sdo17

Hi,
I have a 08 CL550, just finish a 1200 mile trip where the cruise control stopped working 7 times. Then the message popped up "Distronic Plus currently unavailable". All those times on a interstate at 77mph and no other car near me. Just got the car back from the dealer, who said "external interference". I replied from what............?????? Their answer "radar", my reply "from what nothing near me" PS............No charge. Anyone else with this issue?

BTW.......The car was a great for a long trip, quiet, comfortable, impressive acceleration, looks so sleek in black.

nath_h

I don't have distronic, but my cruise control will occasionally not resume, and give me an error saying it is not available. There's no rhyme or reason to it happening, it seems, but after I turn the car off and back on, it works again. I have video of it happening and showed the dealer, but they were unimpressed and had no input. I'll be curious to see what you figure out.

lkchris

Mine does the same.

haven’t seen a solution here

the radar unit behind the grille Star is $2k

mbwillgrubs

Check the codes with a scanner. I had a similar problem and it was a $50 wheel speed sensor. Good Luck.

Badsoldier10

I have a 2008 CL63 where I’d experienced the Distronic Plus Unavailable issue a month ago. When I activate cruise control, after a few miles, it disables outlining the message on my dash. In any event, I’ve received a number of misdiagnosis’ from the Mercedes Benz dealership while I was told that the four radars under the front bumper needed to be replaced. No luck. The second time I’d had a wiring kit replaced to the distronic with no luck, then lastly, they’ed replaced the primary radar (front) cover plate with no luck. After wracking up $3900 for repairs, I’ve given up. I need my cruise control on long trips but cannot rely on Mercedes Benz techs and resources to figure out the problem. They’re just a rip off. Hopefully someone has some input or suggestions on this particular issue. It’s frustrating.

megacrazy

This was discussed multiple times and I believe the consensus is that it's simply interference. When Mercedes started putting these "radars" in cars, many of the devices that are on the road nowadays were not even planned (think cars with other radar cruise control, parking sensors etc.). Start paying attention what cars are around you when this happens and you'll start noticing a pattern. Of course, this only applies if your hardware is not damaged. Unfortunately, there is no solution as 2 systems working on similar frequencies will simply interfere.

Badsoldier10

Right and thanks for a swift response. I see that some of the streams are quite a few years old, but I figured, since I just experienced the issue, that someone may have some insight by now on what’s going on. As far as your response, while I’m in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, I have a number of friends with the earlier generation S63s and 65s who have no issues with the Distronic pus (Adaptive Cruise Control) but have the issue of the Park Assist Inoperable message popping up from time-to-time, so I’m aware of the radar interference matter with that, which makes sense, however, nothing online said about radar interference with the Distronic. I believe there is more of a technical issue like a dirty lense or cover plate. I have another place diagnosing the issue. Once or “if” there is a solution I will definitely share it right away. Thanks again.

bjmkelly

I recently bought a 2007 CL550 with Parktronic and Distronic Plus.
Neither were working when I bought it.
Dealer told me it needed a new radar ($3,700 but he would help me out at $3,000)
Suspicious that Parktronic was not working he helped me diagnose a bad ultrasound sensor behind the bumper and replaced it, but told me the Distronic still did not work.
Driving home from the dealer I tried Distronic and, joy of joys, it just worked.
I find in slow moving / stop and start traffic it will occasionally stop working with loud messages and beeps.
In normal highway flow it has never failed.
I see comments about more radars on the road today which makes sense, but I also note that MB saw fit to put a switch in prime position to disable Parktronic, so maybe this was an issue in 2007 too.
Summary - in my case it was a bad Parktronic sensor and the clue was that Parktronic was also non-op.
Hope this is helpful...

Badsoldier10

To all on in the thread wh are still experiencing Distronic Plus issues. I left a thread last week regarding spending an ungodly amount of money on diagnostics and parts from the dealership on my 2008 CL63. Just to recap, all four radars in front were changed, a wiring kit was installed and a new Cover plate Grill Star) was installed.

As the techs continued to diagnose the car free of charge they’ed received a code for a CAN bus which is an electronic component located in the floorboard passenger-side where all circuits from the radars pass through. Once replaced and recalibrated, a message appeared on the dash highlighting “Distronic Plus Abailable” after picking the car up and driving a mile up the road. Imagine that. After three grueling weeks of spending and headaches it’s finally fixed. I’m on day two, since picking up the car, and am still kicking. Check the CAN bus.

lkchris

CANBus is the name to describe the car's entire electrical system. It's essentially a computer network.

It does things like detecting a defective tail light and compensating by sending reduced voltage to a nearby brake light bulb. I you leave your door open it knows and eventually times out so the battery isn't drained.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAN_bus

lkchris

I don't buy the "interference" argument.

I live in the Southwest and my cruise control typically shuts off when I'm the only car on the highway.

Yes I do get messages in town that are very likely interference, but this is not when using cruise control and not an issue for me. apples/oranges, I think

I