Quote from Keith: "Don't forget to change the copper washer though.....".
I'm still on the original copper washer and after a few oil changes I've yet to see any change in the original washer. It still has the same thickness and shape as the first time it was removed.
Never any wetness or oil at the plug.
I'm not sure if the washer can be changed separately from the plug.
It certainly doesn't hurt to install a new washer each time you change the oil.
Cheers, Derek
It has always been recommended, in the trade, to change this washer (same thing with splitpins) The manufacturers always change them (well lets say they always charge for them on oil changes). You may find you would be on a sticky wicket (under warranty) if you did an oil change yourself but did not change the copper washer and you either got an oil leak or lost your oil due to the plug coming loose. I have like you,Derek, re used one on older cars in the past but if a car has been under warranty I have always changed them.
Why spoil the ship for a hap'worths of tar as they say
I ordered the Pela 6000 oil extractor from Cabela's Official Website - Quality Hunting, Fishing, Camping and Outdoor Gear at competitive prices. so I can change the oil myself between the scheduled maintenance every 15K - 20 K km. I will let the dealer change the oil and filter at the calculated service intervals in order to keep up the warranty.
However, I will not replace the oil filter myself - because Mercedes have said it has a service life sufficient for at least 15K km - and I only drive about 10K km per year. So, I intend to change the oil ( Mobile 0 -40 or 0 -30 ) about every 7500 km and I will recycle the old oil at the local gas station. The filter will be changed by MB every 15K service.
This way, I get clean and uncontaminated oil and maintain the warranty with the least amount of fuss and bother and no jacking the car, no replacing copper washers and no torquing the oil filter to 25 lbs.
Purists might say ' Yabut, you should always change the filter too." but that objection aside, are there any other problems with this approach?
I'm wondering if there is other things than " there is no way you should keep oil in your car for 15k - 20k (sorry but old school) " in changing oil more often than recommended by Merc.
My car has 14500 on it now, and I just check the oil (yes it starts to darken) but it's still full. There is no bubble or foam that could show any contamination .... Synthetic oil is way better than mineral, I'm just thinking that you are over doing it. As long as you don't run out of oil.
BeeClass
Looks like a good solution to me, no mess and little fuss. Most are going up to 15000 KM with same oil and filter, so by changing either one you have to gain. Just make sure that someone looks under the car yearly once warranty expires and you do not get to complacent. Just because you are retired make time to smell the roses as your avatar does.
Diesel locomotives go a few million miles before rebuild and never change the oil. The filters are changed and oil is added. Conversely I owned one Audi with two oil filters (one before the turbo) and the factory recommended oil change at every 10000 miles, primary filter every 20000 miles and secondary at 40000 miles.
Mike has the Pela unit so maybe he can report on it also.
Every time I crawled under a car to do an oil change the stupid washer always fell into the drain pan and dissolved (no other explanation for never finding it again). After many years of making washers from cardboard I bought a few to have on hand. The new washers never seemed to leak like my homemade ones. Lucky it was in the olden days when we changed oil monthly in cold weather regardless of miles driven. Maybe that is why there is less oil for the kids now
Ten minute oil change followed by scrubbing my hands for 20 minutes, after hunting for the washer.
Nest,
Yes, those of us who insist on changing oil more frequently than MB suggest, may well be over doing it and may belong to the ' old school' , from the days when when dino oil was changed every 3000 miles.
On the other hand, MB may be doing just the minimum maintenance required to get through the guarantee period without engine failure. Note that MB reserve Mobile 1 oil for their hand built AMG engines. Lesser engines get a lower quality oil.
Most of my driving is under severe conditions - short trips in stop and go traffic, which can cause excessive engine wear. Also, a turbo is also hard on oil and a poorly lubricated turbo can fail and will cost a bundle to replace.
I look at it as cheap insurance - a DIY oil change costs $ 30.00 for oil ( without filter) and a new engine, installed using MB labour, probably costs about 333 times as much.
Looked at that way, maybe it is not over doing it?
Robert(BeeClass), you quoted 25lbs torque on the filter.
TAKE NOTE: that's 25 Nm and only 18 ft/lbs. Just in case someone uses that reference for torquing.
If you've handled oil filters before, you'll notice that the B oil filter is much less than anything we've seen or used on cars before. One fine membrane only and I'm just not comfortable with their estimate of 15,000 or 20,000 km on that filter.
But the idea of extracting the oil out and replacing with new is a super and easy way to protect your investment.
Just because you are retired make time to smell the roses as your avatar does. 
from cardboard I bought a few to have on hand. The new washers never seemed to leak like my homemade ones. Lucky it was in the olden days when we changed oil monthly in cold weather regardless of miles driven. Maybe that is why there is less oil for the kids now
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