SLK CD Autochanger wiring

[greekmikkie]

Hello all,

This question has probably been asked many many times but after trawling through here have not found the specific answer to my problem.

I am a pround owner of a SLK320 (2000 model) with the standard Audio 10 head unit (cassette). I have just acquired a genuine MB 6 disk aoutochanger which I want to fit to the car. As I understood it, the optical cabling and power lead should be already installed in the car so theoretically it should be fairly easy to connect the unit up.

I was under the impression that I would find the cables in the boot behind the side panel that allows access to the bulbs on the drivers side (RHD!). The changer if fitted by the factory normally lives here. After taking off the removable panel and searching there I found nothing.

So my question is, if the cables are installed where are they to be found and if not is it easy to aqcuire these cables and are they easy to install.

Thanks very much for any help.

 

[JimmyCauty]

Hello

If there are no obvious cables in your car, phone your local dealer who will inform you if the car is pre-wired or not based on your chassis number.
If there are no wires present, these can be purchased for £48 if I remember correctly. You need an orange D2B cable which carries the optical signal from the CDC, and a 3 wire power cable which is Brown, Blue and Black/Blue. For wiring to your head unit see previous posts on this matter.

 

[Mozzer]

Pretty sure my cables were £36

I am almost certain that your 2000 car will not be prewired as my 2000 230K wasn't, but do the VIN thing, you may be lucky.

I fitted my CDC and put it in the top right of the passenger foot well - you cannot see it from outside of the car, in fact you can only just see it when you are looking for it and it means that you get to keep all of the boot space

Jimmy and I have been installing CDCs and Sat Nav recently so if you need any pointers you've come to the right place

Cheers

Stuart

 

[gordon]

I have a 1997 SLK 230K (for sale at present if anyone interested) and I put my sony 10 disc changer in the boot well to the right of the spare wheel by removing the polystyrene packing inside the spare wheel then repacking jack, tools and inflator pump inside the spare whe4el. I know, I know, I also had to leave out the plastic spinner that holds down the spare wheel, very naughty. Anyhow this arrangement allowed me to position the changer upright but I did have to remove a small piece of the plastic backing to the boot carpet.
I put the cables in myself and they are invisible and it was relatively easy without any hole drilling, can advise if you want.

 

[greekmikkie]

Jimmy/Stewart/gordon

Cheers for the info.

I did have a good look in the car but there does not appear to be any cabling in the area where you would expect. Looks like I'll have to pay a vist to the MB dealer to get the bits. I did ask them a few days ago when I went to the dealer to pick some other bits up and they said I would have to book the car in for them to investigate!

Will it be easy to route the optical cable from the head unit to the boot? I guess it routes via the transmission tunnel and through a hole in the rear bulkhead? Regarding the power cable, will that need to be routed from the fusebox or does it feed from the head unit? The car seems to be very well screwed together (as you would expect from an MB!) so I don't expect this to be an easy job.

As a side note, have SLK owners had similar problems that other MB have regarding the ESP/BAS light coming on? Will it be to do with the brake switch on the brake pedal as seems to be with other models? Its a bit strange because sometimes it comes on straight away and other times you can travel for miles before it comes on. If I'm going to get the bits for the CDC from the dealer then I might as well get that as well (assuming that is the most likely cause)!

Thanks again for your help. I shall be a regular visitor to this site - there is a wealth of information in here.

Cheers

Michael.

 

[Mozzer]

Will it be easy to route the optical cable from the head unit to the boot?

I was quoted 2 hours labour at £90 / hour so decided to do it myself, not sure where the cable goes if you want it in the boot, I had assumed it would go via the door sills rather than through the centre console ?

As a side note, have SLK owners had similar problems that other MB have regarding the ESP/BAS light coming on?

Never had this on mine, but think that the ! light comes on intermittently when your breaks are low - try this http://mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=11198&highlight=brake+warning

 

[greekmikkie]

Hi Stewart

Thanks for the info. I think perhaps you are right as to the routing of the cables. I did find a link that shows where you are supposed to find them in the boot.

Link

I guess it would be easier to feed them through there. Does the sill cover come off easily? Cant see any obvious screws on the kick plate.

Regarding BAS/ESP light, the brake pads look ok. There is plenty of thickness left. You can see the tapered end of the brake pad is still present. Usually when that disappears it is an indication that they need replacing. I guess I could take off this brake sensor switch and test it.

Ok, cheers for the help.

Michael.

 

[Mozzer]

Yes I found that link and went to the boot praying to find the cables, but alas...

I had a quick look at the sills when I was fitting my CDC and decided that they probably just pull up (especially as the replacement ones with lights you can get on e-bay look quite simple) but I also decided I wasn't brave enough to start tugging at them. Someone on here must know though ???

Let us know how it turns out.

S

 

[gordon]

yes, the sill kickplate cover things just pull off then snap back on, this was how I routed my cables, then by opening the front dashboard end/lighting fuses access to get access from the radio head unit to the side of the car, then down to the sill kick plate, then through a hole in the back bulkhead (intended for extra bass speakers not fitted in my car) into the boot area. Then I fished them through using the two access hatches on the offside of the boot.

 

[greekmikkie]

Stuart/Gordon,

I went to my local MB dealer today and ordered the kit required to do the job, minus the cradle for the changer which was an extortionate £100! I decided that I could probably find a cheaper way of fixing the changer using velcro strips or something similar which doesn't require drilling holes all over the place.

The bits cost me a shade under £60. The part numbers if anyone else is interested in doing something similar are:

MA202 440 85 32 Optical Cable Harness
MA210 540 85 32 Power Cable
MA202 545 37 28 Stecker (whatever that is!)

Ok, I will try and see if I can prise open the sill covers. Will have to wait until the weather is a bit warmer though! I noticed that I have speakers behind the seats. They are labeled Bose so I guess I have a Bose sound system attached? So once the cables are in the sill I can feed them through the access hole for this speaker. Should be fun!

Cheers again.

Michael.

 

[Mozzer]

Ok, my turn for a question :

Where are the holes for rear speakers in the R170, I hate the fact that the only speakers are in the door especially when your leg obstructs the sound of one and would really like to add rears. If you can tell me where the holes arer and maybe the diameter, I think I may be buying some Focals today

 

[greekmikkie]

Found this link that may help. It actually shows how to install illuminated kick plates on an SLK but it is usefull because it shows how to get acces to the rear speaker area as well. Very useful.

Link

 

[scumbag]

Hi,

I had an R170. got the becker cd changer from an internet site for £300. then went to local audio fitters and they quote and did it for £65. The changer came with the correct optical cables.

was gonna do it myself but gave up.

Local MB delaer wanted to charge £560 for the changer and extra for fitting.

Most audio specailist will charge between £35-60 an hour for fitting and the worst quote £90 by unicar

 

[gordon]

well I took my SLK to a so called specialist radio installer, there was nobody at the desk so I wondered through the back to their 'workshop' where I found a car in trim pieces heaven but they were tearing (not even cutting) parts of the inner bodywork with big tin snips. It scared me to hell so I left.
I found where the rear bulkhead speakers go by the simple expedient of feeling the back bulkhead behind the seats through the carpet, however, mine didnt have the £200 Bose speakers extra fitted, but you should be able to feel something there or even see them!