Hugo L.

Given that they damaged your car, getting you shaft lubed seems like a minimum to me.

tuffcalc

To close this out, got the car back today. Clunk is gone. This is what's on the invoice:

002-989-00-51-10 Roller Bearing Grease
412020 Drive Shaft (2-Section) Remove/Install
- Removed rear propeller shaft. Separated two shafts and greased splines. Reassembled.

... so that's fixed it. Doesn't give me a cozy feeling though if this spot can lose lubrication so fast as is not really serviceable except by the shop.

tuffcalc

Bad news. Clunk is back. Car back at dealer.

googuse

Well, I'm picking my 2014 up today, so I might have more down the road, but I really don't like the wipers and turn signals on the same stalk. I kept the turn signal when turning the wipers on during the test drive.

ZZGlk

Think you'll find as you use the car that you'll gradually just leave the wipers on one of the auto settings. Same with the lights. Only time I touch the wiper control is to turn it to high if I get in a downpour. The rest of the time it stays in auto.

Benzgeist

Took the car to the dealer for a check engine light. They said they were "old codes" and so they replaced the spark plugs and the #1 ignition coil, cleared the codes and gave the car back. The codes indicated a misfire on number 1 cylinder. Two weeks later the check engine light was back, so back to the dealer. This time they said it indicated low compression in #1 cylinder. Apparently, this was indicated the first time as well, but they chose to ignore it and not tell me because the check engine light did not come on during their test drive after replacing the coil and plugs and clearing the codes. This time, however, they replaced the cylinder head and admitted that this is a problem on these engines. Something about the valve seats wearing or distorting. We got the car back and a couple of days later I noticed some oil on the garage floor, so it was back yet again to the service department. After looking at the car for 40 minutes the tech determined it was only residual oil that pooled on top of the steering pump, which they failed to properly clean up. It's been a week and so far so good, but we will have to wait and see. It's a 2012 GLK 350 with about 56,000 miles.

Benzgeist

My primary ***** about this car is the amount of wind noise at highway speed. I know it's Mercedes-Benz' small SUV, but really, it IS a Mercedes-Benz and it should be more quiet.

The second most annoying thing is the size of the glove box. I know they have to make room for the airbag, but come on.

The third thing is the system's controller and the convoluted, multi-step process to do anything, but even more so the nav does not display the time to destination without selecting a sub menu while you are driving.

Oh, and one more thing. When it was in for repair (see Ck Engine post above) they updated the software, which changed the display and moved the OAT to the second page and put a kmph in its place on the lower right corner digital speed display. I don't need a kmph display in the USA and I liked were I could see the outside air temperature at a glance without have to page through the displays while driving.

Other than that and the aforementioned cylinder head replacement, it has been a very reliable car. Much more so than the BMW X3 it replaced. I'm just glad the cylinder head problem reared its ugly head now and not after June when the warranty runs out.

ZZGlk

My primary ***** about this car is the amount of wind noise at highway speed. I know it's Mercedes-Benz' small SUV, but really, it IS a Mercedes-Benz and it should be more quiet.

Some owners have had a section of the roof replaced just in front of the sunroof to help the noise problem. If you search for roof noise you can find the post.

Oh, and one more thing. When it was in for repair (see Ck Engine post above) they updated the software, which changed the display and moved the OAT to the second page and put a kmph in its place on the lower right corner digital speed display. I don't need a kmph display in the USA and I liked were I could see the outside air temperature at a glance without have to page through the displays while driving.

You can reset the display to get the OAT back on the multi-function page. Check your owner's manual on page 227.

Benzgeist

Thanks for the reference. I finally found it on page 172 of my OM. A bit convoluted process, but I managed to reset it (I think). My spousal unit will be much happier now.

Replacing a section of the roof seems a bit drastic. Is that a Mercedes-Benz repair/modification or somebodies bodge or aftermarket modification?

ZZGlk

I believe it was the plastic strip on the top of the windshield that was replaced by a dealer to correct the wind noise caused by too much gap. Several posters said this fixed their problems. Your results may vary. Search is your friend.

wunderless

One of my gripes is the Nav and not being able to omit toll roads. Really the nav is a bit of a pain to begin with… but that's not the GLK's issue.

To add, using a USB stick for music is useless. It appears there is a limit for the amount of songs it can read from the USB. What's the point then?

I'm sure there are other silly annoyances that I'll come across down to the weird interface MB has in this...

The car overall has been pretty great. I've had my 2013 250 for 5 months now and it's been pretty reliable. Started every cold morning without issues. Have driven 12,000+kms now. Really happy with it!

Benzgeist

Thanks ZZGlk. I did do a search and found the references to the plastic strip of which you speak. Quite a bit different than replacing a section of the roof you alluded to in your earlier post. There does not appear to be any gap in the seal on our car and the noise has been the same since we purchased it 4+ years ago. I guess it never hurts to ask the service manager though. I believe it is simply a fault of the design along with interference drag from the roof rack. Along the same vein, I've never owned a car that buffets so much in the cabin with the windows down. The GLK may have a great CD, but it results in some less than desirable after effects. That's just my opinion and I may be wrong.

Despite the above, we really like the car. It is far better than the POS BMW X3 we owned before trading it on on this. The only thing that I would say the X3 was better at was handling, but that wasn't worth dealing with its ****-poor reliability. Next up will more than likely be a GLE.

bigmaho

Very happy with the engineering and performance, but the ergonomic design and software is subpar. There's no touch screen control, the fan controls are tiny buttons way down low, so adjusting the defroster or raising and lowering the fans is too much of a distraction in city driving. And I can't turn the radio off without turning the entire screen display off! I can turn the volume down to minimum but then I lose the vocal navigation. There's a mute button, but same problem. And, drum roll please, I lost the cigarette lighter which charges my phone, so I went to check the fuse (2 boxes, very well hidden) and there are no spares or a fuse puller. C'mon guys.

davidjohnbamber

My 2014 GLK blew the same fuse for the cigar lighter, I found the fuse and replaced it. So simple that the GEICO caveman asked me if he could change the blown fuse. As my favorite youngest daughter once said to me when I was *****ing about the inhumanity of all my trivial issues: "Dad, cry me a river, build me a bridge, and get over it!" YMMV

Benzgeist

If you select DISK with no media connected the music goes away.

bigmaho

Pretty funny! Just bought some fuses and a needle nose.

bigmaho

Thanks, Figuring oout it's quirks. But, have to say, just finished a 2000 mile ride (NY to NM) and it was the most comfortable 2000 miles I've ever done on 4 wheels. Great fuel mileage too with the little diesel, but plenty of power when I needed it for passing. '

wunderless

Here's one.
When it's raining, with a decent amount of rainfall, the wipers pull the rain back into the field of vision of the driver, from the A pillar. I think it's down to the slope of the windshield + air pressure possibly?

It basically pulls a sheet of water about 4 inches from the edge back onto the windshield.

Anyone else experience this?

Jett

So I bought the GLK 350 for my wife and she isn't a fan of it. At all. She had a Tahoe before but finds the bouncing of the ride too much. Either I find a way to make the ride have less bounce/roll/whatever or we are going to have to go in another direction.

oops..just say this was about the GLK 250. sorry.

bugelrex

Anyone know if changing the tires to non-runflats would make the ride smoother?

Bob338

It does. They weigh less and smooth out the ride. I have regular Continental tires on mine.

bugelrex

Can I ask what size tire and specific model? Would it be suitable as a direct replacement for all seasons (Northeast region)?

bugelrex

Regarding the GLK250, It looks like it may eventually turn into a rare 'classic' (the only Diesel SUV built in Germany)

If MB abandons the Diesel segment, I wonder what its going to do to resale and maintenance issues?

http://autoweek.com/article/diesel/m...mpliance-fears

Bob338

Never drove in the Northeast region so can't address that. Is the ice and snow supposed to be different there?

Mine are 235X50R19, Continental 4X4 Contact.

Bob338

I have a comparatively rare 190D, less than 10,000 imported here. There's a segment of our drivers that love diesels. Also many that wouldn't be caught in one. Maintenance will be the same as for any other Mercedes. In my case, for a '85 car, if I don't do the work myself I look for a grey haired factory trained tech. As they age they get rarer. Parts are still relatively easy to come by. They should be no different for our GLK's than any other car. Whether it, or any other Mercedes in current production, down from the S class, will ever be a classic in the sense old ones are now, will undoubtedly be a subject for debate. I see no issues, pro or con, with these GLK's beyond any other of current production.