Fourdiesel

The difference between a statistician and a mechanic! LOL

mkaresh

Having fun with the ambiguities of English grammar?

BlownV8

No, they are making fun of your survey results. A GL320/450/550 have the same door handles, suspension..... basically everything except the engine is the same.

mkaresh

Very well aware of this.

The sentence I wrote can be read either way. When you've got items separated by commas, an adjective can apply to all items in the list, but usually only applies to the noun it immediately precedes. Such is the case here.

For example:

"No one was left in the village except old women, children, and dogs."

Perfectly fine sentence that few people would read to mean that the children were old.

I think the original humorist was aware of this, just having a bit of fun. Or maybe not?

BlownV8

Yes, I'm sure he was having fun.


Happy Holidays!

StevethePilot

My apologies, just making sure it wasn't stuff limited to the diesel. Had you put the diesel's individual problem(s) at the end of the list it might have made for a clearer sentence.

The real problem is that my bachelor's is in English. D'oh!

STP

mkaresh

I'll strive to more clearly structure my sentences in the future

111 GL-Class owners now signed up. A good start, but more are needed to provide precise results for all model years. Especially need more 2009s and 2010s.

Not yet signed up? Details here:

Car reliability research

mkaresh

We have updated results for the GL-Class to include owner experiences through December 31, 2009. In terms of repair trips per 100 cars per year:

2008: 149, decent sample size

2007: 99, small sample size

Both are worse than average.

We still don't have enough participants to report separately by powertrain. If we did, it is likely that the diesel would have a higher repair rate, thanks to an intercooler hose that tends to detach. This is one reason for the higher reported repair frequency for the 2008.

Another common problem, for all GLs: the exterior door handles tend to break, and the air suspension also appears to be a trouble spot.

A big thank you, once again, to everyone who has been helping. We'll have further updates in May and August. With more participants, we could provide more precise information and cover all model years.

Mercedes-Benz GL-Class reliability comparisons

dutchman

We are considering buying a 2007 GL450, but I have read some posts on other websites that are concerning. The consensus was:
1. The 07's and 08's do have electrical issues, particularly with closing the tailgate (which we experienced on the lot with the salesman who simply tried to pass it off as a glitch with the coding).
2. There were three reported instances of spontaneous fires from vehicles which were turned off and unattended. In at least two of those, the fire started under the passenger seat.
3. Mercedes response to issues was less than user-friendly.

Needless to say, I am very concerned about the report of fires, and the three threads together really trouble me.

Does anyone have any information on these issues? Thanks.

mkaresh

Fires are generally a rare event. Electrical problems like the one with the tailgate aren't so rare. My data also suggests common problems with the air suspension.

StevethePilot

I haven't responded to the latest request for info because I forgot what you said about repairs started in one month and finished in the next - is it when the incident occurs, or when the repair is finished, that you say the "yes" for?

This was for the turbo going on the truck.

mkaresh

Thanks for asking.

Report any repairs after they are completed, so that the outcome can be reported.

mkaresh

Just enhanced the related repair history survey so that it can (optionally) be used as a personal car maintenance record.

As always, more participants would be helpful. Updated Car Reliability Survey results in May, with a preview for participants next month.

Car reliability research

Franman

I'll do it if you pay me $100

mkaresh

And for another $10 Brant can watch?

I provide the results as a free service to participants. If you're not interested in the information provided, then by all means don't participate. Since people are involved because they're interested in getting the highest quality information, the data they provide will tend to be higher in quality.

I can neither afford to pay people to participate, nor would I trust the results of a survey that did pay people a significant amount of money. (Which is why J.D. Power only includes a single dollar.)

Franman

yeah - that single dollar is kind of an insult. When I was 17 and bought a Mitisuibshi Eclipse, I thought it was cool.

But after buying an $80,000 car a single dollar was a little insulting.

I do have a couple issues w/ my car: my "left mirror signal" indicator keeps coming on and makes my blinker really fast. They ordered me a new mirror. Also the latch in my center console doesnt work anymore and I have to pull really hard to open it, so they're ordering a new one of those.

you can add that to your defects. the car is 11 months old with 13k miles.

mkaresh

The idea with the single dollar is that people learn that it's in there, so they won't throw away mail from J.D. Power without opening it. Also, they won't throw away the dollar, so then many people feel they must return the survey.

One possible solution that I've never heard anyone actually do: use the return envelope to mail back the dollar.

scottybdiving

Wasn't the diesel intercooler hose an '07 problem that was resolved after a certain manufacturing date?

I had a air suspension sensor problem but not the suspension itself. Also just reported the cracks that developed on two wheels.

mkaresh

Not sure about when the intercooler hose was fixed, but IIRC people have reported the problem for 2008s.

Updated stats in about two weeks. To help us provide the best possible results for your year:

Car reliability research

mkaresh

We have updated results for the GL-Class to include owner experiences through March 31, 2010. In terms of repair trips per 100 cars per year:

2008: 124

2007: 140

Both are worse than average.

A big thank you, once again, to everyone who has been helping. We'll have further updates in August and November. With more participants, we could provide more precise information and cover all model years.

Mercedes-Benz GL-Class reliability comparisons

mkaresh

Updated stats next month for the 2007 and 2008. I'd like to be able to cover the 2009 and up as well--a matter of getting enough owners involved.

To help get your year fully included:

Car reliability research

mkaresh

We have updated results for the GL-Class to include owner experiences through June 30, 2010.

Other sources of car reliability information won't cover the more recent months until the summer or even fall of next year.

Repair frequencies, in terms of repair trips per 100 cars per year:

2008: 112

2007: 152

Both remain worse than average. More recent Merecedes designs like the current C, E, and GLK have been faring much better.

Thank you, once again, to everyone who has been helping. We'll have further updates in November and February. With more participants, we could provide more precise information and cover all model years.

To see how competitors compare, and to sign up to help:

Mercedes-Benz GL-Class reliability comparisons

Wolfgang

Thank you for the data. Seems to agree with recent internal data.

mkaresh

You're certainly welcome.

The GL-Class might be better in recent model years--wish I had enough owners involved for 2009 and up to report on them.

43221B

Have you thought about separating out the repairs that caused the vehicles to be inoperable? Obviously there is a significant difference between a keyless go handle that is fixed during scheduled maintenance and a failure to start that leads to a trip to the dealership on a rollback. Also, what does your small sample size for the 09s tell you? Do you think for instance that Mercedes owners may be less inclined, than owners of a MDX for example, to get involved in a statistical site such as yours if they are having few or relatively minor repairs. Do you think owners who place less value on vehicle reliability and more on handling dynamics for instance when purchasing a vehicle may be less likely to report when they aren't experiencing problems? I know that no site such as yours is perfect but I am curious what your thoughts are. Thanks for your data, it does seem to be very good.