MBZC350

I recently brought in my 06 C350 Sport to the dealer because there was a loud buzzing sound when I would turn the steering wheel. It would be really bad upon initial start up in the morning and on u-turns or sharp right turns bu seemed OK on the highway when making lane changes. I thought it might be the power steering pump but the next day the SA called me and said that complete rack and pinion steering system had to be replaced. The car had about 10k miles on it. I asked if this was a common problem and he said no. The brakes also developed a minor pulsation when braking and I assume it is a warped rotor. Anyway while the car was sitting at the dealership waiting for the parts I went ahead and traded it in for an 07 E350 sport. The C350 is definitely faster due to the size of the car. Anyone else experience the same issue?

Cigalert

I don't know why I do it but I always ask that same question and I always get that same response. No matter what the problem I'll say "is it normal to leave a creeper sticking out of the sunroof and a ratchet wedged into the radiator?" and they say "never seen it before...we have some forgetful people round here".

I might mentioned this here before but when the CLS came out the tech's were having some issues with the tranny sticking in park. Their fix=rubber mallet. Voila, problem solved.

I try not to ask if it's a common problem but something always lets those words slip out.

How do you like that E350?

TA-9FF

I almost want to believe MB SA's and tech's are trained to give ridiculous and vague automated responses to whatever we can throw at them.

Example:

You: "My engine block has melted, and the car is utterly useless now, I demand a new engine!"

SA: I'm sorry sir, but your engine melting during normal operations is within MB's factory specs. Would you like a nice latte from the cafe inside?

God, I hate MB service. World-Class Service my ****.

victorfjr

I've had the power steering pump replaced twice, both time it was under warrranty, not sure if they replaced the whole rack and pinion column. It sounds like you have the same problem, whenever I would make a tight turn or was parking the car there would always be a "grinding" noise. My car has 90 000 km and that has been the only major thing that has gone wrong with the car. Everything else was minor.

patrick_y

Don't mean to scare you, however, on the E320 in my family, we've had quite a few steering issues. The steering system was replaced two or three times. Today, it still feels slightly lighter to turn and thus turns are not as precise as I'd like them to be. This could be my imagination, but I'm pretty sure that it feels lighter in weight to turn, or it is possible that since I've been accustomed to the C230 (the steering is very heavy on this one) that I'm starting to feel all cars have lighter steering.

In any case, good luck and enjoy the E350. The E350 is perhaps the best car in the world in terms of price, performance, practicality, and safety. Believe it or not, but the difference in the weight between the C350 and the E350 is minimal, only around 100 to 200 pounds!

In any case, enjoy and happy motoring. Mercedes-Benz service is worthless compared to Lexus service. I'm almost thinking of acquiring a Lexus as my next automobile.