Experiences with Air Balance?
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Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2017
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S350d AMG Line Premium Plus
Experiences with Air Balance?
I ordered this with my 350d and it did not come with any fragrance when I picked her up last month, so I've not used it yet. As a bottle is more than my wife spends on her perfume (!) I'd like to hear about owner experiences first. Also how do you optionally use the air balance system without fragrance?
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2015 S550 1998 SL600
I personally love it, but it's very subtle. You notice it most when the fan speed is low. Mercedes offers a perfume style sampler pack for about $20 so you can see which you like. My favorite is freeside mood. You can get an empty container and put whatever perfume or cologne in there, though. There's some threads here on the forum about using alcohol/water based scents so it doesn't linger in or stain the interior apparently. The MB scents are designed to dissipate when the car is off and not stain the interior. Not saying other scents would, but I don't have any experience with that because I haven't done it.
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Joined: Dec 2016
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From: Charlotte, NC
2024 E450 AT Wagon, 2024 EQS450+ / Had: 2021 E350, 2019 E300, 2021 + 20 GLE350, 2019 E450 Wagon(s)
What RockSalt said. I thought it was the silliest feature ever, until I activated it. Now,I love it. It adds a subtle and upscale ambiance to the interior. Almost like the lobby of a nice hotel, where the scent is part of the feel of the place.
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From: Birmingham, AL
2019 S560, 2022 Audi S8
How do you get it to work? I placed the container in the pedestal but I never smell it despite the fact that I have it turned on. I noticed that the top of the container has vents that seem to stay closed. Shouldn't something in the glove box push down on these port holes in the container?
Last edited by MBS63AMG; Apr 23, 2017 at 01:49 PM.
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2016
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2015 S550 1998 SL600
Nothing goes into the bottle. Maybe heat is applied and starts to vaporize the scent. Go into AC settings and find the one for the fragrance and turn it on if you haven't already. There are three levels. I set mine to max, which is 3. Even then it's still faint. About half to 3/4 of a bottle for me has lasted about 8k miles. You'll smell it every now and then especially if the fan isn't going at moderate to high speeds. If you don't smell it, try taking it out and putting it back in. Also I don't know if orientation of the bottle matters, but I have the label facing out. If that doesn't work, check the top and make sure you can smell it and that the plastic has been taken off the top.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Apr 2016
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2014 S550 AMG, 2017 XT5
How do you get it to work? I placed the container in the pedestal but I never smell it despite the fact that I have it turned on. I noticed that the top of the container has vents that seem to stay closed. Shouldn't something in the glove box push down on these port holes in the container?
1. When the fragrance system activates, it looks like a solenoid in the top pushes down to open the vents fully on the lid, then closes after a 10 / 15 seconds.
2. I also took apart a vent cover from an empty jar, boy, now I know why they charge so much.... It is a very elaborate spring loaded top.... I removed all of the internal components to see if the fragrance would then be active all the time, Nope...... The must also have a fan / valve that opens to suction the fragrance out of the jar in addition to the solenoid.
You will notice a electrical harness at the top of the holder and a flexible piece of duct.
The metal disc at the bottom has nothing to do with heating, it is purely a metal disc on the bottom of the jar so a magnet in the holder helps keep it in place.
For sure with my experience, the system is random at when it will activate and it is only for a 10 to 15 second stint.
Last edited by Nice Ride; Apr 24, 2017 at 02:35 AM.
