dterryodoanlen

Isn't technology awesome? It just adds more things to investigate!
At least you are ruling out suspects (and hopefully keeping your dealer time and cost to a minimum).
It's time to mount a webcam on your car to view their expressions and hear comments of the dealer tech...this sounds like one for the books.

dsmith

It's actually pretty easy, if you have the machine and the instructions. That's the part that's really irritating. It would be easy to diagnose if the components didn't all join at one bus bar. The failed component would be the only one that didn't work! But that would make it more expensive to make and more expensive to add new items to the system.

wnobles111

Talk about tech time, the service department wanted to know where the back seat was when I pulled into their bay!

wnobles111

Off and running! The dealer service department just called. The car apparently has had a "water intrustion" at some point in time and the connections to the PSE which I now know as the vacuume pump are corroded and need to be cleaned or replaced, and by the way we need to put in a new PSE for only (drum roll please!) $1,250.00. Not sure that this will fix the problem completely, it may need a headlight control module also. I personally think we need to find out where the water is coming from first!

dterryodoanlen

Any chance water got into the computer or other part of electrical along the way?

wnobles111

Apparently there is some module under the front passenger seat that the service department is suspicious of also. Evidently the jute padding under the front carpet is wet/damp also. The carpet was not damp so I did not know of this problem. My priority right now is to find where the water is coming from. They suspect a stopped up sunroof drain (I didn't know this existed) but there is no evidence of the intrusion in the headliner, carpet or anywhere else in the interior. I even checked the trunk. Only the carpet padding is damp and this was not detectable until the carpet had been pulled up. (no mold, smell or dampness to the touch.)

juve010

argh...water will do crazy things to electronics. Glad you are hopefully on your way to a demon free car!

blacked210

actually now that you mention there are sun roof drains there was a time where i had some one sitting in the back and they said there was water that dripped through the handle on the roof, went to check ...... nothing was ever found, but there was for sure water cause he caught the drips. good luck on the fix btw, wouldn't be surprised if it was because of water.

wnobles111

Finally the dealership thinks the car has been exorcised of it's demons! They kept the car several extra days to check for leaks, but cound not locate the source. They "water tested" the car (shot it with a hose) and had no intrusion, so I guess the problem is still lurking there somewhere. I will pick it up this afternoon and will drive it for a few more days with the rear seat out to monitor the water, if any. It is supposed to rain here this weekend. I'll post the price for this grand adventure when I get home. (If I'm not in shock!)

Red66GT

Is that all they did.....test for leaks? Did they replace any electronic components yet?

wnobles111

Picked it up this afternoon, They did replace the PSE under the back seat. The technician said he sees this condition occasionally. ATTN: The technician placed the new PSE in a plastic bag to protect it from water. He did not seal up the bag, but placed it in the bag before replacing the foam around it. The rear seat well will hold water if some leaks in and the PSE module just sits on the floor. The Module costs $710.00 and apparently is the brains of the CAN-Bus system. They were not able to locate the source of the water intrusion, but I cleaned out some leaves from under the hood and in the fender wells.The rear seat is still out, and I'll be watching for water this weekend when it is supposed to rain. With $400.00 in labor, hazardous waste disposal fee, sales tax and lord only knows what else, I escaped for "only" $1,214.00. Everything seems to be fine today!

dsmith

Are you able to provide the cost for them just to diagnose the problem?

moayes

If they couldn't find a leak, and you have soak carpet in front and back, and probably a pool of water in the battery compartment - under the rear seats, I believe it is from your A/C condensation.

The A/C has two small hoses that run from behind the center console out. They are almost located behind the center vents (next to gas pedal) ; one on the left side, one on the right side.

I had the same problem -- not the electric thing; just the soaked carpet.
First thought there is a leak or something like that. But the fact was, those hoses were loose and out of their place. So instead of draining condensates from A/C out, they were draining it behind the carpet.

wnobles111

Thanks for the tip! I just went outside and pulled the front passenger side carpet to check the drain line. I found it, pulled it out of the car body and blew through it. it seems fine, but I'll drive without the carpet for a while and see if water appears. Meanwhile, the rear passenger window register failed yesterday! Got a new one on order...Satan lives!

moayes

if it was in place, then that shouldn't be your problem -- as you figured it out yourself.
Mine was totally off, and literally was draining inside the car.

The green top cover of that mini-hose (drain hose) had also micro hols!! I tested them before putting them back in place, and noticed that water was leaking from their walls!

So I had to completely replace them.

wnobles111

OK, so I went outside just now to try and figure a way to raise the PSE off of the floor pan under the seat, only to find the bottom of the foam block surrounding the new PSE unit saturated, and some water in the battery area. There was also some small amount of water in the floor in the passenger front seat foot area. (Front carpet removed yesterday) I drove the car about 10 miles this morning, some puddles, and a little rain. (Not much of either) There is no evidence that the A/C condensate hose is leaking, no apparent body rust that might be the source of leaks, no evident trash buildup under the hood or in the trunk seals. None of the body plugs or grommets seem to be missing. Where the heck could the water be coming from? Thank heavens the MB Tech placed the new PSE in a plastic bag!

wnobles111

Yesterday afternoon, I removed the entire back seat to find the jute padding wet behind the passenger rear seat back. I washed the car using a relatively high pressure hose, and after the wash found water trickleing from behind the quarter panel ceiling liner and pooling in the battery area. There was also a wet area on the headliner between the seat back and ceiling. After focusing the hose on the rear window and the seam on the roof, I have determined that the car is leaking from one of those two areas. I suspect the seam under the trim strip on the roof is the real culprit. The car is now at a body shop to see if they can determine the cause of the leak. Meanwhile, the new PSE is still in a plastic bag and propped up on boards.

Hirnbeiss

Do you have the little antenna on the roof? If so, could that be a possible leak source?

Musikmann

Agree. There have been several reports that the gasket gets brittle and needs replacement.

wnobles111

I just picked the car up from the body shop, the seam under the trim strip on the roof was leaking, allowing water to travel on top of the headliner, down the rear quarterpanel cover , behind the rear seat and into the battery well. I have built a "custom" set of brackets to raise the new PSE off the floor to try and protect it from any new water that might happen to get in. I do not think i will be putting the PSE back in the foam block as that foam wicked the water into the old PSE unit.The body shop fix was $50. The rear dome light still will not go off after opening the door, it must be manually turned off with the overhead switch... back to the dealer on Monday!

Red66GT

Just curious if you can see any visible cracks in the rubber from the outside of your car? After you posted about water leaking from the window, I looked at the rubber around my back window and I can see a few cracks in mine. Dont know if they go all the way through or not, and I dont have any leaks that I know of. Think I'm gonna get it replaced anyways!

wnobles111

No, the problem with mine was the compound used to seal the roof panel to the sides of the car cracked or dried out. You have to remove the trim strips that run down both sides of the car roof to see the seam. These trim strips are held on with clips that wedge fit in the 1/2 inch wide crevase under the trim strip. All is good now, I'm just waiting for the first rain to be sure the leak is fixed!

tikun

Wow! What a Story. I just Inherited a 99 w210 and I have been scouring these posts looking for anything related to what I know to be wrong with this car. Windows will not go down, Sunroof will not close, Locks will not lock, Trunk will Not Unlock, Instrument lamps are out, Power steering didn't work, Dome lamps wont turn on, and I am sure something else that's been forgotten. I appreciate the detail and consistent updates regarding Satan Lives as I make a list of everything to check out. For the record I do not even want this car and it is at the shop right now to find out what the hell the problem(s) are.

10 years ago I owned a BMW 528 and it had serious water leaking (from the sunroof drain lines no less) issues that Played havoc On EVERYTHING ELECTRICAL and cost me a Fortune!! If I find Water in this Car, This will Be My Last Post lol

wnobles111

Well, it finally rained and...no leaks. I guess this is the end of this long and sad saga. The car is once again everything I have come to love about my E-class! On the road to Atlanta next week! (But I will check under the rear seat for water from time to time!)

wnobles111

By the way, thank you to all who posted suggestions and advice, without your help I never would have known to check out the PSE. I'm sure I'll be back again!