Glyn M Ruck

Wow!. If you don't mind I'm going to merge your threads to keep all of this together. Whenever you post your thread will pop to the top of the list.

If it's not a bad connection or earth I'm starting to fear an expensive ESP module & Star diagnosis.

Please do me one favour. Start the car & turn the steering from lock to lock 5 times to reset the SAS (Steering Angle Sensor). Sometimes the SAS causes ESP problems.

I still think your most likely problem is a bad connection somewhere on the system or a bad earth. When the faults occur does it still lock up the gear shifter?

mrgraphic

So here's the latest...This morning I did the steering wheel lock to lock thing to reset the steering angle sensor, then drove to work without incident. When I left work, I stopped at McDonalds and sat in the lot with the car in Park for about 3 minutes, when, as usual, the malfunctions showed up on the display again. At that point the gear selector would not move out of Park. I shut the engine off, waited for the diplay to black out (about 2 minutes) then started the car and all was OK, drove home and parked the car. I'm going to check the voltage in my battery because I read of a guy who had some related issues and when he replaced the battery it fixed the problem. I'm thinking of buying a used brake module with a lifetime warranty as my next move. Any advice? Thanks.

Glyn M Ruck

Have the battery properly load tested by a battery shop. Before you spend money on ESP modules & ABS blocks get the car diagnosed on a Star DAS. Try to find an Indy with one or pay the dealer to run a diagnosis & post the printout. A SnapOn Solus is also capable of reading all Benz codes.

Throwing parts at the problem before proper diagnosis could cost you plenty. The car might need a new SAS or it could be as simple as a faulty harness.

Rudeney

Glyn, I would agree that might be the case, except that tapping on the controller housing causing the error. I've still got my fingers crossed for the OP that it was just a bad connection that needed cleaning.

Glyn M Ruck

Understood but that might be desturbing something in the harness plug - e.g. a dry joint.

Rudeney

You are correct - my comment was actually in relation to a potential SAS reset being needed (yeah, I know, I didn't make that clear). But then again, it could be a short in that circuit and thus doing the reset procedure could shed some light. Then again, I am thinking as you are that it could be a voltage problem.

Glyn M Ruck

Yeah ~ I just wanted to get the SAS issue behind us because I've seen dealars replace ABS blocks & Yaw sensors & ESP modules only to find that the SAS needed replacement or a reset.

Sorry if I confused the issue.

ftz111

I have the exact same issue now on my 2004 E200 Kompressor. Has anyone finally found a resolution to this? Help please!

mrgraphic

Hi there,
Yes, I originally posted this thread about not being able to move the gear selector. In my case it was the ESP module that caused the problem. I purchased a used module on Ebay from an auto recycler for $200 with a 6 month warranty. First I tried replacing just the black section with the servo motor, to avoid messing with the brake lines and having to bleed the brake system. That did not fix the problem, so I then replaced the block with all of the brake line connections. Knock on wood, I have never had a problem since. One thought...I used to turn off the traction control often, not sure if that triggered the problem, but I don't touch that button anymore! Hope this helps. Good luck.

ftz111

Thanks for the reply!

Rudeney

Using the ESP button didn't cause the failure - the part just failed. it happens.

96 E300D

Just a confirmation that after receiving the brake wear and esp warning lights, I replaced the ABS pump which solved the hard steering, no speedometer and a few other things. One notation though, after replacing it with a used unit, I immediately got a speedtronics error message(which affected the cruise control). I had it scanned and it came up with a transmission control unit. So I replaced the electronic portion of the ABS pump with the original and that went away as well.

Thanks so much to this forum for helping figure this one out!