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Car trouble. Any idea what could be wrong?
Hi,
I drive a Mercedes A class, it is 5 years old, has 30,000 miles on the clock.
A few months ago, the engine diagnostic symbol came up on the dashboard (and hasn't left since) I took my car to a Mercedes specialist garage, they wired it up to some sort of machine and said they couldn't find a problem. Around the same time, my car would never start on first attempt, and I had to rev the accelerator to make it start, this is still the case.
Today I jumped in my car, switched the engine on and it was so loud, it became louder when I would accelerate, there was also a bad smell coming from the car. The only way I could describe the noise is a really loud, rattling noise. My car also had trouble going any faster then 25mph up a hill today.
I have taken it to 3 separate garages.
Garage number 1 checked the oil, said there wasn't much in it, topped it up for me and said book it in later this week and we'll look properly.
Garage number 2 said it could be that one of the cylinders had gone and needed replacing but couldn't be sure, he then recommended garage number 3.
Garage number 3 said they think that the engine has gone and it will need stripping down if this is the case.
I have a family friend (mechanic) coming to my house tomorrow to have a look at it, as none of the above mechanics seemed sure.
My work is mobile, I rely heavily on the car for work purposes and money is extremely tight at the minute, so tight that I won't be able to get it fixed.
Anyone here who has a clue about cars, do you think from what I've described that the engine needs replacing?
I drive a Mercedes A class, it is 5 years old, has 30,000 miles on the clock.
A few months ago, the engine diagnostic symbol came up on the dashboard (and hasn't left since) I took my car to a Mercedes specialist garage, they wired it up to some sort of machine and said they couldn't find a problem. Around the same time, my car would never start on first attempt, and I had to rev the accelerator to make it start, this is still the case.
Today I jumped in my car, switched the engine on and it was so loud, it became louder when I would accelerate, there was also a bad smell coming from the car. The only way I could describe the noise is a really loud, rattling noise. My car also had trouble going any faster then 25mph up a hill today.
I have taken it to 3 separate garages.
Garage number 1 checked the oil, said there wasn't much in it, topped it up for me and said book it in later this week and we'll look properly.
Garage number 2 said it could be that one of the cylinders had gone and needed replacing but couldn't be sure, he then recommended garage number 3.
Garage number 3 said they think that the engine has gone and it will need stripping down if this is the case.
I have a family friend (mechanic) coming to my house tomorrow to have a look at it, as none of the above mechanics seemed sure.
My work is mobile, I rely heavily on the car for work purposes and money is extremely tight at the minute, so tight that I won't be able to get it fixed.
Anyone here who has a clue about cars, do you think from what I've described that the engine needs replacing?
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Comments
I'm no expert but I can't imagine the whole engine will need replacing...
Waj_100 is an expert, though. I'm sure he'll be along to give you some good pointers
30,000 miles is nothing but it sounds to me if the bonnet has never been opened since it left the factory
every year or 10,000 is the key
just noticed your female, that explains it
i would book the car in for a major service at a reputable garage, no need to go to Merc main dealers
read the handbook, check the schedule, has the cam neen replaced? has the oil been changed recently? etc etc
does it need brakes?
the list goes on
my ex used to drive until it stopped, i would say "your car needs a service dear"
it was only a piece of metal to her, i gave up in the end
Presumably whatever is wrong with the car - is the 'problem' that earns the garage most money!
Get yourself to a decent independent mechanic / garage - this is their bread-and-butter.
(One slight possibility is a faulty ignition system, resulting in unburnt fuel being pumped to the cat and burning there - can destroy the honeycomb and results in the engine losing power at revs, and the exhaust smelling of petrol fumes... although I've only really heard of this with rotaries)
Your mechanic will probably have a code reader - get the fault codes and that may help to clear the mist from the crystal ball.
Regarding the engine diagnostic system, i did have it checked and was told it was fine!
It was due a service 2 months ago, but i didn't have the money so i left it
I honestly thought that if i was running low on oil, that an instrument would light up on the dashboard? I very lazily, and stupidly, haven't bothered to manually check the oil for a long time.
It's probably f***ed isn't it?
Doesn't matter, the mercs dead
Petrol
Is it? Definitely?! :eek:
I haven't had it serviced since december 2011.
That's not that long ago. I don't know the schedule for Mercedes,
Find a little independent garage if you can.
I went to two independent ones today, one had no clue, the other said my engine has probably gone.
Will go to another tomorrow.
This is really bad news if the engine has gone. Pretty sure it'll be really expensive?
I'm amazed that the engine warning light is on and nobody can find a fault.....if the light is on then a code has been logged in the car's computer....even if the light went out again the code should still be logged.
Has anyone driven the car?
The smell, lack of power, and noise would lead me to think you had a badly worn clutch, but of course the car needs to be driven to determine that, it could be all sorts of things though.
Amazing car, 04 reg, got 500 in px due to miles, should have kept it
sunsetbeach that was what garage number 2 said!! Coils, not cylinders
It had it's MOT last month, rear brake pads needed replacing, but that was all.
That sounds like it to me too.
Is this is the case, is the car fixable, without costing £1000 plus? It's had trouble going past 25mph today, but doesn't usually.
I'm surprised the Merc dealer couldn't find anything when they tested it, and not too impressed they let you go without investigating further!
Some garages would rather spend 2 hours doing a service or an hour changing brake-pads and charging £300 for doing it rather than getting a car in for something major, taking up space all week and only being able to charge, say, £500 for repairing it.
If the engine IS making bad noises it's almost certainly going to be expensive.
It's possible it could just be the fuel filter that needs replacing.
It might be that the fuel pump is knackered and, if it's a diesel, that could prove to be expensive.