wace818

Hello everyone. I woke up to find that my instrument cluster has gone blank. It's almost like the back light is faulty because if i look at the cluster from a side angle i can see the the letter and numbers but they are very dim..it's been this way for 3 days and even went back to normal for a little while but then when i turned the car off and restarted it again the problem was back...
Has anyone has this problem before?..any suggestions would be greatly appreciated..

shadenfroh

You may have a light out or you may have a case of "VDO are cheap pieces of carp" (that's the reason why the little displays in virtually all 208s/210s have failed).

Search around, you'll surely find another sorry soul with similar problem. If not - instrument clusters are dead easy to pull out and open.

Jorge Valle

so check the things they talked about before you pull out the cluster and check for anything that shouldn’t be. It worked for me hopefully you to. Does the line that marks the miles per hour light up that a sign u got a chance to fix

mkg55amg

did you find the problem causing this?

RoadGlideMike

This may be a stretch, but looks like you have experience with pulling instrument panels on MB. I have a 2004 W209, CLK Cab with a dead instrument panel. I found an indie who claims ability to fix, so I'd like to pull it and give them a shot. There are 2 horizontal slots left and right on the lower part of the panel. I fashioned two "tools" that I can insert, and actually feel the detents moving, I just can't extricate the panel. Any thoughts or assistance? Sending same info plus contact info in PM.

megacrazy

Mercedes-Benz W203 Instrument Cluster Removal - (2001-2007) C230, C280, C350, C240, C320 | Pelican Parts DIY Maintenance Article

Just get the Mercedes tools. They're cheap. Or you can fashion something yourself that looks just like the tools...but it will be hard to get such a small bend into a material hard enough to pull the cluster out.

RoadGlideMike

@megacrazy - thanks a bunch for the response and info. Looks like I have something to do this afternoon. I'll let you know my level of success!

RoadGlideMike

@megacrazy SUCCESS. Thanks a bunch for hooking me up! Now, if only the team at Atlanta Speedometer can resolve the issue! If you're close to Fort Pierce, FL, I owe you a drink!

megacrazy

Glad you managed to get it out. If the display is toast you can find them on ebay for about 80-100$. They should be able to get it fixed pretty quickly. Good luck.

Negative on the drink unfortunately. I’m in the NY/NJ area so it would be quite the drive.