111 Bullet lights role?

[Gregg Bambo Jr.]

My 63 220SEB has two orange bullet lights positioned between the grill and headlight. For the life of me I don't know what their role is. I have European headlights and when I activate the turn signal a light in the upper portion of the headlight blinks. When I turn on the parking lights a yellow light in the lower portion of the headlight comes on. In neither case does the bullet light illuminate! Visual investigation reveals wiring to the bullet lights. My dash light switch only has 3 positions: off, parkinglights and headlights on. Anyone have a clue as to their function? Are they there for cosmetics?

[kaiser]

lovely machine!

it would look alot better though without the bullet lights.
the australian and german versions at least dont have them sullying the front end.

on the 6.3 (and on the W108 if i remember) you can pull the switch out?? does this make diference?

i have similar dummy lights in the stacked W109 headlights opposite the indicators. mine are wired up but have no switch gear??

regards
kmc

[Gregg Bambo Jr.]

In answer to your question, No the switch doesn't pull out. I am considering locating 4" fog lights that I have seen pictures of on 111"s and installing them in place of the bullets.

[300SDog]

Actually the headlight switch has alot more than just 3 positions....

One click to the left will activate right side parking lights... two clicks to left will be left side parking lights - these are 2 watt bulbs you can leave on all night with no problem.

With lights switched fully "on" without bright lights on, you can also pull the switch OUT one click....... activating dummy wires for foglights and/or driving lights. This is the setting that might surprise you by activating bullet lights that you could feasably scrap and replace with high intensity halogen driving lights attached at same location.

Is that an American version converted to Euro headlights - or some kinda hybrid?

Glad to know you brought it out of mothballs.... it deserves to be your dailly driver when roads arent covered with salt.

The more you drive it - the better it will drive....... especially with fuel injected engine.

[Gregg Bambo Jr.]

Diesel,
I went out to the car and checked. You were correct in that pulling out the switch in the "headlight on" position adds the parking lights to "on". As mentioned in my initial thread, my parking lights are on the bottom of my headlight assembly. The bullets still do not illuminate. My switch does not go left of the "off" position to verify your tip that it would illuminate the left or right parking light. With regard to the cabriolet's origin, I don't have records that would clarify whether it is a converted European car or an American spec car that was delivered in Europe. The speedometer reflects MPH, not KM and the temp is in Farenheit, not Celcius.

[Mark DiSilvestro]

My 60 220S, purchased new in Italy, but to USA spec, doesn't have the 'bullets'. My turn signals are in the sidelights at the stacked sealed beams. I believe the 'bullets' are supposed to be the turn signals Mercedes used on the USA spec 111 cars after '61. Maybe the older sidelights didn't pass some state or federal regulation, just as the Euro headlamps weren't USA legal back then. The 'bullets' on your SE were probably disconnected when the Euro headlamps were added. The later 108/109 cars had large orange 'pseudo-foglight' turn signals mounted in place of the 'bullets'. I've seen them peddled as 'Mercedes foglights' on Ebay!


Happy Motoring, Mark

[joshhol]

There should be a difference between the parking lights that go on when you turn the switch one click to the right and the lights that act when you pull the knob out. Those should be foglights, albeit not very effective ones.
The manual should have a layout of the various bulbs in the headlight assembly.

Typically, parking lights in pre '68 automobiles sold in the U.S. only light under two circumstances:

~Headlight switch turned to parking lamp position

~Use of turn signal switch

Mercedes has that unique feature that activates the front and rear parking lamps on a given side of the vehicle, as you are aware.

The (bullet) parking lights should NOT be on when the headlights are on. By Federal edict, parking lights were rewired to remain on with the headlights on vehicles produced after 12/31/67 and intended to be sold in the U.S.

Perhaps someone has rewired your lighting system.

[cbdo]

I remember it well from Dad's '69 280SEL.
The bullet lights were found only on US-spec cars, and were the turn signal/parking lights. They responded to the parking light position, the one-side-only parking light positions, and turn signals. The headlight cluster on US cars had the low and high beam headlights (sealed-beam, natch) only, no extra bulbs that went on otherwise.
Your car in all probability started as a US-spec car and had Euro lights installed later, at which time the bullet lights were taken out of service.

[psfred]

The marker/turn lamps are at the top of the headlligh assembly on the Euro style halogens, so you now have two sets.

You have yellow or amber fog lamps in the bottom of the Euro lamps, they turn on when you pull the switch out in the "headlights on" position.

Peter

[lamtha]

i have the same car only it's 1965.bullels are US version with double head lights.when i restored the car i eliminated the bullets put euro head lights like you have changed the speedo to klm.now the temp gauge you can not get a new one in celcius so you have to find a used one.you can restore it if doesn't work.
then you will have something that looks original. that is if you care.this is an expensive car if it's done right.
this is my humble opinion!
PETER
220se cabrio 1965
300se coupe 1965
300e sedan 1988

[Gregg Bambo Jr.]

After a tedious process of removing my brake power boost (for repair) and eliminating my big air cleaner canister (substituted with a modern Accel reusable-see attachment) on the other side, I was able to investigate why my yellow bullet lights don't illuminate. They are not hooked up! I guess when the European headlights, which have the turn signals built in at the top, are fitted to this 111 model, their function is optional. The wiring is there, but they aren't hooked up. I know removal of the aircleaner affects the originality but, like my relocating of the battery to the trunk, it sure makes engine work access easier. I can now access my alternator from above rather than, because it was blocked by the AC compressor, from underneath.

[Mark DiSilvestro]

Gregg,
If you're not that worried about originality, The round Hella foglamps, as used on the W114 250C and 280C coupes, would look decent in place of your bullets. Those turn up on Ebay, usually at much more reasonable prices than the more correct, late '50s to early '60s Bosch foglamps. Beware the early '70s turnsignal 'Psuedo-Foglamps' from the W108/109 cars, as I've seen them advertised as real foglamps onEbay.

How does the performance of your Euro headlamps compare to those on modern cars?
I've seen some cars with headlamps so bright, they're blinding from half a mile away, yet some other modern Euro-style headlamps are dangerously feeble. The original type halogen sealed beams on my '84 Honda are more than adequate, while many recent-model Chrysler headlamps are notoriously weak. The headlamps on my friend's '97 Chrysler minivan are very poor - even on high beam!

[pj67coll]

I've noticed a couple of comments regarding the 108/109 early 70's "pseudo floglamps". The car's I've seen with these always have the turn signal's on the outside of the fenders both front and rear as well. Does this mean that there are two turn indicators on the front of US 108's. The large round yellow ones on the front which in other countries would be real fog lamps as well as the small rectangular ones on the side of the fenders? And that both of these would blink whenever you signal a turn? And that consequently these cars in the US did not have fog lamps at all?

- Peter.

[Mark DiSilvestro]

By "rectangular ones on the side of the fenders" do you mean the side marker lights and not the triangular lenses on the side of the headlight bezels?. It sounds like the side markers were wired to function as cornering signals, like on Cadillacs, as the inboard mounted turn signals couldn't be seen from the side of the car.

Happy Motoring, Mark