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STR posted:Get AAA Plus (100 miles of towing per incident) before buying it. You'll probably need it to tow it home, and they won't do same-day-signup-tows anymore. Also, check with your insurance carrier. I'm through Progressive, and for less than AAA they offer roadside assistance/towing/warm hugs as an option.
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Mar 6, 2019 15:33
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Yes and no. Insurance generally only covers up to 5-10 miles. And they may count it as a claim. It's $144/yr for AAA for both of us (myself and GF). Yeah, it's spendy, but she doesn't know a tire from a spark plug, and my car isn't exactly trustworthy. We both drive cars that are rapidly approaching the drinking age. NTB ugga duggad the gently caress out of her car when she got tires, so if she gets a flat on the LR, she WILL need a tow. Flatbed. Period. They'll snap off every stud if they try to remove that tire. I couldn't get a single lug to budge on that wheel when she asked me to look at her brakes. ONE bolt on the RR put up a fight when doing said brake inspection, and I snapped the stud off easily (obviously replaced it). I'm gonna just order a complete bearing+hub assembly for the LR, along with 5 lug nuts, because I know it's not coming off without force. Her car is a desert car, so no rust anywhere (instead, blasted paint, and the dash will crumble at the smallest touch) randomidiot fucked around with this message at 17:02 on Mar 6, 2019 |
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Mar 6, 2019 16:59
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I have Progressive roadside. It's 15 miles which should be more than enough for anywhere that I drive. And it's like $12/6 months. I've used it a couple times and it definitely didn't count as a claim. Though I get it if you expect to need to be towed more than that. e: here's what they include. I'm sure you get more with AAA but it's not bad for how cheap it is 
opengl fucked around with this message at 17:05 on Mar 6, 2019 |
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Mar 6, 2019 17:01
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For GF that would likely be plenty. Her job is less than 3 miles away. I'll put it like this - she's the original owner of her 2005 Toyota (purchased new in late 2004), and it's still a few thousand short of hitting 90k. That's including a dozen road trips - mostly between Dallas and Austin, but we also took it to New Orleans and back (holy poo poo that was miserable without cruise control AND a stereo without an aux input.. one of these has since been fixed). My car is usually the road trip car (mostly because it has this awesome thing called "cruise control", also because it has a decent stereo), but we usually just drive between Austin and Dallas. So there's a very narrow radius (relatively speaking) where we'd wind up not being able to get towed either back home or to my parents house. It was $3 or $4/mo to add her to my AAA plan, and you can't pick and choose what levels of AAA go with each member on a family account. edit for your edit: the main things I carry AAA for are flat tire changes (for GF), jump start (either of us), and towing (mostly me; her car is the literal Toyota Cockroach; Toyota Matrix w/5 speed manual with zero options except floormats, essentially a Corolla hatch with stiff suspension and AC) randomidiot fucked around with this message at 17:12 on Mar 6, 2019 |
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Mar 6, 2019 17:06
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AAA has bailed my rear end (well, and my kids' asses) out it has paid for itself several times over. One of the few times I got more out of something than what I paid into it.
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Mar 6, 2019 17:22
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C-Bangin' it 
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+1 CAA/AAA has bailed me out twice with max distance tows on their highest tier plan. Both times were water pump failures in boxsters on roadtrips, and I've used then again twice for within city limits towing. I'm gotten well over a decade and a half (maybe 2 decades) of membership fee's in value in tows. 100% I feel like it was a great choice to subscribe.
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Mar 6, 2019 17:43
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After ducking the shop through two more small snows, my juice was running out. Nick called up today saying the Mercedes parts shop he uses had been hounding him for the pump core. Nick is pretty old school, and likes to run the entire repair over with you. So he showed me the pump (which obviously looked completely fine on the outside -- not like he was gonna open it up) and then narrated the labor. Basically everything in front and on the driver's side of the engine has to come off to get access. This is where the V12 packaging really does you in. Nick replaced a couple pulleys and a tensioner, and then refilled all the fluids affected -- that was a gotcha about removing everything -- lots of fluid loss, and OEM fluid prices. Nick said the parts guy was quoting him $2100 for the pump initially, but was able to get it for 1400, which of course helps a lot. He did a quick drive with me to talk through the possible error modes the ABC system might run into from here. If the bleed isn't perfect, the ABC system might throw a calibration error (not the red one) during height changes. He said try to restart the car and see if the error would go away on its own. Even riding for a couple min, I was immediately reminded of how plush the ABC suspension is. Once I drove off, I also remembered how oversprung the gas pedal is. The car really doesn't want you accessing the power by accident. I missed this car. It's one hell of a machine when it's running. Colostomy Bag posted:Main cost difference between AMG and standard will be the brakes. A brake job on an AMG is quite a costly adventure. And of course, the rotors have uneven pad deposits forming over the rust spots. I'm not sure if they'll die down at all, but it's noticeable under even moderate braking. https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/mercedes-brake-kit-front-cl65-s65-amg-genuine-pagid-w220amgfbk2 You know the Stuttgart Syndrome is setting in when you look at $1000 for front rotors and pads and think, oh ok, could be worse.
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Mar 13, 2019 22:31
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Also, Nick had pretty much tapped the tank doing diagnostics and testing, so I had to go straight to a gas station to fill up. Was thinking about the thread title when the pump wouldn't let me pay and I had to guess how many $ to ask the cashier for. $70, and that was not enough to fill it. 18.6 gal.
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Mar 13, 2019 22:44
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Yeah, you didn't get beat up on that. My tandem pump was around the same price (from an indy I really trust) and the M275 eats tensioners/idlers so it was one of those "while you are in there...". And for those looking for an s-class, read the invoice...this is an average repair. Some people are shocked when they get a $1K or $2K repair bill. Own one of these and that amount seems like you are getting off easy.
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Mar 14, 2019 18:23
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kimbo305 posted:Also, Nick had pretty much tapped the tank doing diagnostics and testing, so I had to go straight to a gas station to fill up. One of the more laughable aspects of the car is the size of the tank versus its fuel consumption versus how it is designed as the queen of long distance travel. In town driving like clockwork after 275 miles time to fill up. The fuel tank is a 'straddle type' that basically goes over the rear diff. IIRC has two fuel pumps, one for each side. To swap out requires basically removing the rear end to drop it.
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Mar 14, 2019 18:28
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My Cayenne is the same way with the straddle tank and dual fuel pumps. Although I'm sure it's a design decision as my Subaru's similarly have a straddled tank design but only require 1 pump.
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Mar 14, 2019 19:25
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Colostomy Bag posted:
I work in a shop and get good deal on parts, plus already own all the German specific tools for most jobs including access to scan tools etc... For me its a car ive always wanted to drive even for a little bit. And right now, im single, have no real responsibilities or financial burdons, so its like if not now then when?
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Mar 15, 2019 02:56
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You are the perfect candidate for expensive German luxobarge ownership. Sourcing cheap(relative) parts and being able to do most of your own work goes a long way to bringing the cost of ownership down.
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Mar 15, 2019 03:04
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Preoptopus posted:I work in a shop and get good deal on parts, plus already own all the German specific tools for most jobs including access to scan tools etc... For me its a car ive always wanted to drive even for a little bit. And right now, im single, have no real responsibilities or financial burdons, so its like if not now then when? Double down and find a CL600. A v12 TT pillarless coupe is pretty special.
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Mar 15, 2019 10:40
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Preoptopus posted:I work in a shop and get good deal on parts, plus already own all the German specific tools for most jobs including access to scan tools etc... For me its a car ive always wanted to drive even for a little bit. And right now, im single, have no real responsibilities or financial burdons, so its like if not now then when? Go for it then! That was my thought at the time, if not now, when? Twin turbo V12s don't grow on trees. Tremek posted:Double down and find a CL600. A v12 TT pillarless coupe is pretty special. Just a thought and I have no idea on the CL but you might want to look up motor mount changes since they get eaten a lot (mine were shot at 27k miles). On the SL the motor has to come out. 19 hours of labor IIRC. My indy place charged me the bargain price of around $650 to replace all three mounts. Dealer price would be around $1500.
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Mar 15, 2019 12:35
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 Thank you Kimbo. 07, 82k on the clock. Picked it up for 18 after taxes and fees and all that. Everything electrical works that I have tried so far. It does have a strange wirring sound from the engine or transmission as you drive it and also sounds like a fan bearing might be going out. Also a loud squeek from the front left suspension. Sounds like a dried out bushing. Gonna hit all of them with some lube tomarrow and throw some greese into the ball joints. Havent had a good chance to poke around it in the shop as we were absolutly slammed all day. It is bone dry underneith no leakes of any kind to report. Only warning light that comes on is for me to replace the key fob battery. I assume its easy enough. Inside is immaculate and of course its fast as gently caress. Let the fun commence! Preoptopus fucked around with this message at 03:34 on Mar 16, 2019 |
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Mar 16, 2019 03:32
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Preoptopus posted:
Those wheels are the best part of the 600 imo (other than the engine of course)
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Mar 16, 2019 15:24
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Preoptopus posted:
There's plenty of videos but basically you use the manual key in the fob to take it apart. For me it was harder than it looks. Anyways congrats.
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Mar 16, 2019 15:41
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Mar 16, 2019 16:14
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I love this thread so much
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Mar 16, 2019 19:10
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Preoptopus posted:
You said youre in the Denver are yeah? If you run into things you cant solve yourself or dont want to do, I very much recommend Hoover Mercedes in Parker. Mike Hoover is a great dude and helped me do all sorts of ridiculous things to my E55 including swapping the rear gears for SRT8 ring/pinion (which for MB stuff is very much off the reservation) and everything he always did worked great.  He usually has a bumper crop of S classes outside that need new globes. Tremek fucked around with this message at 19:21 on Mar 16, 2019 |
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Mar 16, 2019 19:17
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Tremek posted:You said youre in the Denver are yeah? If you run into things you cant solve yourself or dont want to do, I very much recommend Hoover Mercedes in Parker. Mike Hoover is a great dude and helped me do all sorts of ridiculous things to my E55 including swapping the rear gears for SRT8 ring/pinion (which for MB stuff is very much off the reservation) and everything he always did worked great. Good looking out. I might go pay him just to do a run down of whats wrong with it so I know what I got. Edit. Today i noticed it had that problem that was mentioned in this or the mercedes thread. It keeps popping the fuel gun so you have to stand there holding it at a trickle. So hoping that the wirring noise isnt catastrophic yet, i might fix that first cause that poo poo was annoying as gently caress today. Should I just start my own thread? Im not trying to be rude or pull from this one. Preoptopus fucked around with this message at 05:06 on Mar 17, 2019 |
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Mar 17, 2019 04:54
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I don't care if you post here. And of course you can do your own thread if you don't want to mix things up. Not that I'm moving that fast with anything.
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Mar 17, 2019 05:37
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The whirr might be the tandem pump. Hoping it is just the tensioners.
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Mar 17, 2019 13:46
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Tremek posted:Double down and find a CL600. A v12 TT pillarless coupe is pretty special. I hate you. Now my ls430 just seems so boring and reliable. I have been thinking of swapping it for a wagon, but this is obviously the more sane option. A cl is big enough for a car seat in the back, right?
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Mar 18, 2019 06:06
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I swapped parking stickers on the S-class today, and when I went to close the door, of course I did it normally so it just shut. But then I remembered about the soft-close, so I opened the door and closed it softly just to see the soft-close in action. That's really all that feature is good for.
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Mar 19, 2019 22:13
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Preoptopus posted:Good looking out. I might go pay him just to do a run down of whats wrong with it so I know what I got. Right on, let me know your experience with Mike, he's always struck me as a good wrench and a good guy. slurry_curry posted:I hate you. Now my ls430 just seems so boring and reliable. I have been thinking of swapping it for a wagon, but this is obviously the more sane option. A CL is definitely big enough for a booster seat back there. Related: all you terrible influences have me thinking about looking at an S600... Ninja edit: the car I was linking is now gone, damnit. Was a '05 S600 with 85k miles in good shape. Screenshot for posterity: 
Tremek fucked around with this message at 19:06 on Mar 20, 2019 |
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Mar 20, 2019 19:04
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Havent had time to make a thread, but an update on mine. The sun roof broke. It opens but wont close. Thankfully Mercedes knew this would happen and fitted a way to close it via allen wrenching beneith the drivers sun visor. Apparently its common enough for someone to make a youtube video about it. Finally made it accross town to use my old bosses scan tool. Nothing that noteworthy besides the left side rear head rest motor throwing a code. It works from the door but doesnt do the lay flat command you can make it do from the drivers seat. Im not too worried about it. Also a bunch of low voltage codes in the history tells me that the car sat for a while and the batteries went flat. They both look factory, but this car has only ever seen a dealer so Im not sure of their age. ALso a PO460 pops up as the only engine code (low fuel level) Im assuming it has everything to do with the car being hard to fill with gas. Ive been pretty much filling it up with 20 bucks at a time cause i get bored holdling the handle so actually the thread title is very fitting. Sat in traffic for about an hour on the highway on my way home and its fantastic. The radar guided cruise control keeps knudging you along in a start stop traffic jam while you sit there and fiddle with the seat massager settings. I admit Im pretty easy to get distracted by my phone or by a pretty girl in a car next to me so this was great. But then on open highway just flooring it to get two lanes over through a gap is a strange feeling of speed and power. Like kimbo said earlier, your doing 100 before you even know it in quiet and comfort. A weird feeling knowing there is little out on the high highway that can touch you. I was at my local last night and a guy had his 55 chevy parked outside. Safelight still has to reach out about the windscreen im gonna hit up the dealer i bought it from tomarrow. The whir comes and goes, today was a hotter day and I didnt hear it at all, it does come on when its colder. Also shifting from park into reverse sometimes produces a clunk from the back. hoping its just the diff gears picking up slack if its parked on a hill. No tranny codes to speak of i figure if there was a major issue it would throw something as it throws codes for a loving headrest. Over all still happy with my purchase. No other car has given me the feeling of being totally and utterly pampered and safe like this one. My roomate had to spend a few weeks in jail for a dui and I plan on picking him up in it friday. Gonna be great. Tremek do it!!!!!!! Maybe we could just do a v12 or gtfo thread. Preoptopus fucked around with this message at 01:57 on Mar 21, 2019 |
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Mar 21, 2019 01:22
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Did the moonroof do a clicking noise?
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Mar 21, 2019 02:17
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slurry_curry posted:I hate you. Now my ls430 just seems so boring and reliable. I have been thinking of swapping it for a wagon, but this is obviously the more sane option. We just upgraded to an LS460 from the 430 and it's a better car. Drives more like a BMW, handling is much better than the more floaty feel of the 430 and I like it a lot. The seats are also way better, and the steering wheel is amazing with the way they used wood in it, just really good improvements all around. Although in the looks department I still like the 430 better I think.
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Mar 21, 2019 02:26
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Colostomy Bag posted:Did the moonroof do a clicking noise? Do you know what? It does! Kimbo I have to ad yours is way better looking cause it's somehow lower and boxier. Mine is almost an suv. I've never sat in a car with more headroom.
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Mar 21, 2019 03:41
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Preoptopus posted:Do you know what? It does! Preoptopus: what part of town are you in? I'm in eastern Centennial. Would love to see your car if you're up for an impromptu goon-together. (ps I groaned at that myself but it's done now) Also welp, the blue S600's back up on CL: https://denver.craigslist.org/cto/d/denver-2005-mercedes-benz-s600-low/6845867500.html
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Mar 21, 2019 15:14
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Preoptopus posted:Kimbo I have to ad yours is way better looking cause it's somehow lower and boxier. Mine is almost an suv. I've never sat in a car with more headroom. The pointed headlights sweeping into the fenders and the arching body line all exaggerate the height on the W221, I think. The W220 has straight body lines across the doors. The only quibble I have with it, stylewise, are the blobby headlights. Demuro's Hyundai comment hurt a lot because it's true. Preoptopus posted:Nothing that noteworthy besides the left side rear head rest motor throwing a code. It works from the door but doesnt do the lay flat command you can make it do from the drivers seat. Are these electric in the W220 as well? Slowly drooping back down on their own had me assuming they were part of the pneumatic system.
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Mar 22, 2019 00:06
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Welp kimbo, my wirring noise finally threw an ABC malfunction on the dash. So Im assuming the pump has been running dry. And is now hosed. I still have no idea where a leak might be the whole car is dry as a bone top and bottom. Tremeck Im in lakewood im down to kick it. Let the adventure into the unknown commence!!!!
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Mar 22, 2019 00:16
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Preoptopus posted:Welp kimbo, my wirring noise finally threw an ABC malfunction on the dash. So Im assuming the pump has been running dry. And is now hosed. I still have no idea where a leak might be the whole car is dry as a bone top and bottom. Tremeck Im in lakewood im down to kick it. Let the adventure into the unknown commence!!!! Haha awesome, I'll be out there next week, once I have that meeting firmed up maybe we can compare turning radiuses or something dumb since I don't have a fun car right now.  PS I called Mike Hoover this AM about the blue S600 and he told me he couldn't remember the car, and he thought the number registers to a dealer. It's listed "by owner", grr. Also mentioned you may look him up... Sorry if I altered the weave of the universe and your pump blew up. 
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Mar 22, 2019 00:25
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Preoptopus posted:Welp kimbo, my wirring noise finally threw an ABC malfunction on the dash. So Im assuming the pump has been running dry. And is now hosed. I still have no idea where a leak might be the whole car is dry as a bone top and bottom. Does the W221 dash print the severity of the error? Did you check the fluid reservoir level?
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Mar 22, 2019 00:45
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kimbo305 posted:Does the W221 dash print the severity of the error? Did you check the fluid reservoir level? No it just says malfunction. The fluid reservoir is covered by a metal bracket to prevent you from messing with it. Im trying to see an easy way to get it off and not really finding it, might end up death wheeling it off tomarrow. Suspension is super soft but isnt sagging anywhere from what I can tell.
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Mar 22, 2019 00:47
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Preoptopus posted:The fluid reservoir is covered by a metal bracket to prevent you from messing with it. Loving Mercedes' anti-DIY energy on that one.
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Mar 22, 2019 00:49
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Ok just ran outside. So Im retarded, there is a bracket over the obvious screw cap but next to it is a rubber grommet type thing, I thought it was was some sort of hood support, apparently you yank on it and its a dip stick. So the plot thickens. The fluid is if anything a little over filled. At least this tells me there is no leak, OR the dealer knew there is a leak and filled the gently caress out of it for road tests. They guy who sold me the car knew absolutely nothing about it nor did he have much interest in it. (or cars it seamed for that matter) So I dont know. They didnt even know how to put gas in it so I really dont think they looked at this car at all. Edit: The fluid just smells like power steering fluid also, I dont know if the pentosin poo poo your supposed to use smells any different. Preoptopus fucked around with this message at 01:27 on Mar 22, 2019 |
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Mar 22, 2019 00:56
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This thread is making me feel better about my basket case 535xi wagon. De Germans don't like De DIY.
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Mar 22, 2019 00:59
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EVERYWHERE 
