JWH321

Thanks again. I try very hard to keep my car completely original, and the thought of changing the wiring seemed to be not very appealing.

brooktre

Hope you find and fix the problem without too much expense!

AZN Optics

Actually just heard this mentioned local TV news. Gaining traction and will hopefully result in an official recall.

tivoboy

looks like a bit of traction growing here

http://www.benzinsider.com/2013/12/m...investigation/

fars

just checked my car this morning I have the same proble.
I had some troubles removing the connector that is connected to the taillight, its basically melted inside the taillight wth ... I never expected that from mb.

nyca

I fixed my own - heavier gauge ground wire, new pin, new bulb plate - about 3 weeks ago. The dealer and MBUSA would not cover it. Alot of folks on here have done the same thing. You can't believe how hot the existing setup gets, just put your finger on the existing ground wire after running the tail lights for a while. I guess if there is a recall now, the people who fixed it themselves are out of luck - not that we had much choice, you can't ride around with no tail lights. And if the dealer fixes this, I don't see that they would use a larger ground wire - just replacing the failed parts with identical new parts, does not fix the problem, it just buys you more time. Only a heavier gauge ground wire fixes the problem.

nyca

In many cases, just inspecting for the problem - destroys the connector. In other words, just removing the connector to check for the problem - can destroy the connector (falls apart in your hand) - then you have to fix it.

I am convinced every car has this problem. It's just a question of how many long trips you make, with the tail lights running, that determines when it fails on your car. I make alot of 1+ hour drives, and still I didn't see it for almost 4 years. For people who don't drive that much or make alot of short trips which gives the bulb plate a chance to cool off, they may never see it. But everyone has this problem, the ground wire is simply insufficient.

Llgillespi

Really....something that will only cost MB the cost of extra wire and maintenance time.....but could cause a fire if not resolved.

Why is it taking an investigation for the company to stand up and do the right thing. This IS a fire hazard. Wires melting. Harness melting and damaged!

I am so disappointed. I purchased this car because I believed it to be safe! In my opinion, true quality is not simply a lack of problems, but how problems are handled when they arise.

I can't stand the thought that I am driving a vehicle with a potential fire hazard and the company is so unethical, they won't just come out and repair it without the government doing an investigation. I can respect a company that sees a problem and just handles it.....especially one that carries a fire hazard. I no longer feel safe in the car and as a high ranking military person, I will ensure that all of my sailors understand my feelings. If I stand by honor courage and commitment, I can't knowingly let one of my troops purchase a vehicle and deploy leaving their family to possibly deal with a car fire.

Silly of MB. Everyone that drives a car is someone's mother, sister, brother, cousin etc. why not fix this. It would show a certain amount of character and instill faith.

JWH321

I see little chance of a fire with this problem. The danger is in non-functional tail/signal/stop lights. The melted portions are well contained and well separated from the trunk compartment. And it appears to impact only a portion of the W204 production, not all of them. Mine, for instance, has had no issue with melting in over 80K miles. I got a warning message that told me to look at the taillights -- exactly as I should have. I changed all of the bulbs and cleaned and lubricated the contacts. The message went off, and I have full brightness in the lights.


I do wish that the issue had never come up, but it has not prompted me to panic, and my wife drives the car daily. I will watch the matter carefully, but I suspect that there is another combination of issues which has caused this one, for instance, I would like to know if it impacts only those cars which do not have LED turn signals (part of a second level lighting package). Mine has LEDs, and has no burned wiring. Newer cars which have full LED lighting appear to not be impacted at all.


I have driven many many different brands of automobile, Japanese, American, German, and English. I would not trade any other of my cars for my Mercedes. I am convinced that I have a quality machine. But it is a machine, and as such, is not perfect. It requires care and maintenance the same as your ships, aircraft, and other systems.


Don't give up. You have a quality machine, Sir.

JohnnyC300

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireS...oblem-21321929

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/28/au...-upgraded.html

Definitely gaining major traction, considering the impending recall I am wondering what to do. I have the warning every time I start the engine but my lights including fog light are all fine.

Here is a copy of the federal report filed December 20, 2013: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/cs...13008-6689.PDF

JohnnyC300

Sorry for the double post,

Submit complaints here about the rear tail/brake/turn signal failures to expedite a recall.
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

Even if you have paid for this repair an official recall may make you eligible for reimbursement from MB so do not delay and submit complaints.

nyca

Good to see the NHTSA complaints many of us filed were taken seriously. For what its worth, I saved all my old parts and receipts - maybe if there is a recall, they will reimburse me.

kid_clean3

Does switching out the halogen bulbs for led bulbs reduce the heat and will they kick the bulb out indicator?

Thx!
JB

mbpharoh

Just finished doing this today, total parts cost me about 63$ including tax. But i did not double ground like some of you guys, should i go back and re do it?

Koolkozak

+1 on getting a "check taillight" message. I keep getting it on every startup..never thought it something that serious, and have been ignoring it for now until i was going to get a service done. Now ill have to check my connector for meltdown. I hope im not too late. but CPO warranty covers it right?

Koolkozak

Found the connector melted in mine as well. Does the CPO warranty cover this repair?

Steeezy

I just fixed mine bought a new pin connector and did a double ground. It worked for a week now my right side is signaling the error even after the fix.. I may need to see if it needs to be re-grounded. Although I'm going through the trouble fixing this I still hope this recall passes

Koolkozak

Melted electrical component isn't covered by cpo warranty? Seems like nobody knows the answer or wants to answer it.

DellCarroll

It's covered under warranty. Mine is getting fixed at the dealership right now.

nyca

Yes it is covered under warranty if it happens during the warranty period - but for alot of us, it happens after the warranty is gone.

Koolkozak

Got it fixed under warranty

oakhillslake

I have been experiencing the same issue with My C300. The tail light is out and I am getting several error msgs. regarding my lights on my dashboard. I took it into Walters Mercedes Benz in Riverside this morning. I was told that the issue is caused by a melted electrical component.

I called Mercedes Benz and they told me they are not aware of this issue and due to the fact that I am out of warranty I will have to pay for the $500 repair.


Needless to say, I am not happy with paying to replace a defected part.


The Mercedes Benz customer service rep told me she will forward the issue to an acct mgr who will call me back within 24 hours.


I will post their response as soon as they get back to me.

DellCarroll

Hopefully Mercedes owns up to it as it's definitely a defective part and a potential fire hazard if you ask me. In the meantime I'd fill one of these out to try and exposure a recall as @johnnyc300 said: https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

JohnnyC300

Yeah guys fill our those complaint forms to help speed up a recall and possible reimbursement of funds spent fixing this issue.

https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

I personally have the warning indicator on the dash but no issue with tail lights as of yet, I am holding out until they die before even opening it up to check on them.

oakhillslake

This is an update to my post on 2/5/14...

Justin (regional case mgr) at MBUSA says they will not replace the part because my vehicle is out of warranty. However, they are willing to give me 15% discount off the cost of the repair.

In additional, my service advisor at Walters MB in Riverside CA is also offering me 15% discount off.

As I cannot driver my car without the replacement of the defective part I accepted their offer after much protest as I truly believe they should be responsible for any defects in my vehicle.

Next step, I am going to file a complaint with the NTSF and I have contacted both CBS and ABC to get them interested in broadcasting this story.