steering wheel height adjust not working
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
steering wheel height adjust not working
Hello.
Facelift w204 sedan Steering wheel electric height adjust not working.
Read a lot of other users have this problem but mostly w203.
Anyone fixed this in w204? DIY or dealer?
Facelift w204 sedan Steering wheel electric height adjust not working.
Read a lot of other users have this problem but mostly w203.
Anyone fixed this in w204? DIY or dealer?
Member
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 197
Likes: 17
From: Connecticut
C300 4matic
One day I noticed that my wheel was no longer going up when I exited the car. So being who I am and just like the old days when you would smack the TV I pulled down on the wheel as I moved the lever in the down position. It took a few good pulls but the wheel moved and now it works.
Do a search and there is info on where the motors are and how to fix them.
Do a search and there is info on where the motors are and how to fix them.
Member
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 75
Likes: 6
From: Virginia
17 E300, 17 C300, 14 C250
If your steering wheel height adjuster still works, do yourself a favor and deactivate the enter/exit auto steering wheel height feature. You can still change the height anytime as long as it's not broken.
If it's already broken, it's a pain to access the $8 part that links the motor to the height adjuster gearbox.
Less complicated solution if you don't care to change height again.
My '05 C320 had the steering wheel at its lowest position for some time due to the broken "dog bone" part described above.
Looking at the photos, I could access the broken part by removing only the lower panel under the dash.
Despite an awkward position, I was able to get one finger onto the broken part and turn it manually. You can figure out which end of the broken part to turn as well as the direction needed by activating the height lever and feeling the other half spin.
I used a bungee cord from the steering wheel to the rear view mirror to relieve the weight of the steering wheel which made the adjustment very easy. It took about 10 minutes to manually raise the wheel halfway where it will now stay forever.
What a difference!
Needless to say, I have deactivated the convenience feature to automatically raise the steering wheel upon enter/exit on my '09 E350 and '13 C250.
Lou
If it's already broken, it's a pain to access the $8 part that links the motor to the height adjuster gearbox.
Less complicated solution if you don't care to change height again.
My '05 C320 had the steering wheel at its lowest position for some time due to the broken "dog bone" part described above.
Looking at the photos, I could access the broken part by removing only the lower panel under the dash.
Despite an awkward position, I was able to get one finger onto the broken part and turn it manually. You can figure out which end of the broken part to turn as well as the direction needed by activating the height lever and feeling the other half spin.
I used a bungee cord from the steering wheel to the rear view mirror to relieve the weight of the steering wheel which made the adjustment very easy. It took about 10 minutes to manually raise the wheel halfway where it will now stay forever.
What a difference!
Needless to say, I have deactivated the convenience feature to automatically raise the steering wheel upon enter/exit on my '09 E350 and '13 C250.
Lou
Member
Joined: Aug 2015
Posts: 126
Likes: 7
From: Boston MA
C320 sport 2003, c300 4matic sport 2013, 2018 GLE63 AMG
I have the same problem with my 2013 c. It is all the way up and it wont go down. I can hear the "click" of motor when i want to lower it but it wont go down. I went to the dealer when that happened, they showed me diagram and its only motors, there is no dog bone for 8$ like w203 have, so i drive at the upper position now. And yea, do not activate easy acces enter/exit automatic steering wheel feature. Thats what causes it to brake
Newbie
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 2
Likes: 2
c350 coupe
Cant believe i fixed it myself and paid nothing
Hey guys try this out before you take it to the dealership, even though it may sound ridiculous. I pressed the stalk to move the steering towards me to the max then gave it a few firm hits down ontop of the steering wheel (with my palm), then moved the steering all the way back towards the dash(max it out) then i pushed the down and up on the stalk and to my surprise the steering wheel was able to move back down and up again, wow. I read the advice on a gl forum so credit to those guys over there. Thank you, saved me some coin. Best of luck
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2018
Posts: 19
Likes: 3
2012 C250
I was having the same issue up until a month ago and figured out a fix. You CANNOT leave the steering wheel all the way telescoped (aka pushed) in. First pull the steering wheel towards you some, then try tilting the steering wheel down. You may need to keep your hand on the lever to push it down for a bit, but mine snapped back on track and hasn't given me a problem for a few weeks now so I think it's fixed. Of course this is assuming you can hear the motor running.
Newbie
Joined: Jun 2018
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
2014 ml 350, 2015 Gla 250
Hey guys try this out before you take it to the dealership, even though it may sound ridiculous. I pressed the stalk to move the steering towards me to the max then gave it a few firm hits down ontop of the steering wheel (with my palm), then moved the steering all the way back towards the dash(max it out) then i pushed the down and up on the stalk and to my surprise the steering wheel was able to move back down and up again, wow. I read the advice on a gl forum so credit to those guys over there. Thank you, saved me some coin. Best of luck
I tried your method and it worked. I own a 2014 ML 350. I also had to give the steering wheel a whack from the bottom and had to patiently try 2 to 3 times. You saved me time and Money, Big Thanks ��������
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Newbie
Joined: Jun 2018
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
2014 ml 350, 2015 Gla 250
I was having the same issue up until a month ago and figured out a fix. You CANNOT leave the steering wheel all the way telescoped (aka pushed) in. First pull the steering wheel towards you some, then try tilting the steering wheel down. You may need to keep your hand on the lever to push it down for a bit, but mine snapped back on track and hasn't given me a problem for a few weeks now so I think it's fixed. Of course this is assuming you can hear the motor running.
I also used the whacking the steering wheel on the top and bottom. Not sure if the convenience feature of the steering wheel (mine was on) contributes to the wear of the track. I disabled it now. Thanks again!!
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