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  #1  
Old 07-02-2004, 07:24 PM
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Help! E320 won't start. Bad relay?

I need help, please.

My 95 E320 (just got it a month ago) will not start. When I turn the key nothing happens. I hear a low pitch noise coming from the engine compartment. It sounds like a fan running. When I go under the hood, the sound is coming from the fuse box and the black box right behind it.

Any help would be appreciated. The wife was driving the car this afternoon and she said all the guages went out, except the speedometer.

Thanks.

Jimmy

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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)

Last edited by jimmydean; 07-06-2004 at 07:49 PM.
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  #2  
Old 07-02-2004, 07:28 PM
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Sounds like you need a new battery or have a charging problem.
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2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
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  #3  
Old 07-02-2004, 07:37 PM
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THanks for the reply. Would that account for the noise that I hear coming from the fuse box and behind the fuse box?

What is that black box behind the fuse box? The headlights work, the radio works, too.
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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  #4  
Old 07-02-2004, 07:47 PM
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I have no idea about the black box.
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2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".
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  #5  
Old 07-02-2004, 08:02 PM
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that is the relay box.
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  #6  
Old 07-02-2004, 08:17 PM
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any idea why that would be making a noise?
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
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  #7  
Old 07-03-2004, 09:24 AM
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Help......please!!!!
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  #8  
Old 07-03-2004, 10:26 AM
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Your explanation of the problem is too vague to help you.

You claim your wife was driving the car, then how do you explain the car does not do anything when you turn the key?

Does this describe the events?:

All was normal, then she went out for a drive, then all gauges went dead (while driving), she got home and shut off the car.
You try to start the car and nothing happens.

Please describe the events in the order they happened, such that we can get a "feel" of what the problem is.

I am not familiar with your vehicle, but a detailed description of the problem may help others diagnose it.

IN MY CAR:
The gauges are controlled by a fuse in the fusebox. The fuse burns, the gauges go out. Replace the fuse. IF it blows out right away again STOP AND FIND OUT WHY.

No cranking is caused by several things: dead battery (many causes for this-starting with the voltage regulator), bad safety neutral switch, bad starter, bad ignition switch etc.... )
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  #9  
Old 07-03-2004, 11:36 AM
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Thanks for the insight.

Here is the scenario:

All is fine with the car. My wife is driving it and all of the guages, except the speedometer goes out. She drives the car home and parks it. I try to start the car and it will not crank. The radio works, the head lights work, but car will not crank. I hear a noise (it almost sounds like the a/c fan) coming from the engine compartment. The noise emanates from the fuse box and the relay box. No fuses are blown however.

Any more detail needed?

Thanks.
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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  #10  
Old 07-03-2004, 12:44 PM
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Headlights and radio work. Battery juice is getting to them.
Are headlights nice and bright, are ALL of the electrical circuits in the car OK??

If you have another car try with the battery of your second car, that would rule out the battery if it does the same thing.

Some times the fuses look good, still I would replace them. They are cheap.

Remove cover for black box behind fusebox, touch each relay to identify which one is "buzzing/humming" and remove. See if it cranks. Put it back and retry to cranck.

Read the numbers on the relay and post them, may be someone knows its function.

Pictures are worth a lot, location of relay etc...

These are steps that I would try, by no means I am a car technician, but I would try to eliminate posibilities one by one.

Starting with the fuses, then the battery and so on..

Keep us posted.
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  #11  
Old 07-03-2004, 07:04 PM
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pesuazo


Thanks for the tips. I will try that and keep you posted.
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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  #12  
Old 07-06-2004, 02:39 PM
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Does anyone know if I can cause major damage by taking out and switching some of the relays on my E320?
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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  #13  
Old 07-06-2004, 07:04 PM
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Okay, I have pictures!!! The black box in the middle is making the noise. (in the white box). I can't figure out how to get to it. Does anyone know what this relay is and what it controls?

Any suggestions?
Attached Thumbnails
Help!  Car is dead in drive way.-relay-box-0012.jpg  
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1995 E 320 119,000
1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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  #14  
Old 07-06-2004, 08:12 PM
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there should be a part number on the box. get that and you can find out for yourself in the parts shop.

as for what it is and what it does, i dont know. if the lights seem to work fine and the horn doesnt seem weak then you have eliminated the battery as a suspect. that the problem surfaced while the car was being driven would lead me to think that the problem is related to ignition, fuses or fuel. that the car doesnt crank at all could be a starter relay or something. but why would that crap out while driving unless its part of a circuit with something else.

anyway, good luck, keep us appraised.
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  #15  
Old 07-07-2004, 06:02 PM
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Well, I figured it out. It wasn't the part I thought it was, it was the part next to it. Part #126 542 01 32. It is a control unit, lamp fail warning (whatever that means). I jiggled it around, tapped it and the car started just fine. Any idea what this part does?

Jimmy

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1983 300 TD 285,000 (sold)
1973 220D (sold)
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