Mercedes-Benz Intake Manifold

The intake manifold in your Mercedes-Benz vehicle distributes the air into each intake port in the engine's cylinder heads. Optimal performance relies upon an even distribution, since air is allowed into the combustion chamber on each intake stroke. Once the air gets to the chamber, it mixes with fuel supplied by the fuel injectors to feed the combustion that powers the engine -- and therefore your travels. If your model has throttle body injection or is older and doesn't feature fuel injection, though, the manifold draws in the air-and-fuel mix from the throttle body or carburetor.

Mercedes-Benz Intake Manifold Issues

It's been reported that some late-model Mercedes-Benz vehicles have a known problem with their intake manifold. Primarily seen in models equipped with the 3.0-liter or 3.5-liter V6 engines (M272 or M273), the trouble arises from one of the intake manifold tuning flaps breaking. That can then cause a sudden loss of performance, depending on the broken flap's orientation.

This generally starts to occur as the vehicle adds more miles, so you may not run into trouble until you've driven your vehicle at least 80,000 to 100,000 miles. If your car or SUV is approaching that threshold, signs to look out for include rough idling, a general loss of power, or the "Check Engine" light coming on. Of course, that "Check Engine" light can have many causes, so it's useful to know that the code for this type of manifold failure is generally P2006.

Choose Genuine Mercedes-Benz Intake Manifolds For Best Performance

While you can find all kinds of repair kits on the internet these days, they're not your best solution. Truthfully, the ideal repair involves replacing the intake manifold with a newer, updated design -- and then only after you've cleaned and serviced the intake ports in the engine's cylinder head.

If you're a skilled DIY mechanic you can attempt that on your own, but we recommend having your vehicle serviced by an authorized Mercedes-Benz mechanic. That allows you to comfort of knowing that the job's done right, with the right parts, and by an expert. Feel like tacking the job on your own? Search our catalog by model and year to find your compatible intake manifolds, complete your purchase, and we'll get your order shipped right out!