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2008 ML350 4matic. Any input would be great. Seeing if its something simple before I take it to Mercedes, since its odd behavior. Maybe something needs reprogrammed?
- Lift gate does not open when using the Smart Key. It will make the unlocking noise, then lock closed after a few seconds. It also does not make the warning "beep" noise.
However....
- Will open with the rear handle, and close when the red button is pushed.
- Will open/close when using the driver door control
- Will CLOSE when using the key, if it is already open.
Do you have any cracks at the trunk button?
- I have 2 keys. 1 key does have cracking on each of the buttons. The other key has no cracks. (see picture below) Both keys exhibit the same behavior on the car.
Does your LED light up when held more than 1 second?
- Yes both keys LED will light up when each button is held. *EDIT* - Batteries in both keys were replaced when I purchased the car
Did you ever have any water entry in the spare tire area?
- I bought the car ~1 month ago. We did inspect the spare tire area, and saw no water. I just checked it again, and it is 100% dry.
Please copy and paste the questions and answer along each.
Where do you live? What's the weather there? Would you be able to remove a tail lamp?
- Columbus, OH. Weather can be 65 one day, and 25 the next. However, the lift gate was doing this from the day I bought it, and the weather did not affect it.
- This (tail lamp removal) may be something I can try once we get rid of some of this ice. Would it be the right rear tail lamp?
When you use the key and it starts to open, are you able to manually lift the gate to assist full open?
- Yes, we did test this, and it will open fully.
Understand that the Instrument Cluster will not alert you of every problem. You need a scanner to find and correct problems. It must be the Full System Diag.
Look at the all the codes for the Tailgate Module.
When the weather is on your side, remove the right rear tail lamp and see if the foam seal is attached to the tail lamp or attached to the body opening. In either case do not disturb the seal and reinstall the lamp. Let me know.
In the mean time I will research this problem, which is very puzzling.
First - I took a look at the rear tail lamp, and would not even pretend to know how to remove it, I really don't want to break anything.
I had my local shop scan the car for any hidden or stored codes with a regular OBD scanner, as well as a Star scanner, and nothing was found. Since this time, I am plagued with more electrical gremlins, which I suspect is the reason why the rear hatch may not open with the key?
- Left rear reverse light malfunction
- Right rear fog/tail light malfunction
- Rear camera will not function when the left reverse bulb is installed. (I would imagine that the camera is tied in to this circuit)
I probed for ohms: bulb and bulb holders are good. I probed for voltage on the contact points of the tail light housings and I only get 6 volts to the terminals. With the bulbs installed voltage drops to zero.
Possible solutions:
- Fuse/relay issue?
- Grounding issue?
You probably have rain water collected in the spare tire area where the rear SAM, tailgate module and tailgate pump are located. This is all due to faulty tail lamp seals installed at the assembly line.
First remove the right rear tail lamp and see if the foam rubber seal is attached to the lamp. If it is, do not touch anything and reinstall the lamp.
First - I took a look at the rear tail lamp, and would not even pretend to know how to remove it, I really don't want to break anything.
I had my local shop scan the car for any hidden or stored codes with a regular OBD scanner, as well as a Star scanner, and nothing was found. Since this time, I am plagued with more electrical gremlins, which I suspect is the reason why the rear hatch may not open with the key?
- Left rear reverse light malfunction
- Right rear fog/tail light malfunction
- Rear camera will not function when the left reverse bulb is installed. (I would imagine that the camera is tied in to this circuit)
I probed for ohms: bulb and bulb holders are good. I probed for voltage on the contact points of the tail light housings and I only get 6 volts to the terminals. With the bulbs installed voltage drops to zero.
Possible solutions:
- Fuse/relay issue?
- Grounding issue?
I have to leave early and will address these problems when I return at 3PM.
All the lights and the camera are controlled by the rear SAM. Even though you said you checked the spare tire area for water, it could very well be that there was a previous water entry, it dried up and now you are having electrical problems.
The rear SAM sits on a ledge of the spare tire area directly below the right reart tail lamp. You should remove it and remove the black plastic covers and see if there is any corrosion. See videos.
I thank you greatly. The SAM board unit was indeed corroded. Cleaned it, and the lights worked.
I was hoping this would fix the rear hatch issue, but alas, it did not.
-The hatch will not open when using the key. Additionally, it will still not make the warning "beep beep beep" noise when the key is used.
- The hatch will close (if it is previously opened via another method) when using the key and will make the warning "beep beep beep" noise.
Did you remove the black towers and clean under them?
- I did not. When I looked it the first time, I assumed they were soldered to the board. I looked at it again just now, trying to pop the towers off, but they will not budge. Are they soldered to the board, or do they pop off with the little black clips underneath?
Also you should order two new tail lamp seals and install them on the body opening and not on the tail lamp. - Will do this
Follow up question. Should this empty post have a connection to it?
I was able to get 3 of the towers out, but in the process of the 4th, I broke off some pieces of the board, and now the sam will not function at all. Those connections were massively corroded, and they were absolutely not easy to get out.
So my issue is, without the sam the car is not drivable, and the sams modules are not plug & play. They need to be programmed via Star? So at this point, do they even make the same for my vehicle anymore, because i couldnt find my part number: A 0164 540 17 01. Should i go to the dealer?
Sorry to hear the results. You must immediately order those tail lamp seals and when you get them, the seals must be attached to the body opening and not on the tail lamp, or future rain will enter and damage the new SAM.
What is your full vin#?
Last edited by Maj. Dundee; Apr 25, 2019 at 04:37 AM.
I would buy the $299 one about 10 or so down the list. But whichever one you decide on, I would remove the covers and check the board.
A used SAM will start the vehicle with no problem the only thing that might be a problem is if you had a feature (e.g. auto tailgate opening) and the used one did not. Then those features will have to be coded into the SAM.
Thanks for all the help. We can mark this as resolved.
- Got the new SAM and had Mercedes program it. The hatch would still not open with the key.
- After re-diagnosis they found the latch needed replaced as it was not releasing properly. Additionally, once they tore the hatch apart, the found the backup camera control unit to be almost rusted completely out, so this was replaced also.
- I replaced the lamp seals also.
I have a similar problem, the lift gate does not open when using the driver door control. It use to work. I noticed it wasn't working after taking the car to the dealer to change the fuel pump. I can open and close it from my key fog, and from the lift gate itself but no from the driver's door. I guess they left a wire disconnected. I will appreciate any help.
I have a similar problem, the lift gate does not open when using the driver door control. It use to work. I noticed it wasn't working after taking the car to the dealer to change the fuel pump. I can open and close it from my key fog, and from the lift gate itself but no from the driver's door. I guess they left a wire disconnected. I will appreciate any help.
Rblugo;, there is no correlation between the fuel pump and the left front door. To check that switch you would have to remove the door panel.
Do you want to remove the door liner to check the switch?
Thank you Maj. Dundee. Yes, I am walling to remove the door liner. One thing that I need to mention also is that I see a red light on the button when the lift gate is open.
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