Whats going on with my instrument clusters appearance?
 

I have seen this several times before on several W126s and hoped I would never end up with one like it, but I did. Instead of it having the nice all black look, it has like these white looking splotches on it, as you can see in the photo. As mentioned, I have seen this several times before on the early W126, but not the 2nd gen W126. Anyone know what this is and what causes it? It drives me nuts, especially when the sun is shining on it. :rolleyes: Pet peeve I know. :o

Yes, you may noticed that my trip odometer is set on zero... my odometer broke about a month ago. :( Wondering if I should just replace the entire thing, especially since the outside LCD is going out too. :(

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1...photos/058.jpg

it may show up better in this one...

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1...photos/057.jpg

High humidity seems to promote these "deposits" of fungus/mildew. When you repair your odometer remove all of the gauge/instrument assemblies from the cluster and remove the deposits from behind with a soft cloth. Mark

When you remove all the gages, get some bright red neil polish from your daughter or wife and paint all the needles with neil polish brush after putting small piece of paper behind the needles to protect the dial. Just paint the front surface of the needles. That way you will have brand new instrument cluster.

Sahai

Yeah, I've noticed that on my 300SE as well. It doesn't lend itself very well to removal. When I had my cluster apart to fix the odo, I tried to get rid of it with mixed success. For starters, the paint is very matte and abrasive almost like sandpaper. It tends to make lint from whatever rag you try to wipe it with. Using swabs and saliva, I was able to lessen it significantly, but not remove it. I fear that any chemical that would work to remove it would also soak into the matte finish and ruin it. Also, getting to all the little crevices around the dials is nearly impossible since you can't remove the lens, or at least I can't figure out how.

I did manage to make them less white and less obvious, and they really can't be seen unless the lighting conditions are favorable to it.

Nice clean looking dash there. I see your temp sensor has a cracked display. I have a working used spare if you need. As to fixing the odometer, you need to order the 12 tooth gear from odometergears.com. It's a pretty straightforward fix if you are comfortable working with small parts.

Is that your 560SEL? The instrument cluster appears to be from a 300SE based on the tach redline and the gear speed dots..... But I could be imagining that.

TP - no, my car is a 300SEL, not a 560SEL, so that explains your theory :). 560SEL is just my username, because that was the car I wanted when I first wanted a MB. :)

Yeah, I have been wanting one of those outside temp displays, but had not looked for one yet. I want to replace it when I fix my odometer. How much do these LCD temperature replacements run?

Thanks for those tips. Well, yes the car has been from high humidity states all of its life. Its always been a southeastern USA car. Originally from Florida, then South Carolina, then Georgia, now Tennessee - we are the humidity capitols of the world, but you are in FL, you know what I am talking about. :)