M104 Wiring Harness swap
 

I'm getting ready to replace both the engine and spark plug wiring harnesses on my M104 1993 300E 2.8. Phil did a great job in getting me the parts that I need, and I have some instructions but before I tackle it this weekend, what special tools or other parts (washers, seals, lube, etc) am I going to need that I can pick up beforehand?

You really don't need anything - maybe some basic tools. When you say "spark plug harness" do you mean spark plug wires (there's 3 of them)? I thought there was really only one harness.

where did you get your wiring harness and how much was it?

I got it from Phil, call him and he'll set you up with the right parts - I bought the spark plug wire set, 3 spark plug connectors and the engine wiring harness from him, saving over $200 when compared to the dealer.

The real saving will be with labour costs - my time is free, the dealer wanted over $1300 to replace these.

why is it that no one ever posts the price of this wiring harness. Do you have to be in some secret Mercedes cult to know the price? If so, where do I join? All I can ever find is "its around 500 at the dealership" but no one says for sure what the price is. You say you got it from Phil (at Fastlane I assume) so why don't they list it in their usual parts catalog? Are there any other 3rd party suppliers? This seems like a common enough replacement item that someone else should have one.

Part of the problem is that you need a ticker tape to know the price of MB parts these days - they go up so steadily. A wiring harness is essentially a dealer only item, some third parties sell them but they are getting them through MB and the prices are about the same as the dealer. All you can do is shop around. What people paid in the past isn't of much relevance.

i'm just interested to hear what people are paying these days, as in this year. Like this guy that just replaced his.

These are the prices for the 95 E320 two years ago:

$575.00 124 440 56 32 (early model run)
$714.76 124 440 29 33 (late model run)

You can type in these part numbers (or the number on your current harness) on FastLane to determine the current prices. The last I checked they were both near $800.

Hey, I have an idea. Make a couple phone calls like the rest of us did.
BTW I payed $720 plus tax for mine two years ago. Mine was the more expensive of the threeThat doesn't really help you though, does it? There are a number of different harnesses out there. You could get all of us (including those who did it frickin this morning) to tell you what we payed, but that still won't tell you what you're going to pay.
Call parts shops (Fastlane, dealerships, Rusty, etc); give them your VIN so they can quote you for the proper part # (there are at least 3 depending on when your car was built). It will literally take you 5 min. Better yet, check the harness for the part number. There's a tag on the harness, right near the battery if I recall correctly, that displays the part #.
PS Fellow cult members: Secret meeting tonight at my place.

I'm just trying to get an idea of the price from others experience. I don't need one yet (although I'm sure I will someday).

Kestas: Thank you very much for that information.

I paid $150.00 from the dealer, but that was after I spoke to a regional rep and pulled mutilple copies of a "known" problems from websites like this one(among many others) and the NHSTA compliant board. After about 15 minutes of *****ing, he had the local dealer put it on a repair order and bit most of the bullet. I had to install it(about 5 or so hours) but it was worth it.
Chris

The one I'll be fitting this weekend is the 124 440 56 32, and Phil charged me $949 for it. The dealer wanted $1075 for it, plus $485 labour.
I'll bring the goats, don't forget to roll your left pants leg up half-way and the secret handshake

Is there a conference call number for this meeting?

I had partial sucess with the wiring harnesses yesterday. The engine wiring harness was fine - the old one had deteriorated to the point where a lot of the plastic connectors crumbled in my fingers as I tried to remove them.

The spark plug harness was different - when I tried to remove the ignitor coil on #2 cylinder, I noticed that the small screw in the corner was partially stripped, only half of the screw head was present and couldn't be turned (I was using the screwdriver that was in the car's toolkit, it was the only one I had that would fit).

My question is - how do I get that out? I can't turn it as it only has half the screw head - should I drill it out and replace the entire injector coil?

If any of you are needing to replace the wiring harness on your cars: Go out and do it immediatley - it's one of the easiest jobs you can tackle. Don't be put off by the cost of the harness, the labour is dead simple. Just lay the two harnesses by each other, and as you unplug the old, plug in the new. Dead easy.

You do not take that stud out .. it is simply a grounding stud for the coil mount
The coils just lift off the stud
The reason it is stripped is cuz the guy before you tried the same ..