mikey33

Also, the N10/1 SAM is in the hood area, but is that referring to a single unit or box or an entire cluster of boxes (square's that plug in).

Viet_Amg408

douchebag: An individual who has an over-inflated sense of self worth, compounded by a low level of intellegence.

mikey33

Viet_Amg408 = *** who posts in the wrong forum because he cannot differentiate an "E" versus an "S." How is that for your liking homo?

mikey33

I was simply making a point while a lot of people know how to fix specific issues regarding electronics, for the most part if it is something difficult or unknown there is not anybody who can figure it out. So next time put your foot in your mouth before spouting off about "douches."

dyno

hi,
no, the Sam N10/1 is just one box. this:


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as you see there are 67 fuse posts + a bunch of relais.

the same is for Rear Sam.

you could also check the fusesat the left end of dashbord, drivers'side but should not be those.

I looked if there's a specific fuse for the footwell lights but there's not.
unfortunately it's not me the tech and i cannot suhggest anytrhing more than check of all fuses ....

mikey33

Thanks Dyno for all the help! I tested every fuse and they are all working and none are blown. I also removed each relay one by one, but still the lights stayed on, so something more complex is going on here.

dyno

we already guessed it was not a fuse issue, otherwise you couldn't read those 7volts.
you see that the switch-on command is via can-B through the overhead panel ... so, try to remember if you touched something there.
other can connectors are on the passenger footwell (on the farther end, on top of his feet).

for example, rear footwell lamps go to a connector placed in the front seats, before going to the Sam.
here you see it:

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otherwise, maybe something wrong with the SAM.

if you are lucky, just a reset will solve the issue ..
did you already try to disconnect the battery ?
in the end you should perform a system-test with Diagnosys ..

yes, the electric system is crazy interconnected in these cars... even the ECU and TCU have their say on the switching of various lamps.
Having a "friend" at a dealership is the first must if you want to just think at modding ANY thing

mikey33

Hi, when u say overhead panel do you mean the front dome and the electronics inside? If yes, then yes I did open it up to change out the dome lights, but I did not touch any of the connectors, and this was about three to four weeks ago. After closing the dome all the lights in the car were working with no problems for about three weeks till I touched the screw driver on the rear passenger footwell socket.

I have not tried disconnecting the battery so that is a great try and worth a shot! If that doesn't do the trick I'm gonna rig something up to make sure the relays are all working properly, and if that doesn't solve the issue I will go to the dealer since I have a warranty and have other work that needs to get done anyways.

Thanks for all the help! You really do seem to know the electrical system on the e55 which is awesome.

03'55AMG

Was unhooking the battery able to fix it?

Viet_Amg408

you don't wanna start fool.... only reason i'm here because S-forum inactive..

Viet_Amg408

wow what a hypocrite..

AMGPilot

Douchebag alert

emoving

Im glad to see everyone is spelling douche right so Benzodouche I mean BenzoDoc will not have to proofread all your posts.

Viet_Amg408

Yup yup that's me...Im going back to S-section now..Too many smart People here ...

mikey33

Well tested each relay using a set-up we made and they all are working perfectly with the correct voltage and everything. We also unplugged the battery and reconnected and the issue still remains, so I guess we will leave it to the stealer to fix it since I have a warranty.

03'55AMG

Just don't tell em you shoved a screwdriver in there... Lol

mikey33

+1 LOL

I am gonna switch the regular bulbs back also, so there is no funny business with the warranty trying to deny my legit claim

03'55AMG

Lol I just want to see how much and what is at fault..

mikey33

I will update this thread when I find out what is wrong and what the warranty company had to pay The stealer was last resort just because I do not trust them with my car, but I am going to see if they will give me a nice rental to pimp around town

Roverron

did you try to back feed with a test light and +12v to see if the lights are in series?
did you check for amp draw.
test of grounding points you were checking for +12v power to the lights not the grounding points just a guess here before you send it under the stealer knife

dyno

yes, let's know.

fact is that the elctrical system in these cars (as in most modern cars) uses transistor switches, instead of relais, for a lot of minor functions (as it is the case for interior illumination).
As I already told you, these interior lights are NOT subject to a Fuse NOR to a relais. Therefore you cannot have burnt any of them. ***
They are instead driven by a transistor (which also can act as a dimmer).
The fact that you see something like 7Volts is worth nothing, it's a WRONG reading.
We had the same problem when fitting led taillights of the facelifted version: we could not get any 12Volts reading !! ... till we discovered that the electrical system does NOT work in continuous current but in Alternate Current .Proof that those 7 Volts you are reading is a fake reading is that they should suffice to light-on a bulb. it would not get the best of brightness but it should light on. but, as far as I understand from your words, it does not lights-on at all.
This does not happen because that's just a parasitic tension exiting from the transistor , with extremely weak current.

end of the story there are 2 scenarios:
Best: the CAN system detected the shorting and went into protection while impeding subsequent feeding of current. in this case a reset with SDS/STAR will solve the issue.
Worst: - your shorting burnt the transistor. In this case they will likely need to replace the whole SAM (while, in truth, it would just suffice to replace the bad transistor).

in any case this is an educating experience .. for us to know what can happen when toying with these cars without an appropriate engineering degree.
No more Fuses to save all DIYers out there

so, remain waiting !


***
from the scheme on top of page we know that E17/17 and E17/18 are rear footwell lights.
H2, for example, is the Horn.
While H2 is directly subject to a Relais and Fuse that you see on top, our E17s connect to pins 12 and 13 of SAM N10/1 but NO direct Fuse there... (even if the whole strip seems still subject to the previous relais. .. for the "Best" case scenario )
just that weird symbol that I circled in green. guess what it stands for ... )


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AMGPilot

Ummm, NO the lights are duty cycled direct current not AC. The voltage potential never reverses

dyno

try remove the socket and look for a 12V steady signal !

if you want to check what's coming out you need an oscilloscope, not a normal tester, and it will show a signal oscillating at high frequency.

Roverron

Is that a pulsing 12V like exterior lights in some cars?

dyno

I just told what facts are.
you can read 12V only if you test directly at the bulb when it's lighting.
afaik this technology using PWMs is more and more widely used, but I don't hold that degree for a more technical explanation