I wonder if you could get a connector to attach to the loom and then somehow pull a small vacuum on it to draw the oil out of the loom on cars that are affected using the same capillary type action that is drawing it along the loom the other way.

Me too!

ive done this to the ecu connection and it works. Never tried it on cps

Any pics of this Ecu harness hack?

Re the sacrificial harness: I imagined that this harness bodge was an aftermarket product when I ordered it. But...nooooo, This thing is an official MB part! This is how MB solves serious issues with their engines?

Peter.....Which hack are you referring to...we seem to need a lot of them.

@AMGfifty5 he said he had a hack for the ecu about 3 posts up

any pics?

Another related thread with good info

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...r-leaking.html

so i was able to check my ecu connectors....NO oil thank goodness. I had a some difficulty unplugging them. Figured out the pull tab.

Then i checked one connector, and it had oil. Ive decided to forget looking at the rest and I will just buy new sensors and magnets. I dont know if i can install them, maybe a couple. I was struggling just to get the tabs off the connectors pulled back to open the plugs. Maybe i didnt try hard enough.. LOL dont want to break anything

You have to get a right angle dental pick into the slot of the plugs where the pull tab is to jiggle the internal connector ... I learned this the hard way ... just popping the grey tab isn't good enough... same as ignition coil connectors

yeah i saw kenny used that on his video... but he was standing infront of it so couldnt see

i actually posted some pics of the oil that was caught on the paper towel I used in another post. But basically what I did was put a paper towel over a nozzle of a vacuum and just let it in one area for 1-2 mins and moved it along from left to right for like 10 mins. At first I caught a lot of oil then changed the sheet after each pass to monitor the amount of oil it was getting out of the ecu harness until it wasn’t getting any oil on it.

then I sprayed contact cleaner on it, used compressed air and repeated the steps above until clean.

been meaning to do this frequently but I ran out of air and need to buy more

Anyone having this happen to a M278 engine? If so, Mercedes Benz of Germany wants to hear about it, I have a direct line to them regarding this issue on the M278 engine and they are wondering if a recall is necessary.

plenty of people having this on m278

why a recall now when it's been well known on several engines for years to the point where they have stop gap fixes like interposition of connectors to slow the oil creep

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...g-harness.html

I hear you but Mercedes Benz of Germany hasn't heard from anyone except me, so they are just asking for evidence of it happening to anyone else. Figured I'd put the word out as they are wanting to see any evidence by end of this month. I told them to google it because it was a topic on this forum.

​​​​​​​Those of us who have or have had a w211 heard this song before regarding the fuel pump/tank leaks. They swore up and down they knew nothing about it. Yet, as in the oil wicking issue, there's are multiple tsbs about this issue.

I am truly sorry I concerned myself with others on this issue

I'm am for it - submit all these threads - thanks for doing this.

Pure curiosity: why do you think Germany hasn't heard of this - they issued the connectors to stop the oil creeping; the tsb's come from Germany.
who are you talking to that claims it's a novel concern/issue?

There have been no pigtails released from Mercedes Benz specifically for the M278 because its being said the M278 has never had an issue with oil leaking from the cam mags and cam sensors into the wiring. A particular dealership dealt with this issue happening to my W221 which led to a very expensive repair 3 months before selling the car to me so my service records are evidence that its happening to the M278 engine even though dealers like to say its not. I think the bigger issue here is that dealers are making a lot of money on this issue and would prefer Germany not correct it. I am closing my comments on this thread and will leave it up to individual owners to contact Germany if they feel its needed. Theres way too much resistance to try to involve others but if Germany decides to do a recall for the M278 regarding oil seepage from the cam parts to the wiring and creating a resolution, owners will be notified providing they are signed up to receive recall notice. In the event they are looking at these treads, you may want to provide the year and mileage of your M278 that has this problem so they can see its not isolated to just my car.

OVER and OUT

This is the most detailed and methodical thread on this issue with pics of a guy that filleted the sensors to show pics of how they leak internally

https://mbworld.org/forums/gl-class-...n-wires-4.html

we took our s550 2015 to dealer , well dad did because he doesnt like dealing with indy shops and no loaner cars

i asked they check for oil from sensors and ecu. ecu was dry but magnets had some oil. tech said that he would replace the mganets, and reseal the front cam covers....but the top sensors dont need to be checked because its a a pressurized area..... didnt make sense too me..

then we got a big bill.

Thank you for sharing this link - that was very informative and worth 30 min on a Monday morning. Great read and should be a go to for all that wonder about these sensors.

Please don't take my commentary the wrong way. I'm not trying to dissuade you from trying to get a count. I'm merely remarking on the parallels recent past history MB has with significant issues and how they've handled them. All I'm saying is the language and actions so far have been the same.

Did any of you guys experience a sputtering start up while you had oil in your cam sensors ans ECU? I had this issue and just replaced the four sensors, and two of the four cam solenoids, plus cleaned out my ECU harness, which had one drop of oil in it. I had an intermittent sputtering start issue for probably two years the car would always start petty start up was like three seconds of sputtering then it would start.

Once I replaced the sensors, they were good for about six months and then the last two or three weeks the sputtering has returned so I need to check them for oil again

ECU. Still is bone dry thank goodness.

@jvakos any codes/dtc on icarsoft?