +/- 2k miles ago but the paperwork says they used P/S fluid? Hopefully this was just a miss type on the invoice as they charged $23/Quart to the previous owner. Am I correct in saying both the Power steering fluid and the ABC system should be using the same Pentosin and it should be a green color not red?
Member
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 111
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From: MD
2005 S55 AMG, 2005 S500
Thanks for all the info guys I have been looking into it for a few weeks now and think I can handle it no problem. Unfortunately but fortunately (if that makes any sense) the fluid was supposedly flushed and filter replaced when they put the new pump in +/- 2k miles ago but the paperwork says they used P/S fluid? Hopefully this was just a miss type on the invoice as they charged $23/Quart to the previous owner. Am I correct in saying both the Power steering fluid and the ABC system should be using the same Pentosin and it should be a green color not red?
This is fresh fluid After I installed a magnet fiter on the return line.
Sun
Last edited by bigmyself; Sep 9, 2017 at 04:37 PM.
Thread Starter
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2003 S55 AMG
Member
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 212
Likes: 70
2003 S55 (SOLD) , 2012 S550
You can get CHF11S 5 Liters on ebay for$71 shipped. Ordered it multiple times already and never had an issue. Comes to $14.50 per liter. I wanted to switch to another fluid but most other hydraulic fluid is flammable where CHF11S is not. A few month ago i had a pinhole in the high pressure line right from the pump and it sprayed the fluid right onto the exhaust manifold. At that point i was really glad i didnt switch. Your Car uses the same fluid for the Power Steering. Like i said before....DO NOT TRUST anything the previous owner/dealer tells you. Replace ALL the fluids and sleep tight knowing its done right!! It pays off....
Good luck
Good luck
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Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 111
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From: MD
2005 S55 AMG, 2005 S500
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 443
Likes: 118
'03 S55 (79K miles)
P/S fluid should also be Pentosin CHF-11S
The Power Steering and the ABC system both use Pentosin CHF-11S.
So as long as the dealer used the right "P/S fluid", you should be ok.
Just buy a 5L jug to have around for top-offs or repairs.
So as long as the dealer used the right "P/S fluid", you should be ok.
Just buy a 5L jug to have around for top-offs or repairs.
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2003 S55 AMG
Here are the pics. Another thing I am noticing is with the Tranny. Seems when I am taking it easy on her there seems to be some shuttering at low speed light throttle. Not slipping more of a light back and forth only I can notice it, not sure if maybe a tranny mount issue? Also seems to be starting out if 4th gear based on switching it to manual always says 4th gear? I am planning to do a filter change in the near future and possibly change the plate in there as well but what are symptoms of a tranny mount being bad?
Last edited by DEBENZO; Sep 12, 2017 at 09:56 AM.
