Front electric windows,electric side mirrors & steering whheel adjuster intermitantly
Hi my name is Sunil, I am new to Mercedes benz Forum and my first time on forum.
I have a 1998 e430 avantgard, intermitantly front windows,front door side mirrors,steering wheel adjuster and twice the key remote have stopped working.
If I disconnect the battery every thing will work as it should.Sometimes the left front door window and mirror won't - they seem to have a mind of their own.
I don't have any wiring diagrams or manuals has anyone experienced these problems? if so advice and
help will be appreciated :confused
1)Are all these problems with the windows / mirror and the steering wheel adjustment happening at the same time ? Or sometimes one side stops working and sometimes the other ?
2)Do your rear windows work OK when the front windows do not work ?
3) Is your steering adjustment on the door panel or on the steering column ? (different countries, different options)
4) On the non-working window side, what happens if you try to adjust the seat using the door switches (when the window / mirror is not working) ?
5) Have you checked the battery and alternator ? Do they have sufficient voltage levels ?
6) Did you do any maintenance / repair prior to the problem ?
1) These problems do happen at the same time, but lately the left hand side (passenger side) window,
electric seat and door mirror do not until I disconnect and reconnect the battery again.
One time I did nothing and they all started to work again. Twice the remote key would not lock or
unlock the vehicle ( I have two sets of key and been fitted with new batteries ).
2) Rear window all work when components in the front don't.
3) Steering adjustment is on the right front door panel (Driver's side).
4) On the door which are not working the seat adjusters are not working.
5) I have fitted a new battery charging and voltages are good.
6) I have done no repairs or maintenance when the problem started.
The vehicle is new in New Zealand now done 107,000km and hardly used and always garaged.
It appears that you have a problem with one of the modules connected to the CAN bus (a communications bus). I suspect it is the Door Control Module at the Driver's side (DCM1 or DCM FR). If you notice the Star cannot get to that DCM to get the module ID. The module intermittently seems to go flaky to disturb the traffic on the Can bus (as this is evident from the current and stored B1025 fault, and current and stored B1054 fault). The suggestion is to remove the connection of the module to the Can bus and observe if the problem on the other door / mirror will be solved. If the traffic on the can buses are disturbed, the modules will not be able to communicate with eachother (LCP, OCP, DCM, EAS...). When you disconnect the battery, you are effectively resetting the module, so the can bus disturbance is removed.
You could also try to remove the fuse for the DCM1 when the problem occurs, and wait for a minute or so and reinstall the fuse. This would indicate the problem is with that module. I believe the fuse 16 is a 20 amp fuse under the hood for the DCM1.
I recommend you record the printed faults and clear the faults for ALL modules and see which ones still stay CURRENT. At the moment you have so many stored error codes which can confuse the issue.
The DCM modules are notorious with problems due to moisture entering in them through the window sills.
For the battery and the charging circuits (alternator, regulator, wiring) you say all are fine, and I have to take your word for it. Typically bad grounding, weak battery, worn regulator can cause low voltage conditions which can create all sorts of strange problems. That is why you need to clear all codes and check for low battery codes later on ( without disconnecting the battery of course).
It's most likely a problem in the power window control module that is part of the window motor where harness plugs in. Mine was the right rear (most frequently encountered) and while the rear windows worked fine, I had sporadic power to the front seats, windows, and side view mirrors. Diagnosing requires accessing the CAN BUS hub in the front passenger footwell and working through by process of elimination. My symptoms were similar enough to ones described on here that I just disconnected the right rear window motor and haven't had the problem since. Just no right rear window which is no big deal to me. Based on my research even the dealerships with SDS can't make a reliable diagnosis and will charge you $500 for each motor as they replace them randomly until the problem stops. 3 yrs ago the control module was around $170US so you don't have to purchase the entire motor if you choose to repair. Good luck.
add: In some models at least through 1997 there was a single Combination Control Module, or N10-1 module, located in the module bay on the passenger side under the hood. May want to check and see if your model has this vs. individual door controllers.
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