Hello All,

I'm a new member but not new to MBWorld.

Three years ago I bought my 1994 E420 from a friend who was on his way to the junkyard with it. The wiring harness was disintegrating, along with a handful of faulty sensors according to the local dealership who wanted $1900 to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. I decided to take on the project and after 3 months of scouring the Internet for information with MBWorld being one of my best resources, a few parts purchased on eBay and a little bit of hands-on tinkering, she was running strong and dependable. I have to say that it was quite a challenge having never worked on Mercedes before but in the end it was fun, gratifying and worth it. I've been enjoying the car immensely.

So, while driving just the other day, all at once the ABS and ASR lights came on and the instruments all stopped working. I pulled over and shut the engine off, hoping that it would come back on without the errors. Big mistake. When I tried to restart the car, it wouldn't turn over. Not even a click from the starter relay. I noticed that not all of the normal indicator lights were coming on and after a dozen or so attempts to restart, the normal lights did finally come on and I was able to start the engine. I stepped on the brake, put the car in gear and noticed that the ABS and ASR lights were back on and the instruments were again not working. At this point I just wanted to get the car home and was able to navigate the full 20 miles without incident (or instruments).

Since then I have had no luck starting the engine but have learned one thing- With the key in the #2 position, the Battery, ABS, SRS, ASR, triangular ASR warning light just above the odometer and the red indicator light on the Snow Chain switch all light up but none of the other lights that typically would under normal circumstances. The SRS light will go out after 4 or 5 seconds and all the others remain lit. Nothing happens if I turn the key all the way to the start position but if I step on the brake pedal, the ASR warning triangle and snow chain switch lights go out and do not come back on.

Yesterday I went out to fiddle some more and found that the battery was nearly dead, which was odd since I have had no battery issues whatsoever until this moment. I pulled the battery out and threw it on the charger. It seemed to charge but not fully. I tested the cells and found that 3 out of 6 were dead. I dropped in a brand new battery today but nothing has changed. The car is still broke. Based on the symptoms, I'm thinking computer problem but not sure which module. I'm also wondering if the battery issue could have been a possible cause?


Any help here would be most greatly appreciated!


Thanks,

Ken

 

Welcome formally to MBWorld. Wow, sounds like quite an adventure. It's always great when a project like that gets completed, but can be soul crushing when it completely craps out and you're back to square one. Hard to tell what the issue might be, but could be the ECU, could be failing/burnt wiring, could be none of the above.

 

Yeah, if it were just the ABS and ASR then I would suspect one of those modules but the fact that the instruments completely shut down as well makes me think you might be right. Do you think the battery problem may have been responsible? I've read quite a bit about how sensitive these computers are to power conditions.

 

Could have been a power surge. Who knows. I'd start there though.

 

moved to W210 forum...

 

When did a 1994 E420 become a W210?

 

For guys driving 211 and 204 - they are both old cars

 

I guess when someone decided to move the original post to the W210 forum.

 

You'll probably get more responses if you include your issue in the posts title. Such as "ABS, ASR lights came on while driving now my car won't start!"

There are guys around here that know everything about electrical, suspension, motor or trans. With a non descriptive title its a crap shoot whether the right person will stumble upon your post to help.

 

I think you should check overvoltage protection relay.
You have to remove the cover from it and try to find any scratches at connection stripes.

 

what sort of state is wiring harness in?sorry just read you replaced it

 

Well gentlemen, I appreciate all of your input. When this originally happened, I believed the problem to be a complicated electrical issue because it appeared to be intermittent. I actually connected with a local shop that pointed me in the right direction. It was nothing more than a faulty fuse.

I know what your probably thinking- That's the first thing you should check. Well, that was the first thing that I checked and I did find a blown fuse, which did not fix the problem when replaced. My downfall was making the classic mistake of only doing a visual inspection.

After taking the advice from my local guy I started pulling, testing and cleaning every single fuse. Low and behold when I pulled fuse #5 (stop lamp, instrument, front roof light, electric bulb control unit, cruise control & tachometer), it fell apart in my hand. A hairline fracture that was visually imperceptible while installed. Who would have thought that this particular fuse would prevent the car from even starting?

Many of the other fuses looked to be quite old and corroded so I took this opportunity to replace every single fuse in the main box. Needless to say, problem solved.

Again, thanks for all of your input. Hopefully this thread will save someone else from making the same mistake I did. Always pull and test your fuses!

 

Good man and were they COPPER fuses or the silver ones.
Silver colored are crapola and first thing ANY W124 buyer should do is buy and replace any non copper fuses .
Glad it was a simple resolution.

 

All but maybe 3 or 4 were were silver (including the one that was fractured) and all looked like they were years past their prime. Replaced everything with copper so I'm feeling a whole lot better about things now. Definitely glad to have that one behind me now.

 

Good ,till the next time .Happy you have fixed the problem now.

 

Thanks, I appreciate the support and everyone who participates in helping those in need!

 

Rom,

There (at least on my 90 300ce) was another aluminum strip fuse hidden under the rear driver's side seat in a relay. I believe this relay is the "convenience" relay that helps control the sunroof/windows/etc.

I had tons of gremlins in my car and replacing EVERY aluminum strip fuse with copper fixed them. But the one that hid from me for a while (causing me to randomly lose control of windows/sunroof) was that jerk under the rear seat.

Get that one too if you have it!

 

Ah, very good to know. Thanks for the heads-up.

 

Hi all,
Newbie here, I have noted the fuse problem to expect on the W124 chasis and how to deal with them. I am yet to buy my first Mercedes lover a W124 after years of research and savings (Still a student), I am from Kenya and currently in France.
I would like for some tips on what to check before purchasing and TO DO things after purchasing the car.

Thank you.

 

If you are looking at an older car then try to find one without ASR feature (Anti slip regulation or better known as traction control). That will save you many headaches. This is just my opinion from my own experience of course.

 

Just think these cars are getting on a little now.So you need one with no fancy bits on, the normal rear drive is fine unless your taking it home with you then 4 wheel drive mercedes will be ok and less troublesome But then extra thing to go wrong.

 

Hi Romigk,thank you for your reply I will keep that in mind. I have even read on it, seems to be a head ache...just a question though, I personally prefer a gasoline car but the E300 diesel has a good mileage than a E200/E220 any cons with diesel W124?? I am thinking of buying a 1993 coupe with 117k kms on it or a sedan with 116kms (but its abit costly), all cars seem to be well maintained as here in France cars are controlled.

optimusprime m1 thank you for your reply, I am looking for a normal rear drive to use while I'm here, back home I am in the process of acquiring a 1984 W126 (has been sitting for a while so its a good project) that I can use only on Weekends (or when I am visiting). The W124 will just be here in France as I will be staying for a while,,any cons to watchout?

Thank you all.

 

Sorry, out of my league. I've only owned gas models.

 

My dream car is the W126 .Your a lucky guy.

 

Thanks, I am still on the negotiation part but it will be a future project, such cars in Kenya or Africa in general are not that expensive because not many people want to associate with them when the rich people sell them, this is due to high maintenance, most cheap Mercedes benz parts come from China and they are given the star design thinking its original but we are already used to that...
Right now I want to focus on the 124 before I deal with the 126, I know it will be a headache.

Romigk thanks, well I will stick to the gasoline model too...seems to have minimal issues...
Any advice or additionals from all of you will be appreciated.