i have a 95 c220 with 95k miles and has been doing fine until last friday when it won't start. the battery was fine because the dome light and head light can be turned on but when i crank the key there wasn't any click like when the battery is dead. then i floor the gas padel and turn the key at the same time the engine finally whined and turned a little and it finally started after about 90 seconds with my food on the gas and turning the key at the same time. I droved for 2 hours straight and turned off the engine. when i try to start the engine again it hesitated a little and made a harsh grinding noise for about 5 seconds but it started and it has no problem after that. Any thoughts anyone??
also my car has almost 100k on it already, what should i change besides break rotor/pads/sensors, oxygen sensor, fuel filter, spark plugs/ignition wires(?), air filter, oil, coolant (transmission fluid changed at75k), and break fluid???? thank you!!!

Brake fluid every 2 years.

It sounds like you were having a starter problem...It may find its way to you later.

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Benzmac:
Donnie Drummonds
ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTO TECHNICIAN
MERCEDES SPECIALIST 11 YRS

thanks for the prompt reply! is there anything wearable that i should change now in the starter system consider my car's mileage? i am ordering from fastlane tonight and i am trying to order everything together. By the way how do i find out my chassis number (my VIN# isWDBHA22EXSF142200), i needed it for ordering the rear rotor. also the brake pad sensor comes in a pair or singles?

Make sure you change the OVP, Overprotection Voltage Relay. Get it from partsshop.

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2006 E350 w/ 155k miles (Daily Driver)

Previous:
1993 300E 3.2L Sedan w/ close to about 300k miles
2003 E500 Brilliant Silver (Had 217k miles when totalled!)
1989 300E with 289,000 miles (had for <1 yr while in HI)
03 CLK 500 cabrio (Mom's)
2006 C230k (Dad's)
1999 S420 (Mom's/Dad's)
2000 C230k Sport sedans
2001 CLK320 Cabrio (Mom's)
1995 C280 My First Mercedes-Benz... (155k miles. EXCEPTIONAL AUTOMOBILE. Was Very hard to let go of!)

Get that starter checked out or you will eat up your fly wheel.

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Earl



1993 190E 2.3
2000 Toyota 4x4 Tundra

I am thinking maybe there are already teeth missing from the flywheel. He hit on the spot with missing teeth a couple of times, now it's like a roulette wheel, where's it gonna stop, folks! I'd get it on a hoist where the engine can be rotated by hand and watch the whole 360 of the flywheel to look for damaged teeth......Gilly

Yep. Sounds like he needs an orthodontist.

Smiles.

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Earl



1993 190E 2.3
2000 Toyota 4x4 Tundra

should i change the starter now? what about hte flywheel? i think changing the starter shouldn't be a problem for me (eventhough it cost about $250) but i don't think i can change the flywheel. and also what about having the starter serviced (what do they mean by that and who does it?)? thanks for all the help!!!

thanks for the reply!
i cann't find starter on fastlane nor can i find ovp relay. is it the same as overload relay?
i am changing the things you listed above next weekend if i can order everything on time for it to be delivered next weekend. i owned this car since 32miles and enjoyed every minute of it. the car has been running great(million times better than my wife's 94 318i, my brother's 95 318ic and my sister's 97 audi a4)
does any body know where is a good place to buy oil/transmission fluid/break fluid...etc? or am i better off buying them locally?
from this forum i got the feeling that synthetic is the way to go. does it matter what kind? which weight(?) do you suggest (i live in atlanta (summer temp go up to 100f))
thanks

I would really encourage you to get the flywheel looked at before ordering any parts. If you've got some chewed up flywheel teeth, the starter won't help the situation all that much. If you can get the car on a hoist and rotate the engine through by hand (well, with a big socket and ratchet on the front crank bolt) you will be able to obseve the flywheel teeth through a hole in the bell housing just for this purpose (same one used to drain the ATF out of the torque converter, there may be another one that is used to unbolt the torque converter from the flex plate that would also allow you to view the flywheel teeth. I am also rather unsure at this point if a C220 actually has a over-voltage protection relay. I've fixed alot of earlier cars this way, but again, I'm thinking you may be barking up the wrong tree on a C220. Then again I could be full of what Farmer Gray hauled away. On the trans fluid, just make sure it is Dexron III/Mercon. On the brake fluid, definitely go with the MB brake fluid. On oil, there are just too many opinions out there, but I would suggest the Mobil1 if you want synthetic. On viscosity, probably 20W-50 in the summer down that far south. The shipping won't be worth it, buy the fluids locally. But find out about the flywheel teeth before anything else, you have to have the "whole story" before proceeding with repairs......Gilly

thanks again for such prompt reply!!
i will take my car to the mechanics next weekend to have the flywheel check out. i know i should have done that much sooner but full time school really getting in the way of taking care of your car.
thanks again!!

Can anyone tell me if all of the above could also apply to the 1993/94 E220?

Thanks

Yes, any car with a Bendix style starter drive could have a damaged starter drive gear and ring gear. I'm not sure why the overvolt protection relay was brought up, but it could be that your car has the overvolt protection relay, I'm doubtful about the C220, but your car is a 124 chassis and I'm not familiar with that particular chassis/engine combo, it might have it. Also, to the original poster, I intend on checking on the OVP question today. I was thinking about the problem, the OVP doesn't make alot of sense for a starter concern anyways, even if it has one. What makes more sense is the starter itself or the ignition switch, but DON'T plan on buying either one, get it inspected. I am still concerned that the flywheel ring gear is either a cause of the problem, or was damaged due to the "real" problem, whatever it is (because of the grinding you heard). Has the starter acted up again since the first time it happened?
Gilly

Yeah, the C220 is pretty dependable. I liked the C230 before they "Kompressed" it as well, real nice everyday driver. I'm not familiar with an update on the OVP on these cars, never have had a problem with one yet. Lot's of "late" 124 problems with them. There is a red fiche topic on it, if you have these strange stalling problems, you need to check the part number and country the OVP was made in. I keep a "bad" one in my tool box so I don't have to try finding the topic in fiche anymore.
Gilly

i took my car to the mechanic this past weekend to have him take a look at the flywheel and also anything else in the engine compartment that could have gone wrong. after about an hour he came back and told me that nothing is wrong the flywheel is fine and all i needed is a major service (eventhough i specifically told him that i want to take a look of the flywheel myself when he raised the car, now i don't even know if he really checked it or not). anyway, this past weekend i changed the coolant,aloil, oil filter, fuel filter, air filter, micro-air filter, and the OVP relay (000-540-52-45 is this the updated one) (just for the heck of it) and now the car does not make a grinding noise but everytime right after i start the car, the rpm will dip down to about 500 rpm as soon as i let go of the key and will stay there for about 3 secs and then climb up to about 2500 rpm right away. what is wrong. also yesterday after driving about 80 miles i stopped at a Mcdonald for about half hour and when i tried to start the car nothing happened. no click, no whinning, no nothing!! then i realized l left my head lights on all these time so i turned off the lights and tried again the engine finally slowly started to crank up- does this mean my battery is bad or my alternater is bad?
also, has any one tried to drain the coolant from the engine block drain plug in a 95 c220? how in the world do you suppose to open that in such tiny space especially with a tube over the drain hole?
sorry about the long post, and thank you very much for the reply!!!