SL 55 Command radio reception

SL 55 Command radio reception

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635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Tuesday 14th September 2010
quotequote all
For the last 6 months I have a 2003 SL 55.
I Love the car in every way, there is though one niggle which is annoying me.
The radio which is part of the command system has really poor reception, driving around London most FM statios are in audible.AM is slightly better but still not as one would expect.
The car is fitted with an auxillery IPod connection, when I play music this way the sound is fantastic, so the problem is the reception of the radio.
A Mercedes dealer has looked at it whilst servicing the car, they didnt really have anything useful to say.

Has anybody else with an SL had a similar problem ?

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Tuesday 14th September 2010
quotequote all
Interesting, will have a look tonight

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Tuesday 14th September 2010
quotequote all
OK, i popped down to the carpark and had a look at the rear screen, I can only see the usual horizonal lines of the rear screen heater. There are also 2 SL 63s in the car park (it is Belgravia) and they also seem to have only the heater wires in their rear screens.#
In the front screen there is a wire that could be an ariel (with two loops at the bottom). This is interupted by a stone chip in the windscreen.
Is this wire anything to do with the radio?

Gouki

352 posts

185 months

Tuesday 14th September 2010
quotequote all
I'll have a look at my SL55 tonight for you and take a photo of the screen.

I've just had the windscreen replaced and the chap from Autoglass said that there are many different variants with various antennaes. First time they visited to replace the screen they brought the wrong one. No problems with reception here.

On a seperate note, I think I've just encountered the dreaded but common R230/W220 stuck in 'park' issue. Either due to a tiny piece of plastic broken in the electronic gear selector mechanism or possibly contacts on the brake light switch under the dash.

CycleSi

504 posts

194 months

Tuesday 14th September 2010
quotequote all
Mine is less than satisfactory at times - I find it only works on certain stations whereas the radio in my wife's 8 year old RAV4 has excellent reception all the time.

Can you add some kind of signal booster perhaps?

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Wednesday 15th September 2010
quotequote all
Maybe you can, I am going to call an in-car audio man and ask, will let you know what he says

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Wednesday 15th September 2010
quotequote all
Apparently there is not much you can do in terms of signal boosting, My radio chap said that he thinks the ariel is in the front screen and I do have a stone chip there that may be touching one of the thin wires that are viable in the glass.
He also said that merc command units of that era were tempramental

CycleSi

504 posts

194 months

Wednesday 15th September 2010
quotequote all
Thanks for finding out. Guess l'll just have to move closer to a transmitter !

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Friday 17th September 2010
quotequote all
At least the V8 sounds good !

Gouki

352 posts

185 months

Friday 17th September 2010
quotequote all
I tried to take a picture of the windscreen, but the antennae lines are quite fine and do not display well. The best way to describe it there are two oval lines near the wipers and a colleciton of antennae around the rear view mirror, and a final line splitting the windscreen vertically.

635csi

Original Poster:

125 posts

172 months

Friday 17th September 2010
quotequote all
Thanks, I have the same pattern of wires in my screen, the stone chip is very close to one of them and i think may have broken the antenna