I have signed up for mbrace. I have an appointment with Phoenix Motor Company tomorrow morning to have the upgrade from Tele-Aid performed.

I’ve already downloaded the mbrace iPhone app.

This will be interesting.

Technorati Tags: mbrace

There it was. Right there in the center of the speedometer, telling me it was time to replace the front brake pads.  Bud Cloninger, owner of MB Motors forewarned me to expect it before my next scheduled service so it was not a surprise. Since I had replaced the pads on my 93 300E many times, I figures this was a task I could handle myself.

The first thing you should know is that the procedure is very simple but it is nothing like that described in the Service DVD.  It’s like the procedure in the service DVD is for the wrong car.  So here goes.

1. Set the car’s wheels straight ahead.  During this whole process you are not going to be able to turn the wheels.
2. Close all four doors. Barricade them shut.  Put caution tap on them.  Inform family members that if they open a car door there will be instant death. The reason is that opening a door activates the brake controllers pump.  If that happens while you’ve got the pads removed then bad things will happen.  Very Bad Things.
3. Confiscate every key to the car from other family members.  Put yours in the pile too.  Put the pile as far away from the car as possible.  Under lock-and-key if possible.  Why?  See Step 2.
4. Unplug the wiring harness from the brake controller. The brake controller is under the hood near the right front corner of the engine compartment. PUll up on the little bracket that my middle finger is under.  That bracket locks the connector in place.  You should then be able to disconnect the harness from the controller.  Stuff a rag between the connector and controller.
5. Jack up a wheel and remove the wheel. The brake rotor and caliper should be staring you in the face.
6. Disconnect the brake wear sensor. Depending upon year, some cars have a wear sensor on both the left and right front wheels.  The One on the left front is different and designed to indicate 50% wear.  The sensor on the right front is designed to indicate 25% pad life remaining.  My 2006 E350 has one sensor on the right front only.
7. Here is what the two sensors look like. The grey one is for the left front. If you are not familiar with Mercedes brakes then I will try to explain.  The sensor snaps into a slot on the brake pad and the little rod fits into a hole in the pad material. Eventually the pad wears to the point that the rotor wears through the little rod, breaking the electrical connection and causing the indicator on the instrument panel to come on.  Simple and slick. The sensor shown on the left (the lighter-colored one) is designed to plug into the pad on the left front wheel.The hole for the little rod is at the halfway point of the pad’s thickness.  The darker colored sensor is designed to plug into a pad on the right front wheel. When I opened the box, the pads for the left front and right front were the same.  The hole in the pad was in the same place.  There was no way the lighter-colord sensor would fit.  Did I have the wrong pads?  The wrong sensor?  What gives? It turns out that on my 2006 E350 the left front is not wired for a sensor.  Mystery solved.
8. Losen and remove the lower bolt securing the caliper.  It is on the inboard side.
9. Loosen and remove the upper bolt securing the caliper.
10. With some persuasion you should now be able to lift the caliper off the wheel. Here you can see that I am persuading with a large screwdriver.  It should not take much.  Just enough to overcome the friction between the caliper’s piston and the pad. Now that the caliper is off, what are you going to do with it?  You don;t want to just leave it hanging my the brake line. Here’s a trick I learned from my aircraft maintenance days: Fasten a couple of zip-ties together and run them through the upper A-arm and the caliper.  You now have the caliper secured to the upper A-arm and out of the way.
11. So now here’s what you are looking at.  You should be able to slide the old pads out of the spring rails.  If you buy genuine MB pads from the dealership you will find a new set of spring rails in the box.  Replace ‘em if you want.  I didn’t.
12. Plug the wear sensor into the outer pad.
13. Peel the backing off the adhesive strip on the inner pad. Slide the pads onto the brass rails and press them against the rotor.
14. Now you need to press the piston back into the caliper. Check the level of brake fluid in the reservoir to make sure that it won’t overflow.  If it is in danger of overflowing then remove some.  I use a turkey baster for that (but whatever you do, don’t borrow your wife’s baster.  Buy your own.) There actually is a specialized tool for pressing the piston back into the caliper. I just use a C-clamp. Gently tighten the C-clamp until it has pushed the piston all the way back into the caliper.
15. The ends of the pistons have these little spring-clip-plates  fastened to the open end.  Replacement plates were included in the brake pads from the dealership. It’s really easy to pop them off the piston and then pop them back on (or pop new ones on) after reseating the piston.
16. Here you can see the spring-clip-plate snapped onto the open end of the piston.
17. Reinstall the caliper and secure the two bolts with a little blue locktite.
18. Repeat the the other wheel.
19. Plug the harness back into the brake controller.
20. Now it’s time for the Christmas Party. “What do I mean”, you ask. After cleaning up a bit and putting everything away, it’s time to start the engine.  The instrument cluster will probably light up like a Christmas tree with red warnings about reduced braking effectiveness, etc (I wish I had taken a photo.  It was pretty spectacular).  Pump the brake pedal a few dozen times.  You will also hear the brake controller’s pump running a lot.  Turn the ignition off and back on.  If the lights are out then you’re done.  Other wise pump some more and repeat the process. After a few of these cycles the instrument cluster should look normal when you start the car.

You’re done.

Technorati Tags: 2006 E350, DIY Brake Pad Replacement Mercedes E350, Mercedes, Mercedes-Benz

MIssing Left Front Jack Pad

I started to jack up the left front wheel to replace the brake pads and SURPRISE!

No jack pad.  It was there the last time I looked.  Left rear jack pad missing too.

I talked to Bud Cloninger, Owner of MB Motors (the only place I let touch my car), and he said that he often has W211’s in his shop  that are missing a jack pad.

So I made a trip to Phoenix

Jack Pad Top VIew

Motor Company and purchased two new ones.  They are plastic and snap into the hole.  after snapping it in place, a center ‘plunger’ is pressed in place.  On the right front jack pad, I noticed that the plunger is not completed pressed all the way in.

Over time, I suspect that the rubber o-rings on the plunger dry out, allowing the plunger to back out?  I don’t know.

Technorati Tags: E350 jack pads

I’m really looking forward to Bud Cloninger’s Clean Car Event Tech Session, but I thought I would share some of my techniques.

My previous benz was a beautiful black 300E.  Have you ever owned a black car?  Oh man are they hard to keep looking nice.  Miss one week of cleaning and it looks like you haven’t washed it in a year.  I learned a lot about detailing.

The first thing I learned was to throw away all the cotton and terrycloth towels I was using for drying.  They were good for one thing: putting swirl marks in the paint.  Now I use only high-quality microfiber towels.

I also stopped using the once-size-fits-all car waxes found at your local autoparts store.  There are several sites on the web that cater to people like me.  I buy almost all my detailing products and supplies from Classic Motoring Accessories. This guy seems to live and breath automotive detailing and has even created his own line of products, some of which I use.

Around 2004, there was a tectonic shift in the chemistry of the paints that Mercedes-Benz uses.  That’s when they began using a clearcoat containing ceramic nano-particles, making the clearcoat really hard and much more resistant to scratches and swirlmarks.

Acrylic Sealant vs Wax

Firat a word about Carnuba wax:  It is wonderful stuff.  Produces the best-looking finishes I have ever seen.  The problem is that in the summer here in Arizona the surface temperature of our cars exceeds the melting point of Carnuba. Therefore I long ago I switched to synthetic waxes which are more properly called acrylic sealants.

For Pre-Ceramic Paints:

Every couple of month I gave the car a light treatment of a very light polish followed by an acrylic sealant. Once or twice a year I would give the car the full treatment:

• Clay to remove grit embedded in the paint.
• One application of a more intensive polish
• One application of a very light polish to remove swirls left my the intensive polish.
• Glaze to fill any remaining swirls.
• Acrylic sealant

For Ceramic Paints:

I have a different routine for my 2006 E350.  Life is simpler.  About twice a year:

• Clay to remove grit embedded in the paint.
• A light polish designed specifically for the ceramic clearcoat.
• Acrylic Sealant
• Spray to hit any waterspots

I was the car once every week or two, drying it with a large microfiber towel.  Then I come back later and use the spray on areas where there are waterspots.

A few days ago, I dropped my W212 off at MB Motors for service. Dee was kind enough to arrange for a rental car for the day. The Avis guy came to the shop and picked me up in my rental:

a Mercury Grand Marquis…. Ultimate Edition

oh wow…..not

Thank you Ford and Avis for the gentle reminder that our Mercedes-Benz are in a completely different league.

It happens every time I get out of a rental and back into my Mercedes-Benz. Even with my W124. I would get back into my 12-year-old 300E after driving a brand new Ford or GM rental and sigh with contentment. My MB was tighter, more solid, and actually felt newer.

Someone on the MBWorld forum today called them ‘Starships’. Though I have never before heard our Mercedes-Benz automobiles referred to as Starships, he was right.

Never forget: We are driving Starships

Several options exist if you want to integrate your iPod into your W211. Here is a list of the ones I have found:

Factory iPod Integration Kit.
My local dealer (Phoenix Motor Company) can install this. Your MIleage May Vary.

iTronic™ Audio iPod Connection, $549
http://cartronics.com/MBMost.html?MBClass=E&VIM=1

Dension Gateway 500
http://www.dension.com/index.php?pageID=11

oPi-M MB-MOST, $699.99
http://www.icarkits.com/product_info.php?products_id=3334

mObAudio-MB, $624
iPodCarPros.com

Here is a good BenzWorld overview.

Technorati Tags: iPod Integration, MB, Mercedes, Mercedes-Benz

Yesterday Apple announced the new iPhone 3Gs, and I’ll bet that a bunch of people will suddenly have the need for instructions for pairing their phone.  Here they are:

1. Enter the vehicle in the driver’s position.  Vehicle must be parked outside in a safe place with the engine running. Be sure you have your approved wireless phone and your wireless phone owner’s manual. 
2. The Bluetooth Interface Module should be attached to the connector, located in the center armrest.
3. Locate the Mercedes-Benz emblem on the front of the Bluetooth Interface Module and push down on it for 3 seconds. Blue lamps on the front of the module will begin to blink rapidly, then release.
4. Pick up your wireless phone and set up your phone to pair to a Bluetooth device as per your wireless phone owner’s manual. During this process your phone will ask you for a code, enter 62872 on your PHONE’S keypad. Attention S and CL customers, 2 Bluetooth devices will appear as found on your wireless phone. Be sure to select MB Phone System.
5. Your phone should give you a confirmation message the pairing is complete.
6. Test phone by making a call through the vehicle.
7. Turn off the engine, be sure to take the key with you, exit the vehicle.

Technorati Tags: Bluetooth, cellphone, Mercedes, Mercedes-Benz, Pairing

Here is one-half of my Electronic Counter Measures System.

If you live in the Phoenix, Arizona area then you know about the speed cameras. They are usually referred to as Photo Radar but actually they employ piezoelectric sensors buried in the roadway and do a simple time-speed-distance calculation.

It’s not that I am a speed demon. For me at least, what happens is that I am going along with the flow of traffic, keeping a watchful eye out for hazards while rehearsing the points I need to make during the meeting at my destination, and ZAP!

Since the cameras don’t use radar, I needed something else. Some research on the Internet turned up several devices and the new Cheetah C100 looked like it would be the best choice. Cheetah has been around for a while, embedding the electronics in a rearview mirror. This new C100, about the size and shape of a pack of cigarettes is pretty new. Essentially, it is a GPS receiver. In it is a database of the locations of all speed cameras known to man.

It comes with a CD and a USB cable and can be updated over the Internet. Cheetah recommends updating the database once a month.

The C100 comes with some interesting features, some useful and others not-so-useful.

It can also warn you about the known locations that the mobile cameras like to use. Since they use actual radar, my ValentineOne should take care of those nicely and I turned that feature off.

It has a programmable ‘Overspeed Alert’, a speed at which it bitches at you no matter what. (It also knows the posted speed limit at each camera location and warns you if you are exceeding that speed.) What I would really like is this: We all know that the cameras around here will allow up to 10 mph over the limit so what I would really like is to have it sound the overspeed warning only when approaching a camera at least 10 mph above the posted limit. Alas, it can’t do that.

I also knows how to connect wirelessly to may popular radar detectors and verbally announce the radar warning. My V1 does an excellent job of that on its own.

It will tell you the time - big deal. It displays the direction of travel and your speed calculated from the GPS. Now you can know how fast you are really going. My speedometer appears to be about 1mph off.

Installation:

You can see that I ran the power cable down the side of the dash between the A pillar and the dash, stuffing it under the weatherstripping (The V1’s power cable is in there too).  The C100 comes with a little rubber matt much like a thin version of a mousepad.  I cut out a section of it the size of the C100 and siliconed it to the bottom of the unit.

How well does it work?

Perfectly. I’ve had it in the car for about a week, travelling the 101, I-17, and I-10. It has never missed a camera and always gives me plenty of warning. The C100 is smart enough to take my direction of travel into account so that when I am eastbound it won’t try to warn me about cameras designed to catch westbound traffic. (Some competors, I noted, don’t have this feature.)

Technorati Tags: Cheetah C100, Loop 101, Photo Radar, speed cameras

I am often asked about the hat resting on the dash above the instrument cluster.

It was my dad’s. It is a Burberry’s golf cap. I bought it at Harrods during a trip to London in 1985.

Dad loved that cap and he wore it everywhere.

Dad loved cars so I thought it only fitting that his cap sits there.