Jeremy contacted me to say that he wanted his MHD fortwo to start with the MHD
turned off, therefore giving him the opportunity to turn it on if he wanted. He then
went and designed a rather neat and compact solution to the problem.
Consisting of 7 cheap components, a small piece of vero board and 3 short pieces of wire. It
is easily small enough to be stowed underneath the existing switch to keep the original look.

You can splice into the wiring if you like but you can push the wire ends into the back of the connector
and secure for a less permanent solution. With the circuit fitted, the car starts with the MHD turned
off but the standard switch still works as intended allowing you to toggle the MHD on and off as normal.
If you toggle the ignition on-off-on quickly then the car will start with the MHD on.

Resistor R1 = 12R (12Ω), 0.25W
Resistor R2 = 1M (1000Ω), 0.25W
Resistor R3 = 1M (1, 0.25W
Capacitor C1 = 1
Semiconductor Q1 = ZVN2106A (N-type mosfet)
Jeremy also points out that even if this circuit is incorrectly made or wrongly fitted, it will not damage the car.
So, if you can solder and know where to buy the components you will probably have the knowledge to
recreate this circuit on vero board for your own MHD Fortwo should you need it.
Thanks to Roberto who had issues with this design and recommended the 2nd diode. The inclusion of this diode
seems to depend on the type and quality of the transistor used. Some people have needed it, some haven't.
12R means 12 Ohms. An upper case R replacing the Ω symbol probably dates back a long time before computers.
Most people, when writing the Ω symbol will make something that looks like an R. So over the years, it stuck.
1M means 1000 Ohms. The M comes from Roman numerals and means 1000. The M is used in place of the Ω symbol.
0.25W is ¼ of a Watt.
Do an online search or look on eBay. There are always Chinese component sellers on there.
1
Ceramic and plastic film capacitors are classed as low leakage.
A very small leakage current is commonly referred to as “insulation resistance”.
Do an online search or look on eBay. There are always Chinese component sellers on there.
15 Volt, 0.4 Watt may be getting harder to find. So look for a 15 Volt, 0.5 Watt diode.
For example, the BZX55C15 by Vishay, Rectron, Taiwan Semiconductor etc should be fine.
Do an online search or look on eBay. There are always Chinese component sellers on there.
Just do an online search for ZVN2106A.
Originally yes but now it would seem, no.
The women who made them suddenly disappeared and got a load of negative feedback on eBay.
Because of the circumstances, I have removed the links and direct sale button.