petercecil

Help! I have a 1983 RHD 280SL (R107) which has failed the UK vehicle test because the LH tell tale for the indicator has blow!! I assum I need to get the instrument cluster out to change this but how?

Philoprof

Pull the horn cover off the steering wheel by carefully bending it up, and you'll see a large Allen head (20 something mm's) bolt in the center of the steering wheel. The bolt is extremely hard to loosen if it hasn't been loosened before, so in addition to the correct Allen-head socket, you'll need a long breaker bar or, even better, an impact wrench. Turn the wheel all the way to the left until it can't go any further, and apply as much force to the bolt as possible. If it still won't move, you can try applying heat to the bolt with a torch, being careful not to burn anything.

Once you loosen the bolt, mark the steering wheel's position relative to the spline it's on, and remove it. This will allow you to ease the instrument cluster out-- ideally using plastic tools that are specifically made for doing so. Be careful not to pull the cluster out too hard or too far, though, because the attached wires aren't long enough to pull it out very far without detaching the wires.

Good luck,

Bill

petercecil

Hi Bill
I have only just realised I never thanked you for this advice.