Sunedog -- I've encountered same problem on our '99 ML for the past few months. Last weekend I made time to fix it. As Supradupe explained, the problem also on mine was a broken actuator shaft. Fortunately, I was able to drill a hole in the short stub that was left and inserted a sheet metal screw with a head that would make the necessary connection to the mechanical locking linkage. I tried to be careful in selecting a screw that was not too long in order to avoid interfering with the solenoid action. Also, I was careful to drill a hole that was large enough to accept the screw without splitting the shaft, yet small enough to provide a tight fit for the screw.

The fix may not last forever but then, neither will I!


Geoff