Common Mercedes Benz Problems – Part 1

Perhaps it’s the luxurious comfort, maybe it’s the brand identity, or how about the performance? Whether you’re driving the C-Class facelift or the CLA four-door, those were probably the main reasons why you bought this amazing brand in the first place. So while the salesperson might have sold everything good about this car, there might be some things he/she (intentionally) left out of his/her sales pitch! Here are some common Mercedes-Benz problems!

#1 – Oil in the engine mounts?

Aren’t there already too many things you have to top up? Well, your engine mounts are filled with oil too! This is to keep the engine vibrations from being transmitted to the cabin. Because they are oil-filled, with enough mileage, they start to lose the oil and fail. When the engine mounts fail you may notice excessive vibration on the seat, in the cabin, and even on the steering wheel. Replacing the motor mounts can take between 4 and 6 hours of labour.

#2 – Catalytic converters

This is the part of the car that converts some toxic gases into less harmful ones. Sadly, catalytic converters for Mercs are prone to failure. We’ve seen a few cars needing new catalytic converters at 80,000km!  As they become clogged, the check engine light may be triggered by the oxygen sensors. That may not sound so bad, you might think. However, you may also notice performance issues as the condition worsens! Replacing it as soon as possible would be your best course of action.

#3 – Transmission Problems

The 5-speed automatic transmission is very well built and robust. But a chain is as strong as its weakest link and that applies to Mercedes-Benz as well. While the transmission in itself is indestructible (well, almost), the 13-pin connector and the valve body are not. The good thing is that these repairs are relatively inexpensive and can be completed without removing the transmission. You should keep these in mind and make sure they are well maintained if you’re driving a Benz.

There’s also been reports of a problem exclusive to the Mercedes-Benz E and S class models. The engine will start and the car run, but the shifter gets stuck to the Park position. The failure of the selector module is behind this issue and the warning sign includes having difficulty in moving the gear from the Park mode.

Conclusion

That ends part 1 of our most common Mercedes Benz problems. There are even more common Mercedes-Benz problems that we see on a day to day basis. We recommend that you drop by our workshop, as soon as you feel something different. You might think it’s a small issue, however, time and again, we’ve seen innocent problems lead to huge overhauls. This made many of our customers spend more money than they should have, if they had come in sooner. Make sure you book an appointment and get a free diagnosis when you drop by with a Mercedes-Benz.