Blower Problem??
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Blower Problem??
Hey MB World, hope you're all doing well.
Unfortunately I've been experiencing power loss in my W211 spaceship as of recently and I cannot understand why. The first day I had the issue I was driving and the car started surging and breaking up upon slight acceleration. My gas was very very low and I was on the way to the gas station when it happened, so I figured it was just maybe one of the injectors not receiving the fuel necessary. Coolant temps have never changed so I know it's not the pump.
Even after a full tank of gas it continued to break up. I was picking up a subtle 'clicking' noise from the motor, which made me feel confused as I had already installed the smaller clutched pulley with bearing replacement. This couldn't have been more than 1.5 years ago, so I guess one of my questions is: Can anyone give an estimate to the life of the Nachi bearing?
The bearing seat is no where near as bad as the one I had to replace previously, but the pulley is making some chatter. When turning the pulley with the belt removed it doesn't spin freely from the steel drum of the blower so does that mean the clutch itself is bad? Also, when I try getting my ear as close to the motor as possible, it almost sounds as if the clicking is coming internally from the blower itself. (might just be normal)
Not to jump to any conclusion but I have read some users on the forum have experienced bearing toward the back of the supercharger going bad and damaging the vortices inside. I doubt this is the case but at the same time, the last thing I want is to ignore any sign of possible damage.
Sorry about the length of text guys, but I do hope someone has some insight to help me diagnose the issue. I'm fairly certain it could be just the bearing or clutch but I don't wanna swap pulleys again to learn that it is a different problem.
Thanks, Nafis
Unfortunately I've been experiencing power loss in my W211 spaceship as of recently and I cannot understand why. The first day I had the issue I was driving and the car started surging and breaking up upon slight acceleration. My gas was very very low and I was on the way to the gas station when it happened, so I figured it was just maybe one of the injectors not receiving the fuel necessary. Coolant temps have never changed so I know it's not the pump.
Even after a full tank of gas it continued to break up. I was picking up a subtle 'clicking' noise from the motor, which made me feel confused as I had already installed the smaller clutched pulley with bearing replacement. This couldn't have been more than 1.5 years ago, so I guess one of my questions is: Can anyone give an estimate to the life of the Nachi bearing?
The bearing seat is no where near as bad as the one I had to replace previously, but the pulley is making some chatter. When turning the pulley with the belt removed it doesn't spin freely from the steel drum of the blower so does that mean the clutch itself is bad? Also, when I try getting my ear as close to the motor as possible, it almost sounds as if the clicking is coming internally from the blower itself. (might just be normal)
Not to jump to any conclusion but I have read some users on the forum have experienced bearing toward the back of the supercharger going bad and damaging the vortices inside. I doubt this is the case but at the same time, the last thing I want is to ignore any sign of possible damage.
Sorry about the length of text guys, but I do hope someone has some insight to help me diagnose the issue. I'm fairly certain it could be just the bearing or clutch but I don't wanna swap pulleys again to learn that it is a different problem.
Thanks, Nafis
Super Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 626
Likes: 8
From: UK
E55K AMG
Coolant temps have never changed so I know it's not the pump.
plug the car onto a STAR machine and read the fault codes
Even after a full tank of gas it continued to break up.
check your fuel pumps connections filters , chances are the pumps ran dry or sucked crap up when you were low on fuel.
Can anyone give an estimate to the life of the Nachi bearing?
you would know if it went, they make a big mess and noise, same with the whole super charger
plug the car onto a STAR machine and read the fault codes
Even after a full tank of gas it continued to break up.
check your fuel pumps connections filters , chances are the pumps ran dry or sucked crap up when you were low on fuel.
Can anyone give an estimate to the life of the Nachi bearing?
you would know if it went, they make a big mess and noise, same with the whole super charger
Last edited by £ C43 £ AMG £; Jan 22, 2015 at 12:34 PM.
Senior Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 293
Likes: 20
From: Houston/Plano, TX
2005 E55, 2009 VW GLI
The pulley is supposed to spin freely without any interference from the magnetic plate. Are you saying the pulley and magnetic plate are spinning as one without a belt?
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Shardul, the car isn't making boost at all. It just feels as if the clutch doesn't engage the blower at all, and only runs on the cylinders. I've since taken the belt off to avoid further harm for now. I haven't check IAT's yet but I would assume everything is in check.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 2,279
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From: A to the Z (the state)
'06 E55
It's not the simplest of tasks, but you can pull the supercharger and look at the vanes from the bottom. If they're making contact anywhere, there should be some visual indications.
Mine is making some noise and it sounds like it's coming from the rear bearings. It has always made some clatter, but it's getting louder and worse. I've been checking out places to see if a rebuild is possible. So far, the general consensus is no, but "I know a guy who knows a guy" and they are working on a procedure. The main issue preventing rebuilds are the front bearings.
Mine is making some noise and it sounds like it's coming from the rear bearings. It has always made some clatter, but it's getting louder and worse. I've been checking out places to see if a rebuild is possible. So far, the general consensus is no, but "I know a guy who knows a guy" and they are working on a procedure. The main issue preventing rebuilds are the front bearings.
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Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
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From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Thanks all. Really appreciate the help guys. I'll try to include a video clip where it seems like there is dust surrounding the area of the blower. If I could have any guess it seems like it could be dust from the clutch slipping, as its a reddish brown color. Somewhat similar to what normal transmission clutch dust looks like.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but as of my knowledge the supercharger engages around in the upper 2,XXX RPM range so below that the drum shouldn't be "stuck" to the pulley contacting the belt (even when the car is in park?). So if my pulley and clutch drum are having a hard time rotating against each other without me having to spin the two sides oppositely in different directions, could that possibly suggest failure of the clutch? LMK what anyone is thinking.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but as of my knowledge the supercharger engages around in the upper 2,XXX RPM range so below that the drum shouldn't be "stuck" to the pulley contacting the belt (even when the car is in park?). So if my pulley and clutch drum are having a hard time rotating against each other without me having to spin the two sides oppositely in different directions, could that possibly suggest failure of the clutch? LMK what anyone is thinking.
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Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 71
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2008 C63 AMG
My car did this to me out of the blue the other day, no power from the s/c no boost registering on scanner. found it had a pending code for the IAT sensor(signal implausible), so check engine light was not on. i cleaned the sensor and verified it was reading properly, cleared the code and its been perfect for almost a month with no issue now.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
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From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Thanks cptcreme! Mine is the same in that I don't get any CEL. I'll have to check the IAT sensor. I'm not in front of my car right now so I'm not looking at the motor, do you know where the sensor is located? Is it on the lower intake manifold under the throttle?
Last edited by NafisC; Jan 22, 2015 at 03:39 PM.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
Likes: 0
From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Yes, that is exactly what is happening. The only way to get them to operate freely from each other requires plenty of force from both hands. There is no gap between magnetic plate and the pulley, as it grinds when I use force to turn it.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 56
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From: San Diego, CA
W211 E55 AMG
Hey guys, reviving this thread from a couple days ago.
I have a couple options to fix my dilemma of a possibly bad blower. I believe that my clutch mechanism is pretty much dead at this point, and may have reason to believe there could be internal damage to the supercharger because of what seems like a "dry" rattling type of noise I'm hearing coming from the engine. Chime in as to what option you think is best.
Option 1:
Buy a working supercharger system (whole blower with magnetic clutch and pulley attached) and install it on the car, replacing the stock pulley with a fixed one. This option will ensure that I wont have internal blower problems.
Option 2: Replace just the pulley with a new fixed pulley. If the clutch drum isn't working, will it matter since I'd be switching to a pulley that does not use the clutch mechanism? Or will I have to install a magnetic drum in order for the supercharger to work? This option may be less invasive, but if problems inside the supercharger DO exist, that will not be a sufficient fix.
Does the drum come off easily? I know I can install a new fixed pulley no problem, but I don't have access to special tools like a bearing press if there are bearings within the clutch assembly behind the pulley.
I have a couple options to fix my dilemma of a possibly bad blower. I believe that my clutch mechanism is pretty much dead at this point, and may have reason to believe there could be internal damage to the supercharger because of what seems like a "dry" rattling type of noise I'm hearing coming from the engine. Chime in as to what option you think is best.
Option 1:
Buy a working supercharger system (whole blower with magnetic clutch and pulley attached) and install it on the car, replacing the stock pulley with a fixed one. This option will ensure that I wont have internal blower problems.
Option 2: Replace just the pulley with a new fixed pulley. If the clutch drum isn't working, will it matter since I'd be switching to a pulley that does not use the clutch mechanism? Or will I have to install a magnetic drum in order for the supercharger to work? This option may be less invasive, but if problems inside the supercharger DO exist, that will not be a sufficient fix.
Does the drum come off easily? I know I can install a new fixed pulley no problem, but I don't have access to special tools like a bearing press if there are bearings within the clutch assembly behind the pulley.
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Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 2,279
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From: A to the Z (the state)
'06 E55
Before buying a new unit, you should pull this one off and look on the inside. Other than that, try option 2. But you said the unit does not spin freely when you pull the belt and try to rotate it by hand?
