R230 SL500 Heater/Aircon control problem - faulty wiring loom connector

[Kourosh]

Hi all,

The heater/airco control unit on my 2007 SL500 stopped working. The air does not heat and the vent direction controls do not work (air comes out of the footwell vents no matter direction is chosen). MB eventually have diagnosed the problem as a faulty connector of the wiring loom that connects to the back of the aircon/heater controls. Their suggestion is to replace the entire dash wiring loom due to one faulty connector, which takes 15-20 hours of labour as the whole dash has to come out.

Are there any other more cost effective solutions anyone can suggest?

Many thanks

 

[Benza750]

Have a look at the connector,

Mercedes usually has the part no on the connector block & are quite good at providing loom repair kits.
U can usually get the wiring terminals seperate with lengths of wire already in.
U will need a helpful parts advisor as well

 

[Kourosh]

Thanks. I was told categorically that the connectors could not be repaired/replaced, and the whole wiring loom had to be replaced, hence the massive labour cost. Is this not correct then? The loom itself costs less than £100 I gather.

 

[jaymanek]

doesnt sound right at all... either we dont know the full story or they are telling you rubbish... If its just one connector, they could sort that out for sure...

If they cant get the connector, tell them to buy the loom, chop the connector off and rejoin onto your loom.. and yes they do repair wiring in this fashion, have seen it done by dealers many times... perfectly safe.

 

[Kourosh]

The person serving me took me back through to the workshop. Showed me the connector which connected the wiring loom to the back of the heater control, told me it was faulty, but said they cannot be replaced, so the whole loom had to be replaced. Hence the 15-20 hour labour charge...

 

[richard]

Hi

If its the connector for the flap controls, thats not a standard connector as its something that is fitted to a piece of ribbon cable. That then goes to all the little flap controls and sensors on the evaporator housing.

(You've seen it, did it look like a black ribbon cable - I may well be confusing R230 with another model though)

Removing the dashboard is a hefty piece of work, to be avoid if possible (i've done it on my SL when upgrading to NTG2.5 as I had to access the antenna amplifiers).

However, in my book a failed connector sounds very very strange, you have to ask what caused the connector to fail, as it was installed at factory and never likely to have been touched or moved. (has some flap motor failed and caused something to burn out i.e will it happen straight away again, or was it damage occurring during some previous work ?)

Also, have they tried a replacement ECU (thats the switch pack with the heating controls) ? If the output circuits in those fail then it would have no control of the flaps also.

Cheers

Richard

 

[Kourosh]

Thanks Richard, I don't recall what the connector looked like unfortunately. MB tell me the car has had it cup-holder replaced, and I also had a bluetooth unit fitted a while ago, for which I gather the dash was removed. So it is possible the connect was damaged at one of those times.

Can anyone recommend somewhere who would be willing to have at it and consider a repair rather than a straigh replacement?

Cheers

 

[richard]

Yes, go see Alfie (or me) at Comand (Europe) Ltd - Mercedes Retrofit Specialist - Comand.co.uk

Cheers

Richard

 

[Kourosh]

Thanks Richard. I have sent you a PM.

 

[Kourosh]

Quick update: I now have a new wiring loom and a working heater thanks to Richard and Alfie at Comand

And a new Bluetooth module, so all is good.

Cheers guys!