May be a bit late to the party but here’s my £.02…. 2006, 165000 miles. Losing turbo intermitently. Pulled every sensor connection, cleaned and applied dielectric grease. Found the ground to boost sensor had been compromised as well as on the sensor on coolant reservoir (which shares the same loom). They both had a spot where the insulation was missing. I simply covered them each with electrical tape and gave it a good days test drive. No more drops in boost. In fact, it seems to have more power. I do show signs of oil at many joints. I’m going to clean everything well and keep a weather eye. Thanks for the great write up!

Is there a way to tweak the cruise control? When I am travelling on an interstate here in SC and GA at 70 MPH and hit a fairly steep hill while on cruise it will drop a few miles per hour before I hit the top. but if I override the cruise and push the pedal down it will hold 70.
Harry

Hi Steve, I appreciate you’re a busy man but would value your advice before fitting a new set of injectors to my 2007 311 CDI, they’re the Bosch Piezo type.

Is the Honda Accord seal swap still applicable to the newer 646.985 engines? (torque to 7Nm + 180 deg?)

Injector coding – is this MB main agent only or do I need to find a local mechanic with a specific electronic device/software? Do i just record the number etched on the top plastic collar from each injector and tell the coder which cylinder they went in? Will it run without coding? MB are 40 miles away from me.

Thanks again for your much valued help

Max

Steve Ball;
The problem with my 2007 Sprinter going into limp mode turned out to be a crack in the inter cooler hose.
Harry Thorn

Hi Steve I have a Vito CDI 115 2004 panel van. It started chuffing and resulted in black death.
My number one injector started leaking. I took the vehicle to a recognised MB repair shop.
They failed miserably.The repair lasted just three months. Scouring through Google for DIY answers to black death, I came across Mercedes Gen-in and Mr Steve Ball.
The replacement of the shrink bolt and cleaning out the bolt threads and debris blown out of the threaded bolt holes to make sure the bolt bottomed out when torqued down. The lapping in of the injector seat face The suggested replacement of the copper washer with the Honda 2.2 Accord.
I phoned the garage that carried out the repair and was told bring it back your repair has a 1 year guarantee. I quizzed the forman regarding replacement of the shrink bolt. No we pull the injector out slip a new washer in and and that’s it, repair complete.
I decided that it was pointless going back and carried out the repair myself.I bought the bolt the OEM copper washers and the Honda washers. lapped in the seat face and put it all together using the thicker HONDA washer what a pleasure . The repair is still going strong after a couple years I managed to T-BONE a clown who jumped the stop street and give the front half of my van fat hair lip. The insurance assessors wrote the vehicle off. Due to the rust and corrosion.
I did drive the vehicle home due to a pile of tools in the back and the presence of vulture tow and ambulance drivers who don’t take no for an answer.
I have bought another second hand Vito with a rough idle due to what I am told by a diesel mechanic acquaintance, is too much diesel being delivered through a faulty injector.
I brought up the previous repair experience of using a Honda Accord cu washer in my first Vito and he brought up fact that the injector spray pattern would differ from the Mercedes washers due to the thicker HONDA washer
The thicker washer would /could create lubrication problems on the cylinder walls.
Performance would /could be affected.
I am a refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic by trade and a DIY’er by nature.
I understand copper as I make flares from time to time.
First rule of a good flare, DO NOT crush the living daylights out of it. Just create the shape. Let the tightening do the sealing.
A thicker washer makes far more sense to me. More copper thickness /volume to take up the irregularities on the seal face.
I would appreciate some feed back on my diesel mechanics worries.

Thanks for your help with the turbo limp mode this is my problem on and off.
Do you know if you can fit a engine data scan to 2000 sprinter .Thanks for your help.
Tony

Your website has become a bible for me. I have a 2000 313 as a campervan which I have owned for about 4yrs and travel to VERY remote places. As with all my vehicles I have a Haines manual. I had problems with limp mode for about the first yr. I would stop switch off for maybe 10 sec start and it would run ok until the next time. Had it in with the ‘experts’ with no cure. Then one day it just cured itself. That in itself is a worry as I don’t know what it was. Another problem I had which I saw coming with harder starting, was the fuel pressure valve O rings. I was only a couple of hours from home so I opened the air filter and gave it a good dose of brake cleaner. It started and I drove home. The third issue was ‘ERROR’ relating to the key lighting up in dash display. the Haines manual says to lock lock and unlock the door with the key, which I did, and its been ok. Hope my dramas are uesful to someone else and thanks for a great informative site.

I own a C240 2004 wagon. For the longest time my lights would flash at odd and random times. Today I just finished replacing the siren. All is working well. I now have audible notifications – had not had that for a couple of years. The new siren cost was 140 dollars. Dealership wanted 80″ dollars to do this job……

Hi
How can I open the rear viwe mirror, where last month I found water inside so i think there is bad contact or dust in IR sensor inside.

Great article and very well explained