My 1st ABC issue - SL55
Discussion
Candellara said:
Mercedes labour rate (£156 per hour) is quite frankly ludicrous and equates to £1170 for a tech / fitters labour per day
40 or 50% discount on labour rate is common from MB dealers on older cars. I'm put off from getting a new one due to how much the servicing cost would jump up!
Collected the car and all is well. I'd say that the fault has been manifesting for a while as when i originally test drove the car you could feel a degree of vibration which i thought was a characteristic of the car. The best way of describing it was it felt as though an engine or transmission mount had collapsed causing a vibration on the chassis / body.
Apparently if the pulsation damper goes bad - it provides that vibration sensation as the ABC lines run against the body and you particularly feel that through the passenger foot-well. This has now disappeared completely. The ABC pump is a tandem pump (ABC and power steering) so both parts are replaced and the pulsation damper on 2007 cars onwards is mounted on the pump as well. This was the fault with my car.
Ashtons (the supplying dealer) have been fantastic and paid the cost of the pump failure but i also elected to have the undertray replaced, serpentine and supercharger belt replaced, gearbox and diff oil checked. I've a great relationship with MB Chichester as they look after several other Mercedes for me but i'll definitely look up Olly at PCS going forward as the car gets older
Apparently if the pulsation damper goes bad - it provides that vibration sensation as the ABC lines run against the body and you particularly feel that through the passenger foot-well. This has now disappeared completely. The ABC pump is a tandem pump (ABC and power steering) so both parts are replaced and the pulsation damper on 2007 cars onwards is mounted on the pump as well. This was the fault with my car.
Ashtons (the supplying dealer) have been fantastic and paid the cost of the pump failure but i also elected to have the undertray replaced, serpentine and supercharger belt replaced, gearbox and diff oil checked. I've a great relationship with MB Chichester as they look after several other Mercedes for me but i'll definitely look up Olly at PCS going forward as the car gets older
Candellara said:
Collected the car and all is well. I'd say that the fault has been manifesting for a while as when i originally test drove the car you could feel a degree of vibration which i thought was a characteristic of the car. The best way of describing it was it felt as though an engine or transmission mount had collapsed causing a vibration on the chassis / body.
Apparently if the pulsation damper goes bad - it provides that vibration sensation as the ABC lines run against the body and you particularly feel that through the passenger foot-well. This has now disappeared completely. The ABC pump is a tandem pump (ABC and power steering) so both parts are replaced and the pulsation damper on 2007 cars onwards is mounted on the pump as well. This was the fault with my car.
Ashtons (the supplying dealer) have been fantastic and paid the cost of the pump failure but i also elected to have the undertray replaced, serpentine and supercharger belt replaced, gearbox and diff oil checked. I've a great relationship with MB Chichester as they look after several other Mercedes for me but i'll definitely look up Olly at PCS going forward as the car gets older
Excellent news and glad it's all sorted. Seems you have found one of the few MB main dealers who are good at this sort of thing. You are spoilt with them and Olly close by. Enjoy the car as there is little like a well sorted SL55 Apparently if the pulsation damper goes bad - it provides that vibration sensation as the ABC lines run against the body and you particularly feel that through the passenger foot-well. This has now disappeared completely. The ABC pump is a tandem pump (ABC and power steering) so both parts are replaced and the pulsation damper on 2007 cars onwards is mounted on the pump as well. This was the fault with my car.
Ashtons (the supplying dealer) have been fantastic and paid the cost of the pump failure but i also elected to have the undertray replaced, serpentine and supercharger belt replaced, gearbox and diff oil checked. I've a great relationship with MB Chichester as they look after several other Mercedes for me but i'll definitely look up Olly at PCS going forward as the car gets older
Hereward said:
Good to hear of a main dealer doing a decent job on non-routine stuff. Enjoy the Summer.
Waterhouse Braintree are the best main dealer in Essex IMHO and their labour rates are well short of what the OP paid. Conversely Mercedes Bishops Stortford are the worst I've ever used. Frankly anything above £7 an hour is too much to pay for their labour!
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