m1mmmm

My '06 CLK350 cabriolet plastic cluster cover is deteriorating from the inside resulting in a hazy foggy appearance, what other year CLK's will fit? Thanks!

Yidney

I assume any W209 will fit. They all used the same basic cluster. So '03 to '09. Deteriorating from the inside? From what? Never seen that. I think I'd remove it first and see what's going on since you have to remove it anyway. A little plastic polish may make it like new.

m1mmmm

Thanks for the info. I don't know what is causing it, it is more hazy on the center to bottom right. It partially obscures the odometer reading. I have had this car since new and when it first started happening I asked my tech at MB and he said well, it is a convertible and condensation can happen. Whatever that means...I have had the top down probably less than 30 times its entire life and never in the rain. My mechanic just had it out and tried to clean it and attempted to use a polish but it wouldn't budge. It is happening on the inside. My indy priced one from MB and it is around $495 for just the plastic. I am hoping to find one used locally. I have never seen this happen on any of my previous MB's and have searched this forum and can't find any mention of this problem.

Yidney

Your response was a little unclear - are you saying your mechanic actually disassembled the cluster and tried to polish the inside? Or he just removed the cluster and tried to polish the outside? I find it hard to believe he took it all apart. If he only did the outside, then why not try doing the inside before you spend money? It is not condensation - those units are not not air tight. Condensation would come and go. But I doubt the plastic has become clouded through its entire thickness such that it will not polish out. Post a pic? Most wrecking yards will only want to sell the whole cluster. I did not even know MB sold just the lens.

m1mmmm

Gixxerboy is who I took the car to, his shop was replacing the driver's side defroster motor/actuator among other things, no air would come out of that side. He did tell me his mechanic accessed that motor from under the dash so the dashboard was not removed. I had asked him to check the cluster's plastic cover assuming that the cluster would be removed fixing the defroster. I read frequently about members here removing their clusters easily with a MB tool set (or homemade from coat hangers) that fit in the two slots on each side of the cluster that releases the entire cluster, I believe the wheel has to be lowered as much as possible and extended out, then when the cluster is released it pulls out and is simply unplugged from the back. In the diagrams I have seen posted the plastic cover snaps on and off? I thought it was an easy procedure to access the face of the cluster covers to get a modified look regarding the gauges which would mean the plastic cover has to come off? I agree it is not condensation, he said it would not wipe off and he tried a plastic polish with no luck and it had a rough texture to the touch. It is definitely on the inside of the plastic and is there winter and summer and progressively getting worse. I am going to either make my own tools or order a set to release the cluster. I have a vice in my garage I can use to bend wire but it is really hot in there so if the tools are relatively inexpensive I will order them. I'm keeping the car so I might as well have them in case I ever need them again. I will post a pic when I can.

m1mmmm

Sorry, maybe I was still unclear...he removed the cluster and then the lens and tried polishing the inside of the lens with no luck.

Yidney

I cannot even guess what would cause a plastic lens to spontaneously deteriorate like that from inside. Almost sounds like some cleaner/solvent got on there. Like it was spayed on the outside and wept in at the bottom or something. Anyway, if it were me I'd still try to fix it before spending money on it. Plastic polish by itself probably is not aggressive enough if the surface is etched. If the damage is on the surface only I would wet sand it then polish it. Plastic is pretty soft, so I would try 1500 grit followed by 2000. The lens will be milky where you wet sand it, but should feel smooth and no longer rough. Then polish it. Regular plastic polish will take some elbow grease to remove even 2000 grit scratches, so I'd use a nice clean soft cotton old T-shirt rag and some car rubbing compound like Meguires M-105. Unless the lens has been clouded deep into the plastic, i think you can make it look new for nearly no cost. Worth a try since you have to take it off anyway.

Yidney

And just to add - it's always best to start with the least aggressive means. You can always get more aggressive. So unless it's very rough, I'd try the M-105 by itself first. Then go to the 2000 if that is not enough and then to 1500 if 2000 and compound does not do it.

Rudeney

If it's just the plastic lens on the cluster housing that is bad, I'd forget trying to polish it - I'd just buy a used on and swap the lens. You should be able to find plenty of them on eBay for $100+/-, maybe less if the electronics are toast.

To remove it, just insert a flat tool into the slots to release the clips and pull it out. As mentioned, the steering wheel needs to be extended and lowered fully to give you plenty of working room. Here's a doc on tear-down of the W203 cluster - your's is identical through the first four photos and that' where you'll have the lens removed:

http://benzbits.com/w203/cluster.html

gixxerboy

i had it apart, I've removed my own a few times when i did the cluster swap on mine. I tried polish on the inside and it wouldnt remove it, i didnt want to try anything more aggressive than that on it being its not my car and the cost of getting a new one.

MB sells the lens and the outside bezel together, the dealer even laughed at how much the lens was considering the whole cluster is 1500.

DanielFD

I'd just do what Rodney suggested, less headache, maybe a little bit more money but its a sure solution.

m1mmmm

Pics attached.

m1mmmm

Still learning about pics...

m1mmmm

Rodney, thanks for the great pics and instructions. We have a lens swap in the works will let everybody know how that goes. This is the second strange issue I have had with the car, the first was the "peeling leather" center console but at least one other member had that same issue.

m1mmmm

Thanks for the advice on polishing the plastic. Gixxerboy is making it too easy to swap or I would definitely give polishing a try. Brings back fond memories of polishing the plastic "window" in my 560SL.

m1mmmm

There is a third solution. Upon Googling the problem I found a guy who is/was popping his out every two weeks and wiping it down with olive oil, lol. He said it looked like new until the end of the second week...

m1mmmm

Yidney - You were correct, my cluster had never been opened when I posted that it had. Before taking the car back to have the cluster lens swapped I made the tool to remove the cluster from a coat hanger and removed the cluster to examine it. The seal on the back of the cluster had never been broken so it would have been impossible for anyone to take it apart previously.

What I did discover was that the cloudiness was occurring within the plastic lens. Both sides were smooth to the touch, the cloudiness was occurring completely inside the plastic, it looked like smoke floating in there. There would have been no way to polish it and could not have been caused by a cleaner as the defect was sealed within the plastic. Swapping it out was the only fix. The new (used) lens cover is crystal clear and makes the car look brand-new again. Just wanted to update this info in case anybody else has this problem. Thanks.