It was impossible for me to install my new C300 driveshaft this way. I read Mercedes procedure and EVERYBODY FORGETS to remove the 5 Torx infront of the driveshaft, then remove the 1" thick sleeve and the planetary gear (with the driveshaft receiver plate on it) I Did this and had TONS of Room. Remember to still lower tranny a few inches at back and remove catalytic. Once you are done you will realize it was Easy peasy.
@@A4nKar I did the job by myself in my driveway on jack stands, I am not a mechanic. That was a few weeks ago, Mercedes is driving perfectly and I saved thousands of dollars.
Getting ready to do this and at this point in my mechanical career I really don’t care I’m just going to remove everything I see within reach of this shaft got a car with the shaft completely broken off from the looks of it people are having a hard time pushing the shaft into the transmission so I’m going to remove the cat the exhaust manifold and lower the transmission a bit should be enough room
easiest way is remove the mount. lower trans. remove exhaust. remove passenger side manifold. and every hardware bolt on the trans on the passenger side. i used a big bar a small 2x4 and wedged it in bettween the traany and passenger side. it was plenty room.
When you say remove the mount are you referring to the transmission mount that has the 8 bolts? I have been trying to get the shaft back into place for days now and no luck
I own a 2008 c300 4matic and my front shaft broke. replaced it yesterday with help from my neighbor. we used a hoist at my shop which made it quite easy. unbolt the trans mount completely and remove the bracket that attaches the exhaust to one another. took us maybe an hour from start to finish. not a bad job considering we had a hoist,I imagine it would take much longer laying on our backs.
By hoist do you mean a car lift? I can see a lift making this easier than a jack and stands, but I didn't see what the hoist would be lifting to make it easier.
@@arkodin2751 I had the car up on a hoist and was able to stand under it and get good leverage when prying the transmission to the side while installing the drive shaft. I just made the repair much easier in my own opinion.
Yes it tool less than a hr to pull it off for me. I just have to put the new one when it comes in tomorrow between 1 and 3. I'm very sick too with HCP hereditary coproporphyria and sun hurts me and I'm just amazed..
Im waiting for a Mercedes tech to tell us the easy way of doing this. Ive taken taken a front shaft off but bailed on the install when I realized I needed a new transfer case/transmission. Great work!
Yea, I never taken the trans-case down, But if you have the right tools then probably it would be a lot of work to do it but it can be taken down. the problem is that lying on your back without a shop jack that lifts the car up so you can stand it will require a few weekends, and then there is the putting back part which is also annoying. Yea that is a big job.
Did you end up replacing the transfer case? I am running into the same scenario. I am curious to what you ended up doing, and how much it costed. Thanks.
albert247 how after removing the broken shaft did you find out that the transfercase was bad ? And then did you figure whether the transfer case or transmission caused the shaft to fail ?
@@brianbrian3971 Often when the propeller shaf fails at the u-joint, it breaks the casing of the transmission/transfer case when it fails around. It also can damage the O2 sensors and exhaust down pipes. I caught mine before it failed and it cost me $1850 to repair. The tech told me that after failure, the repair cost can be up to $8000.
They fail because the undercarriage is wrapped in plastic and overtime the heat dissipates the grease and eventually it breaks from overheating. So much for German reliability.
I finally completed this project on GLK 350, that troublesome screw with the tip…I removed it with a 8mm wrench. The only issue now is the new 02 sensors downstream are not ready…
I have pinned a comment that explains how you can slide it in. You have to pry it from the side. In the comments there are bits of information that will help you. also there are two videos describing the work done. however the camera wasn't rolling when we slid it in. this wasn't done intentionally.
You’re supposed to drop the trans down some and remove the exhaust. While there it’s a good idea to check/replace the trans mount, rear drive shaft rubber coupler and O2 sensors
We dropped the trans down from the 8 screws but we only removed the middle bar that connected the two exhaust pipes. then they pried with a pry bar craw bar while pushing back on the shaft and that worked. Maybe we got lucky.
Man, this is a PAIN. everything off. Trans down exhaust out of the way, even took the manifold off for more space. However she doesn't fit back it. Already thinking if I got the wrong one. Need like ½" to get it on the front mounting bracket. I'm already thinking of getting it towed to someone. So close but just won't fit.
Try and compare the old one with the new for length. And yes, it os a pain to put on. We forced it back on with a lever against the body of the car shifted the differential to the right to gain the half inch. Also make sure you find and align the two splines to the shaft.
I don't think you can drive it like that. the spline that fits in the drive shaft will rotate on the of the cover of the trans case. In addition we did not connect properly the front left axle and the car had no power to climb back on the driveway. I am not positively sure but with only 3 connected wheels the car would not pass 15 mph. so you may want to think of the differentials in front and back. at least the back should have had power. but it did not. So i am guessing that somehow all wheels are interdependent.
Sorry to hear that, There are TH-cam videos on that process i know I found some because I have to change the 3 intake Actuators from the intake manifold and that is a weekend job. But I just cannot bring myself to do it. Is that what you have to do or some other piece. Because I know We have to take that intake manifold down. So I feel for you but I will never allow no one in my family to buy a used MB.
Your Front Drive shaft does not have the Two Bars, or is it the Spline that does not have the Two Bars, Because if the Spline has it and the drive shaft does not then you will never fit it in. Check thoroughly on the spline. Your rear wheels need to be suspended on jack stands, or at least one wheel to rotate and check the spline as it rotates. You definitely have to check that.
We used a pry-bar and two people under the car and as you can see in the videos we had the car of the ground completely. and we had the trans-case lose.
That differential axle which connects with driveshaft is the problem on my car. It has some movement/loosen and shakes the car at 50mph. Do you know what should be the cause?
I can speculate but not sure if that is the actual problem. I understand that you mean the main drive shaft shakes the car? I could be that the rubber coupler may have issues. A mechanic may be able to better diagnose the problem of they look at it thoroughly.
Hello, I’m having the same problem where my car shakes at 50mph. I’ve checked both shafts and they don’t look bent or warped but there is leaking around the casing that the drive shaft connects to I just have no idea what it’s called. Did you figure out what your issue was?
you cannot get it in or out? the shaft towards the back has a way of aligning with the spline. and you need to push the main shaft tobthe left with a crawbar while sliding in the new front drive shaft backwards.
The information provided to you about this job from the G Automotive a year prior to your posting this video explains the three marks on the shaft line up with the larger Zone on the spline I bet if you known that you wouldn't have any problems with scratching the shaft to hell
Yea we knew about the larger zones on the spline (180 degrees apart )- I think I mentioned them in the video. The problem was we never did this before and it is not easy. we hacked it together, as described in the video. the problem was the cameras were not set sine no one had anymore patience for that setting the cameras.
dunno if you guys gives a damn but if you're stoned like me during the covid times you can watch all of the latest movies and series on instaflixxer. Have been streaming with my gf for the last months =)
so the labor was not much but the parts were jacked up. and they also wanted to change the axles because the rubber boots were broken. so the bill was about 3200. so we took it home and did it ourselves. then at a later date we changed the boots on the axels. and then we had to take it to the shop because the right axle did not properly get back in and the car would barely move. they identified the issue and put it back in and that was that. but if you have only the drive shaft it would be around 400 to buy it if you need it shipped overnight. there is some comment where i posted the store where we got the front shaft. but it seems everyone has issues with these shafts.
@@RoamingInterests i have a c350 and its nd the shop now well i didn't run into axle problem cause i had axles problems before the drive shaft problems I had to change both axles before the drive shaft broke but I gotta pay 650 to get its out the shop
how much is the shop charging you for this? if you watch the videos it took us 2 days to figure it out. and most of the ideas were to take more of it apart. but ended up finding the fix the way i described in the second video. they want to charge you for diagnosing the problem 650? i think that is steep. maybe you can find out how much is to have them change it. I think it may be btter to have them change it unless you have all the tools yourself. these benzes are very low to the ground and complicated. in addition there are the underside panels and there used to be a metal guard around the front flange in mine. that got mangled and we never got a second one. also you need jack stands to suspend the car at least from the front wheels. so if you do not have the tools my suggestion is to have them fix it. the have the tools and the lift which make the job much easier. But if you want to DiY it will take sometime and now is also cold, but 650 is too much for just looking at it. i paid 60.
@@RoamingInterests it was free to check was free to check but I paid for two axle to be replaced and after I had the axles replaced I ran into the drive shaft being broken so I didn't have to pay for a new axles I just paid for the new drive shaft even 650
@Young Mack thats is good. Its a lot of work. They gave you a great deal. I seems I did a good one too for not taking the shops offer, because the axels were fine only the boots needed replacement. But for 650 I would have had it changed at the shop as well the front drive shaft. I think cities have a lot more overhead and they have higher prices.
It was impossible for me to install my new C300 driveshaft this way. I read Mercedes procedure and EVERYBODY FORGETS to remove the 5 Torx infront of the driveshaft, then remove the 1" thick sleeve and the planetary gear (with the driveshaft receiver plate on it) I Did this and had TONS of Room. Remember to still lower tranny a few inches at back and remove catalytic. Once you are done you will realize it was Easy peasy.
Were you able to do it yourself? or still needed a minimum of 2 people?
@@A4nKar I did the job by myself in my driveway on jack stands, I am not a mechanic. That was a few weeks ago, Mercedes is driving perfectly and I saved thousands of dollars.
Removing this plate helps immensely, thank you for the tip.
Thanks for sharing this video. I followed it and just completed the front propeller shaft by myself (one man-job) on my 2010 Mercedes E350 4Matic.
This is great news. I mostly got questions about it. Thanks for lrtting me know it helped.
Getting ready to do this and at this point in my mechanical career I really don’t care I’m just going to remove everything I see within reach of this shaft got a car with the shaft completely broken off from the looks of it people are having a hard time pushing the shaft into the transmission so I’m going to remove the cat the exhaust manifold and lower the transmission a bit should be enough room
easiest way is remove the mount. lower trans. remove exhaust. remove passenger side manifold. and every hardware bolt on the trans on the passenger side. i used a big bar a small 2x4 and wedged it in bettween the traany and passenger side. it was plenty room.
Thank you for confirming the fix and giving explaining your process. Some have complained that the fix wasn't filmed.
When you say remove the mount are you referring to the transmission mount that has the 8 bolts? I have been trying to get the shaft back into place for days now and no luck
Yes , there are also a few other bolts that are in a circle I think it’s 6 total. You can take those off too & the whole thing mount comes off
I own a 2008 c300 4matic and my front shaft broke. replaced it yesterday with help from my neighbor. we used a hoist at my shop which made it quite easy. unbolt the trans mount completely and remove the bracket that attaches the exhaust to one another. took us maybe an hour from start to finish. not a bad job considering we had a hoist,I imagine it would take much longer laying on our backs.
That sounds really fast. I tip my hat to you.
Next time cut the screw
By hoist do you mean a car lift? I can see a lift making this easier than a jack and stands, but I didn't see what the hoist would be lifting to make it easier.
@@arkodin2751 I had the car up on a hoist and was able to stand under it and get good leverage when prying the transmission to the side while installing the drive shaft. I just made the repair much easier in my own opinion.
Yes it tool less than a hr to pull it off for me. I just have to put the new one when it comes in tomorrow between 1 and 3. I'm very sick too with HCP hereditary coproporphyria and sun hurts me and I'm just amazed..
Im waiting for a Mercedes tech to tell us the easy way of doing this. Ive taken taken a front shaft off but bailed on the install when I realized I needed a new transfer case/transmission. Great work!
Yea, I never taken the trans-case down, But if you have the right tools then probably it would be a lot of work to do it but it can be taken down. the problem is that lying on your back without a shop jack that lifts the car up so you can stand it will require a few weekends, and then there is the putting back part which is also annoying. Yea that is a big job.
Did you end up replacing the transfer case? I am running into the same scenario. I am curious to what you ended up doing, and how much it costed. Thanks.
@@brianmerz6070 new transmission... you can rebuild the transfer case but its integrated to the transmission. Run off the same oil.
albert247 how after removing the broken shaft did you find out that the transfercase was bad ? And then did you figure whether the transfer case or transmission caused the shaft to fail ?
@@brianbrian3971 Often when the propeller shaf fails at the u-joint, it breaks the casing of the transmission/transfer case when it fails around. It also can damage the O2 sensors and exhaust down pipes. I caught mine before it failed and it cost me $1850 to repair. The tech told me that after failure, the repair cost can be up to $8000.
Thank you for sharing, does anyone knows why they fail? i'm getting ready to take on a similar job.
They fail because the undercarriage is wrapped in plastic and overtime the heat dissipates the grease and eventually it breaks from overheating. So much for German reliability.
I finally completed this project on GLK 350, that troublesome screw with the tip…I removed it with a 8mm wrench. The only issue now is the new 02 sensors downstream are not ready…
Hello , quick question did you have to hammered the driveshaft to make it go in or it slide in by itself with a little effort ?
I have pinned a comment that explains how you can slide it in. You have to pry it from the side. In the comments there are bits of information that will help you. also there are two videos describing the work done. however the camera wasn't rolling when we slid it in. this wasn't done intentionally.
My front driveshaft came with a small spring. Where is it supposed to go?
I do not recollect if mine had one. Or if we used a spring when installing the new one.
You’re supposed to drop the trans down some and remove the exhaust. While there it’s a good idea to check/replace the trans mount, rear drive shaft rubber coupler and O2 sensors
We dropped the trans down from the 8 screws but we only removed the middle bar that connected the two exhaust pipes. then they pried with a pry bar craw bar while pushing back on the shaft and that worked. Maybe we got lucky.
Man, this is a PAIN. everything off. Trans down exhaust out of the way, even took the manifold off for more space. However she doesn't fit back it. Already thinking if I got the wrong one. Need like ½" to get it on the front mounting bracket. I'm already thinking of getting it towed to someone. So close but just won't fit.
Try and compare the old one with the new for length. And yes, it os a pain to put on. We forced it back on with a lever against the body of the car shifted the differential to the right to gain the half inch. Also make sure you find and align the two splines to the shaft.
So, can’t you just drive the car once you remove the front driveshaft, and leave it as a RWD? Seeking help
I don't think you can drive it like that. the spline that fits in the drive shaft will rotate on the of the cover of the trans case. In addition we did not connect properly the front left axle and the car had no power to climb back on the driveway. I am not positively sure but with only 3 connected wheels the car would not pass 15 mph. so you may want to think of the differentials in front and back. at least the back should have had power. but it did not. So i am guessing that somehow all wheels are interdependent.
How much the shop wanted to fix it
They wanted $3500
@@RoamingInterests that's over board
@@RoamingInterests now my intake manifold needs replaced 1000 for the part nd a 1000 to put it in. This is ridiculous
Sorry to hear that, There are TH-cam videos on that process i know I found some because I have to change the 3 intake Actuators from the intake manifold and that is a weekend job. But I just cannot bring myself to do it. Is that what you have to do or some other piece. Because I know We have to take that intake manifold down. So I feel for you but I will never allow no one in my family to buy a used MB.
I know that is why we did it ourselves.
What year and model is this Mercedes?
c300 2010
You have to completely remove the exhaust in order to replace the drive shaft without damaging any part.
Thanks.
What size are the flange bolts on the front diff
Sorry I do not remember.
I believe they are e55 bolts.
Mine doesn’t have the two wide bars
Your Front Drive shaft does not have the Two Bars, or is it the Spline that does not have the Two Bars, Because if the Spline has it and the drive shaft does not then you will never fit it in. Check thoroughly on the spline. Your rear wheels need to be suspended on jack stands, or at least one wheel to rotate and check the spline as it rotates. You definitely have to check that.
The spline doesn’t have them
That is interesting. I guess it an fit in any position. Were you able to fit it?
Have it lined up just no sliding back into spline easy
In my case it slid back but we had to push to the left the transcase.
We used a pry-bar and two people under the car and as you can see in the videos we had the car of the ground completely. and we had the trans-case lose.
That differential axle which connects with driveshaft is the problem on my car. It has some movement/loosen and shakes the car at 50mph. Do you know what should be the cause?
I can speculate but not sure if that is the actual problem. I understand that you mean the main drive shaft shakes the car? I could be that the rubber coupler may have issues. A mechanic may be able to better diagnose the problem of they look at it thoroughly.
Hello, I’m having the same problem where my car shakes at 50mph. I’ve checked both shafts and they don’t look bent or warped but there is leaking around the casing that the drive shaft connects to I just have no idea what it’s called. Did you figure out what your issue was?
I can’t get mine i have tried everything
you cannot get it in or out? the shaft towards the back has a way of aligning with the spline. and you need to push the main shaft tobthe left with a crawbar while sliding in the new front drive shaft backwards.
Roaming Interests I can’t get the new one in and yes I have been trying to do everything like in your video
Were you able to do anything? I am sorry I wasn't able to respond alerts do not come in.
The information provided to you about this job from the G Automotive a year prior to your posting this video explains the three marks on the shaft line up with the larger Zone on the spline I bet if you known that you wouldn't have any problems with scratching the shaft to hell
Yea we knew about the larger zones on the spline (180 degrees apart )- I think I mentioned them in the video. The problem was we never did this before and it is not easy. we hacked it together, as described in the video. the problem was the cameras were not set sine no one had anymore patience for that setting the cameras.
Was your transfer case still good and has perfect noise free operations?
YEs all was good - the car was running fine after that.
dunno if you guys gives a damn but if you're stoned like me during the covid times you can watch all of the latest movies and series on instaflixxer. Have been streaming with my gf for the last months =)
@Kaiser Dominik Yea, been using InstaFlixxer for since december myself =)
Ain't it funny or notice when it's hard they never show u . They just tell u
I am not a shop trying to get business to my shop. The camera wasn't rolling when they happened to force it in.
Mines just broke
so the labor was not much but the parts were jacked up. and they also wanted to change the axles because the rubber boots were broken. so the bill was about 3200. so we took it home and did it ourselves. then at a later date we changed the boots on the axels. and then we had to take it to the shop because the right axle did not properly get back in and the car would barely move. they identified the issue and put it back in and that was that. but if you have only the drive shaft it would be around 400 to buy it if you need it shipped overnight. there is some comment where i posted the store where we got the front shaft. but it seems everyone has issues with these shafts.
@@RoamingInterests i have a c350 and its nd the shop now well i didn't run into axle problem cause i had axles problems before the drive shaft problems I had to change both axles before the drive shaft broke but I gotta pay 650 to get its out the shop
how much is the shop charging you for this? if you watch the videos it took us 2 days to figure it out. and most of the ideas were to take more of it apart. but ended up finding the fix the way i described in the second video. they want to charge you for diagnosing the problem 650? i think that is steep. maybe you can find out how much is to have them change it. I think it may be btter to have them change it unless you have all the tools yourself. these benzes are very low to the ground and complicated. in addition there are the underside panels and there used to be a metal guard around the front flange in mine. that got mangled and we never got a second one. also you need jack stands to suspend the car at least from the front wheels. so if you do not have the tools my suggestion is to have them fix it. the have the tools and the lift which make the job much easier. But if you want to DiY it will take sometime and now is also cold, but 650 is too much for just looking at it. i paid 60.
@@RoamingInterests it was free to check was free to check but I paid for two axle to be replaced and after I had the axles replaced I ran into the drive shaft being broken so I didn't have to pay for a new axles I just paid for the new drive shaft even 650
@Young Mack thats is good. Its a lot of work. They gave you a great deal. I seems I did a good one too for not taking the shops offer, because the axels were fine only the boots needed replacement. But for 650 I would have had it changed at the shop as well the front drive shaft. I think cities have a lot more overhead and they have higher prices.
This job is a bitch even on a lift with 2 people!
It was an entire weekend - and you're right is sucks.
Still hitting mine a bit at a time (one year and counting🤦🏻♂️)
That looks miserable
it was quite miserable of a chore.