A week ago, after driving in extremely cold NY weather with plenty of snow, slush, and salt on the roads, my W212 wagon's hood was stuck. Neither of the left or right latches would release when pulling the hood release lever under the driver's side dashboard. There was enough resistance and springiness in the lever so I knew the cables were fine. But the latches were stuck. I tried gently pushing the the hood down and letting go in the vicinity of the latches while another person pulled the release lever. But that didn't help.
I was about to post on this forum asking how to access the latches from underneath the car (I couldn't find this info anywhere in the WIS). I've seen YouTube videos for other models (such as W211) where one could remove the belly pan followed by small plastic covers under the latches to gain access to the latches so you could release them manually. E.g., see the two videos below. But I found no video for W212. Jus a couple of days ago, I came across the following post on another Mercedes forum - Bonnet won't open - MBWorld.org Forums. It appears you need to remove the wheel arch liners to gain access to the latches. Even then, this poster was not able to release the latches himself. Then, yesterday, while driving in warm winter weather (28°F), as the car went over a pothole, I saw a hood-open warning on the instrument panel (see picture below). The hood was not fully open; the safety latch was still engaged. So I drove the car home, opened the hood, cleared all the salt, debris, and corrosion from the latches, and sprayed WD40 on the latches, springs, and cable. The hood release is working for now.
Question 1: Can anyone provide WIS or other instructions for accessing and releasing W212 hood latches when they are stuck? I'd like to have instructions handy in case I encounter this problem again. The instructions at mbworld are incomplete; they don't cover the passenger side.
Now to the second part of this issue. I found varied opinions online on what lubricant to use for hood latches. From the now extinct Mercedes Wunderpaste/Silikonpaste (see What type of grease to use for hinges and door latches and MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment) to white lithium grease and Wurth HHS 2000 (now sold as Wurth HHS Plus) (see MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment). In my opinion, lithium grease would attract more dirt and grime. The Wunderpaste was designed not to collect dirt over time. I'm giving the Wurth HHS Plus a try and will report back on long-term results.
Question 2: Is there an official Mercedes replacement for the Wunderpaste (part# 000-989-84-51)? The search for a non-Mercedes replacement at MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment and MB Silikonpaste - the Holy Grail seems to have not yielded any results.
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I was about to post on this forum asking how to access the latches from underneath the car (I couldn't find this info anywhere in the WIS). I've seen YouTube videos for other models (such as W211) where one could remove the belly pan followed by small plastic covers under the latches to gain access to the latches so you could release them manually. E.g., see the two videos below. But I found no video for W212. Jus a couple of days ago, I came across the following post on another Mercedes forum - Bonnet won't open - MBWorld.org Forums. It appears you need to remove the wheel arch liners to gain access to the latches. Even then, this poster was not able to release the latches himself. Then, yesterday, while driving in warm winter weather (28°F), as the car went over a pothole, I saw a hood-open warning on the instrument panel (see picture below). The hood was not fully open; the safety latch was still engaged. So I drove the car home, opened the hood, cleared all the salt, debris, and corrosion from the latches, and sprayed WD40 on the latches, springs, and cable. The hood release is working for now.
Question 1: Can anyone provide WIS or other instructions for accessing and releasing W212 hood latches when they are stuck? I'd like to have instructions handy in case I encounter this problem again. The instructions at mbworld are incomplete; they don't cover the passenger side.
Now to the second part of this issue. I found varied opinions online on what lubricant to use for hood latches. From the now extinct Mercedes Wunderpaste/Silikonpaste (see What type of grease to use for hinges and door latches and MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment) to white lithium grease and Wurth HHS 2000 (now sold as Wurth HHS Plus) (see MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment). In my opinion, lithium grease would attract more dirt and grime. The Wunderpaste was designed not to collect dirt over time. I'm giving the Wurth HHS Plus a try and will report back on long-term results.
Question 2: Is there an official Mercedes replacement for the Wunderpaste (part# 000-989-84-51)? The search for a non-Mercedes replacement at MB Silicon Paste - the Holy Grail | Tools and Shop Equipment and MB Silikonpaste - the Holy Grail seems to have not yielded any results.
