2001 E430 Sport Cluster Programming

[lfransen]

Hi everyone,
So last month I took my car in to get emissions tested in Illinois and the car failed because the CE light was out. Turns out it wasn't the bulb as I replaced it and it didn't fix it. The dealer said that the problem was the programming for the cluster. They reprogrammed it and it came back and worked fine. Problem is, now my screens for the trip odometer are different than they were all along. I took the car back and they chaecked it again and they insist that it is the correct program, but can't explain why it is different. They 'said' they were going to ask the factory, but the likelyhood of hearing back is most likely slim to none.

So the difference is this. The screen that showed the remaining fuel and estimated remaining miles is gone. All I have are the trip odometers. I really miss the estimated remaining distance. I use it all the time once the low fuel light comes on the gas gauge.

Personally I think there is some confusion around my cluster. When I ordered the replacement bulb for the CE light the one that came in was the wrong wattage and color, but correct voltage. I took it back to the parts people and they rechecked and the system shows they were right. I know it is incorrect because stamped onto the plastic of the cluster shows the wattage that matches the bulb that was in there.

Is it possible that out of the factory I have the wrong cluster, or something of the nature? How can I check or verify what I have versus what I should have? Any Ideas?

Thanks,
Len

[crhenkel]

Might try to get a factory build sheet from Germany to see if it gives more info on the cluster. I think Jim B. knows how to get the build sheets. do a search for it here in the forum. Good luck. At least it is working now so you can drive it until you figure out the solution...

[ILUVMILS]

Ask any MB dealer tech what their least favorite version coding/programming job is, and they'll tell you instrument clusters, with Central Gateways/EIS's coming in a close second. For MB to supply a single ICM that will work on any particular chassis, i.e. W210, 220, etc., worldwide, they have to factor in a lot of possible coding configurations.

As far as the trip computer is concerned, your dealer is probably right. MB told us a while back that there were going to be some changes to the functionality, but didn't provide any details.