Ok, my E550 has about 42,xxx, so off warranty. Took a trip last weekend and the blower quits on the climate control. Thought maybe a fuse. Couldn't find a reference for a fuse so did a little research on the internet and it became pretty clear the blower/voltage regulator had gone out.
Took it to the dealer and asked for a diagnostic/quote. Took him 10' and said, "yep, as expected blower motor/regulator, $1100," and one of the parts was not in and would take a week to get. Tuesday, am.
Went online to autohausaz.com, and found the parts; Behr motor ($155), Behr voltage regulator ($170) and Mann cabin filter ($17). UPS Blue, here on Friday, $357.
Thanks to another member I had a good idea of how to get to the cabin filter. Pretty easy:
1. Under the glove box is a plastic panel. Held in place with three tork screws (someone said T-25 but I could only find my T-20 and it worked).
2. Drop the panel down, remove the electrical connection with a squeeze and disconnect the sensor on the left side with a quarter twist.
3. Remove panel and pull back the footwell carpet piece which is backed with about and 1" thick piece of Styrofoam. Remember to back the passenger seat all the way back. Easier on the back!
4. In the picture you can see the white plastic slider that holds the element in the housing. Slide it to the right? In my car someone had done a filter service and left the metal clips off the ends so it was very easy to remove. To be honest the new Mann filter has foam on the perimeter and a rubber flap on the top and it was a very good fit. The "ears" on the filter are different where the metal clips go and it helps in case you switch the filter around.
5. Then just slide the white plastic onto the housing and you're done!
Blower motor/Regulator:
1. They are located to the right of the filter housing under the glove box.
2. The regulator is a separate piece with a large, rectangular wiring connector just in front of the blower.
3. I disconnected the clip by squeezing the ends and removing.
4. The regulator is a simple twist in place. There is a small tang to prevent it from unscrewing and I had a use a large pair of pliers to grasp the knob. The picture shows a small arrow and the handle to grasp.
5. Blower motor has two electrical connections. I use a small flat bladed screwdriver to unclip and then remove the female part of the connection off the motor housing. Once again a small tang to hold it onto the housing.
6. There is one screw holding the motor in place. Mine was missing but you can see the strut where is should go. Just to the right of the strut is a tab that you will need to release to remove the motor.
7. Mine still had a dab of production line QC paint on it (magenta?) and there is a wiring loom that is secured by a metal clip that I removed to get access to the tab.
8. Pry down on the plastic tab until it clears its slot and untwist the motor. I think counter clock wise but it will only go one way. Then it just simply drops out. Go figure plug and play!
9. When placing the new motor make sure no wires are in the way because they want to. Then just double check the position and twist into place!
10. Reconnect the wiring connections on the motor housing. Reconnect the two wiring plugs.
11. Insert the regulator and twist and reconnect the plug.
You're almost done.
I started the car and ran though the climate control and everything worked and the blower was very quiet!
Reinstall the panel. Connect the light and sensor. I found that by using the carpet it would hold the panel in place until the screws were secure.
Then push up a bit on the panel and lay down the carpet piece.
Enjoy!
Approximately 1.5 hrs with no instructions

 

Printed out the instructions and pictures. If I ever need to do this I will have it Thanks. I am sure a lot of members will use this.

 

nice detailed instructions. surprised to have that fail after 42k miles. Did MB offer any explanation? BTW, I assume you are out of warranty because of time, not miles. Did you try customer car since you were just out of warranty?

 

It's a crappy, cheap blower. Mine failed at ~40,000 miles --- made strange noises on a left turn. Replaced under warranty.

On some parts that MB clearly subs out, I think they do a crappy job of vendor management. Including airmatic and brake rotors.

 

Great write-up! Is it recommended to replace all three at the same time (motor, filter and regulator), or would it be OK to replace only the cabin filter and motor only? I'm noticing a squeak that I believe is the blower motor as it only occurs when a/c is running, coming from the area of the blower motor. Thanks.

 

I just replaced mine because it was making a squeak at startup/low speeds. I'm not sure the new motor is any better, it sounds like a grinder on high.

 

Gotcha, thanks. Mine is making the same squeak at low speeds. Sounds like a hamster tweaking out on meth....