eddyther

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Hi,

I bought a VALEO parktronic (the rear ones) in a shop in Spain, and took it home to paint it.
When I went back to the store for the installation, they told me that the SLK from 2005 has new wires and they cannot install any partronic except for the MB original one.
They told me that if they install the Valeo one, I will have permanently a warming about electrical failure on the main board!!!

My problem is that I already painted the sensors, so I cannot give them back!!!


I never heard about that issue.Is it true?

Did someone put a Valeo or any other ones and got that warming on the screen?

Thanks a lot

etyu

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Are you in the UK eddyther? It will be helpful to update your profile with the location and vehicle.

Is it not possible to remove the paint with a mild thinner/reducer without damaging the original finish of the Valeo parktronic sensors?

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Eddy

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Pewter/Beige, PIII package, Airscarf, Hands-Free Communication System, Lighting package
Designo Black Leather Cover on e-brake handle, (
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Bill T), SmartTop v1.0, Kleyman 3BFM (NoRegret Custom), Green Air Filters, Mod. R170 ant.
EuroClear sidemarkers w/PIAA PlasmaIon lamps, chromed front & rear turn indicator lamps, PIAA SuperPlasmaGTX front parking lamps, HyperWhite license plate lamps (
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Scott), bilateral rear fog lamps enabled.

eddyther

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Sorry etyu, I have update my profile!!!

I'm from Spain.

About removing the paint, I will try.Anyway I have nothing to loose!!

But I wanted to know if it's true what they told me.I never heard about that problem!!!

etyu

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Use a mild thinner/solvent on a damp cotton-tipped applicator (Q-tip) that is friendly to plastic.

I have no knowledge about the type of parktronic sensors used but am not surprised in that manufacturers usually use their own proprietary stuff and make it difficult for the consumer to use aftermarket parts. Perhaps DansSLK or other members with similar experience might chime in later.

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Eddy

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Pewter/Beige, PIII package, Airscarf, Hands-Free Communication System, Lighting package
Designo Black Leather Cover on e-brake handle, (
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Bill T), SmartTop v1.0, Kleyman 3BFM (NoRegret Custom), Green Air Filters, Mod. R170 ant.
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Scott), bilateral rear fog lamps enabled.

eddyther

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OK, thanks.
I will send a PM to DansSLK...

UK-C200

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eddyther - did they explain exactly what the "error" was going to be? As I recall, a number of folks have installed them on C's, and there's a trick or two to making them work without causing errors.

eddyther

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It will appear, on the screen of the SLK something like "electrical problem" or "electrical failure", due to the connection of the sensors to the white reverse lamp.

Nothing else will happen, I mean everything will work ok (including the sensors, but if in the future I have an electrical problem I will not know because the message already displays on the screen.

This is what they told me.(they sayed it happened to them with few modern MB (from 2005)

About the tricks you said, do you know where can I find them?

Thanks a lot

UK-C200

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Sounds like the exact same problems with the C installs - I'll search around on the "other" forums and see if I can find the post and the way to work around it. I want to say that it involved tapping at the actual reverse light itself, but I'll try and dig up the specifics...

Can you post some pictures or a link to the actual kit you have? Most of these are pretty "standard" in that they only power the system when the car is in reverse, and they accomplish that by tapping their power from one of the reverse lights. MB senses "bulb failure" by checking load across the various circuits, so I can see where it would confuse things if the bulb where to burn out but the system still "sensed" the load from the backup unit's brain.

My gut feeling is that the worse case scenario is that the system would either sense the increased load on the backup light as a "overload" situation, and report some error, or that the system would not be able to detect when the bulb failed.

In situation #1 above, I'd suspect that this could be eliminated in one of two ways. First would be to use a low power relay attached to the reverse light to actually power the reverse sensors brain. The other would be (more expensive, but guaranteed to work regardless) to purchase a CANBUS reverse signal tap, and use this to trigger the power for the reverse sensor brain.

#2 above would to me be acceptable. I'd try and mitigate the risk by wiring the unit in series with the bulb, rather than just tapping the wire (ie - wire the brain is series rather than parallel). This way, if the filament is dead, you don't get power to the brain at all.... Need to think about this one a bit, and I'm not familiar with the SLK's reversing light configuration to know if this is realistic. Dan may be able to assist you on that bit...

If you are comfortable (or have a friend who is) working with your car's power system, I'd personally give it a try. Worse case is you find out it does not work, and you are no worse off than you are today. Best case is you get it working!

DansSlk

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To be honest i hate to say this but Mercedes sell a rear only Parktronic kit that uses the exact same parts as the factory PTS but with the front sensors and display omitted, it's guaranteed to work.

If you want to use the non-MB kit then it would help to know what gearbox does your car have? Depending on the box the reverse signal might not be on the right CAN

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eddyther

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UK-C200 ,The model I have is Valeo Beep & Park, kit Nº1.You can see it here:

http://stores.channeladvisor.com/towbar/Items/632000

About the power, the + on the sensor kit has to be connected to the rear + light (it has a fuse in between),and the black wire of the kit is connected to the ground.For this purpose. the kit contain connectors like this one (look at the blue one)

http://www.migranpipa.net/gallery2/d...orriente+1.JPG


DansSlk, my SLK is 2007 model.
About the gearbox, mine is the manual one, with 6 gears


Thanks to both for your answers and I hope we will find together the best way to make the connection!!

fgwinn

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I installed an aftermarket sensor in my 2005 SLK350 (since traded in on SL). I posted some pictures on the benzworld forum. I was able to "tap" into the backup power by modifying the backup light socket. When I first tried the unit without a bulb in place, I did get a burned out bulb message on the display. With the bulb installed, the unit worked fine. I speculated that the backup unit was not drawing as much current as the bulb.

I suppose it is possible that the unit you have is drawing too much current and causing a different error. You may try using a low current relay to isolate the backup power supply from the backup circuit itself.

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fgwinn old friend, how do you like your SL550?

eddyther

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Thanks,

Do you know where can I buy it and how do I have to connect it?

fgwinn

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Like Cruzer 8, I am in love with the SL550. I think even my wife may finally admit she prefers the SL550 over the SLK, even though she just about choked at the price. I seriously considered the SL500 in 2004 about a year before we got out first SLK350. I don't regret passing on the SL500 4 years ago. Prices were higher then for lightly equipped SL500s then they were for the fully loaded 2008 SL550 closeouts.

I can't wait to get the SL550 out on the Thunderbolt Raceway track in NJ this coming October.

fgwinn

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I assume you are talking about the relay rather than the aftermarket backup sensor. I would think that a standard horn relay would be a possible choice. These should be available at any automotive parts store. You could power the relay from the backup bulb socket as shown in the picture I posted above. Then you could pick up power for the other side of the relay from one of the two 12-volt accessory circuits. Unfortunately, this would mean running a power line from the console area to the rear of the car.

The accessory circuit should be a safe place to get power. I think it is protected with a 15 amp fuse. I would try powering the relay from the backup bulb circuit first before I bothered routing a wire from one of the accessory sockets in the console back to the relay. Don't drill any holes to route the power leads. Find an existing hole to route the wires.

Fortunately, the backup sensor I used had an adaptive power circuit. It did not make any difference which lead was connected to the plus or minus side of the bulb socket. I think you will need to determine which lead is positive if you use a standard horn relay.