silver ml500

Hi everyone reading this.

I bought this ML500 recently, now driven for a few weeks, and at last i now know every moving part of this machine.
Suspension is standard, and needs swapped out, everything, wishbones, track-control arms, anti-roll bar etc,.

My alternator light came on the other day, from 2002 till 2020 for one alternator is very good.

ML500 lights removed and slam panel .

Battery holder, battery and airbox filter assembly removed for access to remove alternator. .

I removed the slam panel to allow the rads to be pulled forward, just for easier access to the pulley belt tensionor and replacing the belt. .

The front end of the ML500 looks like it just came off the production line, absolute mint on all spray and panels. .

Identical alternators, down to even the inners made in the same factory.

Dealers have to learn that 10 times the price for parts is criminal, so people learn to shop arround. Plenty of qualified people will give you free help and advice.

Bought a new one.
Mercedes wanted £749.99
Online Bosch wanted £766
Other online companies ranged from £240 up to £750.
Plenty of eBay sellers saying there's will fit and only £120
eBay is full of stupid sellers at times who know nothing of what they are even selling, and when I quizzed them if it is 12V or 14v they came back with a puzzled question of was I off my head????

I found a supplier who get there alternators direct from Bosch, but obviously use their own branding for the items.
RTX ALTERNATOR is the supplier/maker, and I have an alternator here for only £73 including delivery to my door.
I got a friend who is retired and worked as an electrician on ocean vessels and ferries to open them both for me and see if the inners were identical to match the outer casings.
100% identical, which I suspected, but wanted to be 100% sure, as easy to put dodgy inners inside the casings, which are a universal made item for alternators.

10 times the price is more than a joke, it is criminal and disgusting to be honest.
The strip down to do the alternator was quick and easy, also changing the v-belt.
I also have a leaky washer bottle, so good time to swap this out at the same time as the alternator.
My headlights are full of condensation, (I live in 99% humidity most of the week here as it rains nearly every day where I live high up in the mountains), so also removed these to remove the lenses and re-seal with new seal, using butyl mastic tape. Again, YouTube is full of vids to see how this is done if anyone needs to do theres. But be careful, the max for any headlight usit is 240f, or 110cent., so 20 mins in an oven at a time to allow the heat to go through evenly.
Do not be tempted to raise the temp. for a quicker replacement of the seals, as you then will warp and damge HID ballasts, bulb sockets, and start to heat solder too much, which might break lose from the connection and you will not see or notice it etc,

Internal connections. Yes, the entire headlight goes in the oven, bulbs/fittings and all.

silver ml500

Lights now 100% repaired and back to factory fresh.
had to make an oven to fit these units into, as very akward size, so made one out of cardboard boxes. Made baffle inside so electric paint stripper gun did not concentrate all the heat in one place. Used a cooking thermometer for toffe, fudge, tablet in pans to keep temp. constant inside. so just blast the gun on for a few mins, then keep doing this over the 20 min period needed to soften the butyl seal.

Butyl took some tracking down and had to get from china as all others only had grey, i needed black, so took a couple of weeks to get here.

I searched for second-hand lights, found over 16 sets for sale globally, but all were as bad or worse than my own.
I live almost yearly with 99% humidity, so vehicles here have to be extra prepared for this kind of wettness and moisture to survive and cannot be left caked in mud or grim as you will not have a vehicle in a few years, just a rust bucket, costing loads of money as even the electrics and ignition systems have to be extra protected where I live here.

H7/H7 new units £108 each.
Bi-Xenon £685 cheapest I could find internationally per unit.
Just my luck, i have bi-Xeneon units and these are not interchangeable with the cheaper H7 units.


600 grit, 800 grit, 1200 grit, 3000 grit, 7000 grit

Bevel needed washing as water stains inside, due to leaking seal. Plastic lens ready for polishing, took some rubbing as top was cloudy/hazy.

cut and taped together large carboard boxes, lined with tinfoil and a baffle inside

My oven underneath is just to small for these lights to go in. 110 degrees centigrade, for 15-20 mins, lets the butyl seal peel off as now soft and pliable.

lens removed, now you can wipe and clean the chrame plated plastic reflection parts.

Dried water staining inside, reason for removing and re-sealing lens to the body, as condensation caused the staining inside.

Lens still on the light assembly, I did one on the light assembly, the other one off before i ground it back and polished it. you can see lens is factory fresh

And two complete and 100% factory fresh, ready to be re-fitted bi-xeneon headlights, The home made oven, just break apart and dispose of.