2006 Mercedes Benz C230

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MERCEDES-BENZ C230. WHILE DEPRESSING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AT 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE AND THE RPMS REVVED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 74,000.

HAVING PROBLEM WITH THE GEAR SHIFTING, BELIEVE THIS IS CAUSED BY THE SHAFT BALANCER, ETC. THE CAR GRABS AND JERKS FROM TIME TO TIME MAKING ME UNSURE OF THE SAFETY OF MY CAR. MY CAR ONLY HAS 84,000 MILES ON IT. THE CAR IS LIKE NEW, BUT AS I READ THE CLASS ACT AGAINST MERCEDES I NOTICED THAT MY CAR HAS SEVERAL OF THE SAME ISSUES AS OTHERS LISTED IN THE COMPLAINT. THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR OF MY CAR IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION, AND I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT THE MERCEDES COMPANY WOULD ALLOW AN ERROR LIKE THIS TO CONTINUE. I WOULD LIKE FOR THIS TO BE CORRECTED BY MERCEDES OR TO BE PLACED ON THE CLASS ACT SUIT AS WELL. *TR

PERIODICALLY THE CAR WOULD LOSE ACCELERATION AND RPMS WOULD BE HIGH AND THE VEHICLE WOULD JERK WHEN I TRIED CHANGING GEARS. AS I CHANGE GEARS FROM PARK, REVERSE OR DRIVE, THE GEAR SHIFT JERKS AND I AM UNABLE TO ACCELERATE PAST 20 MPH NO MATTER HOW MUCH PRESSURE I PLACE ON THE GAS. : EXTREME LOSS OF ACCELERATION UP HILL AND THE STEPTRONIC (+/- SHIFTING) DID NOT WORK... (I COULD ONLY GO 35MPH WHEN EVERY ONE ELSE WAS GOING 70MPH UP HILL) WHEN I TRAVELED ON A FLAT SURFACE WITH NO INCLINATION MY CAR WORKED FINE, I THEN DECIDED TO PUT IT ON NEUTRAL WHILE TRAVELING AT 65MPH...WHEN I PUT IT BACK IN DRIVE IT DID NOT PICK UP THE GEARS IT JUST CONTINUED AS IF IT WAS IN NEAUTRAL. I HAD TO PULL OVER AND SHIFT IT INTO PARK...AS I SHIFTED FORM "D" TO NEUTRAL IT SHIFTED FINE, BUT THEN FROM NEUTRAL TO "R" THE CAR JERKED...FROM REVERSE TO "P" IT JERKED AGAIN AND SHIFTED HARD. I THEN SHIFTED AGAIN TO REVERSE, NEUTRAL, AND DRIVE THUS THE CAR JERKED AND DID A HARD SHIFT WITH KNOCKING NOISE AND WOULD NOT DRIVE. I SHIFTED TO NEUTRAL AGAIN AND SHUT THE CAR OFF. WHEN I TURNED IT BACK ON IT SHIFTED SMOOTH AND I DROVE OFF WITHOUT ANY PROBLEM. TOOK IT TO A REPAIR SHOP AND RECEIVED P0717/P0718 FAULT CODES AND SOMETHING ABOUT THE VALVE BODY. I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT IT WAS AN TRANSMISSION INTERNAL SPEED SENSOR ISSUE. THERE IS SOMETHING FAULTY WITH THE DESIGN AND OPERATION OF THIS MODEL YEAR TRANSMISSION AND LOSING POWER AND BEING ABLE TO ONLY GO 35 MPH NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU PRESS THE GAS ON THE INTERSTATE OR HEAVY FAST MOVING TRAFFIC IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. MERCEDES BENZ IS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AS MANY OWNERS HAVE COMPLAINED BUT THEY WILL NOT INSTITUTE A RECALL. *TT

AFTER HAVING THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COME ON, WE TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP WE PURCHASED IT FROM TO PERFORM A DIAGNOSTIC AFTER RECEIVING CODES P0170 AND P0173 (MB CODES 2092/2096) WHICH MB CLASSIFIES AS "MIXTURE IN RIGHT / LEFT CYLINDER BANK IS TOO RICH WHEN IDLING" AND WERE TOLD WE WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE INTAKE MANIFOLD FOR $2110. THE EXPLANATION WE RECEIVED (VERBAL ONLY AS THEY REFUSED TO DESCRIBE THE PROBLEM IN WRITING AFTER ASKING MULTIPLE TIMES) WAS THAT A BUSHING THAT CONTROLS THE AIR FLOW VALVES WAS WORN. THEY COULD NOT PROVIDE A REASON AS TO WHAT WOULD CAUSE THIS WEAR CONSIDERING THE BUSHING IS INTERNAL TO THE CONTROL VALVES. THEY ALSO COULD NOT TELL ME WHICH SPECIFIC SIDE THIS LEAK WAS COMING FROM. SINCE THE INTAKE MANIFOLD IS ONE LARGE COMPONENT WE WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE THING. THE CAR IS FIVE YEARS OLD SO ROUGHLY JUST OVER 12K MILES PER YEAR AND ALREADY MAJOR COMPONENTS ARE FAILING. THIS IS FROM THE SAME DEALER (MB GEORGETOWN, TEXAS) WHO ONCE TOLD US OUR BRAKES (ROTORS AND PADS) WERE ALL BAD AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. WE TOOK IT TO A TRUSTED MECHANIC AND ONLY NEEDED TO REPLACE THE FRONT PADS AS THEY WERE GETTING CLOSE TO BEING WORN OUT. WE NOW NEED A SECOND OPINION SINCE I SIMPLY DO NOT TRUST THEM. THE INFORMATION THEY PROVIDED WAS "PROVIDE ESTIMATE TO REPLACE INTAKE MANIFOLD FOR VACUUM LEAK AT $2110. AIR LEAK COMING FROM INTAKE TUMBLE FLAP ASSEMBLY." *TR

THE VEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN ON INTERSTATE 95 IN POMPANO BEACH FLORIDA, THE CAR STARTED TO RUN ROUGH AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT BECAME ILLUMINATED. TOOK THE CAR TO THE REPAIR SHOP AND IT CAME UP WITH 2 CODES 1200 AND 1208 INTAKE AND EXHAUST CAMSHAFT SENSOR RIGHT CYLINDER, THE MECHANICS REPLACED THE 2 SENSORS AND A COUPLE WEEKS LATER IT APPEARED AGAIN. THE ORIGINAL MECHANIC RECOMMENDED ANOTHER SHOP THAT SPECIALIZED IN MERCEDES. I TOOK IT THERE A FEW WEEKS LATER AND WE WERE INFORMED IT IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE MERCEDES AND THAT THEY WERE BEING SUED FOR IT,AND MERCEDES HAS PUT OUT OVER 10 TSB ON THE ISSUE AND IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING TO CARS WITH THIS NEW ENGINE. THE PROBLEM IS THE SPROCKET ON THE BALANCE SHAFT WAS NOT HARDENED METAL,LIKE IT WAS SUPPOSE TO BE. *TR

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN. I HAVE THE MB C230 2006. I'VE BEEN LOSING POWER WHILE DRIVING. WHILE THE CAR IDLES IT'S RUNNING AS IF IT'S MISSING LIKE OUT OF TIMING. I'VE BEEN TO THE PARTS DEPT BECAUSE I WAS TOLD THE VEHICLE WAS MISSING. I HAD THE COILS CHANGED. SPARK PLUGS CHANGED, YET STILL THE CAR HAS NO POWER AND WHEN IDLING THE ENGINE RUNS SO VIOLENT IT'S CAUSING THE BELT TO WEAR. SO FAR I HAD TO BUY 5 BELTS AND THEY WON'T LAST MORE THAN 4 DAYS. THIS PAST WEEK I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT THE 4 MAGETS WOULD HAVE TO BE CHANGED. WELL I HAD THEM CHANGED AND STILL I HAVE A CAR THAT HAS NO POWER. I WAS FINALLY TOLD BY A MD MECHANIC MY PROBLEM WITH THE CAR IS THERE'S A BALANCE SHAFT THAT'S INOPERABLE. WHEN I INQUIRE ABOUT THIS ITEM I WAS TOLD THAT MERCEDES BENZ DOES NOT HAVE THIS AS A RECALL ITEM WHEN IN FACT THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN AN ISSUE SINCE 2004. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ANY INFORMATION IN REGARDS TO REPAIR. THERE IS NO WAY A CUSTOMER OF THIS AUTO MAKER SHOULD HAVE TO BEAR THE BURDEN OF PAYING FOR AN ITEM WHEN IN FACT IT'S BEEN A PROBLEM WITH MERCERDES BENZ FROM THE START. *KB

I WAS DRIVING MY VEHICLE ON THE HIGHWAY DURING MORNING RUSH HOUR WHEN I NOTICED THAT THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 35 MPH. I MOVED THE CAR OFF THE HIGHWAY AND STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. ONCE I STOPPED THE CAR IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AT ALL WHEN I STEPPED ON THE GAS. I HAD TO PUT THE CAR IN PARK AND THEN MOVE IT BACK TO DRIVE TO GET THE CAR TO MOVE. THE CAR WOULD JUMP AND LURCH FORWARD WHEN I SHIFTED GEARS. I DROVE THE CAR DIRECTLY TO THE DEALER. THE MERCEDES DEALER TOLD ME THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE SOFTWARE AND THAT THE SOFTWARE WOULD NEED TO BE UPDATED. I WENT TO PICK UP MY CAR AFTER THE "SOFTWARE " WAS UPDATED ($1,700 COST) AND DROVE THE CAR ABOUT 10 MILES WHEN I NOTICED THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAD COME ON. I TOOK THE CAR BACK TO THE MERCEDES DEALER TO LET THEM KNOW THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS NOW ON. THE MERCEDES DEALER TOLD ME I HAVE A DEFECTIVE BALANCE SHAFT THAT NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED. THE MERCEDES DEALER ASK ME IF I HAD KEPT UP THE OIL CHANGES ON THE CAR. I TOLD THE THEM THAT I HAD. THE MERCEDES DEALER TOLD ME THAT I HAVE TO PAY $2,500 JUST FOR THEM TO TAKE THE ENGINE APART AND THAT THE TOTAL REPAIR WILL COST AROUND $6,000. I JUST PURCHASED THE CAR IN JULY 2010 ( 14 MONTHS OWNERSHIP) WITH ABOUT 19,500 MILES ON IT. *KB

ON MARCH 12, 2011, DURING AN "A" SERVICE, I WAS INFORMED BY MY MECHANIC, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED DUE TO THE LEFT INTAKE CAM SENSOR WAS DEFECTIVE BUT IT WAS NOT A BIG CONCERN. ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2011, DURING A "B" SERVICE, MY MECHANIC STATED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED AGAIN FOR THE LEFT INTAKE CAM AND THE RIGHT EXHUAST CAM ADJUSTER MAGNETS WERE DEFECTIVE OR THE BALANCE SHAFT WAS WORN. AT THIS POINT THE CAR WAS RUNNING OK BUT HE SAID IF HE RUNS A DIAGNOSTIC TEST ON THE ENGINE AGAIN IN THE NEAR FUTURE AND IT READS A SECOND PROBLEM ON THE RIGHT SIDE CAM SIDE, THERE IS A STRONG POSSIBILITY TEETH ON THE CAM SPOCKET DUE TO THE USAGE OF AN INFERIOR PRODUCT. HE EXPLAINED IT WOULD BE APPROXIMATELY $4,000.00 TO REPAIR, HE WAS REPAIRING A VEHICLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AND SHOWED ME THE WEAR ON THE TEETH WHICH CAUSE THE INBALANCE OF THE SHAFT AND THE CAMS COME OFF LINE. IN MY MECHANICS OPINION, MERCEDES BENZ KNOWS ABOUT THEIR DEFECTIVE PART BYT THEY DO NOT WANT TO HAVE A "CAMPAIGN" TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE AND MY TYPE/YEAR ENGINE WAS MADE WITH THIS INFERIOR PART. I TRAVEL 80 MILES TO AND FROM WORK AND CANNOT AFFORD TO SPEND THIS MONEY FOR A REPAIR ON A VEHICLE THAT IS SUPPOSE TO LAST ME FOREVER. *TT