[mewag]

Hello all,
I just aquired my first Mercedes, a 2003 C240 wagon. It was parked last year when the previous owners couldn't figure out why the tail lights and brake lights wouldn't work and their Mechanic couldn't figure it out.
My husband is a heavy equipment mechanic and works on automobiles as well, people like to bring their vehicles to him when their mechanics cant fix it
I have been tasked with ferreting out information to help him with finding the problem , and I will be tackling the detailing and cosmetic stuff myself. Lots to do!
Should I just throw down right here or make seperate posts for the issues?
Thanks!

 

[StigHelmer]

Tell us what's going on and congratulations.

It would be helpful for us (to be helpful to you) for you tell us what you have checked already - things like fuses, relays, etc.

 

[mewag]

Thank you! I think it will be a good car. I love the feel of it. It has low miles and should last me a long time, I tend to get attached The real wheel drive in the winter will be a new experience for me but I'm not scared, I'll figure it out. Might even be fun.
SO, this is what I know so far.
~Bulbs and fuses are ok.
~The brake lights are working now, after he got in there checking things out. But the indicators and tail lights do not.
~The circuit board has a white powdery residue on it in a concentric pattern, like something blew up.
~There was a HUGE mouse nest in the dash behind the instrument panel...I vacuumed it out and I can see at least one badly frayed chewed wire, and alot of other carnage. CARNAGE. It is giving me a 'steering wheel adjust warning!' That's probably the chewed wire. Since the problem existed before the mice he doesn't think it is related but it may have made things worse, we will see. He's got to pull off the dash and see whats going on there too.
~He needs to test things with the multimeter and then I can give you more detailed info.

Thank You!

For my part I need to know what people use for cleaning the leather seats. The interior is Java.
I am also interested in what people use for the plastic wood? It has scuffs and scratches and has lost its luster. I will be replacing a couple peices on the front doors, they are cracked. The door handles and steering wheel are really scuffed as well, is there anything I can do other than replace them?
Also, I know I have seen a product that restores the headlights and makes them clear again? What is that stuff called?
Thank you again!

 

[rudeney]

Clean the contacts on the tail light assembly and replace all the bulbs. The rear SAM can get "fooled" into thinking the bulbs are out due to increases resistance with old filaments.

The mouse damage could be a big problem. I highly recommend at a minimum getting a copy of WIS as it has all the wiring diagrams. Better is to spend the money and ge the Chinese clone version of SDS.


I like Lexol for the leather. Use a board's hair brush to get into the grain. Oh, and the wood is real wood - not plastic. You can actually use a good carnuba wax on it.

 

[Richguy]

Hii

 

[mewag]

Is the WIS just a wiring diagram or all encompassing? Where do I get it? And do you mean the chinese clone version called SDS is better?
We are tackling this today, is there a manual/ guide/ tutorial someplace that shows how to remove the dash? I think the whole thing needs to come off...

 

[rudeney]

WIS = Workstation Information System, which is MBZ's official shop manual for dealers. Peole sell copies of it on eBay for around $30. It has all the wiring, technical and mechanical diagrams needed for repairs on the car. SDS = Star Diagnosis System (A.K.A DAS or Xentry) which is MBZ's official full diagnostic system for dealers. It includes WIS but also has a lot of other diagnostic information as well as the electronics needed to talk to the car's systems for diagnosis and coding. You can get a Chinese clone version of this for around $500-$700.

 

[mewag]

Ok, turns out it was the rear SAM. We replaced it and everything back there is working again. We just replaced the old one with the new one. There are more fuse slots in the new one than the old. We are wondering why?

Now we have a couple more issues;

The car is giving us an alarm to check the right high beam bulb. The bulb appears to be ok, and the multimeter says there is only 4v there. After replacing the bulb we then got an alarm to check the low beam bulb and another bulb somewhere. After disconnecting the battery and reconnecting it several times the additional alarms went away and we still get the check high beam bulb alarm.

The windshield wipers don't work, we checked the fuse and it is ok.

We are looking into chewed wires being a problem regarding the wipers, because the wires for the tilt steering were chewed, we fixed that. We couldn't find any more chewed wires but are going to hook it up directly to check the motor and then we will know if that's the issue there.
Regarding the headlights, we tested the related wires and got no resistance. They look like they have gotten hot though like they might be cheap wire, though it doesn't seem MB would use cheap wires, anyway we were thinking of just replacing all the wires with new good ones and see what happens.

I am hoping someone might see something we are not and have a solution? Hoping. I sooo want to drive my new car!!!!

And, much less important, while cleaning it up I found broken things, like the front cupholder, it doesn't pop up anymore, so I need a new one, and there are various other interior parts like the wood that is cracked, a broken sill?, not sure what that's called sorry, and one of the rear doorlock pins is not attached to anything in the door, its just afloat in the hole. Where is a good place to find these parts? Used is fine.

Thank You!!

 

[mewag]

I realize I am mostly talking to myself here, but what the hell.
MY HUSBAND IS MY HERO
He fixed everything, with no prior experience working on a Mercedes. He is a genius. Seriously.
We did not order a manual, or the WIS or SDS, and I found nothing online that was particularly useful.
We love driving this car! It's tight and smooth and handles like a dream. So comfortable to drive, and I love how solid it feels. I'm so into it. Good thing I have an amazing husband who can put me in it, and keep me there. Thanks babe! My first Mercedes wont be my last!

 

[rudeney]

Glad to hear it's all fixed. Was it the front SAM?

 

[mewag]

Thank You! I had it on the interstate last night! Zoooooom! Love this car!
It was the rear SAM. He ordered it through the local dealer, $402, and just swapped it with the old one.