W210 lightly bumped curb-now leaking coolant!

[satyr]

Hey everyone-
I will start this by saying it has been a profoundly sh**ty day over here. Keeping a long story short- on a short drive earlier this pm, we took the 96 e300 out since it hadn't been driven in a week. I noticed a weird clunk taking off from a light that sound/felt like it was coming from below the console somewhere. It shifted through it's gears with no problem though- no flaring, no shudder, nothing like that. I wondered if it had anything to do with the cold since its 24 here- but even after it had warmed up, it made the clunk sound when I took off from a stop to make a turn into a restaurant parking lot. (I take off slowly from lights in all of my cars because people routinely run reds here- so I didn't notice any increase in revs, followed by a clunking into gear, but I suppose it could have been the case.)

The lot was a little bit icey, but it didn't appear too bad. As I pulled into the parking spot however- it slid a few feet on the ice and the plastic skirt bumped up against the curb. I wasn't flying- it was a typical speed to pull into a spot- but even with braking, it slid and bumped the curb. When I got out of the car- I heard a dripping sound, and saw something dripping from behind the plastic skirt/airdam- and the taste test indicated it was coolant, which oddly enough- was cold to the touch.

I decided that since I was less than 3 miles from the house, I'd try to make it back- since I had no tools, no light, etc., it's 24 degrees out and it was only a slow coolant drip. We got back in the car, started it up, backed out, and pulled forward to exit the lot and run back to the house, when I had to stop (about 50 feet from the parking spot) and let another car into the lot. When I pressed the accelerator to exit, however, the engine revved- but the car only barely crept forward, and this was followed by a really odd metallic sound (For lack of a better or more detailed example, like the sound of an old fashioned tin coffee can full of old rusty nails would make if you tilted it on it's side and rotated it 180 degrees) which happened after the revs came down. I let off the accelerator pedal, let it glide out of the way of oncoming traffic, shut it off and called a tow truck.

After it was parked, it drained about a quart of cold coolant on the ground- (no more than that)- and it took a ride to the indy shop on the back of a flat-bed. There was no tranny fluid on the ground, or anywhere- only coolant.

So, I'm wondering if the bump with the curb damaged something related to a coolant oveflow? I'm obviously hoping it's something minor/cheap. My big worry is with the tranny- it didn't exhibit any symptoms of problems whatsoever- until the clunk sound (which happened 3 times max) followed by a rev from a stop and the weird coffee can full of metal bits-noise.

I did a quick search of old posts to see if any other w210s / e300s exhibited similar problems, but didn't find anythign and since I'm sorta stranded now and freaking out, I decided to post because I/we could really use some advice. If anybody has any guidance to offer I'd really appreciate it. I need to call the shop in the am... Thanks in advance and I hope you all have better days. - John

[Can't Know]

If you slid straight in, my guess is that you damaged the radiator support and hence, the radiator. It is strangely exposed.

If it's the support, the noise is probably related, fan striking the radiator or something like that. Have you looked under the hood yet?

The transmission and clunk...I'm not sure. If it's the support, perhaps a cooler line is also bent/pinched...but this is all speculation. The clunk coils have been a flex disc, and maybe the impact was enough to cause it to tear and then fail.

Good luck, hopefully it's not too ugly.

[satyr]

Hi thanks for the reply- yep- it was a straight-in bump. It was impossible to see anything because the parking lot was so dark, and as luck would have it, the batteries were dead in the flashlight I carry. I even tried rolling around on the ground with my cell phone set to something "bright" to try and see what was going on and had no luck- only found dripping cold coolant coming some someplace just slightly left of center below the front airdam/skirt. I hope that little bump wasn't enough to damage a radiator support- yikes!..

[HuskyMan]

it is difficult to diagnose a problem over the internet but if I were guessing it sounds like a transmission issue because when you placed your foot on the accelerator the car barely moved. Perhaps the transmission lines were either crimped or punctured which affected the transmission. The clunking sound happened before you hit the curb which means something was going on prior. I recently had a transmission problem and had to make about fifty phone calls before I settled on a shop that I believed knew what they were doing in regards to Mercedes Benz. Good thing because my transmission case was cracked and they replaced it. Had I picked another shop, I'm not sure I would have received that level of service.

Most tranny shops are focused on domestic cars and trucks, so be sure and find one that works on Mercedes Benz ; also pull a Better Business Bureau report (A rating or better), get references from other transmission shops, etc. Also, ask the shop about their warranty policies.

Or, take it to the dealer where you KNOW you will receive certified Mercedes Benz service, at a price of course.

[HuskyMan]

One other item of concern; if it is the transmission and if it were my car I would replace the radiator along with the transmission repair. Reason? Because the radiator cooler portion of the radiator is known to become clogged with metal filings from the tranny. Those filings can re-contaminate a new transmission which can accelerate transmission failures. There are shops that have flushers which can flush out the cooler but why risk it? Radiators are cheap when compared to the price of a transmission repair. I have yet to hear of ANY transmission shop recommending the replacement of a radiator along with a transmission rebuild. You have to ask for it because they will not suggest it.

Also, I'd use synthetic transmission fluid which has a longer life and lowers the operating temperature of the transmission.

[satyr]

Thanks for the info. Yes the clunk sound happened before the curb incident, and I'll see what I can find out about tranny shops. (I don't know if there are any good MB transmission shops in NW Indiana though) I am planning on driving over to the shop today to see things in the daylight.

[satyr]

Just got back from the shop- the 300 was pulled into the enclosed parking at the shop- so there wasn't much room to see anything- and (no surprise here) I couldn't see any obvious signs of damage. It should be up on a lift tomorrow or the next morning- so hopefully I'll have more info soon.

[HuskyMan]

Keep us posted, these kind of things can send your blood pressure north, so try and think the best, it usually isn't as bad as we initially think it is. I've noticed a lack of transmission shops that work on Mercedes Benz. But, if you find one that works on european cars they might also work on Mercedes.

[satyr]

Hey all,
So, the shop called with an update. They got the 300 on a lift and pulled the lower panels to get a good view. Like Can't Know and Husky Man suggested- the radiator support was bent enough to lightly damage the radiator (causing the drip) and pushed it just enough so that the fan blades could rub (causing the noise). As for the tranny- he said the lines might have gotten slightly bent but it drove into the work bay without any problem at all.

He commented that without removing all of the panels, you couldn't see where the radiator support had been damaged. So- I'm now thinking the PO must have smacked something to damage the support- and my light bump against the curb finished it off...

[Steve M]

I had a similar scraping experience, with my 97 E420, while pulling into a parking spot at PEP Boys. I didn't get a coolant leak, just the fan scraping noise (and a bad A/C condenser, I think).

Looking back on it, I wish I would have realized that the car had never scraped the curb in that lot before. The reason it did was that the spring perches were failing, and the front end of the car was lower than it should be.

While your car is still up on the lift, have them look at the perches. Unless they are MB guys, they wouldn't have noticed. You may need a welder to fix the rad support, and he may be able to fix the perches as well, if you have that problem.

Plenty of material on these forums about the perches.

[Can't Know]

Originally Posted by satyr

Hey all,
So, the shop called with an update. They got the 300 on a lift and pulled the lower panels to get a good view. Like Can't Know and Husky Man suggested- the radiator support was bent enough to lightly damage the radiator (causing the drip) and pushed it just enough so that the fan blades could rub (causing the noise). As for the tranny- he said the lines might have gotten slightly bent but it drove into the work bay without any problem at all.

He commented that without removing all of the panels, you couldn't see where the radiator support had been damaged. So- I'm now thinking the PO must have smacked something to damage the support- and my light bump against the curb finished it off...

The transmission acting up was probably a blessing in disguise, since it made you park the car rather than being able to drive it (though even a short distance, who knows?).

Your description of the incident is like too many I've heard before and it's doubtful the PO did anything previously. As I said initially, the radiator support is just way too exposed and vulnerable, and as you can see, it doesn't take much to do it in. It's one reason I've always been very careful when pulling into a parking space, particularly those that have the offset parking blocks. Just a moment's inattention (or fooled by a patch of ice) and you're stranded and out of pocket for a good bit of change.

I don't know what your bill is, but check with your insurance carrier (assuming your deductible is not too high), this is still a road accident.

Good luck with it all.

[oldsinner111]

I read a service bulleton,which talked about w140 trans coolers rotting causing coolant to mix with ATF.As soon as I get the money I will disconect from it and run a external cooler.Transmision lifespan wil be longer. I've done this to several auto matics over the years.
Thanks for the warning of radiator support,I will weld a shield in place.

[satyr]

Hey all- well, she's back from the shop. Radiator was replaced, and the support was repaired. The support was pushed in on one side, and pushed back- so since I (lightly) bumped the curb straight on- the theory remains that there was probably previous damage from the PO hitting something that I worsened.

The tranny checked out OK after all- and after a thorough test drive, it was theorized that when I hit the accelerator pedal to leave the parking lot, the slight rise in rpms and the rubbing of the fan on the shroud freaked me out and I thought tranny, flare, metal noises, etc EEK!. It's driving as before now- and there's no clunk. The only thing I can think of that might have caused the clunk was that I had some crap in the trunk that might have rolled around back there- because I took everything out- and now it appears to be clunkless. (Yes, I am willing to admit that trunkstuff might have created a possible symptom...) So, I wanted to post to close out the thread, because that's what you're 'sposed to do. Thanks to all who posted!