Car Model Guide/ Mercedes-Benz/ B-Class/ W245/ B 180 CDI

B 180 CDI OM640

The four-cylinder diesel of the A and B-Class, economical and unexciting. Its intake swirl flaps and the injector seals are the two things worth asking about before the odometer.

Overview

The B 180 CDI is the OM640 diesel version of the Mercedes-Benz B-Class MPV (W245), sold 2005–2011 with 109 PS and manual or automatic. Demands diligence at level 3. The CVT and the intake swirl flaps are both meaningful bills on a car worth this little. 4 failure modes are recorded against its engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components. Prices on this page are illustrative placeholders rather than a sourced market sample. See the methodology for how the bands are derived.

Mercedes-Benz B-Class MPV (W245) · photo MERCEDES-BENZ B-CLASS (W245) China by Dinkun Chen · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Power109 PS

Torque250 Nm

Years2005–2011

Fueldiesel

DriveFWD

EnginesOM640

Biggest risks

Ranked by probability × repair cost. 4 recorded in total.

52Demands diligence

Autotronic CVT shudder and failure€1,200–€2,800partly checkable
DPF clogging and forced regeneration€250–€1,800partly checkable
EGR cooler leak€400–€1,000partly checkable

Risk level −22 · Likely spend vs price −26 · all issues →

System by system9 systems reviewed · 6 with no recurring fault reported

EnginewatchSwirl flap wear and ingestion, €400–€900.

Fuel system✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Intake & air✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Cooling✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Emissions⚠ attentionDPF clogging and forced regeneration, €250–€1,800.+1 more in this system

Transmission⚠ attentionAutotronic CVT shudder and failure, €1,200–€2,800.

Electrics✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Suspension & brakes✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Body & interior✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Pre-facelift or facelift, this engine spans both

The same badge either side of the changeover. Bands are split at the facelift year from the generation record.

Phase	Years	Low	Average	High	Good buy	What differs
pre Pre-facelift	2005–2007	€2,400	€4,000	€6,500	€3,200	The specification the car launched with.
LCI Facelift (LCI)	2008–2011	€2,600	€4,350	€7,100	€3,500	Revised nose and lights; Updated CVT calibration; Improved interior materials

Known issues, ranked by expected cost

Faults recorded against this engine, its components and its chassis, ranked by likelihood × repair cost. Costs are indicative ranges with a stated labour basis.

Autotronic CVT shudder and failureMercedes Autotronic CVT€1,200–€2,800

Shudder as the car takes up drive, delayed engagement from a standstill, and in later stages a refusal to move. The belt and the electro-hydraulic control unit both wear, and degraded fluid accelerates each of them. It's a service-dependent gearbox that owners have generally treated as sealed.

Check: Pull away gently several times from cold and feel for shudder or a delay before drive engages. Ask for the fluid and filter record, since that document predicts the largest bill on the car.

TransmissioncommonPartly detectableevidence: documented90–170k km

DPF clogging and forced regenerationDPF€250–€1,800

Warning light, limp mode, oil level rising above the maximum mark from fuel dilution. The filter needs sustained hot running to regenerate. A car used for short urban trips never completes a regeneration cycle.

Check: Read the DPF soot load and the distance since the last regeneration on a scan tool, and check the engine oil level and smell it for diesel. Ask what the car was used for. A short-trip city diesel is the wrong car regardless of mileage.

EmissionscommonPartly detectableevidence: documented120–250k km

EGR cooler leakEGR cooler€400–€1,000

Coolant loss with no visible external leak, white smoke, sweet smell. The EGR cooler cracks internally and leaks coolant into the intake. BMW recalled affected diesels over a fire risk from glycol deposits igniting.

Check: Check coolant level and look for unexplained top-ups in the service history. Verify the recall was carried out. It's free and searchable by VIN.

EmissionsoccasionalPartly detectableevidence: manufacturer120–250k km

Swirl flap wear and ingestionswirl flaps€400–€900

Often none until it happens. Rough running, then in the worst case an engine destroyed by an ingested flap. The intake manifold's swirl flaps run on spindles that wear. A detached flap can be drawn into a cylinder.

Check: Not visible without removing the manifold. Ask whether the flaps have been removed or the manifold replaced. Many well-kept examples have had this done preventively, and that's a selling point.

EngineoccasionalNot detectable at viewingevidence: documented120–250k km

Ranked by probability × repair cost, not by how loudly a failure is discussed. Inherited from the engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components, each written once.

Pre-purchase inspection

The same issue records, reordered into the sequence you can actually check them in: cold start, static, drive, paperwork.

4 checks · saved in this browser ·

1On the driveInclude low-speed manoeuvring, not just an open road.

Autotronic CVT shudder and failurePull away gently several times from cold and feel for shudder or a delay before drive engages. Ask for the fluid and filter record, since that document predicts the largest bill on the car.

2PaperworkOn these cars the folder is most of the value.

EGR cooler leakCheck coolant level and look for unexplained top-ups in the service history. Verify the recall was carried out. It's free and searchable by VIN.Swirl flap wear and ingestionNot visible without removing the manifold. Ask whether the flaps have been removed or the manifold replaced. Many well-kept examples have had this done preventively, and that's a selling point.

3OBD scanMandatory. A seller who refuses a scan has answered the question.

DPF clogging and forced regenerationRead the DPF soot load and the distance since the last regeneration on a scan tool, and check the engine oil level and smell it for diesel. Ask what the car was used for. A short-trip city diesel is the wrong car regardless of mileage.

Mileage and servicing

What the odometer does and doesn't tell you here, plus the service items whose neglect causes the expensive failures above.

The engine handles distance well and the CVT is what sets the limit. Ask for its fluid history first, because that document predicts the largest bill on the car.

Service item	Interval	Cost
CVT fluid Skipped changes are what kills the Autotronic.	every 60,000–80,000 km	€200–320
Engine oil and filter Injector and turbo protection on a small diesel.	15,000 km or annually	€100–150

What to pay

What this engine sells for, against the median of every engine in the chassis. All figures are illustrative placeholders. See the basis chips.

median €4.2k

€2.4k€3.2k€7.1k

Cheapfind the reasonGood buyif it checks outFairnormal moneyOverpricedneeds justifying

Asking price (€)Mileage (km)

Enter an asking price to get a verdict against this variant's band: cheap, fair, good buy or overpriced.

United States vs Europe

1 EUR = 1.08 USD · 2026-07

🇪🇺 Europe · EUR€3,200band €2,400–€7,100

🇺🇸 United StatesNot soldB 180 CDI OM640 was never a US-market car

What that meansNo US band exists to compare. Any car you find there's a private import, parts and specialist knowledge are thinner, and the price says more about import cost than about the market.

US figures are the EU band converted at a stated rate. No US market differential is modelled: we hold no sourced US asking prices, and inventing one would be worse than saying so. What the comparison does show for real is availability. Most of this range was never sold in the US.

ModelMercedes-Benz B-Class B 180 CDI
ChassisW245
EngineOM640
Years2005–2011
MarketCentral EU
Windowrolling 12 months to 2026-07

Good buy at or under the marker · Median asking price · bar spans the 10th to 90th percentile · dashed line is the w245 median, all 2 engines

Good buy isn't the same as cheapest. The good-buy figure assumes the known failure items are either done with receipts or verifiably not yet due. Full breakdown by facelift phase →

Buyer notes

Our judgement, kept separate from the records it's built on.

Our read, not a record

A B-Class is bought for the space and the driving position rather than for pleasure, and on those terms it does the job well. If the car has the Autotronic CVT, drive it slowly and feel for shudder or hesitation as it takes up drive, then ask for a fluid-change record. Ask about the intake swirl flaps and the injector seals on the diesel, since both are documented on this engine. So check the rear suspension and the tailgate struts, because these carried loads their whole lives.

Everything above this line comes from the issue and specification records. This paragraph is our judgement on top of them. See how we reach it.

Full specification

Manufacturer figures for this engine and body, as recorded in the variant and engine data.

Engine code	OM640 2.0 CDI
Configuration	I4, turbocharged · 1991 cc
Fuel / injection	diesel · common rail
Model years	2005–2011
Facelift phase	Sold either side of the 2008 facelift, 2005–2007 pre, 2008–2011 LCI
Power / torque	109 PS · 250 Nm
Transmissions	6-speed manual · CVT
Gearbox families	Mercedes Autotronic CVT
Drivetrain	FWD
Economy (real-world)	5–6.5 l/100 km mixed
Markets	EU