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I recently purchased the star and figured when I did that there would be some instruction as to where to terminate the wiring. There was nothing in the box or in the factory wiring harness bag. I called MB for direction and they said they are not permitted to say - safety concern.
I found this Forum and great info. Thank you. It looks great and will look that much better at night.
Ph350's post is a little bit off, it comes with the star and two different wires,it DOES NOT come with a ballast. The second generation lights up all the time when the engine is on ( Which is the one I have just installed on my car) , it DOES NOT light up when you just unlock the door. ONLY when the engine is on. The brightness of the star is pretty good at night buy far dimmer than the DLR lights, basically,you can't see it at all under daylight.
Above is the ebay store I bought mine, the seller is a NJ Mercedes dealer, but the parts I received were directly sent from MBUSA , not from the dealer, so I guess the dealer sent the order directly to MBUSA.
I have instructions for both the 1st gen star which only lights up when you unlock the door and shuts down when you start the engine. ( But the brightness is same as the DLR LED)
AND the second gen when it lights up all the time when engine is on ( BUT the brightness is far less than the DLR LED, you can only see it at night)
If anyone need these, just send me the email and I'll be happy to send you the instructions.
Please.Can you send the instructions for the 1-.gen to my email :424233@mail.ru
FS: Illuminating star connecting harness and IPhone connector
As the title says. I have a brand new and be illuminating star connecting harness as pictured. You will get what you see in the photo. $50 for each connector. Thanks.
As the title says. I have a brand new and be illuminating star connecting harness as pictured. You will get what you see in the photo. $50 for each connector. Thanks.
2014 E350 also restored: 1969 Camaro convertible SS 1957 Chevy Belair 2dr hardtop
Originally Posted by Pette25
i did. I live in northern nj
Just about any audio store should be able to do the install. In northern Illinois I could give you at least a half a dozen places that could do the install reasonable Sorry I cannot help in NJ
Okay, my illuminated star is installed and looks terrific.
The only issue I have is after the car is turned off (locked or unlocked) the star turns off AFTER all of the other lights on the car turn off. The delay bothers me but I could "live" with it if need be.
However, about 30 seconds later after all lights AND the star are off, the star lights up again all by itself. It continues to do it intermittently long after the car has been turned off and I am concerned about unnecessary battery drain, etc.
2014 E350 also restored: 1969 Camaro convertible SS 1957 Chevy Belair 2dr hardtop
Originally Posted by pgolfco
Okay, my illuminated star is installed and looks terrific.
The only issue I have is after the car is turned off (locked or unlocked) the star turns off AFTER all of the other lights on the car turn off. The delay bothers me but I could "live" with it if need be.
However, about 30 seconds later after all lights AND the star are off, the star lights up again all by itself. It continues to do it intermittently long after the car has been turned off and I am concerned about unnecessary battery drain, etc.
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance..............
Normal for it to stay on after car is turned off for about 1 minute. Not normal for it to go on after it has gone off unless you opened a door or brushed up against the door handle. Cause could be you are not tapped off the fuse correctly or you are to close to a different fuse. I do not know how to solve that sorry.
Okay, my illuminated star is installed and looks terrific.
The only issue I have is after the car is turned off (locked or unlocked) the star turns off AFTER all of the other lights on the car turn off. The delay bothers me but I could "live" with it if need be.
However, about 30 seconds later after all lights AND the star are off, the star lights up again all by itself. It continues to do it intermittently long after the car has been turned off and I am concerned about unnecessary battery drain, etc.
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance..............
I think that is typical. If you listen by the fuse box, various relays switch on as the car wakes up and then they turn off. This happens at seemingly random times.
Since this is LED there is not any significant battery drain
Ph350's post is a little bit off, it comes with the star and two different wires,it DOES NOT come with a ballast. The second generation lights up all the time when the engine is on ( Which is the one I have just installed on my car) , it DOES NOT light up when you just unlock the door. ONLY when the engine is on. The brightness of the star is pretty good at night buy far dimmer than the DLR lights, basically,you can't see it at all under daylight.
Above is the ebay store I bought mine, the seller is a NJ Mercedes dealer, but the parts I received were directly sent from MBUSA , not from the dealer, so I guess the dealer sent the order directly to MBUSA.
I have instructions for both the 1st gen star which only lights up when you unlock the door and shuts down when you start the engine. ( But the brightness is same as the DLR LED)
AND the second gen when it lights up all the time when engine is on ( BUT the brightness is far less than the DLR LED, you can only see it at night)
If anyone need these, just send me the email and I'll be happy to send you the instructions.
Just a FYI for those interested. Instead of using Fuse 23, you can also use fuse 9, which is for the front cigarette socket. This will switch the star on with ACC or anytime the car is on, and switch it off when you leave the car. It does not share the fuse with any other circuits as far as I can tell. Fuse 23 is shared with other engine components, which is why some people are having it randomly turning on/off.
Ground wire located below the bracket noted.
I used an add-a-circuit fuse tap located on fuse 9. I also had to drill a small hole in the white part of the housing for the wire to pass through, soldered the connection. This should still be water-tight.
If you go to the trunk and look at the fuse layout sheet, there is a 20 amp fuse(number 23) that you can tap into. The fuse is located in the front driver side when you open the hood. When connected this way, when you unlock/lock the door, it will light up. When the engine is on, it will be on full time. There is no need to hook up the harness, just connect the star directly to this fuse and ground out the other wire.
After few hours searching I read your post and my question is . The star light only goes off when the door lock? Other than that it will stay on at all time even with engine off? Thanks
Ph350's post is a little bit off, it comes with the star and two different wires,it DOES NOT come with a ballast. The second generation lights up all the time when the engine is on ( Which is the one I have just installed on my car) , it DOES NOT light up when you just unlock the door. ONLY when the engine is on. The brightness of the star is pretty good at night buy far dimmer than the DLR lights, basically,you can't see it at all under daylight.
Above is the ebay store I bought mine, the seller is a NJ Mercedes dealer, but the parts I received were directly sent from MBUSA , not from the dealer, so I guess the dealer sent the order directly to MBUSA.
I have instructions for both the 1st gen star which only lights up when you unlock the door and shuts down when you start the engine. ( But the brightness is same as the DLR LED)
AND the second gen when it lights up all the time when engine is on ( BUT the brightness is far less than the DLR LED, you can only see it at night)
If anyone need these, just send me the email and I'll be happy to send you the instructions.
Do you still have the instructions for the illuminated star?
Just a FYI for those interested. Instead of using Fuse 23, you can also use fuse 9, which is for the front cigarette socket. This will switch the star on with ACC or anytime the car is on, and switch it off when you leave the car. It does not share the fuse with any other circuits as far as I can tell. Fuse 23 is shared with other engine components, which is why some people are having it randomly turning on/off.
Ground wire located below the bracket noted.
I used an add-a-circuit fuse tap located on fuse 9. I also had to drill a small hole in the white part of the housing for the wire to pass through, soldered the connection. This should still be water-tight.
This sounds like a great idea, since that lighter is sitting there doing nothing.
When I took mine to a stereo shop to get hooked up to my 2014 E350, they said they couldn't hook up to my HID headlights because they use CANbus. When I suggested they tap into a fuse, they said they couldn't do that for the same reason.
Pretty frustrating for me, as the posts and videos I saw made it look so easy.
It sounds like to me the cigarette socket is the way to go also. Probably don't need to use a circuit with a lot of other electronics. That is where I am going to tap into if I ever get a star. They are backordered from MB
It sounds like to me the cigarette socket is the way to go also. Probably don't need to use a circuit with a lot of other electronics. That is where I am going to tap into if I ever get a star. They are backordered from MB
Why pay all that $$ for an MB one, when you can get the same thing for $30 on eBay?
This sounds like a great idea, since that lighter is sitting there doing nothing.
When I took mine to a stereo shop to get hooked up to my 2014 E350, they said they couldn't hook up to my HID headlights because they use CANbus. When I suggested they tap into a fuse, they said they couldn't do that for the same reason.
Pretty frustrating for me, as the posts and videos I saw made it look so easy.
This has been discussed in detail. Direct wiring into the headlight area (CANBUS system) is problematic. Lots of things can go wrong with this idea. So the basic option is to wire it into a switchable circuit that will light anytime the car is running.
Wiring to the cigarette lighter switchable circuit looks convenient. But getting the wire from the grille and through the firewall to the center console is a challenge, and will require extra wire.
Instead, you will find that most people run the wire to the forward fusebox. Use a fuse tap, and add the wire to fuse #25, and you will have no problems.
This has been discussed in detail. Direct wiring into the headlight area (CANBUS system) is problematic. Lots of things can go wrong with this idea. So the basic option is to wire it into a switchable circuit that will light anytime the car is running.
Wiring to the cigarette lighter switchable circuit looks convenient. But getting the wire from the grille and through the firewall to the center console is a challenge, and will require extra wire.
Instead, you will find that most people run the wire to the forward fusebox. Use a fuse tap, and add the wire to fuse #25, and you will have no problems.
Yep. It's these detailed discussions I referenced when I was at the shop.
They said tapping into the fuse box would also be problematic for CANBus. That's when my noodle fried and I decided to ask for some clarity in this forum.
They said tapping into the fuse box would also be problematic for CANBus. That's when my noodle fried and I decided to ask for some clarity in this forum.
Any additional help clarifying is appreciated.
I installed the aftermarket illuminated star 9 months ago. It is wired to Fuse #25 in the engine compartmant. Since then, the car has been to the dealership for a warranty repair. I was not told of any errors or tracked codes in the system caused by this wiring setup. And I have not seen any warning displays related to it.
So, I think I am safe with the wiring job for this modification.
06-29-2015, 03:59 PM
Illuminated Star '17 GLC 300
