Wrong instrument cluster or actual problem? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

tinypanzer · #1 11-24-2009, 10:09 PM

Hello all..... Just got my $500 560SEL back from the shop ($3000 later).

Man, what a car. Just a few wrinkles left to iron out and it should be an awesome car. Talk about a ballsy motor!

Anyway, the speedo is reading awfully slow, and the tach is reading fast. Also, the odometer is reading slow as well. I am going to open it up this weekend to check for a busted odometer gear that is so typical on these clusters.

Here's the important bit - Are these clusters different from car to car? I am wondering if I actually have a problem with my speedo, odo, and tach separately or if somebody just threw one in from a junker 126 with a different motor/rear end, etc.....

I also want to know if a temporary swap with the cluster from my 300SE would tell me anything, or would act badly regardless because of the differences in the two models....

Any advice appreciated!

Thanks!

quaid · #2 11-25-2009, 05:27 AM

It sounds possible that someone has put in a cluster from a 6 cylinder car, which is why the tach is reading too high, and the speedo is reading slow, due to a different rear end.

ps2cho · #3 11-25-2009, 09:36 AM

You may want to check for grounding issues, I had a similar problem when I put mine back in. I thought it was odd so I removed it, checked all connections and it worked fine afterwards...strange...

quaid · #4 11-25-2009, 09:40 AM

I had a thought.... Don't 560 speedo's go upto 170MPH (160 and then a bit more)? Might be one way of telling if it's been swapped.

The spare one I have from a euro 560 does at least - not sure about over in the US.

tinypanzer · #5 11-25-2009, 08:57 PM

Thanks for the replies, there are some good suggestions.

I am going to pull out the cluster this weekend anyhow and check for bad solder joints and connections, as well as to see if I need to order yet another 12 tooth odometer gear. Although, I guess there would be little point in fixing that gear if the cluster is wrong for the car.

I wonder what steps are needed for re-calibrating a cluster for a given car........

jim16671836 · #6 11-25-2009, 11:59 PM

The cluster has the part number right below the speedometer, have you checked it to be sure...

tinypanzer · #7 11-27-2009, 04:11 PM

Well, I finally got around to pulling the cluster out.

The problem jumped right out at me - a little white sticker that says "6 Zyl . 4 Takt"

In other words, somebody pulled this cluster off a 300SE or SEL.

That's kind of crappy news, but I believe it means that my 560SEL actually has less mileage on it than it says. The odo says 186K, but all the records with the car show dealer service to about 150K, when the records mysteriously stop. I had wondered where the car was for the last 30K miles, there were no records. But I'll bet that there is actually more like 150K on the car, which is nice.

Thanks for the advice.