Prodriguezsas

Hi all, I am new 2010 glk owner, and I am seeing an error message come through everytime i start the vehicle.
Its the "check left and right tail/brake lamp" message (two different ones)
Ive checked the fuse which is good, ive checked all the bulbs in the taillight bulb holder which are good, and ive also checked the harness connecter which is also good.
Any ideas???

I did notice that the rear fogs only make the driver side lamp brighter, but I think it was designed this way?

I also randomly and periodically get the left and right rear backrest not latched message come through although the seats have not been folded down.

thanks for your help!

ralphA

we're the bulbs replaced with a lower watt bulb? if so that will bring up an error message but the bulbs will still work

Prodriguezsas

Bulbs were replaced with the correct wattage.
The original bulbs were working anyway, I just replaced because of the error message.

YYZ-E55

Do you have OEM Bi-Xenon headlamps or regular halogen?

Do your taillamps have LED turn signal indicators (red) or incandescent indicators (amber)?

dgiturbo

Rear fog only lights up on drivers side. Fold your seats down and then back firmly just to make sure it's latched properly.
Have dealer warranty everything else if applies, otherwise check the bulb contacts for corrosion. Had this with my ML. Rubbing the contacts and bulb base with fine sandpaper fixed mine.

GLKKa2H

The configuration of the GLKs is somewhat different over the world; not knowing your location, I base my response on USA as you have a 350.

The "Check Left - or Right Tail and Brake Lamps" messages: When you checked "all the bulbs", I assume you verified that the brake and tail lamps (uppermost in the lamp units) are OK and at correct wattage, i.e. 21 W. Did you verify that the lamps are lit accordingly?

Note that there is a separate message for the tail lamps (only): "Check Left - or Right Tail Lamps".

"The rear fogs": Note there's only one, a left (driver's side) rear fog lamp.

I our GLK there is no sensor/message for the backrests being latched, only a graphical presentation in the display showing seatbelts/passengers (or not). The display pops up when vehicle starts moving and goes out after a few seconds. Is that what you do see?

Prodriguezsas

The message that I see says "check left tail/brake lamp" (for right too)
I replaced both the top and bottom p21w bulbs for both sides, eventhough they were functioning before.

Regarding the backrest message, I periodically see a left/right backrest not latched message, that does show a graphic of the rear back seat with arrows, however both seats are latched, and this is sporadic.

GLKKa2H

Have you checked the "Vehicle status message memory" in the Multifunction Display / On-Board Computer for any warning messages?

All, if any, messages will be deleted from the message memory by following procedure on pages #118 - and -119 of the GLK Operator's Manual, http://www.mbusa.com/vcm/MB/DigitalA...l/2010_glk.pdf.

Might be an idea to perform anyway, as the record of the GLK may not be known.

Prodriguezsas

I'm still at a loss here.
I cleared the error messages in the system, by turning the smartkey to position 0 then to 2, but only to see the 2 error messages come up for the left and right brake/tail lamps come up again????
The left and right backrest messages also come up everytime you start the car, so my wife has to wait and press OK four times everytime she starts the car. Someone please help!

venchka

Dealer. They are usually helpful. Good luck.

Wayne

YYZ-E55

You didn't bother to respond to my question. I suspect either your taillamps are incorrect (ie: you have LED tails but the car doesn't have xenons) or your light control module is programmed incorrectly.

Did you buy the car new?

bop11

Was the car ever in a flood or rear end/ side accident? Did you get a carfax? Corrosion can tend to make these electrical contacts intermittent or have higher than normal resistance throwing a code.

Prodriguezsas

they are not led tail lights, the car has never been in a flood or accident. I have the carfax and its the cleanest one ive ever seen- $1104 above retail.
the connectors do not seem corroded at all.

YYZ-E55

CarFax is borderline meaningless. Does the car have xenons?

venchka

Process of elimination:
1. Buy all new bulbs that exactly match the original spec. bulbs. Clean all contacts with electronic contact cleaner. Install all of the new bulbs.
2. Check for errors.
3. No errors: Celebrate. Errors: Dealer visit.
4. The rear seat error makes no sense. How would the car know that the seats aren't folded flat? Is there any mention of a latch warning in the manual?
5. Hunch: the phantom light and latch warnings are a symptom of a broken electronic sensor widget thingie somewhere in the car. Visit dealer.
We can't help. We aren't there.

EDIT: There are virtually no user serviceable items on these cars. If the bulbs and sockets are good, as you say, then the only other course of action is the dealer.

Wayne

venchka

Missing from 2012 model GLK and 2012 GLK manual. The only mention of backrest warnings is the visual red indicator ON THE BACKREST and the usual legalese to check that the backrest is in the locked position by pulling firmly on the backrest. A dashboard warning is not mentioned. What does your manual say?
More and more this is sounding like a feature for another country or vehicle that is displaying by mistake in your GLK.
My final answer: Visit a dealer.

Wayne

GLKKa2H

A few more steps in fault tracing the "check left and right tail/brake lamp messages issue”:

• Pull one of the Tail Lamps and check for corresponding "Check Left - or Right Tail Lamps" warning message in the Display Cluster.

• If message appears, install the lamp again, delete the Vehicle status message memory and note this message being deleted permanently. Meaning: The rear Signal Aquisition and Actuation Module (SAM) is at least handling monitoring of this Tail Lamp correctly.

• If step #2 is OK, then swap the Tail Lamp in question with a Tail/Brake Lamp – given they in your GLK configuration both are P21Ws (you haven’t yet confirmed your location being in US). Note the lamp messages now being displayed. Perform deletion of the memory as necessary.

If step #2 was OK and step #3 is showing Tail/Brake Lamp messages only (memory deleted!), then could the culprit be a problem with the rear SAM, or wiring SAM/rear Bulb Carrier. I assume the former owner(s) has not performed any modifications on the Tail/Brake lamps! A problem with the SAM, or wiring harnesses, could as well be the explanation of the rear backrests warnings.

BTW: Are the red indicators on top of the backrests invisible, i.e. fully retracted, when backrests are folded reward?

Without claiming this is valid in your case, have I seen reported a problem with water penetating the cargo compartment, right side, as MB have a sealant fix there. And moisture in harnesses and electronic units