e500slr

Have you ever done any work on your dashboard or maybe swapped a cluster without gloves and felt your hand itch during and afterwards? I always did but didn't think anything beyond that...

I took out of the whole interior of the car in the past few days for cleaning and to swap the trim for a different colored one. When I took off the top dash (which was extremely difficult because of the curtain airbags), I went inside the house. I felt my whole body itch. When I looked at my clothes I noticed little strands, alot of them. They looked like hair but were super straight and shiny in the light. I put 2 and 2 immediately and knew the itchiness had come from these "strands".

I went back to the top dash looked at it closely with a light and again, like my clothes, alot of strands that are super straight. I looked inside the car and there was alot of these things everywhere.

I looked at the top dash and what it was made of, vinyl on top, foam-like yellow stuff and then white stuff that was fibrous at the edges. I took out a small chunk of the yellow stuff, no way it was making these things. Took out some of the white stuff and my heart dropped, as soon as you take a piece out it disintegrates into ALOT of little clear, sharp and straight pieces. This is fiberglass I'm pretty sure.

Now you may be thinking, so what, wear old clothing or vaccuum yourself etc etc, this isn't a big deal. That's were you're wrong. Fiberglass this small can and will go into your airways, you will breath it in without a respirator and let me tell you, you don't want to breath in this stuff. This stuff is EQUAL to asbestos. Fiber glass is extremely dangerous, it cuts up the lungs from the inside if it gets in and the body cannot clean it well. This stuff will DISABLE you if you get enough of it. Don't take my word for it, go look it up. As for the clothes, it doesn't even vaccuum very easy, it sticks, it goes into the fibers of your clothes and won't wash out, won't vaccuum easy.

What the hell were they thinking putting this stuff in the car?!! Not even sealing it in either. You cannot take your dashboard out without a massive mess of the stuff. Fiberglass, especially this fine, is VERY DANGEROUS. This is extremely irresponsible. I would assume they knew people would work on the dashboard and inside the cars. I cannot even express the anger I feel right now. Anyway who thinks this is a joke or isn't a big deal is uneducated and retarded.

My car is now a hazmat site. I don't even know where to start cleaning. The cherry on top of the cake is the vents, how will I know the vents are clean and clear or will my climate control system give me cancer and fibrosis. This is nothing short of a NIGHTMARE. I will post pics soon.

The reason I made this thread isn't to rant, just to warn people to be very careful and to know this problem. People didn't really know asbestos was dangerous before either, just because you don't know doesn't make you immune from harm.

UN-F&*KING-BELIEVABLE!!

TheTherapist

Not wanting to appear retarded I am concerned enough to want to know for sure before I decide to tear apart my dashboard! Have you checked to see what the WIS has to say about removing it? Are there any warnings?

e500slr

Not sure, haven't read it but I doubt it. You know what really pisses me off though, it's that they obviously knew, they obviously had a clue their own POS product is made of this and disintegrates when taped slightly even. The dashboard doesn't disintegrate but that white material, even a small piece turns into hundreds of strands. All they had to do was spray it with some sort of adhesive even if thin and it would have prevented this. I mean JESUS CHRIST why do some people have no regard for the safety and health of others. All they care about is the money in the account even if it means hurting others.

It's simple, fiberglass is dangerous, it's deadly and it's a silent killer, that's a fact and is well know, that's SCIENCE. Now, their product throws fiberglass into the air and all over the place when working with it, again, fact, check for yourself. Put 2 and 2 together and clearly this is a stupid way to manufacturer something that will clearly be removed for what ever reason in some cars, whether to service the evaporator, to change the dashboard or whatever. What a disgrace. So much for German design.

I think the fiberglass is restricted to the top dash, not 100% sure because the lower dash, on the driver's side doesn't seem to have it but I'll be certain or the other side. I'll check the door cards too but I think that's about it. It's enough to make a MESS though. Wear disposable overalls and a real respirator. Nothing is worth your health and there is no such thing as overreaction. I'm gonna get some spray adhesive, seal off the front end of the dash and then spray the rear, white stuff. That would seal everything together and prevent it from disintegrating while barely touched like it does now.

I'm also gonna buy that gel/goo stuff from eBay that clean vents and stuff. My main concern is the airconditioning system and the vents. I need to make sure nothing is in there. This is gonna be PAINSTAKING AND A HALF!!

TheTherapist

Bugger!
Back to an Aussie car...! Please don't make it so...

Maybe for some reason yours got through without being sealed correctly? It seems unlikely the clever engineers at Mercedes would build these mobile lawsuits and send the majority to the U.S. where suing is a way of life. Surely the explanation runs deeper? I'm keen to hear from anyone else that has disassembled their dash and what their experience has been?

TheTherapist

Or maybe.... (hold on while I put my tinfoil hat on) ... maybe they only sent the dodgy ones to Australia...

e500slr

I guess I'm crazy, feel free to check for yourself. Take out your dashboard and put it back in....you know, for fun. It's not hard actually. Just take out the climate control center assembly, wood trim, a pillar and l/r vents. I'm sleeping with my tinfoil hat tonight

TheTherapist

Haha Sammy, hey I'm hearing you bro - I don't doubt your word or that there's a problem. I think there's got to be more to it though?

Still waiting for someone to jump in and let us know their experience...? "Hello..."

JoeNobody

Tinfoil hats don't work, it has to be a fully enclosed surface (i.e. a sphere or can shape)

Bean93x

I breathe fiberglass in on a daily basis. I doubt my car will be the one to kill me.

e500slr

I advise you to invest, to say the least, in a quality respirator and disposable overalls. Lung disease is not fun, my uncle was a cardio-thoracic surgeon and he used to describe the slow and painful death of people with terminal lung disease. Fiberglass is worse than smoking, easily. There's no way for the lungs to clean fiberglass effectively and it doesn't react very well, it's quite stable, which is very bad if you want to decay and get rid of something. It's like tens of thousands of tiny knives, sharp and stiff. It will also work its way through the body and as a defensive measure the body will form cysts around the particles which have a very likely chance of turning malignant.

I hate that old attitude of, I'm tough, don't need gloves or a respirator, I'm a real man, like the way men used to be and should be. That attitude is truly moronic. There is nothing tough about exposing yourself to harmful and deadly substances. Most people who have that attitude later find out how stupid it was but then it's too late. Just look at smokers. I have never seen an emphysema sufferer, if they have it because of smoking, not regret smoking. The torture they go through, I would wish upon only the cruelest of monsters. It's pure torture.

So no matter what you're doing guys and girls, just wear a respirator and the other relevant safety equipment. It's cheap and you can get them anywhere. It's not worth suffering and dying over things like "fiberglass" and "painting" and "sanding". Your family and your friends will thank you for it

Bean93x

I appreciate your concern but I already do wear a respirator and long sleeves, gloves etc when working with it. I'm Honestly getting sick of it.. It's about time for a job/ career change.

e500slr

Oh, that's good then. I just assumed from your original post, about breathing fiberglass, that you didn't but if you do then If you don't like your job, change it, life is too short to be unhappy and as unsettling as it'll be during the transition, you'll thank yourself later. Prepare your options though, then leave, otherwise you might get stuck in limbo. Believe me though, I know this very well, having a job you hate is dooming.

e500slr

UPDATE:

Anybody got an idea how to fix a nightmare situation I'm in. So as I said in the thread earlier, I took out the top dash which has a white fiberglass back that is not an FRP, it's not reinforced, it's just bare fiberglass which is kind of like that Cadbury Flake if you've ever had one, as soon as you move it the thing gives off tiny shards of glass. They're hard to see in some lighting situations, you need to grab a flashlight and shine it at the right angle. They look like sharp, straight dust which as very reflective.

Now I fixed that issue by buying some resin and hardener, mixing it and then brushing it on the back of the dash panel, all over that white $h!te (except where the airbag for the passenger is, there is a door that you should not block, for that I sprayed an adhesive which will still solidify but have no strength). Yes, I solved the problem which should never have existed, I'm still half smiling and laughing and half gobsmacked at why it's there?!! I mean WHY?!! Was the black plastic on the bottom dash not prestigious or hazardous enough?!!

OK, so not here to rant, it is what it is. I also cleaned the interior. I recommend a brush head vacuum attachment with a BAG vacuum, not bagless and a paper disposable bag. This stuff sticks and won't just get sucked in without getting loosened by the brush so if you ever need to clean it, use a brush tool on the vac. Another great product, absolutely wonderful is CYBER CLEAN GEL. The stuff can be pressed on the fiberglass shards and then kneaded and repeated. You can trap and pick up ALOT of the fiberglass shards that way. The interior is pretty much clean but there is a problem....

The HVAC system is under the top dash. I put a flashlight in the vents and I see alot of these shards in there. This stuff is hazardous and to be honest, I suffer from OCD, I just don't feel comfortable using the HVAC system when I know there is an irritant in it that can be breathed in and stuck to clothing and skin. I can clean the visible parts of the HVAC but I think there's some of this stuff inside the HVAC system. Do you think it's a good idea to try to remove the HVAC system, take it apart and clean it (the interior is already fully stripped anyway)? Or is that hard because I think you need to connect some lines from under the hood, it seems like a huge job. This is a nightmare situation and I don't know what to do....

I had an idea, you know those disposable coveralls for painting, the breathable ones that are cotton-like and supposed to protect from dust. I was thinking I'd cut a piece and then put it in between the vent and exit for each opening. So one after each opening in the HVAC system. My concern is, will this restrict air flow and hinder the HVAC system's performance and it's ability to cool and heat. The material is breathable, it's not a HEPA filter or a thick filter, just some thin cotton like fabric. That way, it'll catch and trap any shards that get blown out of the HVAC.

This is a very odd and retarded problem/dilemma. I still cannot believe it but please, some input would be great guys, even criticism. This stuff is a major irritant. I always get itchy for DAYS after coming into contact with this stuff bare skinned, that's beside the damage it does to lungs if breathed in but it's an irritant in the least sense. I don't want this $h!t in the car!! I would honestly sue their asses if I ever had a chance of winning but I doubt the case would even make it to court with a company this big lol, I guess justice does not prevail.

StarvingArtist

How about taking the fan out and blowing back through the vents with an air compressor.

e500slr

I think that'll just blow this stuff around, it won't blow it out. I feel like an idiot to be honest. On the one hand, I think, F it, let me just put it back together with the new interior and just forget about that stuff, my OCD side then starts to talk and I usually listen The only reason I'm paranoid is because everytime I've touched that stuff it causes skin irritation for days, it's soooo annoying, why is it in a car?!!

I think I'm just gonna do that DIY filter thing I mentioned, it's a pretty good idea I must say, I just hope it doesn't cause any resistance to the air flow and inhibit the AC. ARGHH!!! WHY?!!!