ChapelHillMBFan

I just picked up a flint grey/ash 2006 S500 sport with Keyless Go, etc.

It has this very annoying chime reminding me not to leave the key in the car when I stop and open the door. My 2007 CLS550 with Keyless Go does not have this annoying chime. Is there any way to deactivate it? If someone could tell me how, I would be most grateful.

Also, the only cosmetic flaw on the car is its faded leather steering wheel rim. Does anyone know where I can purchase a new outer steering wheel assembly with new leather and what I should expect to pay for it and what a dealer may charge to install it? If I replace the steering wheel rim, the interior will truly be flawless. Looks just like new, almost as if never used. I can't believe how perfect the interior (and exterior, for that matter) is on this car.

Thanks in advance.

tusabes

go to an interior upholstery shop they can recover your wheel with new leather for about $150-200

babyman1737

Have you tried cleaning and conditioning your existing steering wheel first?

Lexol can be purchased at Advance Auto Parts.

Skylaw

MB sells the leather wrapped steering wheel for $1400 (yes, more expensive than the wood ones, at $1200).

ChapelHillMBFan

$1,400!!!??? That's nuts. Guess I'll just live with a little fading. Anyone have any thoughts on the Keyless Go's annoying chime? Will I have to live with that too? Thanks all.

Skylaw

In addition to having an upholstery shop replace the leather, they can also clean and dye it - probably for less than the cost of replacing the leather.

Alternately, I have an ash gray one (MB part # A 220 460 0403 7F07, from my '05) that I replaced with a wood one. It is in excellent shape, but you will need to transfer your buttons and air bag. The '05 and '06 model years are identical in all respects (except that in '06 a handsfree phone harness that was standard in '05 became optional in '06). Also, I don't know if your "Sport" had paddle shifters on the steering wheel (like the S55 or S63). My wheel does not have them. Click the image to enlarge.

PM me if interested.

I can't help much with the keyless go chime; perhaps your dealer can disable it (possibly by removing the chime device itself) - but I don't know if that would disable keyless go altogether.

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks, Skylaw! PM sent.

Skylaw

Regarding our PM - I mentioned the wood wheel and shifter - I love the look. Mine are below (and yes, the carpets have been cleaned since the pic was taken). Also, the shift knob matches better than the photos show. Wheel wood is perfect match.

ChapelHillMBFan

Looks good! I can't tell, though, does the wheel have the leather airbag cover? I thought the wood wheels had this. And, would I be correct in assuming the wood shift know is not compatable with Keyless Go?

hyperion667

nice to see another fellow NC'er....
I'll keep a lookout for ya.......

Skylaw

No, my airbag cover is plastic with a leather look - similar to the material atop the door panels, next to the windows. When you buy a new wheel, you transfer your old airbag and airbag cover. To get leather, you may have to buy a whole new airbag - I think the ones for the S600 may be leather - but the air bag is around $1400, possibly more. You'll have to check with a dealer, or with some of the 3rd party suppliers such as Performance Parts.

The wood shift knob I have is not compatible with keyless go, but I believe you can find some.

ChapelHillMBFan

VERY nice-looking E550. That's how they all should look. Where in NC are you?

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks again, Sklyaw. All good info. And, since you seem to be the expert, I thought I'd ask a couple more questions rather than starting a new thread.

1. What does the headlamp mode mean? I believe I can pick between manual and continuous, but I have no idea what that means.

2. How do I adjust the height of the shoulder belts for front seat occupants? They look to be adjustable, but I can't figure out how to adjust them. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that they adjust automatically relative to the position of the seat. Could this be right?

Any insignt would be appreciated.

Skylaw

Headlamp mode is discussed at page 165 of my Owner's Manual. Yours is likely close. It is to select daytime running lights, or not.

Mine have a ridge so that the slot where they enter the "B" pillar can be pushed up or down. They stay in place pretty well.

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks once again. My car didn't come with an owner's manual, so I don't have one as of yet. Can I ask one last question? How do I get to the trip computer function? It was on when I picked up the car, but I can't seem to pull it back up either through the information screen menus or COMMAND. What I am I missing?

Skylaw

You can download an electronic Owner's Manual from MBUSA (http://www.mbusa.com/mercedes/index). Go to the site, register free as an owner, then go the "Owners Online" section. MB doesn't always make the access to Owners Online simple or intuitive; on the main page, look for "Owners" at the top of the page in the link. A drop-down menu will allow you to register and later access Owners Online. Once you have logged in as an owner you should see a section that lets you download the Owner's manual and the maintenance schedule manual (right now they are under "Owner Support" but MBUSA changes where they hide them from time to time). The page for the manuals is https://www.mbusa.com/mercedes/servi...owners_manuals but I don't know if the site will let you get there without registering and logging in first. Feel free to give it a try.

You can download a COMAND manual from http://home.earthlink.net/~phdwebsite/comand_manual.htm (the '05 COMAND is identical to the '06, so download the '05 manual). There is a Voice Control manual on Paul Dick's site (same site that has the COMAND manuals), but it is easier to just use the stalk to call up the menu of commands. Just pull the stalk and say "Help." Honest, it's not the same thing as "pull my finger."

Frankly, I find the electronic versions of the manuals provide easier access to specific info than the printed versions. They are searchable - you can use the "Find" feature of the pdf plug-in for your browser; or you can save them as pdf files and open and search them using any pdf reader.

BTW, just some trivia to file away. MB had intended to introduce the W221 sooner than it did. When MB had not produced enough W221s for worldwide introduction on the originally planned dates, they decided to extend production of the '05 W220, and redesignated those produced after a certain date as '06s. As I mentioned earlier, the ONLY difference between the '05 and the '06 W220 was making a handsfree harness that was standard in '05, optional in '06.

You can reach the trip computer function, such as it is, by cycling the lower left buttons on the steering wheel. There is one screen that is cumulative since last reset, and another cumulative from last restart of the engine. You toggle between the two using the left up/down arrows on the wheel. Both are pretty rudimentary as trip computers go.

You might find http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w220...tart-here.html to be helpful as you learn your car, and especially if you encounter any problems. I used to post this and keep it updated on MBWorld also, but some members just wouldn't respect its use as a reference tool, and insisted on using it as a discussion forum - which wrecks it as a reference tool. So now I only update the versions posted on BenzWorld and MBCA, where as a moderator I can lock the threads and preserve the original purpose.

ChapelHillMBFan

Thanks, Skylaw. Your links to the owners' manual worked. I didn't know the different functions on the information screen had their own subfunctions. My trip computer function was set to range, and since I didn't know there were subfunctions, I couldn't find the trip computer. I drove my CLS550 (which felt incredibly fast after having driven only the S500 for about 10 days, much faster than I had recalled) last night for the first time since I got the S500, and the trip computer always comes up on that car when scrolling through the functions since I never knew there were subfunctions. Learn something new everyday (especially with the incredibly helpful information here!).

Thanks again. I'll try not to come up with any more questions for a while.

Skylaw

Glad things worked for you. Not having the manuals for cars as complex as these really puts one at a disadvantage.

And we don't mind questions, especially where the manuals aren't clear and neither they nor the Encyclopedia covers it.

Some, but not all, of the info in the Encyclopedia is also applicable to models other than the W220.

ChapelHillMBFan

What type of wood do you have? It looks much like mine. The seller of my car advertised it as having special order chestnut, but who knows if he was right. mymercedesparts.com has the chestnut wheel for $750 (not sure if it can be had in ash but will call). I think I may be able to convince myself that $750 is worth it. Is the wood wheel any thicker than the leather wheel? Does it have the indents on the backside for fingers, or is it smooth all the way around? Honestly, the steering wheel is my absolute least favorite thing about the car thus far. It is so big and skinny. And, I didn't even think they made wheels with those indents for fingers anymore. The wheel in my S500 reminds me of something that came off a '79 Chevy Caprice. I think it's that bad. My '08 E350 had a nice, small, thick AMG wheel with paddle shifters. I liked that. My '07 CLS550 doesn't have the AMG package, and I always thought its wheel was big and skinny, but after driving it on Friday, it felt much smaller and thicker than my grandpa S500 wheel. If the wood wheel is thicker and smooth all the way around (and, of course, not faded like my leather wheel), it may just be worth $750 to me. Thanks in advance.

Skylaw

"Couple questions"? Where'd you get that??

Had to pull your chain - but to answer seriously, mine is Burl Walnut (Mercedes' description is "Burr Walnut"). Your dealer can pull a VMI (Vehicle Master Inquiry) using your VIN and tell you exactly what the wood in on your particular car - and all the other options it had when it rolled out of the prep center at the U.S. port.

The wood wheel feels thicker to me than the leather one, and the wood is smooth - no finger grips. Shame, too - I like the finger grips, and I have a very nice wood wheel for an R230 SL Class that has them (It was given to me in hopes it could be used on my W220, but it would have required a $1400 air bag; the one from my W220 won't fit).

Also - you can get the "sport" wheels from places such as Performance Parts and other 3rd party vendors. Once again, you transfer your airbag and cover - but you can get the AMG-style grips (I don't know if the paddle shifter arrangement would carry over). See http://www.performanceproducts4benz....+wheel&x=0&y=0 - most of the wheels are available in different leather and wood treatments.

ChapelHillMBFan

I know, I know... My "couple" questions have certainly gotten a little out of hand, but that just speaks to the quality of the responses here.

This wheel looks like just the ticket: http://www.performanceproducts4benz....y-leather.html. Since my car has the AMG package, I think it would look appropriate. It's $200 more than the chestnut wheel I thought I needed but $140 less than the cost of the regular burred walnut wheel I now know that I need. What's another $200? Except that the "restoration" costs of the car I bought to be cheap are quickly adding up, but what can you do?

jjw211

Does anyone know where I could buy a steering wheel for a 2004 CL 55AMG? The wooden parts of mine are cracking. I am the original owner and have only 35k miles on the car, and don't think that something like this should happen. Any thoughts? The part number is: 220-460-23-03-7F07.

Thanks,