elc-sun

Hi all

having probs with my car since helping someone jump theres!! bad mistake non of my divers side functions working have got ever system with faults airmatic, abs, ic, etc.. also car keeps misfireing and battery seems to drain!

I have replaced front sam no effect just replaced alternator and the drivebelt something that i needed to do but It has no effect, not getting any power to front sams at all! when the car was used to jump start another the clamp was connected to the rear of the alternator and it hit the header causing huge sparks! the clamp from the jump leads welded itself to the headers!!!!

checked with multimeter no voltage goin to front right sam, could not get no voltage from alternator either???? and its new


anyone care to shed some light


Thanx peeps!

Skylaw

A contributor who lost his rear SAM after shorting a red power wire to it found a large fuse in a box that is on the right hand side of the trunk, behind the trunk liner. I have never seen it, and I have no photos of it. However, when he opened the box and replaced the 100 Amp fuse, it restored his SAM. See http://mbca.cartama.net/showthread.php?t=33835

The wiring from the box was connected to the battery, and at least to his rear SAM; I suspect it connected to the others as well. You might take a look there and see what you find.

elc-sun

Thanks for that Skylaw I will have a look tomorrow also got a bmw m3 coming with handsfree probs, and an sl with front suspension probs will be a fun saturday!

elc-sun

I think this must be the box in the back it has a straight connection to the battery! T think it has a 60 amp fuse in it thou will check 2moro!

elc-sun

Ok had a look in the boot of the S found the Fuse box checked it and all seemed well! so put that back together now looking closer at some wiring diagrams I Found a second fuse box!!!!

This box is in the front footwell on the right! and found a blown fuse in there! Went to stealer for a price they spent half an hour lookin for the fuse on the computer!!! then they would not sell it seprate they wanted to sell me the whole unit???????????? for £65 instead of what looks like a £2 fuse! I will add pics 2moro hopefully this cures all the probs im having and i can get my car washed its filthy!!!

tusabes

dont use the automated car washes or you can face more electrical problems all over again!!

elc-sun

Nah the car washes are fine Ive had my left side vents sorted out where the water gathers ive made a bigger hole so i dont get no blokage, but since ive had the car resprayed its only been hand wash!!!

elc-sun

Heres some pics of where the first fuse box is in the rear and the second one in the right footwell!

There is a fuse in there which is 150 amp and 32 volts and mercs wont sell it 2me!!!!!! they will only sell me the whole unit. in one of the pics the box is in the footwell under a black cover where the big red wire is goin into!

anyone know what those fuses are?

prince2618

skylaw, thank-you, thank-you, thank-you, your invaluable information fixed that problem. the fuse box in the trunk I checked it and found the 100 broke. soldered it back and the car started like nothing was wrong. spent $25.00 for soldering gun and solder. saved me a bunch of $$$$$$$$$.
Thank you for solving that problem.

Skylaw heres a second problem this started before the other. I had just Gased up the car when I was driving it just shut off. So I pulled to the side of the road and I let it sit for 15-20 min then it started again. There were no problems listed on the dash, just like nothing was wrong. I just started the car it ran for 5 min and shut off what could this problem be.

Thank- you for all your knowledge.

Skylaw

First, I'd like to pass on your thanks to elc-sun, who did the hard legwork and provided the photos - after encountering a most frustrating set of circumstances for him one night. His feedback is the only thing that allowed me to help you.

The engine cutting out, especially after it has warmed up, is most likely a bad Crankshaft Position Sensor (CPS, sometimes called Crank Position Sensor). You'll find discussion of it in the "W220 S-Class Owners Start Here" sticky at the top of the W220 forum. Look under Engine.

SkiMiester

2004 S430 80K

I was wondering if anyone had any insite into a problem I am having. After driving from LA to Orange County...using the usual Tiptronic functionality (at proper revs). All of a sudden at the end of the exit ramp at my destination at 4 MPH the Instrument display flashed "Pre-Safe Disabled" and I was now in "Limp Home Mode" stuck in first gear. Fortunately I only had to go a mile to get home. When I turned the car off it said 1 Malfunction.

Of course the next day the car worked perfectly and had no Malfunction in the display anymore and the car drove as if nothing had happend.

( a little back ground...2 months ago I had a check engine light came on coming down out of the mountains 7000ft alt. which also when away. And on a seperate occassion when I had to quikly release the gas pedal after kicking it down a gear or two (not using Tiptronic) due to traffic...I got a Clunk from the Tranny on the re-equalization. )

I took it to the dealer under ELW and after full investigation we found no codes related to the Tranny or Limp Home Mode but did find an O2 sensor code which showed (after testing) that the 2 front O2 sensors where "Lazy" and where replaced under the ELW.

My 2 questions are:
-Is it possible for such an explicit dash warning and an actual Limp Home Mode event not to trigger any Codes.
and
-Could the bad O2 sensors actually cause a casscading event through to the proper funtioning of the Tranny etc.

Many Thanks in Advance

raul29

Hi ,I will like to know where is the fuse 100 & 40 on my 2001 S430 ,i toached the red wire under rear seat and , was loose ,I connected back the wire and everything went off ,car wont sart, no lights,no power at all please help me . my phone is 561-305-2802

Skylaw

Raul29, did you read the preceding posts and review the pictures posted by elc-sun? I would think the fuse panel you need is in the same place, in the trunk.

W220S430

i also have that clunk from the tranny whenever i go down 1 or 2 gears on an overtake(exactly like you stated) .. Don't know if that is normal but the guy who VAGed(hang around with too much with the VW crowd, don't really know what the proper technical term is for mercedes) the car said there is an error code for the tranny.. didnt give me specific details. And also, my engine light came on about a month ago and hasnt come off, the car isn't in limp mode, there doesnt seem to be anything wrong with it. Cont really know what to do

elc-sun

I have a bit of a clunk when using kick down, but this is because the fluid needs changing, My dads car which is a SL280 totally unrelated car was having gear changing probs would not kick down right gearbox would go into limp mode sometimes, seemed like a gearbox problem but I changed the maf sensor and everything is fine now. I have also changed the maf sensor on my w220 gear change is more smoother and my mpg has gone up which is a bonus. I only got error codes using the star diags not cheap other diagnostic machines. Use a proper star machine to find out the problem, I am testing out the carsoft diagnostics which is alot cheaper and will if that works aswell

Also to Raul29, Skylaw is correct the fuse in the boot is the one which is probably blown!

julianobello

i THINK i'M HAVING The Problem .... Thanks Great Post !!

elystyle00018

HI iam just new on this web site first logg in ,, I am looking for an s class s430 02 but iam worry about all the problems with airmatic and navigation system and electronics ,, iam a young student and i only need the car to go school also my budget is tight the car is like 8 000 bucks with 77 k miles on it .. whats should i do ,,, the s class is my favourite and the 03 is a bit to expensive for me plzzz help i dont wanna have mecanic problem so id be broke all the time repairing

tusabes

get it checked out by a MERCEDES mechanic BEFORE buying it, they can check the airmatic for leaks or see whether it has new struts

inspection usually costs $100-200 and well worth it. Getting it without inspection can cost you thousands more

Skylaw

eleystyle00018, I mean you no disrespect - what follows is the truth. The Mercedes is an expensive luxury car - and while its purchase price has come down over the years, its repair costs have not. They are expensive to repair, when they need it. The average annual cost of routine maintenance and the relatively few repairs I have had to make on my '05 has still averaged around $1,000 annually.

77K miles is not excessive - but I invite you to take a look at http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w220...tart-here.html for the types of problems you MIGHT encounter. You will not have all of these problems - no one does; but as you can see, they are complex cars, especially in the suspension and the electronics, and models before '03 tended to be less reliable than '03 and later. There is also buying guide info toward the bottom of the thread.

Under financial circumstances other than being a student on a tight budget, I would not hesitate to recommend an S-Class. I am afraid that your fears would come true - expensive mechanical problems and being broke all the time as a result.

If you want a Mercedes while in school, I suggest looking at a C-Class. First, you could likely find a newer car for the same money. Second, the suspension is not pneumatic - it is simpler. While some C-Classes had COMAND, many had simpler, more straightforward Audio 50 (which can accommodate navigation, but on a small screen) or Audio 30 (no nav) radios. And even if you got one with COMAND, buying newer means lower risk of failure. If you get COMAND, I strongly suggest one that uses DVD navigation, not CD; you will find that the discs are still being updated, and the phone systems will be easier to adapt to new phones.

Good luck with your decision. Finish school, find your job - then get your S-Class. If you don't follow that advice, keep the link to the Encyclopedia handy. It will save you a lot of money.