Well, the honeymoon is over! The main pressure line coming from the pump developed a pinhole leak. On the way to the office Monday, I smelled something like an oily/burning odor, but thought it must have been a truck up ahead on the highway. While out at lunch, I got a ABC malfunction (white screen) so I figured the smell was fluid. Luckily I was a block from an Auto Zone that had some CHF 11s, so I bought two liters and filled the reservoir with one, and made it home with no issues. I checked under the hood and could see a steady, tiny stream of fluid spraying out of the hose, right onto the belt and pump. So, I have a new hose coming. At least it was a good excuse to put some new tires on the C240!

 

Honeymoon over? I'm sure you'll fix it fast and get back with it Good thing you spotted and are on it to get fixed. Someone who doesn't know would take it to the dealer and pay huge $$$ to get it fixed, and after that he'd post another "Never buy an SL" thread

But in good DIY hands it will be a fast and easy fix

P.S.
I saw your post on the other forum I guess, as many of us, trying to get the best out of these forums

Regards

 

Hose will be here Friday - $264 from mboemparts. My local dealer was "graciously" discounting to $299 + 10% tax! No thanks - I have a perfectly good 15 year old C240 to drive while I wait on shipping. I checked a few local hose shops and they all wanted about $100 for the repair. I figured I'd rather get a whole new one instead of the possibility of chasing leaks.

 

Replaced the hose today. This would have been about a two hour job, except for two things. One, the bolts holding the hose to the pump have very little room for access and two, I had to remove all the under-body panels and clean them as fluid had run all the way back to the left rear tire.

There are two T30 Torx bolts (internal style) holding the hose to the pump and there is about an inch of space between them and the frame. I have a Crafstman Maxx Axess set that is great for tight places, but its sockets are only external Torx. I have a set of 1/4 inch drive screwdriver bits that includes a T30 so I used that with a 1/4 inch end wrench to turn it. Luckily it's only 9Nm torque. If I had one of those Gear Wrench tool sets, it would have made it much easier. Of course I kept dropping the wrench and bit.

The other end connects to the front axle valve unit, which sits ahead of the front left wheel, under the fender shroud. That connection uses an internal hex (a.k.a Alan head) bolts. 6mm did the trick on it, and although it's behind the bumper so it's hard to see, it was much easier to remove. There are also a couple of brackets holding the hose in place. The one on top did need my Maxx Axess wrench to get to it as there was little clearance behind the engine fan.

I lost just over 2 liters of fluid, most of which was caught in the under body panels, most of which poured out onto the garage floor in front of the right rear tire when I raised the front end. I removed all of them and took them out in the driveway for washing with detergent and a pressure washer. I hate the smell of CHF 11s! It's like burning diesel or kerosene.

Anyhow, once everything was back together and the reservoir filled, I gave it a try and all is well. I heard a little air in the system so I did bleed the front left valve and what came out was VERY dirty! I'll be doing a flush/filter cycle ASAP!