I have a 1986 300E w/131k.

For sometime now when I drive at night intermitantly the headlights and dash lights becomes brighter- then back to normal. Also, occaissionally my SRS indicator light would flicker on/off - but very faintly. I was ignoring this minor issue.

Today, however, -in the rain- my wipers stopped working and so did my power windows.

The fuses seem fine, and all other electronics seem OK. Any Ideas?????


-Steve7

I would suggest that you start by checking for good battery terminal connection. Next I would put a voltmeter across the battery. The voltage should be around 12 volts before starting, and come up to somewhere around 13.5 volts with engine running. If the voltage does not come up after starting, the alternator is probably not charging.

Good luck,

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Larry Bible
'01 C Class, Six Speed
'84 Euro 240D, manual, 533K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

Check the brushes in the back of the alternator. Remove 2 screws and just pull them out. If they are really short, most likely, that is your problem. They are not expensive (depending where you get them).
Good luck!

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J.H.
'86 300E

Have the charging system checked. Something sounds intermittent. Also OVP relay may be suspect...

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Jeff Lawrence
1989 300e
2000 Dodge Grand Caravan SE

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by jeffsr:
Have the charging system checked. Something sounds intermittent. Also OVP relay may be suspect...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Thanks for the advice all--

The charging system is a good start point.
And that likely explains the intermitant lights,etc. But how do I explain the wiper and power windows failure. Certainly if there is enough juice for the head-lights and radio I could run the wipers- right?

Jeff - what is this OVP relay you mention?

Thanks again. Any further ideas gratefully accepted.

-Steve7

Yeah jeff what is a ovp relay (over voltage protection) maybe! and if it is where is it located.

Fuse #2 is the common link between these two systems. Verify with a voltmeter that both sides of the fuse stay hot while trying to operate either system. In other words be sure to test it with a load on it.

The overvoltage protection system, is there to protect all of the electronic systems in the car which can be damaged by inductive or unregulated voltage spikes. It's a combination fuse and relay which has a sensing circuit that shunts or damps voltage spikes so they don't wreck all the computer modules in your MBZ's and cost you great volumes of $$$ and aggravation. If this component is not working properly, it can affect any number of systems in the car, including engine and fuel management systems. Can produce a ton of weird symptoms related to electrically controlled components.

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Jeff Lawrence
1989 300e
2000 Dodge Grand Caravan SE

[This message has been edited by jeffsr (edited 10-20-2000).]