franknesss

So when i purchased my 507, i also went with the wheel insurance, mainly because my fiance would be driving it from time to time. Unfortunately she did get a curb rash on the front right rim.

I take it to MB to get it fixed and here are the things that followed.

1. No loaner car was avaible for me, eventough i requested it a week in advanced.
2. Waited for four days for them to tell me the 1st shop can't do it.
3. Waited over the weekend until today for them to tell me second shop can't do it
4. Now they're telling me to go to my original purchase location
5. Will not replace my rim because there is no structural damage, but only cosmetic damage

Basically the dealer is just pushing back and saying my only option is to take the car back and take it to the original dealer. The reason why i changed service locations is because the place i bought my car isn't on my drive home and the new location is.

i feel like they're pretty much just saying i'm SOL. I hope MB can just send a replacement rim.

Anyone have this bad experience before?

steven_hy_su

weird. When I got my c63 CPO and they offered it to me the finance manager made it VERY clear that rash wouldn't be covered. If they said it would be fight it and let corporate know.

steven_hy_su

maybe our canadian sales people are too nice

franknesss

The reason i bought it is because they said it would cover cosmetic damage.

BAD430BENZ

I would check the paperwork because I wouldn't think cosmetic would be covered . maybe the salesman didn't word it correct

Zeee_Q

There's no reason to replace a rim that was simply curb rashed. They are right in not replacing it because there is honestly no need to replace a rim that simply has road rash. It can often be refinished back to original like nothing ever happened. You just need a shop that knows what they are doing.

I also bought the same coverage and the finance guy made it very clear to me that it covered blown tires if tread is above 4/32 and if the rim cracks.

franknesss

I'm not expecting it to be replaced, it's just they dont have any solutions to fixing the problem. They have taken the rims to two locations, but both said they're not able to fix it. It's just frustrating that said it's my problem now and that they've done all they could.

All i want is what the insurance policy stated.

franknesss

I did. It clearly states cosmetic damage is covered.

Zeee_Q

Oh my bad then yea it sounds like an incompetent dealership then. If they aren't able to fix them then they should offer to replace them. Post up some pics of the damage, it shouldn't be that bad. I've seen shops repair cracked rims by welding them back together and really really bad curb rashes and dents in the rims.

franknesss

Yea, it seem like the insurance company that MB uses is really good a shafting people who pay for the premium service.

The service advisor told me a situation where the customer purchased the same policy, but was unable to have the cosmetic damage fixed. However, his rim was also discontinued so they were not able to replace that either.

franknesss

Here's an image of the amount of dmg. Not much, but still annoying to have, especially when you didn't do this yourself =(

CoolBDPhenom03

That should be all the proof you need. Take that straight to the GM. Tell them to fix it or you can send them the bill afterward (which could be much higher).

franknesss

GM is conveniently on "vacation"

CoolBDPhenom03

Talk to the next in command and get approval. Otherwise you can take it up with MBUSA. Tell them that you won't hesitate to go to corporate. You have it I writing so there's zero excuse.

franknesss

Well they advised me to pick up the car today. I did call MB corporate and it's been escalated. But who knows. Worst scenario I just get a refund for the insurance policy and buy new rims =D

CoolBDPhenom03

Sure, that's an acceptable option. In any case they goofed and needed to own up to it. Crumby, but sometimes you need to escalate the crap out of something to get things moving.

Newzchspy

FWIW, the left front tire isn't looking so keen either! Are tires covered under that warranty?

franknesss

Yea, it is. Anyways, bad experience but I'll live. Just wanted to vent and maybe help someone out if they're considering the wheel warranty, proceed wth caution!

zibby43

The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

Keep bringing the noise, franknesss. Make them fix this for you!

PS - What did your better half say when she brought the car back to you in that condition?

I would be too nervous to ever let her take it again after that lol.

dcho

if they can't do it in-house, which they usually don't as they source it to a 3rd party, they should just cover the invoice. unfortunately though, the repaired wheel will have machine marks along the outermost edge.

moosejaw

Take it up with a regional district manager he can overide the dealership

Ruff507

Most dealerships have a few " in house" local body shops they use.
This seems like a $250-$300 fix if done right.
I had curb rash on my Maserati GranTurismo MC and I was fortunate to know the owner/operator of the body shop my dealer used. The wheel was sanded primed and painted in 2 days and its like it never happened.( the 507 wheel looks to be more complex imo). I wouldn't expect to pay for anything if your contract stated that cosmetic is covered. MB should have that wheel repaired/replaced ASAP. It seems as though the dealer or dealers are getting pushback from the body shop or that they dont want to flip to bill for a few hundred bucks.
If I recall the was another post about 507 wheels recently with wheel rash and im trying to locate it now.
Gluck!!! please keep us posted

cyberorth

Painful pic to look at. You may want to change the title as mbusa isn't really involved and your gripe is with the dealer and the insurance carrier.
Never a fan of third party insurance myself. The person who sells it is not representing the carrier directly and would say a lot of false things just to sell it.

And you better get married soon so you don't have to give your car to your wife!

Mustbn1ce

All I can say is they are definitely NOT lying by saying some shops can't do it. How that wheel is finished along the edge is all done on a machine and not many shops have that machine.

Ingenieur

in the US not covered
did you tell them it was curbed? or that you hit a 'road hazard'?
they can 'say' anything but all that matters is the written contract
yes cosmetic is covered, as long as it was done by a road hazard which results in a blown tire AND rim damage
why would they cover you for preventable/avoidable self inflicted damage?
heck, people would intentionally curb their rims to get new ones...it's shady world

reading the contract verbage it would seem a tire would have to fail and the rim damaged by a 'road hazard' to be covered
so it seems you aren't covered even if you hit a pothole, damage the rim, but not the tire (no puncture or break)

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...PkNVHS6yOkVx8g

Mercedes-Benz Financial’s First Class Wheel and Tire Protection will pay to replace your tires and wheels if they are damaged by a road hazard...
* A road hazard is defined as a failure that occurs when a single tire fails due to a puncture, bruise or break incurred during the course of normal driving on a road maintained by state or local authority.