W116 advice needed

[Emmerich]

Originally Posted by alabbasi

Other work done includes:
New plugs
New rotor
New spark plug wires
Coolant flush
ATF filter and fluid change (made a world of difference).

I still need to sort out the A/C. I have a 25lb Cylinder of R406a in the trunk and its as hot as hell in the car. There is a massive leak coming from the front , but its so tight in there I have no idea where its coming from. Is there an R12 leak detector that I can get?

Do the new wires have the proper resistance on the ends? The wires themselves have stainless cores, they never go bad unless the insulation wore through. Just change the ends.

There are R12 detectors. In fact, to diagnose the 6.3 air suspension you fill the system with R12 (I guess 134 would work) and use a sniffer.

[alabbasi]

Great news on the R12, it should help me find the leak. With regards to the plug wires. The ones on the car were just not the right type. They looked totally different to the ones I would normally see for these cars (with a red coil lead). I bought a set of the Bosch wires.

It would be nice to have that car running cool. Right now I drive it during the night.

Oh... I also need to figure out what the deal is with the electric front drivers window and the rear passenger window. The switches work but there is no power going to the door.

I swapped the switches around and they work but when you hit the switch there doesnt appear to be any current.

[Emmerich]

Originally Posted by alabbasi

It would be nice to have that car running cool. Right now I drive it during the night.

Oh... I also need to figure out what the deal is with the electric front drivers window and the rear passenger window. The switches work but there is no power going to the door.

I swapped the switches around and they work but when you hit the switch there doesnt appear to be any current.

How do you know you have an a/c leak? Do you think the compressor is not running due to low pressure? The compressor may be off (if that is your issue) due to a number of reasons. A blocked vacuum line can do it, when I changed my CC amp behind the glove box I pinched a vacuum hose - no a/c.

Any of the major components could be leaking as well as the hoses. I am going through this on my Jeep, every time I turn around something else on the a/c crapped out.

On the switches it seems unlikely 2 wires would be broken. Do you have power on both sides of the switch? I assume you put a voltmeter on the window motor, I would guess it is grounded in the door or nearby. You could take the wire from the door at the switch, and manually try to make the window work. It would at least tell you if a switch is bad.

[alabbasi]

I know that there is a major leak because when I put some refrigerant in, I can wait for 3 seconds and hear it hiss out of the front of engine (close to the radiator). It could be a seal or a hose that is out. But it isnt a slow leak. Its like opening a can up in the open. I just hisses right out.

[alabbasi]

The switch isnt bad, I tested the switch by plugging it to the rear window and it worked fine. It is either the motor or the wiring. It has to be sorted out soon though, I either need the A/C or the drivers window :-).

I used the simple test of looking at the courtesy light, when hitting the switch on a working window, the light would dim. On the non working window, there was no dimming would indicate that there is no current.

[alabbasi]

So Its 4:00am and I decided I would take the dogs for a walk and think about the window problem. Could be the fuses I thought ? So I checked it out and sure enough fuse number 16 controls the front left and rear right windows. Replaced that guy with another and bobs your uncle. The windows worked. At first the rear passenger window wouldnt go back up but then I lowered completly and it went back up again (not sure what that is all about but I wont mess with it at this hour).

Thanks for the brainwave Fred, if you didnt respond I wouldnt have thought about it.

[Emmerich]

Originally Posted by alabbasi

So Its 4:00am and I decided I would take the dogs for a walk and think about the window problem. Could be the fuses I thought ? So I checked it out and sure enough fuse number 16 controls the front left and rear right windows. Replaced that guy with another and bobs your uncle. The windows worked. At first the rear passenger window wouldnt go back up but then I lowered completly and it went back up again (not sure what that is all about but I wont mess with it at this hour).

Thanks for the brainwave Fred, if you didnt respond I wouldnt have thought about it.

I was going to say if the light doesn't dim, it just means the motor isn't running (pulling current) but there still could be voltage at the motor, this means the motor was bad. Good thing you found the fuse, I did not know they were fused that way but the fact that 2 windows were dead would be a coincidence if we thought it was a motor or switch issue.

[alabbasi]

OK so Im still trying to figure out the braking issue and I pulled one of the wheels off and rotated the hub. It appears that the disc rubs against the caliper at one point. I do not think the discs are warped because they are new. Could this be a mounting issue and are the calipers adjustable?

Any advice is appreciated.

[Emmerich]

How bad does it rub? The calipers are not adjustable, they just bolt up.

A rotor can warp very quickly. If it is hot and you drive through a puddle, it can warp fast.

[alabbasi]

I dont think they are warped because i drove out of the shop with them like that. They rub but not enough to stop you from hand tunring the hub.

I guess if they rub at all then i need to have them turn the rotors.

[Emmerich]

If they rub a little don't worry, it could be the pads are not uniform, they will wear down. There is always manufacturing slop in there somewhere. If you could not spin by hand at all, I would worry. I would have a brak pro check before I spent money on any work.

[alabbasi]

I think at this pointe I am going to have to take it to someone who really knows. I still get a pretty strong pulsing from the pedal. At slow speed I would rock forward and backwards while braking. I am going to need to divert my attention to the W108 that I own and do some DIY diagnostics on the EFI.

Sometimes I wish I bought a classic chevy, it would have been so much easier :-).

[diametricalbenz]

My 6.9's brakes are pulsating as well. The brake lines were flushed and has new rotors and pads. I am taking it back in since we presume the new rotors were warped.

When I can break it out of the locked parking lot in a week or so and take it into the shop, I'll post our findings here to perhaps solve both our brake issues.

[diametricalbenz]

alabbasi, I got the 6.9 back from the shop yesterday. The problem WAS the rotors. There was none of the shaking that was experienced before. The pedal travel was also reduced dramatically although the brakes do require a little more travel than I would hope to have for a car that big. I can't remember what it was like since I haven't driven the car for more than 40 minutes since May of this year.

Are you still having a wobbly feel in he body and the suspension?

[alabbasi]

For any who are interested, I took my 6.9 to the new mechanic who worked magic on my 280SEL. He is going through the car and trying to fix all the outstanding issues. So far, he is going to cut the rotors to get rid of that warp that is causing my braking problems.

I have also ordered two new engine mounts and the steering coupling.

He also has identified a leak in the suspension at the high pressure hose that runs form the oil reservoir to the pump.
Is this a dealer only item or is this part available from aftermarket sources?

I also having check out the timing chain and the A/C which currently is not working. The compressor appears to be disconnected. Once the compressor is repaired, I am going to try to experiment with R406a to see how well it cools.