I read 12 volts at the solenoid when turning the key. That tells me the solenoid must be bad. As it does not crank.

I am still looking for the x27 connector in the engine compartment. Definitely is not around break booster.

Where could it be in the E420?

After installing the third starter from Autozone, it finally worked.

Car cranks and starts. This one is solved.

Awesome....

The extra work you did on the alarm and cluster is a bonding experiece with the car...that is how i see it :)

Guess it makes any discount over a Bosch rebuilt or MB rebuilt bosch seem less like a savings.


Glad you got it fixed!!

I agree!!

Some tidbits of interesting information:

The last (third) starter is actually a rebuilt Bosch.

The first 2 did not have any markings on it.

The third one had Bosch punched in on the metal body and on the solenoid.

The first starter was "Remanufactured in Mexico"
The second was "Remanufactured in Canada"
The third was "Remanufactured in U.S.A."

And finally,

It took me 8 hours just to remove the original starter (hard time)
It took me 3 hours to install the first starter

It took me 2 hours to remove the first starter
It took me 1 hour to install the second starter

It took me less than an hour to remove the second starter and install the third starter.

All this done with the car on jackstands, and crawling on my back.

"Practice makes perfection"