jinark

The time and gear selected display on my 2003 CLK 320 cabriolet has a few vertical black lines running through it. The number and location change from time to time. Right now it's a minor inconvenience, but I'd prefer having a fully functional display.r


Anybody else experience this? I'm assuming it's an electrical connection issue. How easy is it to get into the dash and ensure everything is properly connected?


Any assistance would, of course, be greatly appreciated.

MarcusF

You may want to search ebay for a pixel ribbon repair kit. Also pixelfix.net has them. They're inexpensive. There are threads here on it. Here's a sample -

https://mbworld.org/forums/clk-class...ock-light.html

jinark

Fantastic, Looks like something I can save for a rainy day garage project. Thanks MarcusF.

jinark

Thanks to everybody for their input. I've repaired the conductive ribbon to the extent there is a line of two or three individual is pixels still black in the gear selection part of the display, the time is perfect.


Here's how I did it.


Removed the instrument cluster with the bent coat hanger wire hooks mentioned in the links above.


Removed the cluster from the car and carefully removed the front and rear covers.


Released the locking pins around the time-gear display and carefully pulled the conductive strip out from under the block that forces it to contact the circuit board.


Using a nickel conductive pen (Circuit works model CW2000 if it matters) I very carefully redrew the metal contact lines on the conductive strip. If you elect to do this you will need a good magnifying glass and plenty of light, not to mention a pretty steady hand.


I let the pen tracings cure for the suggested 45 minutes and put everything back together and reinstalled the instrument cluster.


Crossed my fingers and turned on the ignition. SUCCESS.


Total time, including the 45 minute cure time? About two hours, but I was in no hurry.


I guess I could have gone back in and tried to correct the three remaining faulty pixels but sometimes it's best to leave well enough alone.






I also replaced a burned out backlight bulb while I was in there.