My first Merc - CL500

[dkatwa]

Hi Guys
I was after an S class for longer trips but decided to settle for a 2002 CL 500

So far so good (touch wood)...averaging 27mpg on mainly motorway journeys (round trip is 104 miles, approx 85 of which is motorways at 60 mph)

The ABC light flashes briefly in the morning sometimes, but once it re-calibrates after a few seconds, it's fine

Today, the licence plate not working light came on so will check when I return home

Also today, in about 20 mins of very heavy traffic on the A1M at Hatfield, the temp gauge went about 5C higher - is this normal?

[ZX10R NIN]

Nice Wheels

[dkatwa]

Thanks..actually they need to be reburbed...So far, had B service done and will buy 4 michelin super sport sports on Saturday...current tyres are the wrong size and a mixture of makes...

[CarsOrBikes]

temp difference in traffic is normal, keep an eye on though as the cooling fan may be slow, the ABC could be a number of things, mine did it as yours and was the pressure valve near the steering column, the pin on the sensor was bad and eventually broke off and you can't get it on it's own.

[dkatwa]

Thanks CarsOrBikes. At the B service, MB told me that the ABC system is fine (no leaks). I don't know the extent of the checks they performed but have to assume all is OK :-)

The only other thing is that the V8 sounds muted...even when accelerating, I don't really hear it...was wondering if there is a fuse that I can remove (like fuse 22 in Astons) that keeps the exhaust valve open all the time?

[LeoZwalf]

You're brave! Loving the badass multicolour panel look

[dkatwa]

LeoZwalf said:

You're brave! Loving the badass multicolour panel look

HAHA...a trick of the light! Actually,the panels are all the same colour....

[Monkeylegend]

Impressed with your consumption figures.

Licence plate will most likely just be the bulb at a few pence. Had one go on my SL while it was parked in the garage, one of the cheaper repairs

I bought some car shampoo when I bought my bulbs, £2.99 for two I think, and when I got home they had only charged for the shampoo.

Be careful when you take the bulb out, the plastic cover on mine was very fragile/aged and a little bit round the screw hole broke off.

[dkatwa]

Monkeylegend said:

Impressed with your consumption figures.

Licence plate will most likely just be the bulb at a few pence. Had one go on my SL while it was parked in the garage, one of the cheaper repairs

I bought some car shampoo when I bought my bulbs, £2.99 for two I think, and when I got home they had only charged for the shampoo.

Be careful when you take the bulb out, the plastic cover on mine was very fragile/aged and a little bit round the screw hole broke off.

Thanks Monkeylegend. I checked last night and the bulbs for the numberplate are fine. Once it stops raining, I will take them out and clean the contacts just in case that is the problem.

As for fuel consumption, yes it's good to get anywhere close to 25mpg...I just need to find a way of getting more sound out of the V8 :-)

[Monkeylegend]

dkatwa said:

Monkeylegend said:

Impressed with your consumption figures.

Licence plate will most likely just be the bulb at a few pence. Had one go on my SL while it was parked in the garage, one of the cheaper repairs

I bought some car shampoo when I bought my bulbs, £2.99 for two I think, and when I got home they had only charged for the shampoo.

Be careful when you take the bulb out, the plastic cover on mine was very fragile/aged and a little bit round the screw hole broke off.

Thanks Monkeylegend. I checked last night and the bulbs for the numberplate are fine. Once it stops raining, I will take them out and clean the contacts just in case that is the problem.

As for fuel consumption, yes it's good to get anywhere close to 25mpg...I just need to find a way of getting more sound out of the V8 :-)

Mine was as well funnily enough, but a replacement did the trick. Not sure if a bulb about to go can cause the warning. We also had the same with the other halves Scenic at MOT time. The bulb seemed ok and worked intermittently so I thought it was a contact/wiring issue, but they just replaced the bulb and all was ok again.

I read a lot of posts re removing the cats as a way of improving exhaust noise, probably a bit naughty though.

[CarsOrBikes]

There is no valve on the exhaust, personally I like the noise subtle, but when you hold the revs up it's noisy enough, you may not have done that yet.

[dkatwa]

Normally it's at 1900 rpm on cruise control...when I accelerate, there is a bit of noise but more of a whooshing sound, rather than V8 burble

I am going to get all tyres changed tomorrow...I read somewhere that before they put the car on the ramp, they need to take the top of the reservoir for the ABC suspension....can anyone confirm this please?


thanks

[ZX10R NIN]

You can fit an Xpipe on this will give the car a deeper note when accelerating but still subtle when cruising.

I've jacked up my SL without removing the ABC cap.

[dkatwa]

Thanks for the helpful advice.....

Just had Michelin Pilot Super Sports all round - done at Halfords and I could observe this thru their lounge area (Watford branch - excellent service and very helpful staff)

They spotted a leaking shock that MB had not (though I only serviced it at MB two weeks ago)

I replaced the licence plate bulbs - one holder had a dislodged clip and the bulb was showing green ageing marks....repaired the holder with superglue and used Halfords bulbs...look fine now


Costs to date:
April 2016 B service at MB dealer - £547
April 2016 Michelin tyres all round - £676
April 2016 Bulb+superglue = £5

[Monkeylegend]

I did say the bulb would be one of the cheapest fixes

Have you had a price for the rear strut?

What size tyres did you get in the end, I will be looking for some in the next few months. I thought the Michelins would be more expensive so they could be an option worth considering at those prices.

[dkatwa]

Halfords quoted £412 for the fronts, fully fitted....

The tyres I have just bought (via Asda tyres and fitted by Halfords) are:

Fronts 245 45 R18

Rears 275 40 R18

Car stance is more purposeful now, especially the rear....

Black circles seemed to have run out of the rears....they offer one purchaser every week, a refund on the cost of the tyres...that was my first choice (similar price) but opted for Asda tyres since they were in stock and I really needed to change my tyres.

The previous tyres were:


Fronts (235 45 R18):
Contisport contact 5
Continental Sport contact 2

Rears (245 45 R18):
Jinyu (Huh??!!)
Contisport contact 3

Will update this post with my views on the tyres once I have driven to/ from work this coming week. They are fitted to the Veyron so if it's good enough for that car, it's good enough for me

[W8aMinute]

Did you see how badly the strut was leaking? A slight misting is just about acceptable but if you're getting drops of fluid from it you'll need a new one. You can get reconditioned ones from Mercedes for a smidge under £1,000 I think.

There's no need to remove the cap from the ABC system when lifting the car off the ground. It will probably sit significantly lower when it's back on the tyres but should lift itself up a few seconds after starting the engine.

As for the exhaust, there's no valve in the system for extra noise. The only way to get more is to have a new exhaust fitted or have the secondary cats removed (which makes it sound more rorty, but luckily with little to no drone at cruising speeds).

Edited by W8aMinute on Saturday 16th April 16:20

[dkatwa]

Thanks for that W8aminute
Will keep an eye on the strut....
Job is rear brake pads and discs. The rear right sensor was was not connected to the pads and was taped off. Strange

[86DA]

Reconditioned struts from Poland are £320.

Lots of used struts available.

Got 28 once on an economy run, in winter around town i'm sure you can see the gauge going down.

[dkatwa]

Shame there is no instant fuel readout like BMWs have..strange thing is, mpg is shown as 3.3 when I start off and reads 20mpg when I reach destination...however, filling up (brim to brim) gives 27mpg...so I don't know whats going on