Some time ago I spilled coffee in my 123 car and ever since, the right side mirror electrical control wouldn't work. The usual story. Since I knew I could take the switch apart and clean it (but that's another thread), all I had to do was to remove the switch.

My 1982 paper FSM (Body & chassis, volume 2) and my CD-ROM FSM give the same instructions -- remove the two screws hidden behind the ashtray, etc. Well, my '85 doesn't have those screws. Was the '85 like my wife's '87 W124 car? I lifted up the carpet in the tray -- no screw there. Finally, by cautiously wiggling and lifting, I got the cover loose. Turns out there is a plastic pin at the rear of the cover that fits into a matching hole in the frame. You have to move the cover back a good inch to get it to clear -- see the pictures.

Unlike the 124, where the cover comes off clean, leaving the switches attached to a bracket, the 123 cover has the various switches attached to it. As you lift it up, you will feel resistance from all of the wires. Carefully unplug all of the cables from the switches. None in my car had any locking clips and all are keyed so they won't go back on the wrong way. The manual says you have to remove the emergency flasher switch but I didn't have to -- the design must have changed. Each switch is attached to the cover with spring clips -- press them in with a small tool and they lift out.

So, boys and girls, when did the design of the cover change? There's nothing in my "Model Year 1985" supplement so it must have been '83 or '84. What say you?

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__________________

"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970