95' C280 Throttle Actuator/Throttle Body removal?

[FRANKTHETANK]

Well, I'm pretty sure my throttle actuator has took a dump on me. The car has been doing some odd intermittent things for the past few months: Very rough idle on cold start up, and every once in a while it would throw the car into limp-home mode while driving. I would simply shut the car off, then turn it back on, and the problem would be gone. Well its been getting progressively worse, so I went over the the mechanic and the car is coming up with a throttle actuator failure code, which seems to be pretty common with these cars as the harness for the actuator rots out much like the engine harness issues with these cars. Good thing the previous owner already had that done. The tech quoted me $1500!!!! with parts and labor. A new throttle actuator unit is $1000, which he claimed was at his cost. At this time I had a huge lump in my throat so I started doing some research. You can find them on line for a little over $800 but thats still insane. Turns out a company in Alabama rebuilds them for $279, Thank God! Called them up, and he told me he can have my unit back to me within 4 business days.

So at this point, I was wondering if anyone had a how-to on removing the throttle actuator?

Any help is greatly appreciated

-Frank

[Fusion.C280]

That model year is still an inline six right?
Check 202Tech
If I were you, and I see you're confident enough to take it out, try cleaning it first (look at that gunk in the last pic), try cleaning the harness contacts, refit, test. Could save you a nice amount of money.

Maybe someone will correct me here, but I haven't heard of the TA harness degrading. It seems to by a pretty robust connection and I can't really imagine it getting damaged.

To me, your problem sounds more like a cam sensor problem, though that code is saying something else. Read around the 202 forums a bit, maybe you can use the saved money to buy something nice for your car later

[Pamsandbox]

I own an '01 Slk 320: The bas-esp lights are now on and sometimes it goes into the fail-safe mode. The only way I can reset it is by turning the car off and back on.
Also, the research I've done indicates a throttle body failure. Can I have mine rebuilt so I don't have to have the codes reset? If so, can anyone give me the name of a company that does rebuilds? And any ballpark figure to give me an idea of the install cost so I know I'm not getting ripped off. I'm single, live on a budget (who doesn't) and feel very vulnerable when talking to a mechanic regarding repairs. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for your time,
Pamela

[ventech]

Originally Posted by Pamsandbox

I own an '01 Slk 320: The bas-esp lights are now on and sometimes it goes into the fail-safe mode. The only way I can reset it is by turning the car off and back on.
Also, the research I've done indicates a throttle body failure. Can I have mine rebuilt so I don't have to have the codes reset? If so, can anyone give me the name of a company that does rebuilds? And any ballpark figure to give me an idea of the install cost so I know I'm not getting ripped off. I'm single, live on a budget (who doesn't) and feel very vulnerable when talking to a mechanic regarding repairs. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for your time,
Pamela

I have my throttle body off at the moment ( C200). There is a potentiometer which is like the volume control on a hi fir, and this sends a signal to the ECU to tell it to how much gas to supply to the engine. If it is broken, or worn out then the ECU gets the wrong message so you won't get full power from the engine. There ius a UK company called BB-Reman whote quote £175 to repair it. It is fairly easy to take off you just need a 13 mm open spanner to remove 4 bolts, and as it is on top of the engine, you don't need to get dirty. You can probably do it without breaking a finger nail. As well as the four bolts, there is a plug underneath which is a bit of a bastard, but once you remove the clip with a screwdriver, you can pull it out with some gas plierrs.
408-228-110-002Z Mercedes SLK 200 Electromotive ThrottleValves

There must be US companies repairing them, but if you have to send it to the UK, try using Fastlane couriers, their prices are very reasonable