No Heat+other questions - No Heat+other bits of advice

[woz]

Hello there, this is a fantastic site by the way. I have been browsing for the last hour.  Mercedes 190E 1989 87000 questionable miles.
I have a couple of problems. My first is my windscreen wiper which struggles to get accross the screen unless it is wet. Does this mean I need a new motor or a new linkage? Is there a way to tell which I need or do I need both?
My other problem is possibly more serious. My heater does not blow hot air unless the car is stationary and only warm then, and then promptly gets cold as soon as I start driving. I also get a slight engine compartment smell(oily). The car runs fine except for the occasional misfire when idleing although when stood in traffic the temperature soon rises and continues to rise until I start driving again. The radiator fan can be spun or stopped by hand whether the car is running or not, is this right? Could this have somthing to do with the temperature rise?      Do you know the temperature at which the fan is supposed to start?
Sorry, there must be a few more than two questions here but I am trying to give you the full picture...Thanks


(Edited by woz at 6:22 pm on Jan. 1, 2002)

 

[Andy]

No Heat+other questions

Hi,

All the questions you have asked are all in the gallery of info in this forum.

1.The engine temp should be 90-100 degrees cent. Any thing below is means its not warming up properly anything above 110 its getting too hot!

2.Theres a couple of things to try with regards to the wiper. First pull of the trim which covers the wiper arm and the mechanism. This exposes the spindle. Turn the w\motor of with ign key when wiper is the middle of the screen. Thereby exposing the mojority of the spindle. Lightly grease it(NOT WD40). The try again. If this cures it ok. If not it could be the motor itself.

3. If the engine temp is getting to the correct temp as in (1) then check the pipes to the heater box. Check if they are warm\hot. They are the black metal pipes which run down both sides of the chassis leg and up under the windscreen you should easily be able to identify.  By the drivers side under the windscreen there is a heater tap. It might be prudent to check if its operating ok. If they are (pipes)hot or warm. I would think the interior heater matrix is blocked.

4. As for the occasional misfire you have probably got a tear in the plug lead\cap insulation which is arcing out.

Good luck.

Regards

Andy @ www.mercedesservicing.com

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Thankyou for the advice, I will investigate further tomorrow

 

[Neil Eglintine]

No Heat+other questions

My 190E needed a thermostat change to solve cold running. Simple and cheap!

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Wish it was that simple Neil. Unfortunatley even when my car starts to get hot when stood in traffic the heater only blows slightly warm air. Think I will try what Andy suggested while changing the thermostat at the same time. Hopefully that will solve my problem, if not I hope its not somthing silly like the head gasket or somthing like that although there are not many indications that it might be that.....I don't think ;-)  Thanks, Warren.

 

[eric]

No Heat+other questions

Fan should cut-in at 102 degrees and cut-out at about 95 degree.  Check to see it does this (leave idling and see that it cuts-in when needle is just above "100" mark on gauge.  A new thermoswitch is only about £15.

You can lubricate your wiper.  Use a spot of ATF on the 'plunger' arm (the chrome plated bit).  Ideally, pop off the mechism cover (press in the retainers at the 5-O'clock and 7-O'clock positions on the back of the pluger mechanism - use a cranked Allen key, or similar).  Then lubricate with suitable grease.

Eric

 

[Matt Crooke]

No Heat+other questions

I got slightly confused when i first got my 190E, as up until then, i thought that all engine cooling fans were either viscous or electric. It turns out that the ones on the 1.8 & 2.0 190's are Electro Magnetic, and are operated by a little gold and red switch on top of the engine. It turned out mine wasnt working, and i replaced the switch. At that point it still wasnt working so i was at a bit of a loss, until i checked the fuse. I replaced this and it was all fine. It turns out that the fuse that protects the fan also protects the rev counter as well (that had stopped working as well) a new fuse and hey presto, both are working again.

 

[Matt Crooke]

No Heat+other questions

Talking about heating as well, dont forget that the centre 2 vents are cold air only, despite what setting the heat control is on.

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Excellent advice, thanks very much. I think I'll wait until the weekend to do the work so I can borrow someones gagage. Bleedin' perishing at the moment out there

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Tried running the car at idle to see if the cars fan would cut in at the correct temperature. Unfortunatley it didn't, and besides that engine fumes(smoke) slowly began to seep through the vents inside the car at about 100+ degrees and at about 110-115 I got worried and turned off the engine. I am changing the thermostat, flushing the rad and heater/engine in the morning. Hopefully that will solve the problem.

 

[eric]

No Heat+other questions

You need to get your cooling fan working!  Switch failure is the most likely problem - but check the obvious first (fuse and wiring connections).

Eric

 

[eric]

No Heat+other questions

You need to get your cooling fan working!  Switch failure is the most likely problem - but check the obvious first (fuse and wiring connections).

Eric

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Thanks for the tip eric. Just in case both of those are ok where abouts is the thermo switch?  And is there any way I can test the switch? Woz

(Edited by woz at 9:32 pm on Jan. 6, 2002)

 

[Matt Crooke]

No Heat+other questions

Its the red and gold switch right on the top/front of the engine closed to you. Just forward of the rocker box cover. This was the problem on mine, the switches are pretty weak by all accounts. Simply remove the plug on top of the switch, unscrew the old one (be prepared for some water loss out the hole) and screw the new one in.

You can test the fan to see if its working. the black plug that fits on top of the switch has 2 holes in it. Run a wire from the positive terminal on the car battery to one of these holes. When you connect the wire, you will here a very noticiable 'click' sound. this is the electromagnetic fan locking on. I did this with the engine switched off the first time just in case!

If that dosent work, there is also a plug that fits into the back of the fan housing, its a real pain to get to. and should only be tried when the engine is cold. That may have come loose as well.

Definatly invest in a Haynes Manual, there are pictures of all the stuff i have mentioned above, so it makes it a lot easier!

cheers

 

[woz]

No Heat+other questions

Did that and it seems that the thermo switch has had its day   Having almost sorted that one out my heater has stopped blowing out hot air again after a temporary working spell after a flush out and a new thermostat. There was one thing I didn't do when I did the flushing and that was to undo the engine drain plug cos I couldn't find the sodding thing. I got a Haynes manual and it says it is on the right hand side!!! Which is te right hand side..? If you get my drift, I do know my right from my left Thanks

 

[Matt Crooke]

No Heat+other questions

I presume you heard the fan engage when you attached the wire to the battery? rather the switch go than the fan its self!

When you flushed the engine dod you do it for very long? only what you describe sounds like you cleared the heater matrix, and after a while it has blocked up again. It might be worth trying another flush, but keep the water/radflush running through the whole system for about 10/15 minutes...seems excessive, but at least that way you will know its totally clear. Then of course refill with new antifreeze etc.