Diesel Benz

Airmatic does not work through the fiber ring, it is CAN based.

On your connector, have a WIS printout.With your VIN one could see the exact fiber layout, the nearest connectors etc.

MB would not have the fiber connectors as a spare part. But sure someone is making those, perhaps you can find one from the actual manufacturer. And hope it goes with the tools the telephone company guys have.

MB is supposed to fix the car in a way it appears as from the factory. They are not supposed to run parallel wires on broken ones. They are not supposed to fix broken fiber cables but to replace with new. Nothing odd with that. Doing it the cheaper way would not necessarily mean the full wire harness but another fiber that comes as a spare even if it is intended elsewhere in the car, or for even for a completely different car. Finding one may not be straightforward for a dealer.

Are you sure you are not mixing the fiber cables and the wake up line? See the attached figure. Note that the fiber connection always makes a ring.

vettdvr

[QUOTE=JohnCL;2324214]This statement is not true, fiber can be repaired. Most people do not have access to the tools required to do the job so they must resort to replacing the whole line. You are probably looking at a $1500+ basic fiber repair kit to get the job done and you would probably never use it again.

Unfortunately you will probably have to pay the dealer to do this unless you know a cable TV or phone guy to help you out on the cheap.
QUOTE]


When I stated they could not be repaired I had considered options, However, Technically you are right they can be repaired, but you should consider:

1) Skills necessary to repair
2) Cost to repair
3) Reliability after repair
4) Impact on warranty from MB if not repaired in an authorized shop

It might be that they can't be repaired to meet the 4 items listed.
If it were mine I would let the insurance pay and have Mercedes use NEW factory approved parts to keep the warranty and resale value.

If this could not be done I would still consider the car a total and let the insurance company have it.

I agree if you want, you can have Larry the Cable guy repair the mercedes.

After all it is just glass strands and if you have a clean interface and exactly match up each stran so light will pass through in the pulses correctly, it can be repaired and work.

It will be interesting to see how this turns out. Hope it works out well and best of luck.

KosherBenz

I still want to know why insurance is out of the question?

sgaar

Yep, I was reading the whole thread again and was wondering the same thing. This is a breakin and should be covered by insurance. Just get a copy of the police report and submit a claim. Done deal..... That's why we pay through the nose for the 'service'

KosherBenz

I think there is much more to the story than we are getting here.

cyclerider

Several questions come to mind. Where was your car parked during this crime? Did the thieves break into your locked car to gain access to the rear seat, or was it left unlocked? If it was locked, how did they manage to do all of their dirty work with the security alarm sounding off? If it was unlocked, why didn't they just steal your COMAND, CD changer, etc., instead of having to cut through the metal behind the rear seat to get to the Nav drive? Why don't you have insurance on a 2005 Mercedes-Benz?

Miguk_Saram

Don't get us wrong, we're not questioning your integrity or character (well, maybe just a little bit), its just that, since we like to help, we also like to have all the details (read as: facts).

The full story could prove very valuable to this forum since it is likely to open our eyes and avoid/prevent this type of incident from occurring to any one of us.

ruffrob

'Clue hit it right on the head,people can't assume what you have. For cars like ours,they have to KNOW,someone's been in your car,more than likely the front passenger side,you may or may not have been 'displaying what your baby can do' (I'm guilty of that ,myself),and the rest is self explanetory (sp)

Once it's fixed,be careful,and Good Luck with your decision

Kirkham

I just bought the car, don't be so caught up on the personal details. That is why i was clear that insurance is not an option. Before I bought the car I had it looked at by two MB tech's and had conversations with three MB SA's. I was told by all of them that worse case, $2000 to fix it. They were all wrong. I am now just looking for help on how to fix it. Thank you all for your help thus far.

I have a (supposedly amazing) tech brainstorming today on what to do. I am also on the hunt for that connector. These guys http://www.timbercon.com/Fiber-Optic-Repair/index.html
said if I get the connector, the fix is simple as can be.

Thanks again,

James

KosherBenz

when you buy a car and you have current insurance on another car, in most states (if not all) you are covered for 30 days on that new car.

emilner

I think he meant he bought it damaged...

At the end of the day with the right connector it will be an easy fix. We are not talking about nuclear fusion here, the component is looking for a clean ray of light. Make a clean cut and use the right connector, the cable companies do it all the time...

csumt76

Some of you guys kill me with the comments about techs being parts changers.

One of those optical cables and connector is only a small cable that is used when the nav processor is added... It is maybe 12inches in length and goes directly to the audio gateway which is in the left side of the trunk as well.

PART NUMBER FOR THIS CABLE IS 211 540 68 33

The yellow cable in pin 1 used to be connected to pin 1 in the audio gateway connector and is part of the harness... If you open the left rear door and pull of the sill plate/fold back the carpet, you may find a stash of optical cables in here with connectors joining them. You could disconnect them, then shine a light through to see which one travels to the cut pin #1 at the nav processor. At least this way, you would only need about 3ft of cable.

You also have not mentioned what other accesories you have installed in the vehicle... You may be able to pull out some of the MOST cable that would be used for Sat. radio or UHI phone. The cables for the SDAR are in the right side of the trunk and run into the plastic tray at the front section of the trunk where your digital tele-aid/UHI modules would be.

Also, if you are adding connectors in the MOST ring you are reducing the quality of light.

Diesel Benz

This one does not appear on EPC, '65 33 and '63 33 would be there but you don't mean these.

What is part number: A001 545 20 30, adapter for repair?

csumt76

I have no idea.. I didn't get the P# from EPC, nor do I have the capability to look up the second number. If I had to guess, it would be the electrical connector containing the power/ground/most wakeup lines. I have never heard of or seen any MB fiber optic repair parts.

konigstiger

A 001 545 20 30 shows as Housing and A 000 545 44 84 shows as Adapter for repair. It seems as though together they may be used for fiber optic repair however, I’m not certain.

Diesel Benz

My mistake, thanks for the correction. At a second attempt I find the same numbers.

csumt76, you were upset when dealer service guys were blamed being parts changers, even independent shops need EPC, are you on a shop that isn't specialized for MBs? I don't mean those would not be able to handle a case like this, just curious.

I did not put the "parts changers" comment but it may be quite OK from a dealer, depending what is meant by it. If it means they change parts "randomly" until the problem gets fixed, and charge for all changed parts, that isn't good and an experienced dealer shop would not do it. If it means they do not repair the insides of a power steering pump but put a new one (I don't know what would be a better example, perhaps fixing a hole in the exhaust pipe), this to me would be normal and acceptable even if an indy might be able to fix a part.

csumt76

I am employed by some Germans and I know a thing or two.

konigstiger

about a thing or two...

konigstiger

In following up these parts are used to repair cable end damage only and not for inline damage. Understandable from a manufacturer’s standpoint since this is where the majority of damage would normally occur during install and repair processes.

Kirkham

Right, so if I am not mistaken, there are two wires. A yellow and an orange. Meaning one must be an input and one an output. The information myst go into the dvd navi unit through the same port, it processes it then it sends it on the way. Why wouldnt the dealer know about this part (kit)? Anyone know retail cost on this part?

Thanks.

konigstiger

Call any dealership parts department for availability/pricing. Also, check this out it may give a better overall pictorial understanding https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w211/100143-oem-navigation-retrofit-w-pics.html

georgedaman

Sure is.
Wondering if he fixed the broken window or lock,repaired the cut plate,replaced the trunk liner.
"I have the needed connector for the regular electrical wires I just need to wire"... What is he going to plug this thing into???

no_clue

Seriously, can I have the true story behind this?

*Someone broke in for ONLY DVD drive.

*No insurance claim. (you started w/ someone stole it recently. Later you claimed it was broken before you bought it)

*Airomatic was broken. You love to race w/ BMW. (it also sound like you own it for a while)


I am sorry that I can't help you w/ the cable thingy, but it does drive me crazy when things been told doesn't quite adds up? (blame it on my idiot cousin who is in the Feds)

KYBENZ

[QUOTE=csumt76;2326309]Some of you guys kill me with the comments about techs being parts changers.

I agree!!! I have techs in my dealership that have been to more classes than a lot of college graduates.
The training is mandatory by MBUSA and classes must be taken and passed to keep the certification up at the dealership.
The complexity of these cars is incredible as well as the amount of training that the average technician has to take on a yearly basis.
For the previous poster, Flash Gordon to say that they are "parts changers at best" is an insult to all of us who have spent hundreds of hours in training classes.
I would like to see the average "parts hanger" even attempt to figure out a basic diagnostic problem on a late model Benz.

SushDawg

With fiber you can have multiple strands and not knowing what to fix and connect to could be an issue. Safer to replace the required length. If its just the navigation found some electrical diagrams relating to the Navigation (Navigation System PE82.85-U-2005DA). Last 2 refers to the optical layout of the MOST Bus (MOST Bus PE82.00-U-2710DA).

Hope this helps ...