How hard would it be to take out the tail lights and remove the dead insects inside. They are found in both left and right tail lights. From experience removing the tail lights sometimes cause leaks into the trunk. Right now this car has no leaks at all.
Hafa Adai. Do it. It's super easy and really reinforces their promo videos from when the W204 came out that these cars were meant to be taken apart. The gasket is 20 bucks for the pair, takes 4 nuts and you don't even have to remove the liner - just peel them back. The gasket is a known weak point anyway, and even in my mild weather leaked at year 16. You can also peel the liner back and with a flashlight you can check if the gasket has started to leak.
You can see where the gasket failed in this picture. Both sides were leaking.
what about just removing the bulb carrier and trying to suck them out with a shop vac. If the bugs are stuck in there stick a tiny thin brush in there and loosen them up then suck them out.
Awesome thanks I will order the gasket first. Do you know a place that sells them online and hopefully they ship to Guam
What’s your VIN? If these are the gaskets for your specific options and you have family close enough to 94534, I’ll give you my extra set and they can mail it. Ordered from two vendors and forgot to return one, and I’ve missed the return window.
I was curious what the different gaskets looks like and found a photo of one to see. I just have the regular halogen bulb tail lights. Looks like there is also a small gasket on the side (2048260391).
They arent cheap at my local MB dealer, for what they are.
I was looking around on ebay and came across a listing for aftermarket gaskets. It says the gasket is the 2048250191 gasket, but shows the other 2048260091 gasket in the photo. May just be a stock photo. May want to reach out and ask if the photo is wrong. Price is pretty cheap and im guessing they ship anywhere.
I would definitely go with whatever EPC says is for your tail light. It's not easy to see but if you look closely, the gasket has 3-4 precision incisions that match studs on the tail light to hold the gasket in place during assembly. The aftermarket may also have these, but I didn't take the chance given how cheap the gasket were from the dealership.
That separate small gasket I didn't replace since it looked more like padding vs a water ingress point.
Are the lights LED's? There are 3 layers on the taillights the bottom the middle and the top which level is the tail and brake light? Can I replace without removing the entire taillight?
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
