Strange behavior with 2009 ML350 - Won't shut down in dash/lights when turned off
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
2009 C350,2010 ML350,2003 SLK320
Strange behavior with 2009 ML350 - Won't shut down in dash/lights when turned off
My wife's 2009 ML350 is having some weird problem. I've taken this to the local Merc dealership, where they said they couldn't repeat the problem and charged me $280 for the privilege. 
So I'm going to try and diagnose this myself before getting a more experienced Merc shop involved. If anyone has had a similar experience and solved it, or has suggestions on anything I could do myself on this, I'm all ears.
Here's what is happening:
1. Car runs fine, starts fine, can't complain
2. When getting to destination and turning off the car, it shuts down the engine just fine.
3. Electronics (in dash, lighting Int/Ext, etc.) all won't turn off. Normally these will "time out" after about 10 seconds, but in my case they never time out.
4. In order to force it to turn them off, you have to start/stop the car about 8 times and eventually it will turn off
5. One interesting thing that I noticed is that if I take the keyfob away from the car so that it is out of range (about 20 yards), then I can press the Start button once (without actually starting the car) and it turns off correctly.
Thinking that maybe the keyfob is faulty, I've ordered new batteries and we have a spare one, so when they arrive, I'll test this with a different keyfob. But as of writing this, I can't do that as the batteries are not here yet.
Anyway has anyone had similar experiences with theirs before? I'm super curious.
Thanks
K
So I'm going to try and diagnose this myself before getting a more experienced Merc shop involved. If anyone has had a similar experience and solved it, or has suggestions on anything I could do myself on this, I'm all ears.
Here's what is happening:
1. Car runs fine, starts fine, can't complain
2. When getting to destination and turning off the car, it shuts down the engine just fine.
3. Electronics (in dash, lighting Int/Ext, etc.) all won't turn off. Normally these will "time out" after about 10 seconds, but in my case they never time out.
4. In order to force it to turn them off, you have to start/stop the car about 8 times and eventually it will turn off
5. One interesting thing that I noticed is that if I take the keyfob away from the car so that it is out of range (about 20 yards), then I can press the Start button once (without actually starting the car) and it turns off correctly.
Thinking that maybe the keyfob is faulty, I've ordered new batteries and we have a spare one, so when they arrive, I'll test this with a different keyfob. But as of writing this, I can't do that as the batteries are not here yet.
Anyway has anyone had similar experiences with theirs before? I'm super curious.
Thanks
K
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
2009 C350,2010 ML350,2003 SLK320
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 4,037
Likes: 1,011
From: Miami, FL
2003 CL 600
EIS is the ignition switch, where you put the key or start button. It has control of what level of power the car displays. I would want to see the actual values when it does it. I had a W221 do the opposite the other day, if you turned the key on but didn't start the car, after a few minutes it would all shut down like you took the key out. Had to cycle it a couple times to get it back. Replaced the EIS, all was well afterwards.
Has to be done at a dealer though, as it's a Theft Relevant Part and must be special ordered to your VIN and programmed.
Has to be done at a dealer though, as it's a Theft Relevant Part and must be special ordered to your VIN and programmed.
Member
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 76
Likes: 3
cl500
EIS is the ignition switch, where you put the key or start button. It has control of what level of power the car displays. I would want to see the actual values when it does it. I had a W221 do the opposite the other day, if you turned the key on but didn't start the car, after a few minutes it would all shut down like you took the key out. Had to cycle it a couple times to get it back. Replaced the EIS, all was well afterwards.
Has to be done at a dealer though, as it's a Theft Relevant Part and must be special ordered to your VIN and programmed.
Has to be done at a dealer though, as it's a Theft Relevant Part and must be special ordered to your VIN and programmed.
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: Ontario
2000 E55 AMG, 2009 ML320 Bluetec
Facing similar issue in my wife's 09 Bluetec with Keyless-Go.
Similar symptoms, COMAND/lighting stays on after shutting engine down and opening driver door. You cannot lock up the vehicle using the key fob either as if the fob is inoperable. This is intermittent, sometimes it all works as it should. Never happens if you opt to use the key rather than use the Keyless Go option.
Dealer investigated and reported faulty driver door control module and repair at cost of approx. $900 CDN, $600 for the module itself. Haven't repaired yet, not sure that's the issue, seems more continuity based.
For what its worth, to troubleshoot, try locking up the vehicle using the rear hatch lock button. You may need to unlock the doors first if opening driver door does not unlock all doors and hatch.
Not sure I will replace the door module yet without tracing a little more myself.
Similar symptoms, COMAND/lighting stays on after shutting engine down and opening driver door. You cannot lock up the vehicle using the key fob either as if the fob is inoperable. This is intermittent, sometimes it all works as it should. Never happens if you opt to use the key rather than use the Keyless Go option.
Dealer investigated and reported faulty driver door control module and repair at cost of approx. $900 CDN, $600 for the module itself. Haven't repaired yet, not sure that's the issue, seems more continuity based.
For what its worth, to troubleshoot, try locking up the vehicle using the rear hatch lock button. You may need to unlock the doors first if opening driver door does not unlock all doors and hatch.
Not sure I will replace the door module yet without tracing a little more myself.
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
2009 C350,2010 ML350,2003 SLK320
Facing similar issue in my wife's 09 Bluetec with Keyless-Go.
Similar symptoms, COMAND/lighting stays on after shutting engine down and opening driver door. You cannot lock up the vehicle using the key fob either as if the fob is inoperable. This is intermittent, sometimes it all works as it should. Never happens if you opt to use the key rather than use the Keyless Go option.
Dealer investigated and reported faulty driver door control module and repair at cost of approx. $900 CDN, $600 for the module itself. Haven't repaired yet, not sure that's the issue, seems more continuity based.
For what its worth, to troubleshoot, try locking up the vehicle using the rear hatch lock button. You may need to unlock the doors first if opening driver door does not unlock all doors and hatch.
Not sure I will replace the door module yet without tracing a little more myself.
Similar symptoms, COMAND/lighting stays on after shutting engine down and opening driver door. You cannot lock up the vehicle using the key fob either as if the fob is inoperable. This is intermittent, sometimes it all works as it should. Never happens if you opt to use the key rather than use the Keyless Go option.
Dealer investigated and reported faulty driver door control module and repair at cost of approx. $900 CDN, $600 for the module itself. Haven't repaired yet, not sure that's the issue, seems more continuity based.
For what its worth, to troubleshoot, try locking up the vehicle using the rear hatch lock button. You may need to unlock the doors first if opening driver door does not unlock all doors and hatch.
Not sure I will replace the door module yet without tracing a little more myself.
1. It is consistently not shutting down the COMAND system & ignition lighting exactly as you describe.
2. If I move the keyfob away from the dash (even just hold it outside the window while sitting in the driver's seat), and press the starter button once (not hold it, but just a light tap), it shuts down correctly.
3. At one point, I noticed that the lighting strip at the bottom of the driver's door was flashing (like not correctly connected - light goes jittery), when the car wasn't shut down but engine was off. I thought that possibly I have a short in the cabling for a door that was causing it to disrupt the shutdown process. Haven't seen that happen recently, but I will keep an eye out for it.
At this point I'm inclined to think that its not the EIS but something that is interrupting the shutdown externally. I'm thinking that if it was the EIS, I'd be seeing issues with starting it up, or that just moving the keyfob away from the car wouldn't affect it.
I'm going to take it to a Merc mechanic that I know and trust who has successfully repaired a SLK320 that I have that had some pretty mysterious power issues as well. I'll post back what he finds.
K
MB World Stories
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
Manual Mercedes? 6 Times Sindelfingen Let Drivers Have All The Fun
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Verdad Gallardo
8 Classic Boxy Mercedes Designs That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Verdad Gallardo
Flawlessly Restored Mercedes 190E Evo II Heads to Auction
Verdad Gallardo
Electric Mercedes C-Class Unveiled: 11 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes EQS Gets A Major Update: Everything You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
5 Underrated Mercedes-Benz Models That Don't Get the Love They Deserve
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes 300D Has Pushed Well Past 1 Million Miles and It Ain't Stopping
Verdad Gallardo
10 Most Reliable Mercedes-Benz Models You Can Buy Used
Verdad Gallardo
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
2009 C350,2010 ML350,2003 SLK320
K
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: Ontario
2000 E55 AMG, 2009 ML320 Bluetec
I can concur with #3 - occasional flickering.
To add, sometimes dash does not light up immediately when driver door opens up and no door chime. Sometimes there is a delay in that process, sometimes it does not light up until you begin the start procedure by pressing the ignition.
To add, sometimes dash does not light up immediately when driver door opens up and no door chime. Sometimes there is a delay in that process, sometimes it does not light up until you begin the start procedure by pressing the ignition.
