TELL me what is going on CHECK ENGINE
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 222
Likes: 0
From: Central, FL
Viper/Z06/E55/GT500
TELL me what is going on CHECK ENGINE
Driving to work, esp turned off for a little fun. All is cool... Get to work, park, go inside.
Come out an hour later, start car, says ESP MALFUNCTION or something like that and car will only go 1mph, can not give it gas. Turn car off, try again, same thing. Go back inside. Come out about 30 min. later, try again. Seems fine, BUT check engine light is now on.
What do you think? Should I try to unplug the battery and see if it clears the code or take it in?
Thanks in advance,
Jason
Come out an hour later, start car, says ESP MALFUNCTION or something like that and car will only go 1mph, can not give it gas. Turn car off, try again, same thing. Go back inside. Come out about 30 min. later, try again. Seems fine, BUT check engine light is now on.
What do you think? Should I try to unplug the battery and see if it clears the code or take it in?
Thanks in advance,
Jason
Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 224
Likes: 0
From: Cary, IL
2003 CL55 Kompressor Horizon Blue Metallic
Driving to work, esp turned off for a little fun. All is cool... Get to work, park, go inside.
Come out an hour later, start car, says ESP MALFUNCTION or something like that and car will only go 1mph, can not give it gas. Turn car off, try again, same thing. Go back inside. Come out about 30 min. later, try again. Seems fine, BUT check engine light is now on.
What do you think? Should I try to unplug the battery and see if it clears the code or take it in?
Thanks in advance,
Jason
Come out an hour later, start car, says ESP MALFUNCTION or something like that and car will only go 1mph, can not give it gas. Turn car off, try again, same thing. Go back inside. Come out about 30 min. later, try again. Seems fine, BUT check engine light is now on.
What do you think? Should I try to unplug the battery and see if it clears the code or take it in?
Thanks in advance,
Jason
If it is an issue with the electronic throttle control, wheel speed sensor, etc, the techs should be able to see a code indicating a problem.
Could be a number of simple things ... but in my case, what you have described was a case of my torque convertor lock-up not disengaging. So, basically it was like trying to get the car rolling without any torque convertor action. Even more fun is that this will cause the supercharger to engage because of the high load, making the car fall on it's *** even more. If it happens again, the dead giveaway on this is that the RPM gain will be real "heavy" when the car is in park or neutral. Turning the car off and then on again will sometimes get the TC lock-up clutch to unstick.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 348
Likes: 1
Same problem on SLK55 AMG
I'm sorry to revive this thread, but I've just had the same exact problem on my SLK55. I went for a drive today after not driving it for a couple of weeks and made a stop at the mall. Spent about 1 hour there and when I tried to start the car again, "ESP malfunction, visit workshop" message came on. The car would only drive like 5-7mph, assuming it was in "llimp mode" or something.
I tried restarting the car a few times, but that didn't solve the problem. Just as I was about to call a tow truck, I tried starting it one last time and what do you know - the car is working perfect. The "ESP malfunction" message and CEL light are still on, but the car drives perfect. What the hell happened here? First its only driving 5mph in limp mode, then the next thing you know its back to normal. I drove home about 10 miles on the highway and no problems whatever (except the CEL). What the hell is going on?
P.S. This may sound crazy, but I got the power back right after I put the car in R and gave it some gas. I had to turn the car around, and fully expected it to still be in "limp" mode, but to my surpise it went in reverse like nothing was wrong. When I put it back in D, it was also working fine and I drove home. Not sure if putting in R actually solved the problem or if that was just a conicidence.
I tried restarting the car a few times, but that didn't solve the problem. Just as I was about to call a tow truck, I tried starting it one last time and what do you know - the car is working perfect. The "ESP malfunction" message and CEL light are still on, but the car drives perfect. What the hell happened here? First its only driving 5mph in limp mode, then the next thing you know its back to normal. I drove home about 10 miles on the highway and no problems whatever (except the CEL). What the hell is going on?
P.S. This may sound crazy, but I got the power back right after I put the car in R and gave it some gas. I had to turn the car around, and fully expected it to still be in "limp" mode, but to my surpise it went in reverse like nothing was wrong. When I put it back in D, it was also working fine and I drove home. Not sure if putting in R actually solved the problem or if that was just a conicidence.
Last edited by Tuskir; Mar 8, 2008 at 08:28 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,947
Likes: 8
From: Oklahoma City
2015 AMG C63 S
I'm sorry to revive this thread, but I've just had the same exact problem on my SLK55. I went for a drive today after not driving it for a couple of weeks and made a stop at the mall. Spent about 1 hour there and when I tried to start the car again, "ESP malfunction, visit workshop" message came on. The car would only drive like 5-7mph, assuming it was in "llimp mode" or something.
I tried restarting the car a few times, but that didn't solve the problem. Just as I was about to call a tow truck, I tried starting it one last time and what do you know - the car is working perfect. The "ESP malfunction" message and CEL light are still on, but the car drives perfect. What the hell happened here? First its only driving 5mph in limp mode, then the next thing you know its back to normal. I drove home about 10 miles on the highway and no problems whatever (except the CEL). What the hell is going on?
P.S. This may sound crazy, but I got the power back right after I put the car in R and gave it some gas. I had to turn the car around, and fully expected it to still be in "limp" mode, but to my surpise it went in reverse like nothing was wrong. When I put it back in D, it was also working fine and I drove home. Not sure if putting in R actually solved the problem or if that was just a conicidence.
I tried restarting the car a few times, but that didn't solve the problem. Just as I was about to call a tow truck, I tried starting it one last time and what do you know - the car is working perfect. The "ESP malfunction" message and CEL light are still on, but the car drives perfect. What the hell happened here? First its only driving 5mph in limp mode, then the next thing you know its back to normal. I drove home about 10 miles on the highway and no problems whatever (except the CEL). What the hell is going on?
P.S. This may sound crazy, but I got the power back right after I put the car in R and gave it some gas. I had to turn the car around, and fully expected it to still be in "limp" mode, but to my surpise it went in reverse like nothing was wrong. When I put it back in D, it was also working fine and I drove home. Not sure if putting in R actually solved the problem or if that was just a conicidence.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 348
Likes: 1
Trending Topics
MB World Stories
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
Manual Mercedes? 6 Times Sindelfingen Let Drivers Have All The Fun
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Verdad Gallardo
8 Classic Boxy Mercedes Designs That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Verdad Gallardo
Flawlessly Restored Mercedes 190E Evo II Heads to Auction
Verdad Gallardo
Electric Mercedes C-Class Unveiled: 11 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes EQS Gets A Major Update: Everything You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
5 Underrated Mercedes-Benz Models That Don't Get the Love They Deserve
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes 300D Has Pushed Well Past 1 Million Miles and It Ain't Stopping
Verdad Gallardo
10 Most Reliable Mercedes-Benz Models You Can Buy Used
Verdad Gallardo
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 348
Likes: 1
I still have no idea what it was. The car is still working fine, however, the "ESP malfunction" error and CEL light are on. The good thing is that the car never went to "limp mode" again (fingers crossed!). I'm taking it in tomorrow or tuesday....
