ZIPPAK

I took my S550 2008 to the dealer this week for a audio problem. Audio FM radio kept turning on and off. Dealer ran tests said that both the Audio Amp and Satelite receiver got wet due to a leak in the trunk and both needed to be replaced at a cost of $4300. I am going to replace those two items myself and have purchased the exact part numbers. Does anyone know if these will be plug and play or do I have to take them to the dealer to get the computer reprogramed????? Please help.

bha

There are lots of tools in DAS/STAR to diagnose the fiber optic ring and change the order of components in the ring (they logical "software" setup of the ring needs to match the physical "hardware" configuration or things won't work because they don't match perfectly).

However, if you're just replacing components 1 for 1 with an identical part number, you shouldn't have a problem. No changes of order are taking place so you can just do a swap.

Once you restart the car afterwards, if everything works you are good. If not, you'll need DAS to do further tests and maybe do the "Initial Setup" for the components. Remember these components have settings inside them and those need to be right. (at least the amp, don't think the sat does)

ZIPPAK

I replaced the sat receiver and waiting to replace the amp. This car has 142,000 miles on it and all I want to do is listen to sirius 60's station. Should I put anymore money into fixing this Mercedes radio or should I just go to the local audio shop and have them replace (in the glove compartment) a new radio and satelite receiver using the Mercedes speakers for $900? Mercedes want $4300 to replace the satelite receiver and amp.

bha

First of all, forget the idea of having the dealer fix this. I'm not sure how both devices can fail at the same time at all. I suspect their diagnosis fails at a certain step and they condemn both devices because of it. I can't imagine one causing the other to fail either. And they're way too expensive.

Don't rip out the system because what you're buying for $900 will sound like garbage compared to the properly working system in your car, lower the resale value, and look awful. You will lose steering wheel control, and other integrated functions (radio changes volume with speed, etc). Remember the antennas are built into the car and there are more than one so if they don't integrate all into the new system (including the antenna amplifier!) then performance will suffer too. Just one of many examples.

Think of the system like this:
Multiple (let's say 5) devices in a ring:
Cellular phone - CD Changer - Radio unit in dash - Amplifier - Sirius module

I haven't drawn them in a ring, but imagine them in a circle. The Sirius module is therefore connected to the Cellular phone to form a complete circle. Each of the dashes is a piece of fiber optic cable that pulses light. Each device passes info via fiber to the next one, and it either reads it (if addressed to that device) or keeps passing it on till it reaches its destination. This includes data (which INCLUDES audio too) like radio station info, dialed phone #, phone audio, radio audio, etc, etc.

So when the ring breaks or one device fails, the whole thing stops working. One simple way to test is to remove a device and put in a coupler in it's place (joining the incoming and outgoing fibers) to see if the other devices all start working. I don't have Sirius so I have a coupler in the place where your Sirius module would be.

Replacing the devices on a 1 for 1 basis till they start working is a good plan.

I suspect once you replace the amp it will all work.

If not, you have now done all of the parts replacement which should be the hardest/most expensive part of fixing the problem. So don't give up.

Don't go to a dealer. Find an independent shop with STAR/DAS who can diagnose the fiber optic ring. Maybe you can find a member on the board here who can help you. I'm in Toronto and glad to help if you're within driving distance (not sure where you are!)

The diagnosis will check ALL devices and the configuration of the fiber ring. It will even tell you if devices are connected in the wrong order, if a device has failed, if it can't communicate with a device, error codes, etc.

Once you replace both devices if it doesn't work, you probably will get some errors saying the coding is wrong and you need to use the STAR/DAS system to change a few simple pulldown boxes. For example, some modules have country codes, configuration codes, etc. An example is the alarm module which has a country code -- if you set it to Netherlands only the lights flash (no sound) because of their laws. If you set to USA then the horn honks and lights flash.

Sirius module probably won't need much configuration if any (country code maybe?). The amp may have a few settings to change.

Having said that, if you bought replacement modules from the same country and basically the same car as yours (ie. they didn't come from an S400 Hybrid into your S550) then you are probably OK. I can't imagine any amp or Sirius settings that would be different between two S550's sold in the USA. ABS module might need to be configured for the difference between short and long wheelbase cars for example, but the amp and sirius are generally the same in all S550 from what I have seen.

Anyhow you've done 90%+ of the work. I suspect it will work, but if not post here and we'll try to help. If you can get someone to run a DAS quick test and post the results or email to me, I'm happy to diagnose it for you as well as I can do remotely.

ZIPPAK

Thanks for all your help. It ended up being the voice modulator. It cost me $200 to get it fixed. A far cry from $4300 the dealer quoted me. Now my problem is putting it back together. I forgot how the amplifier hooks up to the bracket and how the bracket goes on any suggestions?

konigstiger

This may help see here: http://workshop-manuals.com/mercedes...on/page_16074/