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2007 c230 balance shaft VIN check

76K views 378 replies 126 participants last post by  Cgrogs22@gmail.com 
#1 ·
Hey all, unfortunately the last 2007 c230 I looked at was sold before I could leave a deposit. No wonder considering it was squeaky clean, fully loaded with all options, and had only 18K miles.

Here is my newest find: WDBRF52H87E025309

Can someone confirm if this is within the time frame of possible balance shaft issues? It's a 2007 c230 a.k.a what I want to own yesterday.
 
#4 ·
No problem. If you get in a hurry and I'm not online, you can try this site for a lookup:

Ìîäåëü

Use Google Chrome and have it do a Russian to English translation for best results. I think that site is good through MY2007. If not, then I'm happy to lookup in my copy of EPC that goes through MY2011.
 
#7 ·
New owner here. Just purchased a 2006 c230 with only 19,500 miles. I thought it was a good deal on a great car. Now I am wondering. I am worried that my engine may be within those with the faulty balance shaft. I was wondering if anyone could tell me if that is so.
The vin number is: WDBRF52H36F780635
Thanks so much for any help.
 
#10 ·
If you have an engine in the affected range, I would suggest buying an inexpensive generic OBDII scanner and check codes every month (or week, depending on your level of OCD). Look out for P0016 and P0017. If you see those, then you have problems. Keep in mind that these codes can appear intermittently without illuminating the MIL.
 
#13 ·
M272 engine #367090 is in the affected range for potential balance shaft failure. From the TSB, those in the range are "M272 Engine Up to Serial No. 2729..30 468993 or M273 Engine Up to Serial No. 2739..30 088611."
 
#17 ·
It doesn't matter where the car was made. If an M272 engine has a serial number in the range outlined in the TSB it is at risk of a premature balance shaft failure.

It is just a risk of failure. Only MB really has a good idea of what percentage were actually defective and they're not telling us. Based on the rate people show up on the forums actually experiencing the problem the percentage is certainly fairly low, but large enough to be a significant concern.
 
#19 ·
Engines are assembled in Germany and then shipped to the various global vehicle assembly plants. My understanding of the problem is that the supplier contracted to fabricate the V6 balance shafts and V8 timing chain idler pulleys had a fault in their process. These parts were forged and heat treated to be hardened. Some small number of these were not properly hardened and the resulting material was much softer than the timing chain, and thus wears prematurely. The root cause for the failure is not known (or not being divulged by MBZ). Maybe there was an oven with a bad thermostat that did not get hot enough, or maybe there was a worker who showed up drink every Friday and failed in his job. The bottom line is that they are unable to trace the root cause of the defect to individual engine serial numbers, but they do know the last possible engine serial number built with a potentially defective part. All we can do is check engine serial numbers (available by VIN) against the TSB range.

It seems that any M272 or M273 engine supplied prior to MY2007 is in that range, and about half of the MY2007's are, too. My advice for anyone looking to purchase is to avoid a car with a potentially affected engine. FOr those who already have such an engine, keep a watch on it - get a cheap, generic OBDII scanner and check for P0016 and P0017 codes every few weeks, and if they ever appear, go straight to the dealer and beign the process for begging MBZ for a "goodwill" repair.
 
#30 ·
I think he is mistaken. M272 engines up to 468993 are at risk of balance shaft failure, and your engine is 554486 - pretty clearly not in the range.

Perhaps he's referring to the much less serious fault code scenario 2, the camshaft adjustment solenoids. Engines up to 759427 are subject to that issue, but it's a minor repair at worst. I wouldn't worry about that issue.
 
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