I don't know how this happened, but the sensor in the driver's door handle has been broken. It's all cracked up with a small hole in the center. I noticed it after i had the car detailed. I'm thinking that the guy who did the detail could have done it. The place is in the basement of a parking garage and it's kinda dark. I can imagine somebody who is not familiar with this car could stab the key looking for the key hole.
Anyway, has anybody had this problem? Think that I can just replace the sensor cover or is this a whole door handle issue? This car is on it's way out the door in the next 6-8 months, don't want to spend a ton on it, but also don't want it to short out or something.
Don't assume anything with Mercedes.
I had boot on my CV joint broken.
The dealer "doesn't do the boot only" so they offer to exchange whole CV joint, but joints alone are not available. You have to buy whole axle for small change $1200. That's part only.
Good luck. I would just put a drop of crazy glue, or neoprene on it.
Sorry to hear of that. Someone might have been trying to break in or something; people can be stupid.
If the crack is large enough I think I'd just put on a rubber glove and work some clear silicone into the crack. That should seal it up and after it dries you can just rub the excess off the top.
Take care and enjoy the ride,
Greg
__________________ Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy; its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. (Winston Churchill)
I'd take the handle off, remove the electronic guts, put some tape over the outside and fill the hole with activated polyester resin. Then remove the eye and sand and buff the outside flat and glass smooth, if possible at that point. If not yet possible, fill any defects first. You can make it perfect, but it will take time. Whether that's worth the price of the new part depends on the value of your labor and the price you'd have to pay otherise. A whole handle will be expensive.
my method of fixing it was to clear out the current cracking cover, then i took a piece of frost plexiglass, cut the exact shape and size, glued the edges and voila, looks good as new.
Funny thing, I just purchased our "new" 97 E300. The cover on the sensor is chipped and about 40% missing.
It strike me, that the car has no keyhole on driver side, only on the passenger side.
Compared to 99 model, that has keyholes on both sides. Evidently MB took 2 years to figure out, that teaching people to change their lifetime habits is not worth it.
I'll start working on the cover once I got the engine running smoothly.
I had the same thing happen to my car. Can you tell me where you got the plastic and how you exactly fixed?
Thanks
Bruce
I haven't done it, Bruce. My '96 has no sensor there, but does have a key cylinder. That way, when someone goes up to the door with the key, it goes into the cylinder instead of into your IR sensor. But I have used this sort of plastic for other tasks on different cars.
You can buy polyester resin and MEKP hardener at any decent auto parts store or any auto paint store. It's typically used for fiberglass work. Practice with it before you put any on your door handle, and don't breath the MEKP fumes.
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