DNA47

Hi guys,

I know this has been discussed previously in other threads but i can't seem to find the exact same problem that i have right now.

Yesterday at 10 am everything worked perfectly, but later the same day at around midnight I go out to get something to eat and i noticed that my instrument cluster is dead (no lights and the gauges don't work), but the SRS red light does come on (i have the passenger seat problem...).

I get pissed off because of the fact that my instrument cluster is dead, but then I realize that other things are not working either: no lights on the memory seats controls(E/1/2) (but they work)/heating seats controls (i get the red LED if powered on, but not the ambient orange light) (but they work))/around the seats controls (but they work), no lights for the numbers on the comand (but they work), no feet ambient lights (front and back), steering wheels button won't work and are not lit, my rest/recirculate/and all the other climate controls button have no light but they work (all I have is the arrows, like when you press on the "auto" buttons). It also seems that my comand screen brightness is in "day mode".

I also have a problem with my turning signals, at first they did work (won't show on the instrument cluster and no sound, but the did flash outside) but after 5 minutes they stopped working completely (nothing inside or outside).

I may have other problems that i haven't discovered yet...

Note that the dome lights do work.

Are all these problems connected or did they just show up at the same time?

i thought of a fuse gone bad, but does the same fuse controls the interior lighting plus the instrument cluster gauges? I haven't checked the fuses yet, it's minus 30 Celsius outside so i'll wait till tomorrow.

anyway, if anybody has experienced the same problem please let me know what fixed it.

BTW, i'ts a S500 MY 2001

Thanks in advance

DRTYLNDY

Sounds like the mosfits in the instrument cluster have finally died for you. there was a 10 year warranty years ago for the cluster but that is long gone now. You probably need a new cluster or have yours repaired. Years ago on my 2000 S500 I had the same problem and I tried to repair it myself but had no luck.
Good luck.
Johan

DNA47

Thanks for taking the time to answer my question, but i already new about the cluster being a known problem and the 10 year warranty (have it replaced on my other s500) but pardon my ignorance but why would the cluster dying affect all the other things i mentioned in the OP?

DNA47

and again pardon my ignorance, but what is a mosfit? did you mean a MOSFET?

vmystikilv

The cluster does a whole lot more than just tell you the speed. It's part of a looped computer system. When it goes bad there is a lot of connecting parts that go down with it.

tusabes

I don't think its the cluster . Check your fuses . I took out my sunroof fuse bc it was opening at random times , and it also disables my door locks and cabin lights (but not the floor and door ambient lights ) so I assume another fuse controls the cluster and ambient lights

trombone

Checking the fuses is always a good idea. If it is the cluster, replacing the cluster fuse may help for about 20 minutes then it burns again.

When my cluster died , I did lose several other functions, including the turn signal. It happened at day time, so I did not check all the lights; the brake lights worked OK.
With the new cluster all functions came back.

DNA47

checked my fuses today, the F22 fuse was blown. put in a new one and the cluster came back to life. I hope it'll last more than 20 minutes!

tusabes

Good luck , let us know what happens

DNA47

Guess it wasn't just a fuse problem, it blew again. The check engine light came on too, I don't know if it's related.

tusabes

Looks like there's something causing your fuse to blow , tracing those can be a nightmare

trombone

The cluster is bad.
There are three transistors working parallel to feed the power soldered to the back of the cluster panel board. If one gets loose or burned the others try to take over but cannot.

You either have to solder in three new units, or send the cluster to a repair shop to do the job They send it back by return mail. Cost between 100 and 200, way cheaper than the dealership, they do not repair but rather install a new cluster. You pay $1,400.00.

DRTYLNDY

Hey
When my cluster died it also took out lots of other things in the car. It was strange to me as well. As to the mosfet/mosfit it is what causes the cluster to fail. One of them usually melts off the board and then the other one over works to compensate. That is what was explained to me years ago. I tried to repair it myself but had no luck. Not sure about the spelling it very well could be mosfet or something similar.
Johan

tower

drtylndy: If your curious, this explains it.

http://whatis.techtarget.com/definit...ect-transistor

Tower

DNA47

Just to let anyone that might experience this problem in the future, i ended up replacing the five amp fuse by a 7.5 amp one and i haven't had any problems since (the cluster and all the lights work and no more check engine light).

Now remember: if you end up doing what i did, you understand the risk that you're taking by replacing a 5amp fuse with a 7.5 amp one.

But honestly, i really think the really cold weather that we had here in Montreal 2 weeks ago had something to do with the resistance (Mother nature is really something, -40c 2 weeks ago, and above 0 Celsius for the last week, anyway) and ended up blowing the fuses.

Anyway, like i said, if you have the same problem that I've had, and you're willing to take the risk of using a 7.5amp fuse don't come back and blame this on me!

ibeforreal

Maybe try switching back to the 5amp fuse when the weather warms up and see what happens.

DNA47

Yeah, exactly what I wanted to do

Pierre Sutton

May I ask, where that fuse is located?

S430AMG

Great question! Some pictures of the exact fuse would be helpful as well.

I've changed fuses to higher ampage in the past with great results (not on this car).

wallyp

Go here, scroll down close to the bottom.
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w220...ml#post5758807