1988 300SL (Euro) - Electrical Issue, Please Help Me Figure This Out

[Michael K]

Dang, something electrical busted the other day when it was really cold. It happened when the ignition was on, doors closed, and I switched on the overhead interior lights. Can y'all look at these symptoms and point me in the right direction? The car is our 1988 300SL Euro (107.041). Think 560 SL but the euro version.

1 - Hazard lights do not come on when I push the hazard button. It makes a buzzing noise in certain combinations (see below).

2 - Interior lights (door sill and overhead) do not come on at all (door open, switch hard on, etc.).

3 - Turn signals work. However, if I push the hazard switch, the turn signals stop working. This is when the pushing the hazard switch makes the buzzing noise.

4 - Clock works only when the ignition is on.

5 - Motor for the automatic antenna does not work at all. Note the radio does work, but the motor does not push the antenna up and down when the ignition is on.

6 - The remaining electrical functions (wipers all three modes, rear defrost, seat heaters, passenger side rearview mirror, etc.) are working properly.

Would someone please point me in the right direction?

[Arthur Dalton]

Go spin the fuses in their holders.............preferably with condition in-situ

[tinypanzer]

That's a good place to start. Those older MB fuses oxidize pretty badly. I just replaced ALL of mine a few months ago and my car just seems happier (technical term there).... Notice that the new ones are copper and the older ones are tinned metal. The copper is far less likely to oxidize.


-tp

[Michael K]

Thanks. It was fuse 12. All better now.

[Strife]

The FIRST THING I did with both of my cars other than gas+oil was to change out the fuses with copper/gold-tipped fuses. The stock fuses, which can cause high resistance (much harder to find than a blown fuse) cause intermittent and difficult-to-trace problems, because of "sneak circuits" - unexpected alternate current paths - in the wiring.