BenzManNy

Anyone experiencing this? I think this maybe related to the issue with the tail light melting. Right now i have 2 out of 4 sockets melted. Decided to just pull all the bulbs out to prevent any further issues. I found a few pics here from a fellow member that I have used for illustration purposes.

w204ant

yes its happened to me, thats why I switched to LED

Justin Key

Yes it happened to me as well. I got the check front right parking light and when i went to replace the bulbs the holders were melted to the assemblies and all broke them when pulling them out. 8 years of halogen bulbs enclosed in the plastic assemblies, not a great design.

dchar

I changed the whole front parking lights with aftermarket LED units.

BMWho

I have this same issue with my C63. Did you ever resolve it?

I'm thinking some solder or a new $20 socket is better than a $1k OEM or $800 (pair) of LED replacements.

W204Motorsports

These are very cheap and a poor designs from mercedes, check them before this happens, the wires get exposed, touch each other and melt away. When I first got my car with low mileage, the wires were already showing wear. I solved this issue with putting liquid electrical tape all over the wires and connectors to prevent this issue. 5 years later its holding you great.

Knightmare69

It's a **** design, not sure what MB was thinking but I've taken apart pre-fl headlights and there is no ventilation for the parking lights. Essentially the bulbs just bake themselves to death usually taking the socket or the surrounding area with it.

Switch to led bulbs now and salvage what you can.

alecmascot

Mine are 10 years old and there is nothing wrong with them.
What are you guys doing to melt them ?
It can only be a bad contact between the socket and the bulb. Are the sealing plugs in properly ?

Shimee

Sounds like either a corroded ground contact over heating or higher wattage bulbs being used. The parking lights should be using #194 bulbs which draw 3.8 watts as opposed to #168 which draw 4.9 watts or #2825 which draw 5 watts. Although I have been amber colored #168 bulbs for a couple years now and I don't have this issue. So it leads me to think it's a poor ground.

Mos Eisley

Has anyone had any luck locating and/or installing a suitable replacement? If so, a link or website and part number would be greatly appreciated! I have the exact same problem as OP. One socket on each side totally melted. I am having a difficult time finding a suitable replacement socket online, without replacing the entire assembly. Replacing everything with LED to prevent additional "meltdowns".

Also, it may just be a coincidence, but at about the same time I discovered the melted sockets my left side marker and front turn signal began glitching. When starting the car the side marker comes on for a few seconds and then goes out. Furthermore, the front left turn signal will flash three times the first time I signal a left turn (after a restart) before cutting out and displaying "check left front turn signal" in the instrument cluster. Replaced both bulbs just in case, but this did not resolve the issue. I want to resolve the obvious melted socket before I put too much time into this issue, so this is just speculation but I'm thinking they are on the same circuit as the melted parking light socket which is causing the system to anomalously detect the turn signal and side marker bulbs as burned out resulting in cutting the power to them.

W204Motorsports

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Other then rewiring it, there isn't much else you can do. I fixed/reinforced mine when I was changing my lenses. Having the headlight apart made it a breeze to rewire everything, I don't even see it being possible to properly rewire it without opening up the head light, there's barely any room to replace the bulb.

Shimee

Did the same socket on each side melt?

If so then this is really strange and could be a bad sign. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I've been using slightly higher wattage incandescent bulbs for a few years now with no issues. None of my sockets exhibit any charring or melting.

Either way, there is no way to just purchase the sockets. They are part of the housing assembly. One option is to get something like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/322556265792 and swap the sockets over to your harness. They come off very easy and should be very straightforward on how they are removed. All you need to do is push a retaining tab down and connector slides out. The sockets on your car come off the same way.

I bought the above item to replace my sockets because they were very loose. But I ended up returning it because these aftermarket sockets were an extremely tight fit. So if you decide to get item then some filing will be necessary.

The second option is finding a used harness on eBay that has the necessary socket or buying a broken headlight.

Mos Eisley

Thanks Shimee and Itwargssf: I'm pretty certain it is the same one (outside) on both side but I'll look and confirm. Thanks for the link, now I understand why the sockets aren't available individually; it is all one piece. I wouldn't mind replacing the wiring harness if I know it was a good fit but it sounds like that's not the case based on Shimee's experience. I see what you are saying about sliding out the connectors and replacing. I was thinking of cutting the wires and crimping to a generic T10 bulb socket similiar to this: but I have some doubts about compatability.

Shimee

The harness I linked to is only for the halogen W204 headlights. But to replace it requires the headlights to be removed from the vehicle and completely taken apart. Not necessary in my opinion as a new socket should fix the problem.

If you're considering generic sockets then I suggest something like this:

What you linked to won't work because the sockets for the parking lights aren't a twist-lock design. They simply press in and hold in place by tension.

Shimee

Here's a cheaper alternative: https://www.ebay.com/itm/2x-12V-LED-...r/163190726780

Same sockets, just swap them over.

cstahr

It happened to me as well: front right parking bulb and socket meltdown. My 2011 C300 burns one bulb every 6 months on average and I had a previous meltdown in the left rear side assembly. The electrical reliability in this car has been comparable to an English car from the sixties.

apexspeed

Has anyone come up with a solution or an alternative to this melted socket? I have two in my car and the wires going into them are bare and likely shorting, and I want to replace everything with a neat solution, even if I have to solder in new connectors and wire. Anything else out there that fits in the headlight sockets well?

Shimee

Yeah, I did, two replies before your post.

apexspeed

Thanks, I didn't see those. I'd like to find something that isn't ordered from China, if possible. I'll keep looking, at least that's a start. Thanks.

Shimee

Similar items can be ordered from sellers in the United States. It's the same thing as from China except it'll arrive quicker and cost more.

The sockets on the error canceller thing are exactly the same as the MB sockets. I know because I ordered a set and tried using them. The issue with these is they are a very tight fit into the housing. It felt like I wouldn't be able to pull them out once inserted. For this reason I opted to find some used harnesses with OEM sockets and use those.

If you can't find any used harnesses to salvage the sockets from then the error canceller is your best option.

wwwdrew

Shimee, your link to ebay in post15 no longer works. Do you mind re-posting the link or description of item, please? Both my left & right side have melted. Also, what do you mean by "error canceller, or once I get your link it'll be self-explanatory?

Did anyone try Shimee's socket suggestion in post#14? Can I just buy this and cut the existing harness and replace/crimp on this? Do I get a 194 LED bulb, or old-style bulb, or either? I currently have halogen headlights

Hope you guys can help. We're trying to sell the car and the dash warning message is complaining about it. So gotta fix it before selling, but hate thought of replacing the entire headlight assembly for BOTH lights (argh) or dissembling for new harness.

Shimee

The first eBay link I posted still works:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/D127R-For-0...e-756f0d1059b0

The pins can be removed from the socket very easily. There's one tab on each pin that needs to be pressed in and the pin just slides out. Bend the pin back out a little and reinstall it in the replacement socket.

Just be aware that these are a TIGHT fit compared to the stock socket. I recommend sanding the replacement socket to reduce it's diameter so that it pops in easier.

wwwdrew

Got it, thank you Shimee. That would be a good option to replace socket. After digging deeper it appears the harness & socket are ok (even though plastic was melted all around the bulb & socket). I removed the bulb and melted plastic and temporarily tried a 2825 light bulb I have on hand and amazingly it works in both. It's the socket mount on the headlamp assembly that melted away. So, maybe I got lucky. Per your suggestion, I'll get 194 bulbs and go with a lower heat LED bulb, install, and it should work fine just sort of laying there in it's headlight assembly compartment. It really can't go anywhere. Hopefully this will work, or is it a poor solution? Other than these electric light issues and some cosmetic wear-n-tear this C300 has been one of the most solid cars I've ever seen (I'm in my 50s). At 110,000 miles and had only maintenance items (battery, brakes, tires, and did trans flush/filters/spark plugs, that's it).

Updated 08/19/19: LED bulbs didn't work in my C300. I guess they don't have enough voltage so the C300 light sensor thinks nothing is installed. So I still get "Check right front parking light". I used standard 194 bulbs and it worked fine. For the record, my wife drove with headlights on during the day, so I'm sure that contributed to the melting. She didn't realize she had daytime running headlights Hopefully with 194 bulbs the melting will not re-occur.

Shimee

Here's another listing I came across with the correct sockets for Mercedes-Benz vehicles:



Here's some pictures as well in case any of the listings go down. This is what the sockets and overall product looks like in case it needs to be searched for. Keep in mind these sockets that come with the error canceller are a tight fit and should be sanded down to fit easier.

Bobby204

if it's the rear light assembly, there was a recall on it. the wire going into the bulb assembly gets too hot and melts the seating.

https://www.autoblog.com/2014/04/29/...light-failure/

"To fix the problem, the company will replace the bulb holder and any corroded connectors."