richard flasck

any advice on first oil change? i have 7000 mi. on '03 SL. cannot find anything in manuals that refer to mileage. dashboard alert says 4400 more miles before maintenance A. ????

mbtech208

You have 4400 miles left until your first A-service, at which they will do an oil change.

richard flasck

11,400 miles before first oil change???? seems too high mileage.

blueSL

The same question was asked at a recent MB Technical Forum here in the UK and the answer was the same - let the car tell you when it needs a service/oil change.

Lubricants are much better than they used to be and last much longer and there's less wear and especially water absorption to start with. Critical though is that when the oil does need changing, the car gets the oil specifically recommended for the engine and not some old gunk you bought at Wal-Mart several years ago. This also means taking it to the dealer instead of one of these jiffy-lube places who have a vested interest in you coming back for the next dose of sludge.

The car service record includes the amount (time/mileage) by which you over or under-shoot the recommendation and a correctly stamped book of on-time maintenance is going to give the next owner of your car all the warm fuzzies he needs.

Bottom line is that you're wasting your money changing the oil any more often, you'll never see any benefit.

Similar story to with the automatic transmission which is sealed for life and requires no change of ATF fluid, I believe there's even no way to check the level now on the basis that "we put it in there so it must still be there".

awiner

I could argue the 10,000 mile oil change, but all in all I think it's probably ok. I persoanlly choose to change the oil between A and B FSS services. Usually at 5,000 miles.

However, I do not agree with the lifetime fill on the Auto Trans boxes. I don't think even MBtech208 will agree with it.

Nothing lasts for life. If you plan to keep your car past its warranty period, a little prevention can go a long way.

MBtech208, what is you view on the lifetime ATF fill ?

mbtech208

My view is that by the time the warranty period is up, the transmission will have developed several leaks requiring removal of the valve body, and consequently replacement of the ATF. Rarely does a Benz go 50,000 miles without having the trans fluid replaced at least once. Whether it be the 13-pin electrical connector, parking pawl seal, rear output shaft seal, or front pump seal, one of them will start to leak in the course of 50K miles.

awiner

Comforting...

blueSL

I agree that you may need to replace the ATF as a result of unscheduled maintenance to fix leaks but the point I was making is that there is no longer a scheduled replacement of ATF. The design life is for the life of the car, even if leaks spoil the party.

As for the engine oil, it may be the harsher extremes of climate in the US mean more rapid deterioration compared to here in the UK but I doubt Mercedes would risk their reputation for longevity of their cars by artificially inflating the service interval.

My SL600 has so far done 72000 miles and uses (burns/leaks) no oil at all - none. I've never yet needed to add oil between the services and I do not suppose the SL55 will be significantly different. In fact, the manual cautions about over-enthusiatic topping up of oil which can lead to engine damage. The AMG V8 it seems can have too much of a good thing.

Wolfman

I agree with blueSL

Certainly technology has improved maintenance cycles on engines and transmissions.

I remember as far back as 10-15 years ago, I was speaking with numerous people in the US about oil changes on their Mercedes' (126 and 140 bodies). To my amazement, many replaced it as often as every 3000-4000 miles.

I did a fair amount of driving in Germany where you truly push the engine when going for hours near top speed. At that time the standard oil change interval was 10,000 km (6200 miles).
At Mercedes (not just a dealer), I asked some people about the benefit of that habit and the general answer was "A total waste of money". Their point was that even the 10000 Km cycle was considered preventative by Mercedes, already changing it more often than actually needed.

Changing the oil more often than the recommended service cycles will certainly not harm the car, but it may not improve the engine life either...

Wolfman

blueSL

Time was when distance and time were the only measures which could be used to decide when service was required. With intelligence in the car monitoring oil condition, counting cold starts and so on, the service interval can be adapted to the actual use to which the car is being put. This move away from "one size suits all" servicing means that for average users, the service interval can be extended.

My Ferrari is meant to have its cam belts changed every three years and it's big money - $3000 to change $100 worth of belts because the engine has to come out and currently, I'm 15 months overdue. Am I worried? No. The last time it was done, the belts being replaced were pretty much indistinguishable from new.

I don't adhere to the strict three-years-or-it's-armageddon because I know how I drive the car. A 355 being driven hard is well beyond my abilities to control it if all goes horribly wrong and I do not drive it as hard as some might, but nor do I leave it unused for months on end. I'm also kind to engines and let them warm up before extending them.

So, my belts will last a while yet and if they do let go and wreck the engine, the flaw in my logic will be exposed for all to see!