W211 E55 Keyless Go exterior door handle change

[AMGeed]

I have just swapped over a dead n/s keyless go door handle for a known working one and took a few photos whilst doing it. The electrics inside these handles are a known weak point and probable most owners will need to change one at some point.
It's the same procedure for both front and rear door.

Tools needed-:
T20 Torx screwdriver.
Small flat bladed screwdriver.

The Part numbers for each Keyless Go door handle only are as follows. The colour code is a 4 digit code after the numbers given below

Front right (Drivers side) A211 760 12 70
Rear right A211 760 14 70
Front left (Passenger) A211 760 11 70
Rear left A211 760 13 70

The front and rear handles are not interchangeable although they look the same externally.


Time taken-: 30mins first time. Could do it again in 10 mins .

First job is to peel back the door rubber adjacent to where the door handle is on the outside and locate a small hole about 8mm diam.



Insert T20 torx screwdriver and undo screw a few turns whilst holding the small part of the handle outside. Keep wiggling it until it feels loose. Don't undo the screw too far and lose it in the bottom of the door. I found about 6 turns enough.


This is the piece of door handle that is removed first and enables the rest of the handle to come out.



To remove the main part of the handle, carefully pull it up and towards the door jamb. IE, to the right on a n/s door. The part nearest the door jamb will come out first and you then have to twist the handle to free it from the door itself.
On a keyless go handle, the plug is back inside the door and you have to manouever the plug out through the handle opening with either long nose pliers or a small flat bladed screwdriver.
Be careful not to break any wires.




There is a clip on the back of the plug which is raised to seperate the two parts. Dont lose the female end back inside the door.

That is the hard part. Refitting the handle is a reversal starting with fitting the black plastic gasket over the plug on the handle and the one on the other end as well. Reconnect the plug and push it well inside the apeture where it wont be fouled by the handle.
Now is the time to check its working. by pressing the keyless go button on the handle.

Slide the plug end of the handle back in along with the other end ensuring the gaskets stay in place.
I had to reposition the handle a couple of times to get it right.
The handle should be flush against the door as below and just waiting for the small part of the handle to be secured with the screw. You can see the screw that holds this inplace at the top right of the photo




Job done. Now ask the wife why copious tea wasn't provided during the mammoth task.

 

[pmcgsmurf]

Nice write up, thanks.

 

[AMGeed]

If you have a Keyless door handle you would rather have repaired instead of buying a new one, this company have a good reputation and the turnaround is supposed to be quick.
The handles themselves are surprisingly very light, so postage shouldn't be an issue. 99 Euros per handle although I believe there is a discount if more than one are being repaired.

The following models can be repaired.

W211 - 02 - 2009/E CLASS

C219 - 05 - 2010/CLS

W220 - 98 - 2005/S CLASS

C215 - 99 - 2006/COUPE

R230 - 02 - 2010/COUPE / CABRIOLET

W251 - 06 - 2012/R CLASS

W164 - 05 - 2011/ML CLASS

C209 - 02 - 2009/CLK

R171 - 05 - 2011/SLK

This is the company.

Welcome to the Frontpage!

 

[John N]

If you have a Keyless door handle you would rather have repaired instead of buying a new one, this company have a good reputation and the turnaround is supposed to be quick.
The handles themselves are surprisingly very light, so postage shouldn't be an issue. 99 Euros per handle although I believe there is a discount if more than one are being repaired.

The following models can be repaired.

W211 - 02 - 2009/E CLASS

C219 - 05 - 2010/CLS

W220 - 98 - 2005/S CLASS

C215 - 99 - 2006/COUPE

R230 - 02 - 2010/COUPE / CABRIOLET

W251 - 06 - 2012/R CLASS

W164 - 05 - 2011/ML CLASS

C209 - 02 - 2009/CLK

R171 - 05 - 2011/SLK

This is the company.

Welcome to the Frontpage!

After a excellent and very detailed Write Up covering the Access to and Removal of the Door Handles, why would anyone fork out 99 Euros to have them Repaired?

 

[AMGeed]

After a excellent and very detailed Write Up covering the Access to and Removal of the Door Handles, why would anyone fork out 99 Euros to have them Repaired?

Well, a new handle is around £170 and its less than £85 to have your own handle repaired.

Whatever you do, the handle still has to be removed?

 

[Major774]

I thought MB only sell the handle only (primer only version), so the buyers needs to get the handle painted.

 

[Will]

I thought MB only sell the handle only (primer only version), so the buyers needs to get the handle painted.

It’s probably 3 or 4 years ago now but I bought a couple of KG handles factory finished in 744 silver. No painting required

Price back then was around £135+VAT from memory which I didn’t think was too bad.

 

[Will]

Nice writeup btw Roger

All I would add is that for the rear door handles you need a much longer torx driver, around 300mm shaft or more from memory due to the shape of the door and the access needed. Unfortunately it has to be a slim torx driver (no bits fitted into extensions etc) as the access hole is tiny as you have seen.

I had to buy one specifically for my silver ‘55 when I did those, like this:

WERA TOOLS EXTRA LONG BLADED 300mm LONG TORX STAR T20 SCREWDRIVER 367 HF | eBay

Would be interesting to hear of feedback from that company that does the refurbished handles

 

[Major774]

It’s probably 3 or 4 years ago now but I bought a couple of KG handles factory finished in 744 silver. No painting required

Price back then was around £135+VAT from memory which I didn’t think was too bad.

I bought a handle last year and no paint option could be ordered. So I just need to find some time this year to paint and install

 

[AMGeed]

I bought a handle last year and no paint option could be ordered. So I just need to find some time this year to paint and install

If its a rear one, as Will says above, you need a long T25 torx screwdriver to release the handle. The front one only needs a short one.

 

[Will]

I bought a handle last year and no paint option could be ordered. So I just need to find some time this year to paint and install

I’d imagine that’s not entirely accurate (no paint option) - but that due to the endless possible combinations of fitment (NSF/NSR/OSF/OSR) and colour code options perhaps they were out of stock for the exact handle/colour you needed? I’d have thought that there’s a good chance there’s still many factory painted handles out there in stock still.

I remember hearing stuff like that when I bought mine (ie they could only be bought in primer) but I went ahead and ordered 1x front and 1x rear handle from MB in 744 silver with no problems at all - so it’s always worth checking as I suspect if there’s stock out there they’d be happy to sell it

Which handle was it, maybe I got the last one?

 

[Major774]

Offside rear in obsidian black.

I assume once gone, they will only sell primer versions.

 

[DaveE320CDI]

Replaced drivers door handle last year in 744 silver came painted £135.00