W107 Heater lever adjustment

[GermanMarque]

Can someone provide the method to adjust the vertical heater/cold air controls on a 107? The passenger heater control works fine, however the driver's side now suddenly has stopped short of the bottom/off position and hence I still have heat from the vents. Don't want to go ferreting around behind that wood panel, should I disturb some other beastie that will rear it's ugly head and cause more grief. Are the heater slides vacuum or cable operated? They say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. However it seems what ever you happen to touch when fixing something else goes out in sympathy.
These are the original vertical slide operation heater/cool air controls, not the later climate control system. Thanks in advance.

[230/8]

I'm planning to tear into my 72 350SL this summer to get those old style heater controls operating properly, too. Mine won't operate the solenoid (three-way) valves for some reason, no electric signal to the valve. As to those controls, I understand there is a cable adjustment for the vent flaps and a lever clamp which sometime slips. My driver-side lever won't go all the way up. I think it has slipped a bit.

My indy mechanic told me that a common "fix" for heater controls used to be to loosen the clamp so the flap would not bind or jam. Maybe you should check this, but I think you need to get into the console.

I believe the slides are cable controlled to the vent flaps, but there is a micro-switch attached to each heat lever that operates a pair of electric three-way valves that open and close the heat valve on the firewall.

230/8

[OB Joe]

The vertical heat levers are attached to square rods behind the unit. By lifting or lowering the lever it turns the rod. There is not a lot of play in it so that may be why you either get hot or cold without much in-between. It is a bear to get to but it can be reached by removing the cardboard shield below the glove box and working on your head. Taking the front unit (where the levers and climate controls are located) off does not gain much of an advantage and there is a chance of breaking some of that old plastic facing. This info. is from my 74 450sl.

[GermanMarque]

Thanks fellas, Seems I'm getting used to this being on my head and back, just wish I was getting paid for it. Thanks for the warning about venturing in through the timber panel! Will become a contortionist on the weekend and go where no sane man has gone before. Great forum, It should be in the owners manual that ownership may cause severe mental and physical deformaties. Great vehicles, novel probelms.
Euro 280SL

[GermanMarque]

Went on an excursion into under and through the dash. Found the bulb in the ashtray had blown. You would never know there was one hidden in there! Found the vent levers, the problem located. Levers operate fine, appears the flap in the footwell on the drivers side is physically getting stuck when the lever is pushed 1/2 way up and feels like the lever is sticking. Problem is the vent flap lives in the heater box. I'm game to go hunting, but it appears for a proper fix the console, dash, has to come out. I don't want to go there. Have been finding if you can hold a part in one hand it costs $200.00 to replace. I think I would have both hands full, so will live without the heating vent open and look for finger size parts. Once again thanks for the assistance.

[whunter]

1974 107 chassis.
New owner being cooked.
No owners manual.
He can not figure out the lever positions to adjust the vertical heater/cold air controls.