V

My parents have a 2000 CL500. It has been a fantastic car for them up until a year ago.. Now it's one problem after the other. Especially the suspension if really bad (ABC problems) and needs urgent attention. It's not cheap. I surfed the MB forums and talkted to a knowledgeable guy here on RL. He says some cars have 4matic, the CL500 has problemo-matic. It's a ticking bomb and problems will keep coming. It has taken much of it's depreciation hit already and I'm thinking maybe it's best to get the problems sorted and move on to something else...

Any ideas? As far as replacing the suspension I thought there would be like a cheaper "Bilstein HD" solution but apparently these cars just have too much electronics and really only $$$OEM will do..

Input appreciated. Sorry for the OT.

payam972

my moms CL had the same problem. thankfully we found a guy at a dealership here that would do it for really cheap. replaced a few parts and a pump. a job that would have been over 2k. as far as problems go. it has had a lot. imho, its a POS. and resale on CL's is terrible. best thing might be to try and move it asap.

Canyon56

The CL is a great car, unfortunately "the early W220s and W215s are problematic." That's a quote from my MB mechanic.

How many miles are on it? I'm assuming the ABC fluid had been changed on schedule? Current Airmatic is okay but the old version of ABC (with fluid) system needed maintenance. ABC is pretty sophisticated so the expense is sorta built in.

You have to go OEM, you can't replace it with steel spring systems (ABC is the whole point of the car; it works great but will need to be replaced eventually.)

There is a company doing refurbished Airmatic (with core exchange) for W211s. They also do the S Class but not ABC versions. Maybe check and ask if they know of any non-OEM solutions for ABC. (?)
http://www.arnottindustries.com/part...18_pid127.html

We've had MBs in the family for decades. But no high-end S or CL ABC models. I've had two in the past couple of years. All have been stellar with no more issues than Porsche, BMW and other Euros.

But I would absolutely avoid certain 2000-2006 models.

V

Thanks guys. We have a 2000 CL500 with 55.XXXmiles on the clock.

I think we'll just try and move it asap. These cars are just too expensive to own and service. Whenever the car goes to the dealer it's $1500+ in repairs.. Every time.. And not to mention the drop in resale value.. I think we are pretty much done.. Maybe trade it in at a dealer for something else (MB or preferable other marque). Thank's for the input Canyon. This just goes to show that I should have done my due diligence better prior to buying the car

zone5

Apparently virtually all of these cars were recalled, maybe the whole system was ripped out and replaced by something more robust -- worth looking into.

http://www.zimbio.com/Mercedes-Benz/...SS+ABC+PROBLEM

Quadcammer

what if any specific questions do you have?

215 Cl's were not available in 4matic (in the US anyway)

I'm pretty familiar with the airmatic and ABC suspensions, so ask away.

V

zone5 - Interesting..

Quad - I really don't know enough about these things. All I know is at the last service, the MB told us (I didn't pick it up) that one of the rear struts needed to be replaced. We havn't done it yet but AFAIK, replacing one rear strut is not a good idea..

Anyways, we keep getting the red ABC -"Visit Workshop" red icon on the monitor. It doesn't always pop up but often. The pdc system is all f**ked up and there is a strange deep tone sound coming from the front left wheel well at times. I think it's going to cost $$$ to get it fixed no matter what it is since apparently OEM is the only way to go..

Oh and Airmatic doesn't work either..

Quadcammer

You got me a bit confused here due to the acronyms you are using.

ABC= Hyrdaulically assisted setup that uses extremely high pressure fluid (3000psi) to help control body roll. The powersteering pump and ABC pump are rolled into one unit, making it nasty expensive.
Airmatic= air struts at all four corners (used on s-class and some e-class models).

The car can't have both.

The car too low thing is common. It is typically due to a leak in one of the lines, not necessarily a bad strut/shock (although possible).

ABC is inherently a great system, but the high pressure and wear cause lines to leak which is often the cause.

Step one should be to check the fluid level. Do so VERY carefully as the system must be kept 100% dirt free. If its low, add some MB fluid making sure not to contaminate it.

A well trained independent mechanic with the SDS (or Star Diagnostic System, called STAR for short) should be able to test for pressure drops, leaks, etc.

Once the system is repaired, fluid is added, and the car is run through a comical rodeo program that eliminates air in the lines.

Without seeing it, I'd guess there is a leak on that corner, but a trust professional is typically required.

Although it may seem needlessly expensive, keep in mind that car sells for about $120k new, so repairs are pricey. Hard to match the style, comfort, luxury, and performance of that car though for the prices they sell for.

I own a 220 Sclass with Airmatic and its been great, but I know how annoying these problems can be.

good luck.

kb

Very sound advise from Quadcammer. I have a 2000 CL 500 that was my daily driver for the last 5 years until I bought a smart for running around. The ABC is the big problem with these cars. Within the first 2 years of ownership, I replaced the ABC pump unit (as described) for preventive maintenance, for fear of the car dropping to the tires. I guess I am one of the lucky ones cos I have had no problems with mine. Until I stopped driving it regularly. Now the drivers side window refuses to go down or up sometimes and the door assist on the drivers side does not always close by itself. Turns out that the wiring in the door cracks due to temp changes after a few years. Did not drive it all winter so could be the change in weather too. A new wiring harness will be installed this week but my dealership still says the w215 is relatively problem free and "they do not see many of them". Incidentally, special training is required for the lead techs before they are allowed to work on the CL and S class - according to my service rep. Do your folks drive theirs regularly? Hope you get yours sorted. They are still some of the nicest looking cars on the road to me. The new CL seems a bit bulky in design.

V

Quad and kb - here's an update (good and bad news):

First of all, our car has the ABC. I just said airmatic because I thought that was the function of raising the car (button on dash) occationaly to prevent scraping the bumper in rough terrain or speed bumps.
I think it's a leak in the system and not one single failing strut. The whole rear suspension feel very "bouncy".

The bad news is (apart from the ABC failing) we just bought new Michelins all round (=$$$) and the first day of driving the car we get a nail straight into the tire . Prior to this we had been driving the car for 3+yrs on the same set of tires with no issues .

Good news is that 1. the tire is fixed (pulled out the nail and vulked it (?) shut).
2. I just phoned my authorized Merc dealer and told him about our problems while making an appointment for a B-service. He told me that Merc has (see zone5's post above) decided to view this as a guarantee thing. So he said while performing the service they will replace all the lines and also put new fluid into the system. The car "only" has 55.XXX miles so I really hope that this will solve out issues for now. Then we can proceed to unload it. It's a wonderful car to drive no doubt but we just had too many issues with this car.. Let's see how things turn out..

Thanks for all the feedback.

KMASS993

Viggo,

I don't have any direct experience with the CL but one of my friends owns a MB dealership here in the north east. I can tell you with out a doubt that MB dealers try to upsell all the time and just stop short of lying to you about your car. I would def double check all of their recommendations. This information comes straight from an MB service manager. Be weaaaaaary very weaaaryyy

Smiles

Not to hijack, but I love the CL550. Do the W221 coupes have the same propensity for mechanical problems and expense?

Quadcammer

The 221 coupe is designated as the 216, and they are generally too new to know much about long term reliability of ABC. That said, the ABC system was improved by the end of the 215 run in 2006, so the system should be fairly reliable by now. It definitely is effective.

Expense is hard to say. Maintenance is shockingly easy to DIY on these cars, but repairs will be expensive, as is commensurate with a technology laden, super well equipped $130k vehicle.

Mercs tend to like to be driven regularly so I'd say the thing that leads to the most problems is not using them.

I would purchase a 216 without major concern, but if $x,xxx repair bills scare you, you may want to reconsider. I tend to think mercedes' reliability problems are overblown, and more of an annoyance (i.e. a bad rain sensor is a problem, and leads to lower reliability scores, but it being broken generally just brings it back down to a level of other more normal cars).

V

You're absolutely right, that's the feeling I get each time I visit our local dealer. That's one of the main reasons we are selling it. That and the fact that it's just too much electronics in these cars, which means that you are stuck with your MB dealer for life..


Any suggestions for a replacement DD? 4-door (preferably German car) in the 30K usd pricerange? I'm thinking Audi A6 or BMW 5 series..

Smiles

Thank you. That helps!