Hi everybody. I went to refuel this afternoon, and was surprised to find that the fuel cover door will not open. Has anyone else run into this? Key is turned off, I push the door to activate the release mechanism, I hear its usual screech, but the door doesn’t pop open. I know the circuit is energized, and I figure that the controller is working because I hear it screech. It just won’t release the latch. I began to hear the screech two years ago after I had work done to locate a leak inside the cabin. The repairman replaced the plastic shield around the gas tank refill tube (bilked the extended warranty quite a lot but didn’t solve the leak), and it squealed/screeched ever since.
So I’m about to run out of gas and can’t refill. Anybody know how to open the door manually?

 

If you pull the right side interior panel you can gain access to the hidden bits that make the magic happen.
Once you're done, oil the darn thing or find out why it is making more noise than a whirr/click.

 

I’ll give that a look tomorrow morning. Sure hope I can get it open - don’t have enough gas to get to the shop for repairs!

 

Hindsight is 20/20 but this is a reminder that there's no good reason to allow your fuel level to get that low. If nothing else, bear in mind that your fuel pump is cooled by the fuel in the tank so running on <1/4 tank is bad for the pump. Potential impurities in the fuel is another motivator if you need one. When fuel prices were high during COVID I got in the habit of topping off whenever my local gas station had an available pump; somehow a $20 topoff every week felt better than an $80 fillup once a month. Mostly it's my OCD though: I don't like to wait until I need anything before I restock it.

I used to have a Lexus RX350 with a cable-actuated fuel filler door that would stick, and it was a minor annoyance at worst since I never needed gas so urgently.

 

Somewhere on FCPEuro's website there's a video that shows you how to remove the side panel in question; I believe the reason they made the video is so the rear airmatic shock could be changed. There's a lot of bits that need to be removed, but it isn't hard.

 

ML350 W166 manual fuel door opening aid
Made this for the wife...

 

cblyseth, Thanks for the photos! You must have a great camera - they’re really clear.

THREAD UPDATE: Found the source of screech. Looks like MB used a nylon gear on the door latch, and the screech was the teeth being ground off. So now the only was to open it is manually, until I get it repaired.

Thanks for the help, everyone!