Care for the W124 Ignition Control Unit

As the years go by for the W124, it has still yet to be dreary to drive one..

However, as the numbers on the road dwindle, it may no longer be economical to continue to produce spare parts for this particular make.

One of the critical components that may be affected by production is the Ignition Control Module.
For the KE-Jetronics/CIS-E managed engines such as the M102, this is a critical component and though it hardly fails, if it does, the engine will stall and it will not be able to crank up again until the faulty Ignition Control Module [ or Trigger Board as it is fondly called in Singapore/Malaysia ] is replaced.

Ignition Control Module aka Trigger Board/Box

Whining noises and causes

Chanced upon a good article and would like to share.

While driving, if some whining noises is heard, here's how to diagnose them

Case 1
If the car is in Park or Neutral, and the whining noise is still present, gearbox needs to be checked

Case 2
If the car is moving and whining noise only occurs when accelerator pedal is stepped [ whining may be more pronounced especially above certain speeds eg >60km/h] and goes away when feet is off the accelerator, the rear differential needs to be checked

Case 3
If whining is constant throughout the drive and the sound is more pronounced when swerving left and right, the front wheel bearings need to be checked.

Case 4
If car is in Park or Neutral with ignition switched off and the whining ensues, you probably have to find out soon what the children or missus needs.