God knows I love my little car, but I hate the Climate control. 1998 C230. I leave the control on 72 degrees which is the factory preset, when starting at any time in the garage the system works great. However if the car is left out in the sun & the interior is very hot the a/c comes on normally for a couple of minutes (sometimes one or two minutes, sometimes ten) then quits, the blower then proceeds to gradually increase to max (blowing warm air!). If I pull over, switch off the car for 30 seconds & re start it the a/c will come back on again for a few minutes. More often than not after doing this two or three times it will stay on, when it does work it works normally! I also notice that when I switch the car off to reset the a/c after a few seconds there is a fairly loud click from behind the center console in the area of the controller, sounds like a circuit breaker re setting, six months ago had the blower regulator replaced & the a/c serviced & charged at the dealership, I am still walking with a limp! I would very much appreciate any input, thanks Phil

Hey I feel your pain. If you search under C230, I think you'll find lots of information. I had a similar issue on mine that turned out to be a bad relay that controls the engine auxiliary cooling fan. There are other things that could cause your problem, too. My totally uneducated guess is that your problem is not the big and expensive variety. If you can't figure it out and fix it yourself, and you're outside the warranty, I'd go to non-dealership repair specialist. Good luck and enjoy!

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230

Thanks Mike, I searched under C230, I was amazed by the frequency of a/c or climate control problems, I am leaning towards the fan relay theory, can anybody accurately describe its location, I believe I read in one of the posts, I believe yours Mike, that the relay cost about 100 bucks, ouch! thanks, Phil.

Did this problem occur after your visit to the dealership? If so, another possibility is over-charging - they over-filled the system with refrigerant and the compressor is short cycling.

Just another possibility.

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Mike Murrell
1991 300-SEL - Model 126
M103 - SOHC
"Fräulein"

first thing i would check is the condition of the mono belt and tensioner, slipping belt can cause the compressor to disengage. second check for fault codes with a star diag and check the actual values of the evaporator temp sensor (known to go bad) some dealerships have a service drive specialist that can check fault codes right on the service drive at no charge (at least my job does). goodluck

I was about to post with this problem too.
I have recently replaced my evaporator and then found there was still r12 leaking.the mechanic said it was from the expansion valve. got it replaced but now the a/c cuts off. when i start in the morning it works fine for about 30 mins but after that the blower just cuts off (with a loud click from behind the central console )and then starts on its own, slowly picks up speed and then cuts of again within 2 mins and this goes on and on but no cooling after that.
I have asked my mechanic to check the belt. there is no slipping and he tells me that the belt tension is auto adjusted in my car.
Can somebody email me the climate control schematics and the troubleshooting pages for the w124 300ce 1989.
It would be a great help in solving my problems with the A/c which just seem to go on endlessly.
The temp here is now 48C and a car with a/c problems makes life miserable.

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300CE 1989 Euro Model.
ML350 2011.

Hey man you need to TEST things out. To see if the engine auxillary fan is working, wait for a hot day, open the hood, turn on the engine and let it warm up, then turn on the AC. If not right away, after a while, the first (slow) stage of the aux engine cooling fan should come on.

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230

What a shame.
After so many years i was checking the forum and stumbled against my own post.
I have changed the complete system due to an accident in which my whole front part of the car was smashed.
But I still have the same bloody problem of the a/c cutting off after some time.

Shame shame shame

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300CE 1989 Euro Model.
ML350 2011.

check the air gap at the front of the compressor. if it is out of spec, it will cut off. on mine the clutch plate bearing is going bad and the clutch plate air gap is crocked and not a .50 mm gap all around. this is causing the shut off on mine.

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1993 Mercedes Benz 300D 2.5 205K (ex wife's)
1984 Mercedes Benz 300SD 320K (SOLD)
2004 Mercedes Benz C240 75K
1995 GMC Sierra 2WD 5.7L 188K
1983 Mercedes Benz 300SD 239K (SOLD)
1987 BMW 325i 220K (SOLD FOR SALVAGE)

609 Certification

mine is an electrical problem for sure.
The a/c is fine when I am on long runs early in the morning to the office & back home in the evening from office.44 kms each way.
Only the days when I am out in the afternoon, in bad traffic,when it is hot outside & the a/c is badly needed, it cuts off.

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300CE 1989 Euro Model.
ML350 2011.