Newbie, thing in boot, change km on Speedo

[Worcestershire]

Hi, just taken delivery of my first ever Merc, its a 2012 W212 E220

Getting used to her, just two quick things I cannot find in the manuals.

On the Display within the speedo, how do I change of get rid of the speed in KM (to the left of 'ECO') I'd prefer it in MILES or gone to be honest.



Secondly what is this contraption in the boot near the spare wheel.



Thank you

 

[MercedesDriver]

Re speed in km/h: It's always there, you can't change it to Miles/h
Re contraption: It is a main battery.

 

[Worcestershire]

That's the battery??
It's tiny, my X5 is nearly two foot long with two handles to lift it. How can a battery be that small

 

[Gollom]

Could be the ancillary battery - most Mercedes have 2 batteries

 

[renault12ts]

Some Mercedes have 2 batteries.

 

[BTB 500]

It's got a vent tube coming out, so it's not a sealed battery (SLA) ... AFAIK all MB ancillary batteries are?

 

[Worcestershire]

It's got a vent tube coming out, so it's not a sealed battery (SLA) ... AFAIK all MB ancillary batteries are?

The mystery continues, I just thought it was too small for a battery, auxiliary one sort of made sense, but your comment makes the mystery continue

 

[moonloops]

It's got a vent tube coming out, so it's not a sealed battery (SLA) ... AFAIK all MB ancillary batteries are?

Could it be the stop-start battery ?

 

[AltonAnt]

Could it be the stop-start battery ?

Surely that would be massive compared to the auxillary.

 

[markjay]

Surely that would be massive compared to the auxillary.

The battery called 'Stop/Start battery' in fact powers the auxiliary electric consumers in the car (lights, heating fan, radio, wipers, heated seats, etc etc), thus preserving the main battery power for the starter motor.

The reason that the Stop/Start feature disables itself when the auxiliary battery is weak, is because the main battery won't be able to cope with running the auxiliary consumers while preserving enough current to also repeatedly start the engine.

So the so-called 'Stop/Start battery' isn't used for starting the engine, and it should actually be referred to as the Auxiliary battery, to avoid confusion.

 

[st13phil]

It's the Aux battery that keeps things going when Stop/Start operates, together with the gubbins to monitor it's condition.

The main starter battery is under the bonnet, under a cover on the passenger side of the firewall bulkhead.

Edit: @markjay beat me to it!

 

[markjay]

Re speed in km/h: It's always there, you can't change it to Miles/h
Re contraption: It is a main battery.

On UK cars, MB replaced the permanent external temperature display with a permanent Km/h display.

The external temperature display is only available on UK cars with the Standard (default display), i.e. when the odometer is showing in the instrument cluster.

You can remove the UK-specific configuration from the instrument cluster using MB STAR (this is known as 'delete UK mod'). This will revert the instrument cluster to the default world-wide configuration. If you do that, then where the Km/h is showing now, you will have the external temperature showing permanently.

But this is not something that the owner can change from the instrument cluster menu, i.e. as said it needs to be done by a technician using STAR.

 

[AltonAnt]

It's the Aux battery that keeps things going when Stop/Start operates, together with the gubbins to monitor it's condition.

The main starter battery is under the bonnet, under a cover on the passenger side of the firewall bulkhead.

Edit: @markjay beat me to it!

That is confusing terminology at its worst.

 

[st13phil]

That is confusing terminology at its worst.

What's confusing?

 

[BTB 500]

On UK cars, MB replaced the permanent external temperature display with a permanent Km/h display.

The external temperature display is only available on UK cars with the Standard (default display), i.e. when the odometer is showing in the instrument cluster.

You can remove the UK-specific configuration from the instrument cluster using MB STAR (this is known as 'delete UK mod'). This will revert the instrument cluster to the default world-wide configuration. If you do that, then where the Km/h is showing now, you will have the external temperature showing permanently.

But this is not something that the owner can change from the instrument cluster menu, i.e. as said it needs to be done by a technician using STAR.

Bear in mind though that displaying speed in km/h is a legal requirement for UK cars

every motor vehicle shall be fitted with a speedometer which, if the vehicle is first used on or after 1st April 1984, shall be capable of indicating speed in both miles per hour and kilometres per hour, either simultaneously or, by the operation of a switch, separately.

The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986

 

[markjay]

Bear in mind though that displaying speed in km/h is a legal requirement for UK cars

The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986

Yes, this has been raised before.

The legislation says:

"...shall be capable of indicating speed in both miles per hour and kilometres per hour, either simultaneously or, by the operation of a switch..."

In other ways, it is a legal requirement for the instrument cluster to be able to display the speed in Km/h, but it is not a legal requirement for it to do so at all times.

Mercedes have chosen to opt for the 'simultaneously' option rather than for the 'operation of a switch'.

My UK-spec Renault had a digital speedometer which could display the speed in either Mph or Km/h, but not both at the same time, and this was perfectly legal.

So if you carry-out the Delete UK mod, your car will still be UK legal as long as the instrument cluster allows you to bring-up a display showing the speed in Km/h at will.

 

[BTB 500]

Maybe I've misunderstood. If you have the cluster modded, can you still bring up a kph display somehow?

 

[whitenemesis]

Maybe I've misunderstood. If you have the cluster modded, can you still bring up a kph display somehow?

Yes, it's selectable, the driver chooses when to display. So unless going to Europe that's never!

 

[BTB 500]

Yes, it's selectable, the driver chooses when to display. So unless going to Europe that's never!

Ah - sounds good! Thanks.

 

[markjay]

So the whole UK-specific instrument cluster is something that has been pointlessly afflicted on us by MB... I guess 'ze Germans' don't trust us arrogant Brits to actually change to Km/h when driving in the Continent.

And on hearing the referendum results, they probably felt gratified and said "Ve vere right! Ze people living on that island are a little bit funny".