Ah, I forgot one that came up and bit me this weekend....

The ML apparently has this timer driven pump to continue to circulate the coolant after the engine is shutoff. Once before, the thing ran continuously and totally drained my battery. Normally it runs about ten minutes or so and stops(this should be temp driven) whether the car is hot or cold.

Well, went to pull out bike this weekend and the ML was dead. Try pushing a 500 pound vehicle in limited space, it was no fun.
As soon as I got the battery charger on, the pump began running again. It ran and ran without stopping until finally there was enough charge to get an "ignition on" condition. It then shutoff after about ten minutes. I've been lucky that this has happened at home both times, I may not be so lucky next time.

My question is, where is the problem? In the timer mechanism, the pump. Since this is an infrequent problem, the dealer going to have a hard time shooting a diagnostic. What should I ask them to replace?

__________________
Ed "Don't Benz's just feel better..."

Current wives...
2000 ML430 Skyview "The Mel"
2000 CLK430 Cab "The Cab"
85 300D Turbo "The Diesel"

Past wives...
92 300E
85 190E

"One should as a rule respect public opinion in so far as is necessary to
avoid starvation and to keep out of prison, but anything that goes beyond
this is voluntary submission to an unnecessary tyranny, and is likely to
interfere with happiness in all kinds of ways."
Bertrand Russell