I really need some help. Car died on me - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

spree17 · #1 05-20-2009, 08:38 AM

Quick question. I dont know where the alternator on my year/model car is. Can I get to the voltage regulator from under the hood standing up or do I have to go under the car? Thanks in advance.

Cal Learner · #2 05-20-2009, 09:38 AM

On your 103 motor, the alternator/regulator assembly is on the right side front of the engine block. It'll look a bit different than the attached image, but you should spot it easily enough. No need to get under the car to get at it; should be able to access it from under the hood.

spree17 · #3 05-20-2009, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cal Learner

On your 103 motor, the alternator/regulator assembly is on the right side front of the engine block. It'll look a bit different than the attached image, but you should spot it easily enough. No need to get under the car to get at it; should be able to access it from under the hood.

Cal thanks so much for your help. Are you familiar with the 1993 190e model? I'm trying to find out if I need to tow it for sure. If I can access the voltage regulator from the top of the car I should be able to swap it out right in the parking lot. Please advise.

pawoSD · #4 05-20-2009, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spree17

Cal thanks so much for your help. Are you familiar with the 1993 190e model? I'm trying to find out if I need to tow it for sure. If I can access the voltage regulator from the top of the car I should be able to swap it out right in the parking lot. Please advise.

I'm not sure how much room there is in the engine compartment of a 190, but on my W124/300E I can get at it pretty easily from above....if so, yes you could do it right on site. There's not much to it, just angle it in and out of the opening and fasten the two Phillips screws.

You'll probably still need to get a good jump start though if your battery is dead.

spree17 · #5 05-20-2009, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pawoSD

I'm not sure how much room there is in the engine compartment of a 190, but on my W124/300E I can get at it pretty easily from above....if so, yes you could do it right on site. There's not much to it, just angle it in and out of the opening and fasten the two Phillips screws.

You'll probably still need to get a good jump start though if your battery is dead.

Thanks a bunch. I will go drive by take a look. I really hope I can get to it on my car. If I can do it from above I can save myself a tow at least. A cab out to my dads to pick up a spare car will be around $35. If I can save the towing fee that would be great. I could probably jump start the car or take the battery to get charged if I can fix it in the parking lot.

david s poole · #6 05-20-2009, 10:18 AM

if you just want to get car home,borrow or buy a fully charged battery and change out to drive home.murphy's law says that you will need to buy a new battery after this little escapade anyway.

pawoSD · #7 05-20-2009, 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by david s poole

if you just want to get car home,borrow or buy a fully charged battery and change out to drive home.murphy's law says that you will need to buy a new battery after this little escapade anyway.

Thats true, if you charge the battery up pretty good you should be able to start and drive it several miles at least. My wife's former Buick managed to cover like 30 miles with a dead alternator before she called/asked me why the battery light was on and it was "idling rough".

Ferdman · #8 05-20-2009, 10:33 AM

spree17, you may be able to access the voltage regulator from above if you have very long arms. It's much easier from below (at least that's my preference). You could use the jack to raise the right front, remove the noise ecapsulation panel (if you still have one) and have at the voltage regulator. As mentioned, you most likely will need to jump start the car or recharge the battery with a charger. If it were me I would definitely replace the voltage regulator where the car sits, and skip the towing expense.