Mercedes-Benz Forum banner

instrument cluster snafu ?

11K views 12 replies 7 participants last post by  43sqd 
#1 · (Edited)
finnaly got around to removing the cluster and replacing 2 bulbs that were burnt out. what i found is that there were no 12 volt 2 watt lumination bulbs anywhere on the cluster they were ALL 12 volt 1.5 watts is this normal ?

in photo #3 the bulb is missing and when i held my pinlight up to the back it shows coolant level low (at least i guess that is what it means) is this bulb supposed to be missing or does it have a sensor on the 98 ml320 to indicate low coolant ?

in photo #4 the bulb is also missing and when the pinlight is shown through it says "airbag off" i have read if there is a child seat installed then the sensor in the seat automaticly disables the passenger side airbag. so with no child seats to be installed i can be safe in leaving this one out ?

photo #7 shows the cluster plug with the lach in the "lock" position

photo #9 shows the small tab (red arrow) that you half to push down before you can rotate (yellow arrow) to the right to unlach the plug.

i almost broke mine as i thought all you had to do was pry up on it !!!

photo #10 shows how to line up the cluster with the stearing wheel and it will slide right out in direction of the arrow,

as soon as the thunderstorm ( tipical for this time of the year in north carolina ) blows over i will head back out and put it all back together, the hardist part was removing the ic out from behind the stearing wheel. it comes out towards the passenger side. just take your time so you dont break / scratch anything and when it lines up it will slide out as if it had grease on it :)

oh and the only other thing was the plug on back of the harness to the cluster. the clip does not pull straight out it rotates to the right hand side of the cluster. i will take a photo as i hook it back up for future reference for all.

all done and 3 more photos were added, hope this helps someone else . hope this is not posting to many photos at one time ?

boy this forum has save me a bunch of cash !!

thanks :thumbsup:

c n b
 

Attachments

See less See more
6
#4 · (Edited)
The last time I had my 98ML instrument cluster out it had bulbs in every position. I used an unused bulb for a replacement which was handy. The instrument cluster bulbs are color coded. As you can see the 98ML uses all Brown base bulbs. I don't have access to my 98ML but from what I remember it does have a coolant level sensor. I'm sure someone will either confirm or dispute that.
FYI the Icons for each warning bulb slide out on the right and left side of the instrument cluster. Also there were icons on my 98ML that were not options or features in 98. They were there for future models. MB was thinking ahead.
Mike
 
#9 · (Edited)
witek

thanks for the update ! i wonder for those who dont have the sensor could one install a newer resevoir with sensor and it would work ? that is if the instrument cluster had a spot for the bulb ?

angain, thank you

cnb



oh and any photos i post on here are free and can be used and copied or placed in sticky if need be.
 
#8 ·
sensor

you can get the sensor from autohause

Part Number Brand / Description / Restrictions List Core Your Price Qty Select

2105450024
Febi-Bilstein/Meyle
Coolant Level Sensor; In Radiator/Expansion Tank
Please verify appearance of existing unit. 1 per car. $14.28


part number 2105450024

a photo of the sensor is below

cnb
 

Attachments

#11 ·
i was assuming the first year or 2 the wiring would be same ? i had an 85 and 87 toyota mr2 and the 85 had wiring instaled for behind driver speakers but the accual speakers wasnt an option till 87.

allso i learnt the hard way from my dad about what happens when you assume something :rolleyes:

cnb
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top