Wiper Turn Signal Switch

[Am67]

Am looking to locate a new or used wiper turn signal switch for my 1967 230sl. 

[jpressick]

I have a turn signal that seems to be operational but I don’t know what year it is from.

[Merc_Girl]

Good luck!!

I tried to find one and I was ‘kindly’ offered one for £4,000! 

I therefore kept with the ‘wrong’ one.

The 230SL switch doesn’t have any pictures/stencils on it, later ones had windscreen and indicator arrows showing

[Benz Dr.]

Good luck!!

I tried to find one and I was ‘kindly’ offered one for £4,000! 

I therefore kept with the ‘wrong’ one.

The 230SL switch doesn’t have any pictures/stencils on it, later ones had windscreen and indicator arrows showing

I think the angle of the arm is different too. Not the same at all.

[Merc_Girl]

I think the angle of the arm is different too. Not the same at all.

Very true!

[David Robinson]

Hi does the later one (incorrect one for the 230) fit ok? connector etc?

[stickandrudderman]

The early and later switches are not interchangeable.

[Merc_Girl]

Hi does the later one (incorrect one for the 230) fit ok? connector etc?

Hi David
I’m not sure what they did on my car, but certainly is not the correct switch.

I am lead to believe from this portal, and like Colin says, the latter variants are not compatible so goodness’s knows what the previous owner did!

I’ll ask the garage where some work is being done, to see if they can identify what the switch is from
Katie

[Pawel66]

Maybe post a pic - Members here may able to tell you what was done...

[114015]

I am going to upload a pic of the two Pagoda turnsignal switches later today,
togeter with a 250 S/SE one for comparison.


Achim

[66andBlue]

Photos of both switches are right here in our technical manual:
https://www.sl113.org/wiki/Electrical/SteeringColumnSwitch

[Pawel66]

Yes, they are there. I was rather after helping Katie determine the mods she might have had done on the car by PO.

[David Robinson]

See my sad switch. I got an estimate of $800 to fix

[David Robinson]

Thanks Katie

[Merc_Girl]

See my sad switch. I got an estimate of $800 to fix

If someone can fix, that may be a better option?

[Pawel66]

There is a steering column for sale in this post. It is from W108, the seller said. It has a switch - but I am not sure if this switch works, would fit or could be made fit to w113: https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=3844920385570664&set=pcb.1812281448919867

[David Robinson]

Thanks Pawell. I also don't know

[stickandrudderman]

For a RHD 230SL, only the correct switch for that car will fit.

[David Robinson]

Colin what about a LHD?

[Pawel66]

I have been checking the part numbers.

W113042 PN A 001 545 55 24 (there is no RHD or LHD, one number) used only on W113
W113043 PN A 001 545 55 24 (no RHD or LHD) same part, until chassis 0 02979 used only on W113

Then as of 043 002980

W113043 PN A 002 545 29 24 LHD used only on W113
W113043 PN A 002 545 54 24 RHD used only on W113

Then
W113044 PN A 002 545 29 24 no LHD and RHD, one part number

No match with any W108 or anything else 

[114015]

See my sad switch. I got an estimate of $800 to fix

David  (and Others),

The problem is that these parts were well designed but unique to the Pagoda (early style and late style as Pawel indicated).
This is because the W113 was the first MB car ever that had a 'combination switch' and not only a turn-signal switch. This was the first one where more operations were included than only turnsignal indication and headlight flasher but also the complete wiper/washer function.

VDO was the manufacturer of this unit, called internally "LS15".
Sadly VDO was a familiy-owned company and underwent numerous owner changes throughout the late 1990s and early 2000's by the typical merger mania business that is so common nowadys.
Thus VDO is no longer in business, VDO was finally sold out and disappeared from the market ... although the 'brand name' still somehow and sometimes exists.
That's why a new production run (production "batch" we call this in pharmaceutical industry) is no longer possible and most likely the tooling for the switch was discarded.
I tried to contact the company via a friend who had a friend working over there at VDO in Frankfurt ... when they were still somehow in business in the very early 2000's... but no luck anymore. 'We don't know this part anymore...' was the lapidary answer...

OK, so 230 SL and 600 Grand (W100), both introduced in 1963, were the first (MB) cars which had such a combination switch..., and Porsche 911 (or better say 901) in late 1963 the next one then (at least that was what the car magazines wrote about those) but no other German car back then.

In August 1965 the new W108 was introduced (and the W111C updated from 220 to 250 ...) and these cars also got "new combination switches" very similar to the one of the 230 SL.
But...
(and there is always a but)
... these switches  for the W108/W111 have now been produced by Kostal in Lüdenscheid and no longer with VDO in Frankfurt.
Maybe because Kostal made a better offer to Daimler-Benz than VDO could do in those years.
These early W108 units "look" similar but are clearly not identical. Everything is different and mainly if you push the column arm/handle forward for the W108 switch you engage the high beam function instead of the windshield washer as on our W113 cars.
These both functions are electrically basically non-interchangeable...
Even the little handle - that is broken on your car, David, looks similar but is clearly different from the W113 part.
All later MB cars basically at least until the late 1970ies/1980ies got column switches made by Kostal, and those are all pretty similar.
... and as such there is (or maybe) at least some interchangeability with these units, at least (spare) parts-wise.

Not so with the both W113 units.
Sad story is that there were East-Asian (Chinese?) aftermarket units available for a couple of years - for less than half the price of the OEM parts, and those were functional! But this supply no longer lasts and those are now also NLA, in the same way as the original parts.

The only thing you can do, David, is to try to find another used one, either 230 or 280 SL switch and make "one out of two" by disassembly & reassembly pretty much in the way how a watchmaker would do that. 230 SL switches (A001 545 5524) are totally 'unobtainium' currently (pretty much worldwide) and 280 SL switches (A002 545 2924) are only 'pretty hard to come by' ... 

Your case, David, is especially tricky,
since the inner part of the handle (the part fixed to the chrome arm) is totally broken and clearly needs to be replaced.
The outer part (the handle), the sliding one, can be replaced and mostly works flawless even if it is broken or cracked.
But not so if the inner part is broken, sadly...

In theory you can use an unbroken black handle of a 280 SL switch - inner and outer part, if ...
 !! Don't be afraid of any of the inscriptions that the 280 SL part carries and the 230 SL part has not...! Anyway, the black handles themselves are totally interchangeable.
If there wasn't the problem with the chrome arm...!

David, look at your (broken) handle, please.
What you can see is the open end of the chrome arm, which is a metal tube by the way containing the black and green wires therein.
Now, the end of this arm is slotted but also widened very much similar like a little trumpet!
The reason was/is to keep the inner black part tightly fixed to the arm. That's why they did that.

Well, if you now wanted to put/push an unbroken "new" inner part (lets say from a 280 SL donor switch) to your chrome arm... it wouldn't fit - until you first bend back and remove the trumpet-like opening of the chrome arm, so that it becomes straight again.
A bit fuzzy I would say...
Not to speak about that you first need to rescue/salvage a useable inner handle part from a donor switch, which can be only from a 230 or 280 SL as mentioned above.

Only solution would be to "obtain" aftermarket handle parts (let's say from Chinese origin) if those "were" available.
But unfortunately, those are not. Maybe someone steps in with 3D-printed repro parts ...

Sorry please that I do not have any better news for you.

Stay healthy,
Achim

(columnswitchaficionado)

[doitwright]

You can investigate to see if this will help

https://oldtimer-ersatzteile24.de/Griffstueck-fuer-Mercedes-W113-Blinkerschalter

[stickandrudderman]

Then
W113044 PN A 002 545 29 24 no LHD and RHD, one part number

I think this is simply because they deleted the symbols

[David Robinson]

Achim et all
Thanks for all the information.
I foolishly did not buy a new original for $400 a few years back as mine although damaged was still functioning and looked ok.