marky1

Hi guys, could someone give me some info, my manual is in Spanish and my nearest dealer is 150km away.

Twice in the past week I have pushed the starter button and I get a loud continuous noise but the engine does not fire up. The noise continues until I take my foot off the clutch, once I do that I try again and it starts but I get the following lights all come on:

1. CEL in orange
2. ASR/Traction contol light in Orange
3. Cruise light flashes in green
4. SI mode, the sport light flashes in green.

The car stays in either Sport or I mode not sure which one but I can't change mode.

Once I stop and park the car for 10 minutes, if I go out and come back 10 minutes later and start it again they are all gone and no symtoms. I can pull codes off later but anyone got any ideas?

Thanks

mickp

iTrader: (1)

I reckon you need the codes on this one, not heard of anything similar on the Hatch

P1Fanatic

I would ask on the 08 Hatch thread in Members Gallery as thats where most of the owners hang including rob84 who can probably help.

Carlh

if you have an android phone, you could buy "torque" app for a few quid and a ELM327 bluetooth dongle connected through to your ODB port and see an english explanation of the code (and reset if necessary) for around £15 - but as F1 says, Rob might know just from the symptoms

rob84

iTrader: (5)

Does the vehicle sound like the starter is turning the engine over ?? or is it like its not meshing and grinding the starter teeth ??

To prevent starting could be one of a couple of things
Starter not engaging with the flywheel and detects the engine fails to rotate
Possible fault with the crank position sensor
or immobilizer fault.

If you can manage to extract the DTC History then that may give a hint to the suspected area.

marky1

Hi Rob

Definitely the latter, sounds like a grinding noise. Here are the codes from My Actron scanner:

P0335 Crankshaft Position Sensor A Circuit Malfunction
P0340 Crankshaft Position Sensor A - Bank 1 Circuit Malfunction
P0345 Crankshaft Position Sensor A - Bank 2 Circuit Malfunction

I guess all the lights mean it is in limp mode. After a few minutes with engine off and locked they all go back to normal without deleting the codes.

Can it wait until it's service in 2 weeks which is already booked in or should I get it done sooner, as I said it's a real hassle as dealer is 150km away although the local Mercedes dealer here where I bought it organises to send it up to Malaga.

Just to add, I know a couple of cars have been eaten up by a rat in the car park, reading P0340 on the net seems to suggest could be a wiring issue? Rat chewed through a wire??

Thanks for the help.

rob84

iTrader: (5)

you could check the crank sensor & wiring located on the front of the engine directly under the alternator make sure it's plugged and and the wires are ok.

If your getting a grinding noise like you suggest it could be a sticky starter-motor or worse case the ring-gear on the flywheel is slipping

marky1

Will have a look cheers Rob.

Do you think it's serious enough it needs to go in asap or since it sorts itself out will I be okay driving it another 3 weeks?

rob84

iTrader: (5)

Without personally looking at the vehicle I couldnt say whether its safe to continue as it is or not. if it runs ok once started and the CEL goes out then i cant see it being a serious electric issue more of a starting problem

marky1

Ok thanks Rob. On the two occasions it has happened, once it starts it stays in Limp Mode but if you turn the engine off, wait a few minutes and restart, everything is back to normal, no lights on. Will probably try and get it off for a service this week anyway.