It must be a sign of old age, I recently made a deal on a SL 500 a 2005 model. I came here to sign up and read about some of the issues with the car and went to register as a new member, plugged in my standard forum name and it came up as already in use. I logged in and sure enough I had joined the forum 12 years ago when I owned a 300 SD and forgot all about belonging, as I said, getting old.


The car black, tan interior 130,000 miles on it, looks great sounds great and goes down the road well. A couple of issues with the car, rotors show wear, grove on the outside of the rotor, so brakes are in the near future. The car seems to stop well but my guess is that they are down. So rotors and brakes, is there a good aftermarket supplier for them?

Second the pervious owner said that the car had been stored and that everything was fine when it was put away, it now steers hard. After doing a search I see there is a filter and that the fluid should be changed after 30,000 miles so I am assuming this is the logical place to start, any info in that area would be appreciated.


The journey to the SL 500 was a long one, I have been looking at C5 Corvettes, the goal was to replace my Mustang Gt with a quieter car that was still fun to drive. After a lot of research I found that while that C5 is also on the loud side when it comes to road noise, so I may just be getting a different car with the same problem. I liked what I read about the vets and their reliability and performance. The draw back and not trying to sound like a snob...but they really are everywhere, at least in my home town of Watkins Glen. I read all of the reviews on the SL on Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book and a few of the other car selling sites. What turned my direction is the passion that the owners of the SL seem to share and the love of their cars, that along with the reliability and past experience with MB made me decide to go back. The 450 had 295,000 on it when I finally had to give it up due to a very expensive repair "fuel injection pump problems" It was a sad day to see the car go. I am only hoping to have the same kind of relationship with the new car.


Thanks in advance for any info, I looking forward to getting to know you guys and your cars better...Bob

 

I am unaware of the existence of a filter or a maintenance interval for changing the power steering fluid. The power steering and ABC hydraulic system pumps are combined into a single unit -- a "tandem" pump -- perhaps you are thinking of the ABC component, as it does have a filter.

Hard steering could be a worn or defective pump. If you suspect the pump a shop should be able to measure its pressure output. A badly worn component in the steering linkage is another possibility. You could discern that by comparing steering effort with engine off on your vehicle with that of another.

 

Congrats on the purchase. These are complex cars however, in my opinion, the disaster stories are more bark than bite. Not to belittle those who have had big problems...they occur, but I do not believe with the frequency that the rants suggests. Anyway, I had a C6 vette, Grand Sport. Great car. Yes, loud, but it was supposed to be (I thought). Lots of power that was cool to have but almost never used. How could you with normal city/urban driving? I sold it after about five years and it had around 13,000 miles. It was pristine. I have had two SLs...an 04 then the current 2011. The prospect of expensive repairs I constantly think about but so far no issues. Big two seem to be the ABC suspension and roof hydraulics. Has a fancy 'brake by wire' braking system that MB stopped in other models.

About the ABC and power steering...I'm with bobterry. To my knowledge there is no power steering filter. There IS an ABC filter. Unless you know the age and condition of the existing fluid and filter, get it flushed and put in new filter. There is a DIY flush or take it to an indy. Not too expensive. One other point...bobterry mentioned the tandem pump. Just to clarify, my understanding is the ABC suspension and power steering pumps are combined in one housing, but they are separate pumps...one can work without the other. One however cannot be replaced without replacing the other. ABC and power steering have two separate fluid reservoirs and I'm fairly certain the Pentosin CHF 11S can be used comfortably in both systems. Enjoy...and welcome (back) :-) Mark

 

Hi Bob! Welcome to the R230 forum. One question: Why is buying an SL a sign of old age? I'm not old! I'm not even 60 yet!

As for the tandem pump, all that has been said is true. You may have a problem with the power steering side of the pump, or you may have another mechanical problem. Regardless, I suggest keeping at least a few liters of Pentosin CHF-11s on hand in case of leaks - it works for both the ABC and PS sides of the pump.

As for brakes, just remember that before you start any work, you MUST disable the SBC system. Here are the official MBZ instructions:

http://benzbits.com/R230/DeactivateSBC.pdf

As for brands, I actually prefer genuine MBZ pads. I believe that Pagid is the OEM, but honestly, there's not much price difference. Genuine rotors are good, but you can save a few bucks there getting good aftermarket parts like Zimmerman.

 

Thanks guys for the warm welcome and the information. It does seem a bit intimidating to do some of the repair work on the SL this is really the first computerized sports car I have owned. It is encouraging to gain some of the little bits of information from fellow owners, I am trying to avoid some of the simple mistakes, the links and advice are truly appreciated.

The forum can be a scary place for a new owner, most of the posts by other members are "how do you fix" type of posts leaving the impression that every owner struggles with complex problems that require a magic wand and deep pockets to fix. What was encouraging was reading and then reading all of the reviews by happy SL owners on the sales sites that offer the option of owners posting their reviews and experiences with the SL. The SL received almost a perfect reliability rating, it far surpassed some of the other sports cars I looked at, BMW,Mazda, Audi both had some scary feed back when it came to repairs. The SL owners as rule loved the car with only minor complaints.

Rodney, I thought looking at the SL was a sign of old age when I realize it is slower than my mustang and does not sound anywhere near as good. I wish the SL had more of a roar than it does, it also does not have that snap back acceleration that the mustang does because of the added curb weight. I am more than happy to sacrifice both of those for a car that is quite down the road and does not make me sore in the butt after only being behind the wheel for an hour. I have had a 427 Cobra and older Vette and a Austin Healy when I was a kid, all of those seemed to be more sports car like than the SL. Thanks for the link and info about brakes and rotors

Mark, thanks for the details on the pump, I was un aware that the two were the same which might have lead to my confusion, thanks for clarifying

 

Glad it helped. About the ABC suspension, I believe this fellow's info is extremely enlightening: http://mercedes-abc-drive-carefully.blogspot.com/ Mark

 

Mark I have no warning lights, the car just steers hard as if the power steering is not working. The previous owner said that it had happened before, he had the fluid changed and it fixed the problem, he said he saw no leaks then, sees no sign of leaks where the car was stored. I bought the car with the knowledge of the problem with the idea that I would just change the fluid or add fluid. I wonder if the suspension side of the pump is working fine but that the fluid is low or that half of the pump is week. I am on vacation so don't have access to the car as I type this otherwise I could just check the fluid level and confirm my guess.

 

I may be confusing the issue. I was just trying to offer some helpful info on the car and the ABC suspension tends to get a lot of 'ink' and some speak of it as though it cannot be understood. It is a hydraulic suspension with sensors. Hydraulic systems have been in use for decades on lots of machinery. They require maintenance, which MB does not like to advertise on a car that cost over $100k new. About your steering issue, I would not expect the ABC pump has anything to do with steering issues. Just so I was clear, while the ABC suspension pump and power steering pump are in the same housing, they are actually separate pumps, separate reservoirs. Welcome again...Mark