Which blower switch for 64/65 230 SL?

[Ulf]

Happy New Year to you all. I'm thinking about replacing the blower switch in my 230 SL as I suspect that it might be related to the issues I've had with the cold starting (mentioned in a previous) post as the short fuse that both feeds the CSV and blower motor kept blowing (the fuse that is...). Besides, the blower doesn't have much power. But I've noticed that there are two different ones (both equally pricey), one with 4 connectors and one with 5 (see attachments). Which one is the correct for a 230 SL?

Br

Ulf

[Jonny B]

My guess is that the five pin switch has the small light for the blower knob?

[scoot]

The top one.  It has a lightbulb.  That is useless. 

[Ulf]

Thanks a lot :-)

[scoot]

Wait a minute, this still doesn't look right.  The potentiometer should have a fiber coming out at the tip of the shaft - that's how the (useless) light comes out.  I can't see that in the picture...

[ja17]

I thought the early cars did not have the light? Check your plug to see how many wires it has.

[scoot]

I thought the early cars did not have the light? Check your plug to see how many wires it has.

You may be correct.  I agree, take out old switch and see what it has, whether or not it has a fiber at the end of shaft (rigid fiber) AND does your existing knob have a tiny hole in the end???   By the way, in case you haven't taken one of these apart before, DON'T pull off the knob.  The knob comes off as a single unit with the chrome bezel.  Unscrew the bezel, then the knob comes out with the bezel.

[114015]

Yes...,
illuminated.

All 230ies and early 250 SLs (up to the famous serial no. 002979) had the illuminated knob on the blower switch.
Also when built before July 1963.

 

[scoot]

illuminated.

All 230ies and early 250 SLs (up to the famous serial no. 002979) had the illuminated knob on the blower switch.

If that is the case, than neither of the above pictured blower switches are correct, as neither has the fiber optic cable to provide the illumination...

[114015]

Yes..., Scott,
That is my understanding.
The upper one (with the four copper-colored contacts) on the pics posted by Ulf _should_ also have the fiber optic cable,
which is missing there.
Appears to me to be one of the available new repros and no NOS. Maybe...

But it has got the little clamp that (should) hold the illumination bulb, which the lower one (the one with three contacts) is missing.

The fiber optic cable can be refabricated and applied to that switch if desired.   Friend of mine did that on his 230.

[scoot]

It should look like this:

[Paul99]

my 230 has the optic light, but found the old bulb was so hot overtime that it overheated the unit and became very brittle.  i did try to get the light working - it was slightly less bright than a gloworm on a bad day. So didn't bother to refit the bulb. 

I guess an LED bulb would work?  But the optic bit is so small.

[Pawel66]

Sorry, just for my knowledge: is it the fiber that should stick out of the switch shaft or the bulb?

I see the bulb sticking out of the shaft on the picture, not the fiber. In such case the switches in question may simply not have the bulb installed, but both of them seem to have an opening at the end of the shaft for something, e.g. the bulb...

[scoot]

My recollection is that the fiber sticks out the tiniest amount in front of the knob, but it might be that it's just inside the knob.  It's supposed to be how it looks in the (correct) pictures and as others have mentioned, it's about as bright as a glow worm on a bad day.

[Pawel66]

Why then do I see a bulb sticking out on your picture?

[scoot]

Why then do I see a bulb sticking out on your picture?

That's not a bulb.  That's the fiber.  The knob/bezel slides over that and screws on.

[Pawel66]

Thank you, this is what confused me!

If you do not know exactly what to expect - I could swear it was a bulb!