Diegob

I have followed these boards for a long time but rarley post. However, I now need everyone's help. I leased a 2008 C300 6-speed manual. When the car was 1 month old with 500 miles I needed to replace one of the engine lifters, which I wasn't too happy about. Now my vehicle has 28,000 miles, and while driving the other day the clutch pedal became very stiff and i was unable to shift into any gear. I had the car towed to the dealership where I purchased the vehicle and was told I had burned out the clutch and this would not be covered under the warranty. The warranty statre the powertrain is covered for 50k miles? I have been driving manual's for 10 years and have never had to replace a clutch before 100k miles. The dealer is claiming the clutch was not defective and i caused it to burn out. The car felt fine and never showed any signs of clutch issues. The car has been babied since day 1, with no abuse. I am sticking to my guns on this one but don't know what to do? Any ideas/suggestions? Thanks

C300Sport

I feel your pain. I have had over a dozen manual cars in my life and have never even needed to replace a clutch or had any problems with one even with putting over 100K on three of the 13....ahh the life of a salesman. lol
Anyhow, I have had shifting issues with my car since about the 500 mile mark. They have worked on it several times and although it has improved a bit, it continues to be a crusty, crunchy, cold natured old hag. I have noticed recently that my cluth is slipping a bit. After speaking with the SA, they are basically saying a burned/slipping clutch is an issue with the driver, not the car. The problem with that is,especially with the Hill Assist, I have never slipped or burned the clutch a singe time. Like your car, my car has been babied beyond belief. I admit that I will "get on it" every once in a while, but I have never abused the clutch while doing it. 99.9999% of my miles have been "Little Old Lady From Pasadena" style.
Anyhow, I am sticking to my guns that my shift problems have always been an issue with the clutch not fully disegaging and while it seems all the techs agree with me, some stupid overidding idea that a clutch problem is always the owners fault is making taking care of this a pain is the a$$.
I hope to know something about mine on my next service visit but I will be waiting eagerly to hear how your situation plays out.
Give em he!!...for me to

hitokiri89

Why not take your cars to a trusted Mechanic and have then tell you the issue is and get it in writing .

JFOUR

Has the dealer given you a price for the clutch replacement? I'm just curious. Hopefully I will never need to replace mine, but you never know.

Peabody

It's going to be hard to get that clutch covered unless they can find what is causing your clutch to abnormally wear. If the mechanisms to the clutch are all functioning normally, then there's really no way to warranty a wear item like a clutch plate any easier than a brake pad. The key is going to be making them find what else is wrong with the clutch besides the pad is bare.

Speedriven1

^ this.

You're fighting an uphill battle, since most warranties specifically exclude clutches, belts, and other "wear" items.

Diegob

thanks for the replies - so far i have no idea what the cost will be. It's not going to be cost effective to have an outside mechanic look at it since the car is alrady at MB and would need to be towed out of there. I think i'm screwed, i know it was a mechanical default but that is not going to be easy to prove. I've written MB directly, I'll keep you posted.

Carsy

At 28,000 the clutch should be hardly worn if it has not been abused. I would explore every avenue possible to have MB repair the problem free of charge.eg customer relations at MB, motoring ombudsman , motoring organisations , adds in the local paper ect. Go for it & don't be bullied.

noka

Sometimes dealers will replace "wear" items under warranty if there is some evidence of a defect or premature early wear through no fault of the driver. That might be a bit of a battle. I had a clutch replaced on an '01 M5 I had with only 18K mi on the car. There were some other owners with similar issues that strengthened the argument and I did not really need to fight to have it done. I also recently had rear rotors and brake pads replaced on the C300 under warranty (for a stubborn squeal) and that certainly is a wear item. So it just depends on the situation. Try to emphasize how careful you are with the car and approach it calmly with the SA. Good luck.

jinsu

In South Africa, the 6 years maintenance plan will cover the cost of clutch replacement.
It's very difficult to say the fault clutch or drivers abuse. Probably, look for another dealership to have a try or complain to Merc US office.

Glyn M Ruck

Yeah they are covered in SA under the maintenance plan.

VW are the only OEM here that stubbornly won't warranty a clutch. They treat their customers like ****!

Time to get difficult with MBUSA

Diegob

The clutch has not been abused at all. The car is driven mostly on the highway, and never pushed hard. The problem is the fact that they're aren't many manual c300's out there, so it's not a common issue. I've called MBUSA and sent them an email. My SA says they are waiting for an answer from MBUSA. The cost would be about $2,400. There is no way i'm paying that kind of money for a leased car with 28K, that I know has not been abused. Wish me luck.

hutch300

If you do pay ask for the original parts back

noka

Unless there is a core charge (i.e. exchange parts that must be returned otherwise full-price is charged).

Diegob

Final resolution - I emailed and called MB directly. After several days of negotiating they agreed to cover most of the repair cost. I will have to pay $1100 for the repair, still pretty ridiculous for a leased car that i know i didn't burn the clutch on, but at least they came through somewhat.

Sportstick

This won't be much of a concern for future buyers...MBUSA is unrelenting in their insistence to drop manual transmissions on C Class starting in 2012.

Carsy

Ask to see the clutch & to check on how much material is left .

Also ask for the full list of parts used in the repair to see if there were any clutch springs , thrust bearing or fly wheel replacement. If they were replaced it should be warranty work .