TorontoW210

Just wanted to get a tally of anyone with crack dashboards

is it just affecting W210s, any other MB affected by its flawed designed and choice of material?

any other comments appreciated

and you could post you pics.

It seems MB USA is trying to brush it off as nothing major and its rare occurances.. just wanted to know whether that is the case.. cuz I know I have crack dashboards just wondering how many MB owners out there shared similar problems

hubert

I have crackson dash, rusty doors clicking front seats called MBUSA and they are no help.

mbtech208

W210 dashes pretty much all crack eventually, either around the airbag seam or the defroster vents, or both. You're not going to get help from MBUSA, because in all honesty, it's a very trivial flaw, not a safety-related item. One way to prevent it is to get a dash cover, but if it's already cracked, you may want to buy a cover to just cover up the cracks.

BrabusE420

I have some minor cracks on dash that are starting to show. Does anyone know if there are products that you can put on the cracks to prevent the cracks from getting bigger..(i.e. adhesive, clear bondo)something????

deuce zer0

i have a few of those cracks. I also have in my garage some crap that i was told repairs these cracks. I dont know what its called but i will go look and report tomarrow. I personally havent used it but i have been told it works perfect.

kicker

My dash cracked last year, good thing it was around $4x.xxx miles, and covered under warranty. I have MY2000 E320. It should covered uder your warranty if your mileage is within warranty period!

cobac

MY2000

Cracked dash, replaced under warranty (Cracked around airbag and defroster vents)

Rusting Trunk Lid, around lock cylinder and plate. MB Body Shop says they will not replace this under Rust Warranty

Hank

not me, but The Doctor does. haha

tomp

I had a few cracks show up on my 97 E420. One near the passenger side airbag and a couple around the air vents.
Luckily it was covered under warranty.

El Supremo

Ditto, 2 craks on passanger air bag, rust in trunk and door seams reminds me of old ford taurus my dad had. Ouch!

kicker

Just wondering what is the best way to protect or prevent dash from cracking? Armrol or Sun of a Gun? anything else? What do you guys use?

tomp

I use armorall 'ultimate clean' protectant for the dash. I apply that a couple times each month. I also use a sunshade to help protect the dash and keep the car cooler in the summertime.

I had a 94 Nissan Maxima for 10 years and never had a problem with the dash cracking. I was very surprised to see it in a Benz. Then again, I have seen quite a few problems with this car that have surprised me. But, I love driving the car!

Tom

rob_fed

The dash material is the major factor. Vinyl protectants will probably help, but most give cosmetic results that make it look better. The protectants with UV inhibitors use the same types of chemicals that are in suntan lotion. Basically, you have to reply frequently to get the effects of the UV protection. But some products may actually accelerate the cracking process by holding the heat in the base material of the dash.

As for the Nissan Maxima, I believe that your dash is still intact. But I think it would be even if you did not put anything on it. I think I have one better, I have '89 Isuzu Imark RS (I know, what the hell!??), anyways, it has never been garaged and has a black interior. I live in Sacramento, CA, the temps in the summer in the 100deg F. ranges. I have done nothing special to protect the dash and it is still intact. In fact, it came factory with one of the those soft, spongy, rear spoilers, most cars of this age with plastic pars on the exterior have the paint worn through or crack with age and UV damage. This too is in very good condition. Do I wax the exterior frequently? No. This is why I beleive it the initial quality of the base that determines the overall life.

Okay, back to the my '99 W210. My interior color is Java. My passenger side airbag has cracked on the left side from corner to corner. The windshield defroster openings near the centers. They have two small cracks about 1/16" tall.

My fix:

I have sucessfully fixed the airbag crack using another unorthodox method. Given that this crack is in the outline or depression (slot) of the airbag, I figured this was an area that is easier to tackle and hide than the more surface type of crack to experiment on.

Materials:

* Blue masking tape
* Epoxy putty (two part) JB weld will work, but it might shrink, and a second application may be needed.
* Eggshell latex paint tinted to the color of your dash
* Q-tips
* Small knife or flat edge
* Wax/grease remover or clear window cleaner
* Sandpaper - 220 or 320 grit wet/dry

1. Clean the crack out of the airbag area. Remove any loose pieces, if really bad, you may have to cut off any of the vinyl that is curing up. Use the wax/grease remover or similiar.

2. Clean the surrounding area about 3 inches around the repair area. Clean really well, especially if you are an Armorall user.

3. Use the masking tape to mask off the slot where your crack is around the airbag.

4. Using the epoxy putty, mix up a small ball until the color is uniform. You can use a little water on your fingers so it does not stick.

5. Roll the epoxy putty into small little rolls or worm like structures. Begin to lay the putty into the crack. Use the knife to push the putty into the crack. Using a wet Q-tip, smooth the putty into the slot. Do not use too much, otherwise you will fill in the airbag slot too much.

6. Let dry for 24 hrs. Check to see if the epoxy has shrunk. If so, lightly sand the area and fill in with more epoxy. Ensure the overall repair is even and smooth. There is isn't much of a grain pattern in this area, so just try to make it smooth looking.

7. Remove the passenger side speaker grill by removing the single screw on right hand side. Use a putty knife to lift up on the grill while pushing it back to release the clips. Once the grill is off, you can remove a piece of the vinyl underneath for the color matching process.

Note: My W210, with the Bose rear speakers did not come wtih dash speakers??? There was a circle shaped punch out where the speaker should go, I removed it for the color matching process.

8. Go to Home Depot with your color sample from your dash. Get a quart of "eggshell" finish interior latex paint. Don't go for the cheapest here, go with the name brand. Give the color patch to the paint tech and have them computer match it.

Note: You could probably go with an automotive type paint, but modern latex paints have good stretch/shrink charateristics.

9. I removed the masking tape on the dash, but leave it on if you are more comfortable before coloring the repair. I used another Q-tip to slow apply the paint into the airbag groove. Use a few coats and go slow. Do not try to do this all in a single step.

10. The color of the latex is darker when wet, but when it drys, the color should be very close. I took the Q-tip with paint and applied a thin coat all the way around the airbag groove. This blended the repair very nicely.


Other:

I tried the Permetex dash repair kit, but the base repair material was too hard to work with. Also, trying to mix the little color samples was going to be to hard for me.

Airbag operation. On this forum, I have seen the passenger airbag deployed in photos. The passenger air bag does not just open up in the slot in the dash. I have seen the vinyl of the dash ripped a few inches outside of the slot. The thin coat of epoxy will probaby give if the bag is to deploy, but other part will probably rip first.

kicker

Rob,

Very good information to know, thanks!

MKW

I never even noticed . My service rep pointed out two small cracks around passenger airbag and center when I brought car in for routine service and ordered a new dash under warranty.

dallasdriver

I have one around the airbag, to bad it came out after my warranty was over.

MastaBenz

Just curious has anyone ever had their dashboard replaced after the warranty was over? Out of "good will." There about 10 cracks in mine right now. Real bad round the passenger airbag.

I called MBUSA, they told me to talk to my local dealer. Still need to call them to see what they say.

I bought my benz and had it less than a year, but having all these probs with it (tranny,front spring mount)

rob_fed

Previously, there was another thread that addressed this issue about the cracking of the dashboard. One person had the dash replaced with an expired warranty. The cost of the dash was covered, but not the labor. As I recall, labor was in the $500 -$600 range. Is that worth it to you?

Given that the replacement dash will fail also, maybe you could look into getting the top portion of your dash recovered. I would go to an automobile upolstery place.

My fix is only good around the airbag crease area. On the flatter surface, the fix would probably be too noticable.

Also, seems to me, with all of these custom car stereo installers now days, someone could rebuild the top of a W210 dash for $500. you could even have a top mount monitor enclosure.


Regards,

rob lee

MastaBenz

Hmmm custom dashboard....

Yea thats something that might have to be considered in the near future when the damage gets untolerable But for now just knowing the cracks are there is annoying, especially when people point them out as soon as they get in the car. Then an explanation of how this usually happens in mercedes needs to be underway. Everything else in the interior is immaculate. Frustrating.

MB Life

yeah, mine cracked awhile back, got it covered under warranty.
Very expensive if you have to pay for it yourself.
I would recommend getting a dash cover although I hate the way it looks on a car.

imrandy

ON EBAY THERE IS A GUY SELLIG DASHBOARDS THAT LOOK LIKE THEY FIT THE W210 (MY MODEL). DOES ANYONE HAVE INFORMATION ABOUT VIDEOS AND OR INSTRUCTIONS ON TAKING DASH OUT OR REPLACEMENT OF THE DASH? I WOULD REALLY BE GREATFUL IF SOMEONE HAD INSTRUCTION AND AN IDEA OF HOW LONG OR HOW DIFFICULT IT IS...

MANY THANKS

jsaluzzi421

This was a while back. Dealer said that cracks in dash is common for 1999 E's. Don't know about later models. I could not see any cracks, but dealer noticed some.

Regards,

Joe

Musikmann

My 1998 E430 bought w/118,000 miles had some and had originally been a Florida car. For a while MB was replacing them, at least in the pre-facelift E-Class because it was a known issue. My 2001 remains in perfect condition but I have a MB custom fitted sunshade and I think they help a lot.

RichardM98

I was by the local MB dealer today. Cost of replacement dash panel is $1430.00.

For the person who asked there is a short video on the MB Star Classic Service Manual DVD on removing dash components.

husk323

does that include installation?