air conditioning

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ggray1951

New Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2016
Messages
12
Car
230 CLK convertable
Hi as a new member & just bought my 1st Mercedes (its a 2000 Reg 230 CLK convertible) & I have no idea how to work the air conditioning, on the hearer control panel there is a switch with EC on & below that is a switch with REST on, any help would be appreciated,
Also does anybody know if I can download an owners manual for this variant.
 
Is it "thermatic" or "thermotronic" air-conditioning?

I've got the manual for the W209 in front of me (I was looking something up last night).

As above; REST is for the residual heat feature.
 
Hi, thank you both, I have no idea of the difference between thermatic & thermotronic air conditioning, it just looks like a normal A/C compressor running off the drive belt, & as for the REST switch residual heat feature that's also gobbled gook to me, I can see I have a lot to learn about Merc's

According to Mercedes mine is a W208 & the American book lists different features than mine has, I'll keep looking, thanks
 
It depends whether you have the auto climate system or the manual system.
If it has round dials to set the fan and distribution then you have the manual system. If it has the digital readout and buttons then you have the automatic system.

They are actually pretty simple in operation.

With the auto system you can basically set the temp you want on either side, press auto and the system does the rest. You can manually override the auto system.

With the manual system you set the temperature with the thumbwheels on either side (white is around 22C and is a recommended setting)
Although on the manual system the temperature is automatically kept constant, you have to set the distribution and fan speed manually.
 
Hi James, thanks, I have the manual A/C system (not climate control) with 2 thumb wheels for left & right temperature & a fan speed switch.
I still do not know whether the switch with the EC symbol (if that's for the A/C) should be on or off to get the A/C compressor working, I have tried both positions & the electromagnetic clutch on the A/C compressor does not engage, so the compressor does not run, but I am not sure if I am using the controls correctly or not, as I don't have an owners manual for this car.
It could be that it is either low or out of gas in the A/C system, but before I take it to an A/C specialist I need to know how to set it up first & then if it still don't work I will investigate further & get the system checked for gas or leaks.
 
The EC button controls the cooling of the air, through the AC system. So, if the red light on the button is lit up then the AC system is essentially switched off. If the light is out, then the AC will be making the cold air coming into the car much cooler.

As for the REST button, when this is switched on it will keep the blowers running for a few minutes without the engine running or the key in the ignition, so the car stays warm or cold when you leave it for a few minutes, such as popping into a shop.

Hope this makes sense?
 
EC light off = airconditioning on. Set the temperature as cold as it will go and with the EC light off it should get cold if everything is working
 
EC stands for 'Economy'.

Mercedes in their infinite wisdom decided that having provided a car with air conditioning, it shall be used. If times got hard, the impecunious driver could save fuel by switching it off. Rather than have an AC ON/OFF button, they went for the extra shame option of calling it Economy mode.

EC red light on = A/C off. EC red light off = A/C on.
 
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Good morning & thank you all for the advise on the air conditioning, I will leave the EC switch off (and light out) with the thumb wheels on the coldest settings & see if the compressor cuts in.

The only thing I need now is an owners manual if anybody can help with that I would be gratefull.
 
You'll find an owners manual/handbook on ebay if you have a look.
 
Good morning & thank you all for the advise on the air conditioning, I will leave the EC switch off (and light out) with the thumb wheels on the coldest settings & see if the compressor cuts in.

The only thing I need now is an owners manual if anybody can help with that I would be gratefull.

You'll soon know - on a hot day and the dials set to blue with a/c it should get to a comfortable temp within a few minutes.
 
W124 Climate control fan

Hi,

First post on here, I've just returned to W124's I've had 4 W124s in the past now I have returned with a 1994 E300 diesel. It has climate control which is new to me, rather than the two wheels and fan control it has one wheel five air control buttons and three fan buttons on the right. The Aircon functions fine but the air hot or cold comes out very weakly and only from the far right and left vents. The fan seems to be running on slow mode but given the climate control system I'm not sure how it should crank up to full speed, presumably automatically in auto mode and hitting the top fan button should turn it to max. But all I get is a slow whirr from the fan and a weak flow of air. I can't get anything to come from the central vents at all and the footwell vents don't seem to be doing much either, the screen vent does have air to it but again weak. The fan is not intermittent or noisy, just slow, so it seems like the bushes are probably fine, I'm not sure where the speed is regulated from, and whether there maybe a fault closer to the switch or temperature sensor?

I have been reading what I can find, but I would like to try and diagnose the fault before I dig down to the fan itself or pull the dash apart to get to the control valves. I suspect there is a fault in both areas. But I'd first like to get the fan up to speed and wondered if anyone has any hints on what might be wrong.

Any ideas gratefully received?
 

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