paran

Here's the result of Mercedes (BMW?) using recycled material for their electrical wire sheathing:

paran

I have a personal history with the Mercedes wire sheathing issue. Once that cancer starts, there's no stopping it.

I think some high quality Vinyl Electrical Tape, like Scotch Super 88, tightly wound around a group of wires could prevent the sheathing from being able to fall off. It is simply an insulation to prevent shorts, so even if it degrades and cracks, if it can be held in place with tape, it should be okay.

It is heat, and simply the clock ticking, that killed the Mercedes wire. I'm hoping that it's simply "heat" that dries out the BMW wire because you can somewhat control that, but if it's Father Time, you're screwed.

Keep your wire away from any heatsinks (Angel Eyes) and that should help in extending its life.

KyleB

former W124 owner??

paran

W140; sad to say.

KyleB

We did a TON of W124 engine harnesses at my old workplace. I always felt bad for the owners of those cars that had to fork over big bucks because of poor manufacturing materials.

paran

I believe it.

So how does Mercedes feel that using recycled material in their wire sheathing is saving the planet when you have thousands of cars filling the garbage dumps with 2 sets of wiring harnesses instead of just one? Not to mention the carbon footprint from having to manufacture twice as many wiring harnesses.

Go figure. But it makes for great PR at the time of a new car purchase!

turboawd

the one thing bmw is definetly bad at is anything to do with plastics or rubber.

turboawd

what year and model car is that from?
wow, i never seen wire that bad.

paran

Any Mercedes Model W124, W140, nad God only knows how widespread beyond these it goes.

And yet, Mercedes brags about using recycled plastics/rubber in their cars to this day.

My wire set looked every bit as bad and perhaps worse than those photos.

They are very representative of the issue with Mercedes.

tonyb635

What evidence is there that says this is actually recycled material used instead of inferior crap material? Just hope you don't buy a car with a Chinese wire harness. We had a four wheeler and it was dried out similar to this.