I have done some preliminary reading but need a little bit more info or at least some clarifications on the conclusions I have drawn.

1. luckily the rear seats are unlocked.

2. luckily the trunk carpet was removed for cleaning.

3. checked all fuses and all are good.

4. with a bit of wiggling and oil based lubricant the manual key works. I tried giving it a 1/4 turn and pushing it but no luck.

5. neither the console switch nor the remote fob work either.

6. need some clarification here. it appears the that the 3-wire connector is for the trunk release switch(console switch)....it contains a grn, a grn/white and a brown wire. ...from what little info I can find it seems the trunk release is operated by some sort of logic controller so the lack of a 12v signal is expected....is this correct? also what type of signal am i looking for and on which wire? or if it does operate off of a 12v signal it is not present and if so which wire would I apply 12v to bypass the switch? although i doubt it will be that easy. also this will determine if the actuator is good and isolate to controller or not.

7. My analysis determines that the problem is either electrical or mechanical so that brings me some questions.

7a. At some point a 12v signal is needed to be either verified or applied.....where exactly do I need to apply it? I am almost certain it is not anywhere easily accessible nor at the switch based on what little documentation I have uncovered.

7b. what connections need to be jumped to bypass the console switch?

7c. on the mechanical side. the car in question is a 2001 clk 55 amg. I have read that the meat and potatoes of the trunk release is on the inside of the deck lid right above the latch and all I need to do is remove the liner one way or another and access a cable to manually actuate the trunk release.....I am guessing that the cable itself is shielded and to access it i will need to damage something to get to it? if not cut it entirely to slide off the shield to pull the cable?

7d. I have also read something about popping the license plant holder off to access the trunk release cable too. is this true or is this a w209 trick? which method is safer mechanically?

thx in advance and if you need any additional info pls ask.

edit: the battery is good and I have not lost power recently.

 

I would start with disconnecting the car battery and after 10 mins fitting it back. Please refer to your owner's manual on the procedure or just make sure you remove negative first followed by positive and vice versa when fitting back. See from there what happens. If it is still the same, I would check the batteries on the remote. If not that then locate the fuse for the trunk release mechanism. You mentioned though everything was checked? Did you check all that you could. Did you test the ones in the boot as well? I know on the forum here there is the exact fuse number and layout with the location for my W209.
That wire connector would be brown for supply, the green would be the earth wire and the green white should be signal. You can use a multimetre to test continuity from each end of the wire should you know where the beginning and ends are. You can also test the voltage between the brown and green using your multimetre.


As far as that goes I would not know what the issue could be. Maybe the mechanism itself is faulty or rear sam module if available has an issue with that part of the circuitry.

 

i will get back to you after the work week with results.

i think we can rule out the fob since it locks and unlocks the doors just fine.

already located and checked all fuses including the ones in the boot.

will do on the console switch wiring.

on that, the brn should have the supply voltage....12V I am assuming? (using the multimeter from brn to grn?)

So to manually emulate the switch; I jump brn to grn/white?

 

Brown is usually ground.

 

I would recommend you first test the multimetre on the brown wire and to chassis whilst battery is connected. If it shows negative reading change the leads around and test. If you get a positive reading indicating correct polarity then the brown would be your supply
Yes 12v supply but some components utilise only 5V of the supply. Just check what reading you get.

 

sorry been a while but all 3 wires are dead.....upon inspecting other working components......seems brown is ground which it even fails the continuity test.........i followed the wires inside the console but need to remove the console i suppose.

my guess is the problem is electronic. like everything else.....i am guessing there is a module that controls the trunk popper.

so i am thinking this is next in line, can any1 tell me where this module is located?

 

bump.........where physically in the car do the wires from the console switch connect to so I can do a continuity test.

right now I find that all 3 wires on the console switch are just open...even the ground wire has no continuity so I wish to check the other end of these 3 wires, can anyone tell me what/where they plug into?

 

This might help.

 

so according to the info you provided, the next component in the line is the sam module?

shame it doesn't tell you where it is.

however that was for a 209.....does the 208 have the sam module to control the trunk lid?

lastly, will the sam have the wires I need to "jump power" to the trunk popper as well as test continuity for the console switch?

 

W208 has a pneumatic system you might just have a vacuum leak or broken line.

 

this is helpful. but does not explain why the console switch is dead.

neither the green nor the striped wire have any voltage in addition the brown ground wire has no ground continuity.

i am not 100% certain but I believe they are 5v wires. I find it unlikely all the wires have been severed as both the remote and key would still work. It is my belief that whatever supplies the voltage to the switch has failed.

the 3 wires at the console switch.........i need to know what it plugs into and where to find it.

 

check in the trunk on the drivers (US) side there is a sam unit. Pull a couple of the fuses / relays and check for water damage.

 

CL wiring diagrams w208

 

sorry. wrong reply