glenn

I have a 2001 ML320. Just started to experiences the door locks jumps every time I slowly accelerate from a stop position. The door locks (already in a lock position) will unlock and them lock again. Also I notice, when trying to put the alarm on from the remote control, the door lock system, (1) lock the doors, (2) unlock the doors, (3) lock the doors agian. My headlights uses to flash 3 times when the alarm was arming itself. Not any more. But I did notice the interior flashing L.E.D. light on. I seen on this web site "saturnstyl" _list of stuff to watch out for_ on the ML320. There it was... His remedy was to replace the latch to fix. What latch and where is it? Called MB dealership and they want to keep the vehicle for a day to see if it could be a program problem. Need Help.....

autogunner

Ever which lock is jumping is the bad one. If they try to lock at 10mph then that is O.K. that is an option you can turn on and off. If all locks are jumping and/or you know all your latches are good, includeing the hood, trunk"L/G", and the fuel lid door, then it is most likely the AAM control unit is going bad. Hope this helps Autogunner.

glenn

Thanks autogunner. All 4 door locks are unlocking and locking at the same time. What a AAU Control unit and it function? And has anyone had one of these unit replace?

mihir_d

You could get all 4 locks jumping even if one of them is bad. It may not be the AAM, it could still be a single latch that needs replacement.

You should be able to isolate the troublesome lock by trying to manually lock each door, when the car is not in motion. Most likely, the troublesome latch won't lock...the latch will keep popping up, even if you push it down, or as in my case, will simply refuse to go down.

If you can isolate the door, good, just take it to the dealer its about $300 to have it fixed...since they have to rip the door trim to get to the latch assembly..and most likely they will replace the latch.

And fyi...the latch that needs replacement resides inside the door trim, so you can't DIY that easily...you have to rip the door trim to get to it.

glenn

Thanks mihir_d for the tip. Started isolating each side doors by opening one door, one at a time and using the remote control to lock the doors (The door locks still jumped up and down). Then I tried the rear liftgate door in the open position, using the remote control to lock the doors (All doors locked and stay locked without any locks jumping). Use the remote control to open the doors (All doors unlocked without any jumping). As soon as I put the liftgate locking mechanism at the bottom of the door to simulate it being in a lock position. And use the remote control to either lock or unlock the doors (The door locks went back to jumping again). Unlocked the liftgate mechanism and all side door locks and work normal (No locks jumping). It seems as if the rear liftgate locking mechanism is at fault. With all five doors close and using the remote control to lock and arm the alarm. The four side doors will lock with the lock jumping from (lock-unlock-lock). But the rear liftgate will not lock. I can open the rear liftgate open after the alarm was armed many times. The alarm will sounded. Has anyone had any experiences with the rear liftgate locking mechanism?

mihir_d

Several people have gone through the rear liftgate hatch too.

So there you go, just get the rear latch replaced...and that will solve your problem..

Avenger84

I am Having the same exact problem! Its my Driverside rear door. The lock button will not go down at all. The rest all work fine and luckily the alarm still works but that door dosnt lock. So what exactly did they fix on urs the latch with cables and all or was it something else? I originaly thought it was the lock actuator but it sounds like it wants to lock but it just clicks loudly.

Ewagonmom

I have a E 320 Wagon with the same lock jumping problem. I started with the Driverside Door and then got worse, now all the doors are doing it.

200k+ ML320

Thanks glenn and mihir_d. Seems my rear liftgate lock or actuator is the culprit too. I saw the helpful comments and attachments on how to change side door, but does anyone have any advice on replacing rear hatch or liftgate lock and actuator if needed? Is this a DIY activity or are special tools required?
Thanks for any help!

Maj. Dundee

Besides a screwdriver and socket wrench you will need a door panel pry tool. Insert the open end between the lower end of each clip and pry off the clip and panel together. This prevents breakage of clips.

Then remove hatch liner. See post #5 in link below.

https://mbworld.org/forums/4941206-post5.html

It is difficult to give you an exact part number because you don't list what year 320 you have and there are additional option and country codes that come into play If you live in the US, your part number is probably 163 740 02 93, but check with the dealer of number accuracy.