$793 fuel leak on E300 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Rick Miley · #1 02-11-2004, 03:54 PM

I arrived home on Monday afternoon to find a huge puddle of Diesel fuel under the E300 in the garage. Looked with a flashlight and could see fuel dripping from one of the clear hoses, even though the car hadn't been driven for 24 hours.

So Tuesday I took it to the dealership to get the leak fixed. They just called with an estimate of $793, plus "your valve cover is leaking and your brakes are low." I just looked over the engine Monday night, and there are no oil leaks. And they certainly have no business looking at the brakes when the problem is a fuel leak.

I was so mad at the damn dealership that I didn't even ask what they thought the problem was. Just told them to button it back up and I would pick it up. So what is in there than can leak and cost $793? Don't tell me the IP because that would cost way more than that. Any ideas?

Scott98 · #2 02-11-2004, 03:58 PM

I think it's a combination of a 1,000% mark up on parts and service you don't need. Seriously though, I can't think of anything that would cost that much. Maybe they were going to remove and replace your fuel tank??? Who knows. Good for you for getting your car out of there.

Scott

Rick Miley · #3 02-11-2004, 04:00 PM

Oh, I should probably clarify that the number above was only for the fuel leak. He babbled some numbers for the other stuff, but by that point I had already boiled over.

84300DT · #4 02-11-2004, 04:22 PM

793 for a fuel hose, what is it made of , platinum?

it will be very interesting when you report what the actual cost was to repair that fuel leak!

#5 02-11-2004, 04:46 PM

I'd bet $20 its two $0.05 clamps and a $0.25 hose.

R Leo · #6 02-11-2004, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by 84300DT
793 for a fuel hose, what is it made of , platinum?

Nope, unobtanium.

84300DT · #7 02-11-2004, 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by R Leo
Nope, unobtanium.

jcyuhn · #8 02-11-2004, 05:20 PM

That's about the going dealer rate to replace all the fuel lines on an OM606 engine. Recall that the o-rings fail on those lines. Generally this results in air being admitted into the lines, with the result being long cranking time, and stumbling while running. My extended warranty paid for this repair on my ex-E300. (That was the Christmas 2001 failure. Christmass 2000 was the CD changer, and Christmas 2002 was the glow plugs. By Christmas 2003 the car was gone...)

Anyways, get ye down to a good independent. They should be able to pull the lines, replace *only* the o-rings, and get you back on the road. I'm fuzzy on the cost, but recall in the range of $150 - perhaps two hours labor? Maybe one of our esteemed professionals will chime in to correct my answer.

- JimY

mbdoc · #9 02-11-2004, 05:47 PM

There is a electrical shut-off at the front of the injection pump that will leak fuel. List on that is $160. takes about 2.5-3 hrs as the intake must come off. THERE are also about 6 plastic lines that go back & forth from fuel filter housing to the injection pump, they go for $12/15 & should also be replaced. That would be $550.-$600 around Atlanta.

Rick Miley · #10 02-12-2004, 09:31 AM

I picked the car up yesterday afternoon without authorizing any of the work. When I dropped it off, I had authorized $96 for diagnostics. They proceeded to charge me the $96 plus $4.80 in shop supplies. I had the service advisor come to the cashier and remove the shop supplies because that was in excess of the amount authorized. When he came up, I asked for a detailed description of what they found. He said "Your fuel lines are leaking." When I pressed the issue, he finally turned over the technician's notes, which have a breakdown of the parts and labor. Had I not done this, I would have left there with nothing but a bill. Here's the estimate:

6060160221 $5.00 x 6 (Edit: Don't buy these - not needed)
6060700532 $22.50
6050701432 $17.15
6050700732 $16.50
6050700832 $16.50
6060700432 $16.45
6050701432 $27.75 (Edit: duplicate part number from above, different price. But 2 are required)
6061410180 $26.25 Intake gasket
Total parts $256.65 (Funny, my math adds up to $173.10)
5.0 hrs labor $480.00
Total charge $736.65

Ok, so maybe I misunderstood on the phone and translated 736 into 793. You can interpret the rest for yourself. Here are the estimates for the other jobs that I did not ask for. Note that the valve cover is NOT leaking. I checked it again when I got home.

Valve cover gasket $32.56
3.8 hours labor $364.80
Total charge $397.36

Front brake pads $67.55
Front rotors $81.00 x 2
2.5 hours labor $240.00
Total charge $470.00

84300DT · #11 02-12-2004, 09:39 AM

omg

you could buy a whole 300D for that kinda dough

LightMan · #12 02-12-2004, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by 84300DT
omg
you could buy a whole 300D for that kinda dough

Although a fixed '99 e300 or a 300D aren't exactly apples to apples now are they

Sorry to hear that Rick. Are you going to fix it yourself?

LightMan · #13 02-12-2004, 10:49 AM

3.8 hours to change the valve cover gasket???

84300DT · #14 02-12-2004, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LightMan
Although a fixed '99 e300 or a 300D aren't exactly apples to apples now are they

Sorry to hear that Rick. Are you going to fix it yourself?

very true.. i just think that the dealers charge outrageous amounts and as rick pointed out they say things are broken that aren't (valve cvr gasket).

it was the same thing with my wif's vw in my sig which i bought brandnew in 96- once the warranty ran out it was cost prohibitive to take the car to the dealer for anything!

LightMan · #15 02-12-2004, 11:06 AM

Its possible the valve cover was leaking and they wiped it off..