[sightless]

Hi R170 owners or owners looking to purchase a R170 SLK in the near future,

The PSE Vacuum Pump [located in that controls the locks on this car is the most faulty part on this model of SLK. If you ever had any kind of issues with your locks, central locking system, vacuum pump, door locks, alarm, dome lamps, ect. this is the first part to diagnose, repair, or look at.

While this are plenty of threads on this subject, I created this one to highlight the correct operation of the pump for future owners or current owners of R170s to look at. If one of these are not working correctly, you will need to see how you can fix your PSE, wiring to PSE, or vacuum line order [believe me that MANY SLKs had their pumps replaced, and some mechanics/owners did not check to see that the 3 vacuum pumps are in the right order.

So here you, check these off as you see if your PSE pump is 100% operational:

When driving car
1. Once the car moves when started in R or D modes all doors, trunk, and gas should lock up. If only one door locks, check vacuum line position.

When car is locked completely:
1. One press of unlock button unlocks Driver Side Door, and Gas Door. Trunk, Passenger Door remain unlocked. If either one of these unlock instead of driver side door or gas, try to switch vacuum line position.
2. 2nd press of unlock button should unlock remaining items in vehicle. This is a safety feature so to speak.
3. When inside car, and everything is locked: Center unlock button in dash under AC control should unlock entire car doors, trunk, gas. If not, check vacuum line position! Usually vacuum line position causes only one door to unlock but not the other.

When car is unlocked completely:
1. One press of lock button in center dash under AC vent, locks entire car.
2. One press of remote key fob lock button will lock all doors, trunk, and gas door.

Other notes about the PSE
1. Alarm going off randomly means a short in the PSE Vacuum pump system. Please check system for water inside the casing by opening the pump and drying everything before install. If problem fails to fix problem, may need to replace pump or check wiring for pinches or shorts.
2. Water gets into trunk from failing Convertible Top Rear Seal or Trunk Main Seal. Replacing them correctly should help, along with clearing nearby drains. Usually I would just replace the trunk seal (~70 dollars) and fix the rear convertible top seal (~$150!!!) by using 3M weather strip adhesive to block areas where the seal is failing. Sometimes the rear convertible top seal will "bunch up" you will need to apply weatherstrip adhesive here to block water from going through and dropping into your trunk.


Keep your rubber in good condition, and don't let water in your trunk! =)

P.S. I have a few working verified PSE units that I have acquired. If you guys are interested its $300 shipped in the US. so let me know!

 

[Veloman]

Thanks sightless! These posts are sure to head off troubles with the PSE. I read a lot of posts before I bought my SLK and really went through it the first couple weeks I owned it. I know it has saved me many $$$ since. Thanks to you and all our knowledgible owners for keeping the rest of us running smooth.

 

[galaxys]

Great PSE information! Thanks

 

[[email protected]]

None of the systems that the PSE controls were working on our recently acquired SLK. Give-away was the pump laying loose and unconnected in the trunk. Connections were corroded, but the circuit board itself looked like a canon that had been in salt water for 100 years. New pump from the dealership (asked and received better price than ebay or other sources), soaked the car side connectors for an hour in contact cleaner/lubricant and all is well.

 

[Subby_]

humm mine does all the above except automaticly lock the doors when moving? its never done this - is this part of the alarm system if the car had this option?

opens, closes all doors as normal no dramas

 

[sightless]

humm mine does all the above except automaticly lock the doors when moving? its never done this - is this part of the alarm system if the car had this option?

opens, closes all doors as normal no dramas

Your right. Pre-facelift some cars did not come with the functionality.

 

[mbmastermx]

My SLK is 1997 and I have automatic door lock after start when i cross 15km/h.

To turn on this function you must
1.turn key in 2 position
2.press upper part of central locking switch (on dashboard) for minimum 5 sec.

For deactivate:
1.turn key in 2 position
2.press lower part of central locking switch (on dashboard) for minimum 5 sec.

Try

 

[Billy22Bob]

very cool mbmastermx!...cant wait to try...
Subb....FWIW....mine doesnt lock after getting above 60km either, so I'll try this switch. My misses' A190 - (similar componentry) does it.
Its a little off putting though but I understand if an airbag is forced to go off they all open....(unconfirmed thankfully).
Another thing with the PSE - is get in the car - lock the doors with the key fob....then open a door and alarm should cause blinkers to flash for 3minutes. The glove box may do this as well. In some countries the alarm will sound (mine doesnt have an alarm)

 

[skier518]

has anyone replaced the seals or have a clearer explanation of where the water comes from? I flipped my PSE and cleaned the board extensively and water is getting in from somewhere still.

 

[DecoThom]

Water drains from the 2 hoses on the right rear... gas cap flap area, and trunk lid into the area inside the fender to trunk barrier. These hoses need to drain away from the trunk into the area right against the outside fender wall.

 

[skier518]

Any pics available? Thanks!

 

[DecoThom]

You can remove the weatherstripping on the outside rear wall of the fenderwell where the tire is, and see where those 2 hoses should drain. It is just a friction fit. Pour water through the upper inlet, and see water as it exits.

To see where my larger hose is now routed, remove fasteners from upper area of the right rear trunk plastic panel. Look down into the cavity that is not against the outside fender wall. See a waffle looking panel a few inches rectangular through which poked the hose to the outer cavity.

You may find pictures in other PSE posts.

 

[bmwr1150rtp]

Works

My SLK is 1997 and I have automatic door lock after start when i cross 15km/h.

To turn on this function you must
1.turn key in 2 position
2.press upper part of central locking switch (on dashboard) for minimum 5 sec.

For deactivate:
1.turn key in 2 position
2.press lower part of central locking switch (on dashboard) for minimum 5 sec.

Try

Tried this on my 2000 slk230. The doors now lock automatically.

 

[themachinist]

I remember way back when I bought the 230 I read a TSB on the PSE ..the water was following the wires down to the pump unit..they used to be installed with the wires at the top.. MB had a patch kit or something they did to flip the entire thing over..some wires and hoses needed to be lengthened for it to fit correctly.. later models like my '02 32 has the pump with wires on the bottom. BUT my alarm was always a problem, and now its beginning the random setting off thing like the 230 did .. the siren never worked, but i don't really care.. the lights flashing randomly day or night is starting to bother me, I don't want to find the battery drained when I'm in a hurry.. so I'm going to take out the circuit board and cook it to see if it might help.. I thought there was a post here somewhere , so I logged in for the first time in years to dig up some info.. can't get this kind of or as much information in the AMG owners forum.. this place is a lifesaver as well as a money saver..

 

[Billy22Bob]

you need ~30cm (1ft) of an appropriate rubber "vacuum hose" from your local autostore to fit over "snug" the yellow hoses and cut them near the PSE. Fit in the rubber hose a flip. Check out the stickies and look for bazzle....
b22b

 

[ML3504matic]

Hi....I have a w208. Regarding the pse....all functions operate as they should (doors, filler cap, multi contour seats and etc)

I do notice an intermittent and very brief cycling on and off of the pse pump. It may have always been like this but not sure. I just wanted to get thoughts on whether this might be normal operating of the pse? I Listened for leaks too...even head up to the pse....nothing there)

Again...all works perfectly. Just wanting to validate and get thoughts of this could be normal?

 

[KaloyanBeshev]

Hi, everyone, I'm new to the forum, but have problems with my PSE pomp unit . So my PSE unit went bad on my. Everything works when locking perfectly, but nothing happens when trying to unlock the car. I took it apart, cleaned it with WD-40(it wasn't so bad, you can see the picture before the cleaning). Checked with a multimeter - the pump gets voltage when locking and everything works. When I try to unlock it the coil(in the picture) clicks, but the pump receives no power whatsoever. I don't want to spend around $600 for a new unit, considering that it can be something as simple as a relay, for example, or loose pins on the connectors.

So, in short - it locks perfectly(and I mean perfectly). The lights work when unlocking the car(as they are in the same unit). But the motor doesn't start(checked - no voltage going to it) when trying to unlock... could it possibly be as simple as a fuse/relay? Any ideas ?

 

[KaloyanBeshev]

FIXED - it was a worn out it was a worn out track on the board. A very reliable electrical engineer in my town found the problem and fixed it. Also, when unlocking the motor was running constantly. Careful cleaning and regulation of the stop machine(the one with two white circles and pin between them) fixed everything. Now everything is working flawlessly .

 

[dandywarhol]

FIXED - it was a worn out it was a worn out track on the board. A very reliable electrical engineer in my town found the problem and fixed it. Also, when unlocking the motor was running constantly. Careful cleaning and regulation of the stop machine(the one with two white circles and pin between them) fixed everything. Now everything is working flawlessly .

:smile and welcome to the forum

 

[Chaker Noon]

:smile and welcome to the forum

how to adjust the two white discs and the distance between?
cause now it opens but dont close