What seems to be a common problem to all Mercedes owners has finally happened to me...the deadly ESL and EIS failure. Worked perfectly one day and the next it was immobile. Had the car towed to my nearest dealer where they did not hesitate to quote me $2,500. Mentioned the 10% coupon so it brought the cost down a bit, but nonetheless leaves it at a 2k + issue. Why hasn't this been considered a recall? It is obvious that the manufactured part is faulty and prone to failing. I guess that's the cost of owning a Benz

 

We've suffered the same this week. Dealer says it's the ESL. Going to fetch the car in 1/2 hour and pay the $1000 bill

(Our car has about 65k miles, has been acting up for about a week.)

 

Welcome to Mercedes Sudden Death club, probably an outsourced part my 1st guess
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Mine failed a couple months ago, 2009 C300 as well, it was so good until then. Unfortunately, I was away from home and had to take it to Mercedes-Benz of Hoffman Estates, which even after getting a good will repair from MBUSA still cost me $1200, which is outrageous. But then I needed a working car so it was necessary. I plan on driving it until it dies, which I hope is at least another 3 years.

 

My ESL failed and was about $1120 CAD plus about $85 for the tow.

I could hear my ESL motor slowly dying and the sound would get more faint and ESL would disengage slower and slower till one day nothing.

I could tell mine was slowly dying so it was not a huge surprise when it finally failed. Thankfully my car was at home in my garage and not in the middle of nowhere.

 

This just happened to my GF 2008 c300...which prompted the 2012 c300 purchase as an intermediary for the glc 300 coupe.

Def should be a recall, and I'm the one who drives the Land Rover....

 

Recalls occur when a car manufacturer or the NHTSA determine that a part on a vehicle is defective or may perform in a way that would be considered a safety hazard or that it does not comply with some Federal Safety standard. This is not a safety-related issue. And there are no Federal safety standards that mandate that a car part cannot fail. There is also an underlying element that is based on how many proven/documented cases of a particular part failure/defect that would give rise to a presumption that the majority of cars have one that will ultimately fail.

There isn't a single "manufactured part" that is not "prone to failing". (Think battery, starter motor, voltage regulator, crankshaft position sensor, camshaft position sensor... and on and on and on). And these are the parts that are strictly related to the starting cycle!

And yet, this happens to be one part failure where people who experience it, have some sort of expectation that the manufacturer should be held responsible for the repair costs, even though it has been several years since the manufacturer warranty has expired!

This is not a Benz Exclusive problem... Lexus had several issues with their ignition mechanism... Ford, Hyundai, Volkswagen.... etc. And let us not forget the GM ignition switch recall... But that one differs in that it was causing injury/death to passenger/driver.

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With all that said, and whether your vehicle had a failed steering lock, OR the less frequent ignition switch, the cost of repair should not come out to $2500. Its typically half of that at most.

So are you sure there is not another issue that your dealer is working on in addition to -either- ESL or EIS?
Conversely, is it possible that both EIS & ESL failed at the same time???
It is possible, but not likely!

 

I am pretty sure your 2012 uses the same antitheft system. If it does, it will happen to your 2012 eventually

 

Has anyone that experienced these issues tried replacing their key first? I had what I thought was an ESL failure but my tech suggested trying a new key. I paid the $200 for a key and BAM! Works fine! Not saying this is everyone's issue and it could be an expensive test, but $200 is better than the average $1200-1500..

 

^This

When one part of the system failed my independent tried to get me to buy a new key before they dug into ESL and EIS but I refused - in the end it seems this would have fixed it as even after ESL and EIS replacement the car still would not start. Paid the $200 for the new key and car fired right up, and old key no longer works except for remote fob functions. I am not upset about it as despite paying ~$600 out of pocket for a new ESL, new EIS and new key (extended warranty covered the remainder) I have all new parts that will probably outlast the car.

 

When either EIS or ESL fails, a Mercedes Benz Diagnostic Trouble Code is stored in ECU indicating which particular part malfunctioned. I doubt any repair shop (even a dealer) would venture to replace any part that will ultimately cost 1200 or so before checking for DTCs. Besides, the key is much easier to test than either EIS or ESL since most people have 2 keys and can try the spare before even going to the shop.

In your case:

It is possible that they did not properly reprogram/recode to the new EIS or ESL... If the key cannot communicate with those 2 modules, the car isn't going to start.

 

You're pretty sure it does have the same antitheft system only to end up wondering "if it does"?

There are about 6 steering lock part numbers, and 5 different part numbers for the ignition switch that fit the W204 models. So the likelihood that a 2008 or 2011 for that matter came with the same part number that came with a 2012 is very slim. There are several variations. This will also be enough to refute your claim that it will eventually fail.

For the record, I don't get the doom & gloom idea that some will purport on this forum about this eventual failure. And what most don't realize is that making such an assertion will hurt you in your own pocket when you go to sell the car that you claim will eventually have an expensive repair job.

 

After the ESL and EIS replacements they could not get the "programming key" to work to get the car started, the ESL that is now there is the 2nd one that was installed, EIS it was the first one that would not take the "programming key" before they finally talked me into a new key which was no issue. The independent told me they think it was the key all along as the "programming key" would never work......whatever that means. Regardless I have pretty much everything new so I probably won't ever have to worry about it again.

Then again that independent turned out to be pretty terrible so cant say that it was not their complete failure either.

 

There is a reason why Mercedes Benz (or any manufacturer for that matter) gives a certain warranty when a vehicle is purchased new. I don't understand why want Mercedes to pay for repairs on their 10 year old car!!! As far as recalls..... It's only when it's been proven that if and when that part fails, it will cause some type of injury or damage. I usually offer my customers a genuine re-manufactured steering lock or I also offer them an emulator. The emulator is not plug and play, it needs to be programmed to the car, so everything works like it should except the steering wheel does not lock.

 

My ESL went dead recently, replaced with an aftermarket emulator programmed to match the EIS/Key for $300.