We are going to chance not fixing it spend £'s travelling instead (1 Viewer)

[Charlie]

I have started another thread asking for specific help with this, didn't know to call it a scanner though, what do you have ?

My main one that is kept in the garage is this one
Broken Link Removed
This is a professional tool that allows me to interrogate Gearboxes, Air bags, and ABS braking systems among other things..

For your use and purpose I would suggest this one.
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This will do pretty much everything you require. It shows not only the actual code number but displays the actual fault that it has detected.

I like Autel kit cos its great value for money but most importantly they are very simple and intuitive to use. You will be able to read the stored code and turn off the engine management light If it illuminated. It is this tool that lives in our van permanently.

A word of caution. All Autel kit is made in China. This is no bad thing. After all all Apple products are made there. But despite this there are copies ! A genuine tool will have a serial number stored in the menu. If its not there its a copy.
I have an Autel account so if you do go for that brand I can check out the serial number to ensure its a genuine item.

 

[DavidG58]

Haven't got time at the moment to read all of this thread, or your 'limp' one but have you had the hoses replaced?

We had a turbo hose come off on a previous MH when we were overtaking and the van went into limp mode ... speaking to a garage mechanic later we were told that a hose coming loose or with a small hole in it can have the same effect.

All have been checked, but as it resets with ignition off and on again it is presumed it must be electronic, a loose hose would not fix itself, sounds reasonable

As for Mercedes paying wouldn't that be lovely, the known fault I think is within the trade, that and as my MH chassis is possibly 8 or 9 years old they are probably not going to be too interested

 

[appydaze]

I had same problem with my VW transporter going into limp mode but restarting after switching ign. off and on again. My garage told me it was the vanes on the turbo getting stuck...... he took it to bits and greased it up charged £300. plus vat ...it went ok for 3 weeks and cut out again......... sorry I'm not really helping, but may be worth a try....... I cant stand the uncertainness of anything like that so traded in to a dealer for my Merc. Good Luck

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[monaco/frankia]

Hi David We have a Frankia i8400 and are experiencing the same problem ie limp mode turn key off restart and all ok, our's seems to do this when we slow down as when coming off of the motorway and slow down or stop and then when increasing speed it goes into limp and like you say ok on the flat or down hill but if you showed it a picture of a hill it just drops right back speed wise and becomes almost dangerous when a lot of traffic around. I used to get the eml come on but for some reason that does not happen now just drops into limp Because of the fact that switching off and restarting clears it I am of the opinion that it is electrical ie maybe a sensor

 

[hilldweller]

Change your trip to Germany, then when it breaks down you might get a better class of fixer and most Germans speak good English.

 

[DavidG58]

my plumber has just sprayed our router with water, water won, can only just get on line via phone as hot spot, will be back when new router fitted in morning

If I wasn't a grown man I could cry

But I am a grown man, so will resort an early and over strength G + T

See you tomorrow

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[dippingatoe]

Doesn't feel right liking that last post. But get that G & T down you

 

[andy63]

I am of the opinion that it is electrical ie maybe a sensor

When I first read David's symptoms it was a mass air flow and pressure sensor fault that came to mind... but don't know his engine... that sensor would I think be responsible for ecu responses to engine loading ,fueling ,and timing and if faulty give the problems described...
But David said they lifted fault codes relating to turbo boost.. on reflection it's possible a manifold absolute pressure and mass air flow sensor could indicate turbo boost problems when in fact it was a faulty sensor..
Just thoughts...
Andy.

 

[Minxy]

All have been checked, but as it resets with ignition off and on again it is presumed it must be electronic, a loose hose would not fix itself, sounds reasonable

As for Mercedes paying wouldn't that be lovely, the known fault I think is within the trade, that and as my MH chassis is possibly 8 or 9 years old they are probably not going to be too interested

If there is a small hole in a hose which only becomes large enough at a higher speed to cause a problem, ie when the turbo kicks in with more pressure, then it could indeed be part of the problem IMV. Once the vehicle is stationary and the ignition turned off then on it is possible that this 'fault' then isn't apparent as there's no pressure going through the hose ...

If it is a known fault from 'production' then the age doesn't matter AFAIK ... it is a fault.

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[DavidG58]

Morning all, internet sorted, BT engineer luckily didn't investigate why the router had failed, just changed it, and FOC, not a bad service, although we do pay for a premium business package, but all sorted

I have another thread going ref the scanner fault reader thing, but it has crossed over onto here as well, have ordered this one

Broken Link Removed

found out where it plugs in thanks to you lot , been told delivery from China will be end of Jan, well after we have gone anyway and now my independent workshop have said it will not work anyway, it will read and clear but if I get a MIL or EML light on it will not reset that and therefore not clear the limp mode.

apparently Mercedes have a self reset limp by stopping and restarting, ideally with a 60 second wait, which I have never done, usually due to panic of trying to do it at traffic lights or on a roundabout exit etc rarely get a chance to spot it and do it at a planned stop. But if the system detects something failed and brings a light on then it will not reset until the failed problem can not be seen, unlikely to go on restart in his opinion

so back to going for it and see what happens

 

[irnbru]

Hope you have a good break away. At least if you do break down it will be in warmer climates and not out in the middle of nowhere in Scotland.

 

[DavidG58]

If there is a small hole in a hose which only becomes large enough at a higher speed to cause a problem, ie when the turbo kicks in with more pressure, then it could indeed be part of the problem IMV. Once the vehicle is stationary and the ignition turned off then on it is possible that this 'fault' then isn't apparent as there's no pressure going through the hose ...

If it is a known fault from 'production' then the age doesn't matter AFAIK ... it is a fault.

Thanks Mel, I hope my reply didn't come over as dismissive, I do tend to glaze over a little when things get technical, I struggle enough to get the bonnet open, let alone know what happens underneath it when at rallies I stand at the back of the men looking knowingly at other peoples engines and hoping nobody asks me anything requiring a 'real' answer

As for the 'known fault' I think is something that workshops and owners know but Mercedes are yet to admit, that might be a long time coming if it doesn't relate to a safety issue

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[DavidG58]

Hi David We have a Frankia i8400 and are experiencing the same problem ie limp mode turn key off restart and all ok, our's seems to do this when we slow down as when coming off of the motorway and slow down or stop and then when increasing speed it goes into limp and like you say ok on the flat or down hill but if you showed it a picture of a hill it just drops right back speed wise and becomes almost dangerous when a lot of traffic around. I used to get the eml come on but for some reason that does not happen now just drops into limp Because of the fact that switching off and restarting clears it I am of the opinion that it is electrical ie maybe a sensor

Wow, it is weird to read you describe exactly what we have, the only difference seems to be the EML has only come on once for us and would not go or come out of limp, that is when it went for a more serious investigation, the electrickery driving the turbo went away for a good looking at, that is apparently is where the alleged known fault is, no fault found but they rebuilt it (they say they did anyway) back on, EML reset, but we had also changed the cab battery, so it might even have cleared with that maybe. around 300 miles later first limp mode again, no EML but limp in virtually identical conditions to yours at random times since

Not related to hot or cold engine or weather, has happened within 1 mile of setting off and gone 100 miles without going

I have however noticed a couple of events, both after medium acceleration up slight gradient, then when lifting off on flat felt something change, almost like when the auto box goes for top gear, then dabbed accelerator, nothing there, it was in limp mode, but as we were on the flat was driving fine at 50ish mph, would only have noticed when I came to next gradient. Like you we originally thought it went into limp when gong for the acceleration, we now know it had already gone before, at least then I was able to chose a place to stop

We live at the top of a fairly steep hill, in limp I really struggled to maintain 20mph, not sensible to stop and restart and as I have found out since when I stopped outside a friends house at bottom of hill, in limp it will not even pull away on the hill

Good thing is if one of us finds a fix we will both have the answer

 

[gus-lopez]

Hi David We have a Frankia i8400 and are experiencing the same problem ie limp mode turn key off restart and all ok, our's seems to do this when we slow down as when coming off of the motorway and slow down or stop and then when increasing speed it goes into limp and like you say ok on the flat or down hill but if you showed it a picture of a hill it just drops right back speed wise and becomes almost dangerous when a lot of traffic around. I used to get the eml come on but for some reason that does not happen now just drops into limp Because of the fact that switching off and restarting clears it I am of the opinion that it is electrical ie maybe a sensor

When I first read David's symptoms it was a mass air flow and pressure sensor fault that came to mind... but don't know his engine... that sensor would I think be responsible for ecu responses to engine loading ,fueling ,and timing and if faulty give the problems described...
But David said they lifted fault codes relating to turbo boost.. on reflection it's possible a manifold absolute pressure and mass air flow sensor could indicate turbo boost problems when in fact it was a faulty sensor..
Just thoughts...
Andy.

& both could well be the throttle pedal. Normally they have 2 potentiometers
( one is sufficient but they check against each other. ) ,unfortunately as the pedal gets older/more use then occasionally they go out of synchronisation,
Normally happens on liftoff/accelerate, or very gentle accelerate brings on going into limp mode. It should show up as 'throttle pedal' on the fault report though.

 

[Charlie]

Y

Morning all, internet sorted, BT engineer luckily didn't investigate why the router had failed, just changed it, and FOC, not a bad service, although we do pay for a premium business package, but all sorted

I have another thread going ref the scanner fault reader thing, but it has crossed over onto here as well, have ordered this one

Broken Link Removed

found out where it plugs in thanks to you lot , been told delivery from China will be end of Jan, well after we have gone anyway and now my independent workshop have said it will not work anyway, it will read and clear but if I get a MIL or EML light on it will not reset that and therefore not clear the limp mode.

apparently Mercedes have a self reset limp by stopping and restarting, ideally with a 60 second wait, which I have never done, usually due to panic of trying to do it at traffic lights or on a roundabout exit etc rarely get a chance to spot it and do it at a planned stop. But if the system detects something failed and brings a light on then it will not reset until the failed problem can not be seen, unlikely to go on restart in his opinion

so back to going for it and see what happens

You won't go far wrong with that tool.. Its comprehensive and intuitive to use. As I said above it shows the code in text rather than just the genetic code number. You actually will see both in the display .
It will allow turning off of the orange management lights if they show on the dash and will allow you to clear the codes . It's really a very good tool at very basic money....

When you get it look in the menu for the serial number. If is not there or is unreadable it's a copy. If it's perfectly readable it will be s genuine Autel device.

The daft thing is is that the copies work just as good as the genuine tool and do exactly the same job....

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[DavidG58]

& both could well be the throttle pedal. Normally they have 2 potentiometers
( one is sufficient but they check against each other. ) ,unfortunately as the pedal gets older/more use then occasionally they go out of synchronisation,
Normally happens on liftoff/accelerate, or very gentle accelerate brings on going into limp mode. It should show up as 'throttle pedal' on the fault report though.

we had hoped this might be our problem, a girl at work had exactly that in her SLK, but unfortunately we have had not recorded faults on it, we did consider changing it anyway as by far in a way the easiest to get at and possibly the cheapest component

 

[gus-lopez]

That is the problem with all this electronics on vehicles. Normally all ok for the first few years & then nothing but problems.
With regard to the pedal . As others have said a decent operator of an Oscilloscope would be able to pinpoint a difference if it was the potentiometer difference.
Another problem that often brings on the eml light & limp mode without throwing up a code is the brake light pedal switch.
Any vehicle that has cruise is fitted with the double pole switch .one is normally closed ( NC) & other is normally open (NO) . The NO one activates the brake lights when you press pedal,whilst at the same time it opens the NC one that drops out the cruise control ( If operating ).
In the case of certain vehicles , like my own, touching the brake pedal enough to operate switch whilst having your foot on the accelerator cause the car to go into limp mode & EML comes on which will reset just by lifting off the accelerator.
If the switch is improperly fitted/adjusted ,or just wear on the stop pad, can mean that driving over rough ground /roads the vibration is enough to operate the switch whilst your foot is on the accelerator , meaning it goes into limp mode.
When this first occured on mine it would stay on. The fault I traced eventually to the fact that over the years the continued release of the brake pedal pushing back the plunger on the switch had loosened the metal ties that held the electrical part of the switch at the back , to the metal part at the front . So making & breaking the circuit as & when it fancied & bringing on the eml/limp randomly & disappearing on its own at times.

My brothers German dealer told him " Get rid at 120,000kms or 3 years , they all start playing up around then "

If we clutch at enough straws we'll find the one with the lifebelt attached!

 

[DavidG58]

Latest position, been for a few local drives, had a limp situation on each one , its my age you know, but have realised it is on exactly the same piece of local road each time, I presume it must just be the gradients that induce the problem, but it is odd. On these occasions I have realised and stopped in safe place stopped and restarted and continued, still no warning lights just the limp

Now have a code reader resetter thingy, comes without a battery, so getting one of those today to at least fire it up, the whole idea of using it fills me with panic (did you see me with the bulb yesterday )

Talking to my motor mechanic friend who sorted the bulb I am suddenly inspired, the service reminder has popped up on screen, he suggested getting a main dealer service done, they would then check for fault codes, but he also suggested there might even be a software update due that only Mercedes would know and issue, if as I suspect it has never had a 'true' Mercedes service (not in our ownership) and had only done 2100 miles at three years old when bought

There is a chance it could be just that simple

Going to book it in for service before we go to France later this month, watch this space

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[laird of Dunstan]

Latest position, been for a few local drives, had a limp situation on each one , its my age you know, but have realised it is on exactly the same piece of local road each time, I presume it must just be the gradients that induce the problem, but it is odd. On these occasions I have realised and stopped in safe place stopped and restarted and continued, still no warning lights just the limp

Now have a code reader resetter thingy, comes without a battery, so getting one of those today to at least fire it up, the whole idea of using it fills me with panic (did you see me with the bulb yesterday )

Talking to my motor mechanic friend who sorted the bulb I am suddenly inspired, the service reminder has popped up on screen, he suggested getting a main dealer service done, they would then check for fault codes, but he also suggested there might even be a software update due that only Mercedes would know and issue, if as I suspect it has never had a 'true' Mercedes service (not in our ownership) and had only done 2100 miles at three years old when bought

There is a chance it could be just that simple

Going to book it in for service before we go to France later this month, watch this space

we shall await the outcome David , best of luck that its something simple

 

[busby]

So, as it says, some of you may recall I have a limp problem, and worse an unpredictable intermittent one, we have so far 'invested' £1200 in time and bits and although we thought we were in remission it didn't last long, 300 miles later we are back more or less where we were

Actually not quite so, back in August we eventually got an EML to go with the limp mode, then it stopped resetting with ignition off / key out / key in/ ignition on sequence, we are now back to how it started, limp mode with no EML, although it does record an event in the black box

My workshop are more or less convinced that a new turbo would sort it, actually they think just swapping the box of electronic controls will probably sort it, but Mercedes although they sort of admit there was an issue around my engine era (06 - 09) they have not produced a fix and you have to buy a complete turbo set, of which one bit is the box of trickery, parts alone £1200 + VAT fitting a complete nightmare for the turbo, hard enough just for the electronics

Bev suggests, and I want some of you to witness this on here, that we should try taking it away loads until something goes wrong properly, that way at least we know we need to change something, it would be really frustrating to do the turbo at around £2500 and not lose the problem, seems like a good plan until we get stuck somewhere remote

So second week of January we are going to France, we did consider Scotland again, but if we are going to break down it might as well be less cold, also due to the persuasive powers of someone on here, we bought into the frequent user channel crossing, then lost confidence in travelling due to above and have 2 crossings left to be used by March, so it has to be France and maybe beyond, based on our typical trips we will only spend around half the cost of the predicted repair and you never know it might have self healed

Three weeks in total, meandering down to Montpelier, then meandering back, mostly aires, but Bev would like a couple of sites, that might be a challenge, but we know Twin Lakes and Parc Verger are both open (or at least I think they are)

I will update on here as plans develop, as panic sets in, then on our travels, it will either be completely boring and uneventful, or it wont be..................

Probably just as cold or even colder in France,,,,SORRY. BUSBY.

 

[DavidG58]

Probably just as cold or even colder in France,,,,SORRY. BUSBY.

warmer rain we hope for at least

seen some blue bits in the sky on @Robert Clark photo updates , so there is hope

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[DavidG58]

Service booked with Mertrux Mansfield @canopus

Next Tuesday

 

[gus-lopez]

Now have a code reader resetter thingy, comes without a battery, so getting one of those today to at least fire it up, the whole idea of using it fills me with panic (did you see me with the bulb yesterday )

I thought they all picked their power up from the vehicle OBD port when plugged in ?

 

[DavidG58]

I thought they all picked their power up from the vehicle OBD port when plugged in ?

It could well do, not read the rules yet, but it does have a space in the back for a PP9 battery, so it will get one

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[Al-Di]

mine has a battery,

 

[gus-lopez]

 

[TheBig1]

I thought they all picked their power up from the vehicle OBD port when plugged in ?

those models with a memory function have a battery

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[gus-lopez]

those models with a memory function have a battery

Ah Ha, & there I was thinking they might double as a stun gun.
Learn something every day.

 

[StefAndDi]

@DavidG58

Your motorhome is similar to mine, and I assume that the engine and gearbox are the same, or function in a similar manner.

I've had a very interesting chat with the service manager at my local Mercedes Commercial dealer and here is the story he told me.

The local Iceland store replaced their fleet of vehicles with Mercedes Sprinters which have the same gearbox as mine. That is to say, in normal operating mode it's automatic, with gearstick positions Park, Reverse, Neutral and Drive.

If the gearstick is moved ever so slightly to the left or right the gearbox goes into manual mode.

Iceland complained that some of their vehicles were continually going into limp mode, but it transpired that their drivers were accidentally moving the gearstick (maybe with their knee) and engaging manual.

In that case, what would happen is that the driver would not notice any change in the vehicles behaviour whilst driving along, but if it was necessary for him to slow down or stop a much lower gear would be selected automatically and would be retained until the driver either changed up manually or re-selected automatic mode.

I'm not saying that this is what is happening to you (although I wish it were something so simple) but it's something which others who have MB - based motorhomes with the automatic box should be aware of. Having read the post from @monaco/frankia, maybe it may explain his experience when slowing down or coming to a standstill.

Stef.

 

[DavidG58]

@StefAndDi

Oh how I wish it were so simple, with our previous MH also a Sprinter based unit that also had a couple of limp moments, on that older model the transmission display changed from D to 3, but that had the original Sprintshift gearbox

My gearbox does have that function, but I am definitely not moving it unintentionally, in the first few instances of the issue, I did then try to manually select a lower gear, which you can do, but with the reduced revs and power it makes no difference

When it goes into limp mode there is no change to the display, which you get if the manual option is selected intentionally or even I guess if some electrical gremlin was doing it somehow for you

I have renewed hope that there might just have been a software fix since built, that with it not having an official Mercedes service might have been missed, it might be me being overly hopeful, but its the simplest and most £ efficient option I have at the moment

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