Wind noise in C400
Other people rode in my car before and after and say they don't really hear it. I think it's subjective. And some as StanNH relorts only in crosswind...here in FL when at the coast, it's almost always a good crosswind sea breeze so I think there if sensitive to wind noise, the C would need some more work than some areas with less consistent cross winds. The door seals will probably be revamped in years ahead. To compete with quieter (and much less expensive) cars, they'll have to.m for now, I'd insist the dealer change the 6 parts as nothing to lose and helped my case a lot. A mm or 2 seems make the difference as its so focal to the top front driver and passenger window/door. My original seals worsened quickly with time and temp changes.
Take your service advisor for example. He might be driving a $30k car, an Accord, Nissan, Toyota, something in that range. Those are pretty noisy cars. And you pop up, telling him your $55k Benz is noisy
This is a very subjective experience and for him, your Benz, might be tomb-like.I've been through this again and again. When I had the 5 Series, I thought, wow, what a quiet car. Anyone asking me, I would have sweared how quiet the 5 is. Then I got the 7 and "quiet" took a whole other dimension. All of a sudden, the 5 became pretty noisy.
Then I got the A4 and that seemed to me a very noisy car. Then I got the 328i and for two years I thought the windows don't close - can't wait to get rid of it. Then I got the Lexus and FINALLY the serenity came back, of course, at the expense of sportivity.
Long story short, it depends on what you're used to. After the 7 Series and the Lexus, everything sounds like an '83 Civic to me. There's no going back.
One more thing - like Jobs used to say. If you think C Class is noisy, well, then go and have a look at the 40+ pages thread on the 3 Series forum, all about wind and tire noise. That might give you some perspective.


, I really hear the noise. Difference is quite marked with aids. So, I guess I can drive the car sans BH, and no aids as a strategy. Positively speaking, I really do enjoy driving this car even with the 19" AMGs on our New England potholes. Becomes a game to see how many I can avoid in any given drive. Scheduling appt. with my service Manager, but will speak with him first to gauge his experience with this problem. Other than replacing all of the different seals, it does sound like a heuristic approach to problem solving.
I suppose at that speed, some wind noise is to be expected. Its a touch less than the other 4 seat/normal car we have (Toyota) but perhaps my frame-less door BMW Z4 is the quietest in wind noise of the bunch. Having said that, at 80mph+ in the Z4, tyre noise is very loud so you can't hear much anything else anyhow.
Last edited by ManiacGT; Apr 24, 2015 at 03:57 AM.


Also, he indicated that my VIN # shows no TSB for the bleeding MB-Tex. first time I had heard that Mercedes has identified the likely candidates?! Don't know this individual, but there are three dealerships (Mercedes) in the Boston area by this owner. I will take car in for service manager to hear the noise as it needs addressing....build date on my C400 is mid November.
I've added a photo showing a line of dirt on the door frame following a long drive on poor weather. I think it's interesting that the dirt seems to get sucked between the a-pillar and door frame exactly where the wind noise from within the cabin can be heard.
Last edited by JurassicPark; May 6, 2015 at 09:48 AM. Reason: Added photo
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
It is in incomprehensible and will be returning my car and demanding a refund. My attorney is looking into a class action lawsuit. Denying this wind noise is not real and way above normal will be fully investigated.
The advertisements and marketing is selling the C class as the quietest car on the road. The decibels measured by my dealer on the highway are the highest for any car on the road and this will be made public soon.
I hope Mercedes finds a way to fix this soon. Many people have been duped.
Last edited by rex5; May 9, 2015 at 04:00 AM.
It's customers like you who help identify known issues and force large corporations to address them.
I for one will be taking an extensive test drive when my ordered 2015 C300 sport comes in before signing the papers.
It is in incomprehensible and will be returning my car and demanding a refund. My attorney is looking into a class action lawsuit. Denying this wind noise is not real and way above normal will be fully investigated.
The advertisements and marketing is selling the C class as the quietest car on the road. The decibels measured by my dealer on the highway are the highest for any car on the road and this will be made public soon.
I hope Mercedes finds a way to fix this soon. Many people have been duped.
Insist your dealer change both door seals and window seals on each front side. Someone else on the forum tried and helped, and then my dealer did after an long discussion and it helped mine too, it's half as wind leaky, 77db peak with wind. The service guy reluctant to admit, much better and originally said was normal and "part of the design of the car". Try a different dealer if they're not willing to help, some dealers are lazy and pompous and would tell you that a Mercedes on fire in front of them 'is normal'. MBUSA is powerless, but worth repetitive complaints and helped me after a half dozen calls by preapproving the parts changes.
A better fix is needed. May be like the last C class and not be covered under warranty when they came out with 'modified side mirrors' or allowing USA dealers to stock the acoustic glass which available in Europe and would help a lot.
It's somewhat my fault I didn't drive my car in crosswind, though I'm also certain it becomes worse with time, so when you test it, you can't tell. And mine was ordered, so the model at dealer test wasn't the same. Good luck.
Last edited by kellens; May 9, 2015 at 08:50 AM.
Surprise ... your dealer is wrong.
So, I call MBUSA and after a few days I get a case manager. He tells me that the wind noise is present in all W205's and that it is a "design characteristic". I told him that it is not present in all W205's and therefore something can be done about it. He said there is no fix and that I was mistaken as he drives a C300 and his also has wind noise and MB says it is normal for the W205. So, I asked if MB is admitting to a design flaw? He said, absolutely not! It's a "design characteristic". I couldn't help but laugh. I asked to talk to someone else who might make more sense of this for me. He said there was no one above him for me to talk to.
The wind noise bugs the hell out of me and makes me really regret buying this car. What is worse though is being lied to by MBUSA. Do they really think calling this flaw a "design characteristic" somehow makes it alright? How cynical can you get? To be honest, I've never dealt with a car company with such a crappy attitude toward customer service. Seriously. These guys are the worst. I hope somebody successfully sues these jerks.
Well, I'm not sure what to do now. Is there anyone working for Mercedes-Benz who actually gives a sh*t? If you know who this person is, please let me know.
If MB won't fix my car, then I will need to be compensated somehow. I'm thinking keeping others from being cheated by MBUSA would be a good start. My goal is to make sure none of my family, friends, acquaintances or strangers I cross paths with ever buys a Mercedes. I'm off to a good start. Had a couple in the market for one ask how I like my C300. I told them it's great if you don't mind a misaligned bumper, seats that could bleed and wind noise that makes it sound like the window is cracked open when it isn't. The C300 came off their list. It's a start.
So, I call MBUSA and after a few days I get a case manager. He tells me that the wind noise is present in all W205's and that it is a "design characteristic". I told him that it is not present in all W205's and therefore something can be done about it. He said there is no fix and that I was mistaken as he drives a C300 and his also has wind noise and MB says it is normal for the W205. So, I asked if MB is admitting to a design flaw? He said, absolutely not! It's a "design characteristic". I couldn't help but laugh. I asked to talk to someone else who might make more sense of this for me. He said there was no one above him for me to talk to.
The wind noise bugs the hell out of me and makes me really regret buying this car. What is worse though is being lied to by MBUSA. Do they really think calling this flaw a "design characteristic" somehow makes it alright? How cynical can you get? To be honest, I've never dealt with a car company with such a crappy attitude toward customer service. Seriously. These guys are the worst. I hope somebody successfully sues these jerks.
Well, I'm not sure what to do now. Is there anyone working for Mercedes-Benz who actually gives a sh*t? If you know who this person is, please let me know.
If MB won't fix my car, then I will need to be compensated somehow. I'm thinking keeping others from being cheated by MBUSA would be a good start. My goal is to make sure none of my family, friends, acquaintances or strangers I cross paths with ever buys a Mercedes. I'm off to a good start. Had a couple in the market for one ask how I like my C300. I told them it's great if you don't mind a misaligned bumper, seats that could bleed and wind noise that makes it sound like the window is cracked open when it isn't. The C300 came off their list. It's a start.
What I been told exactly is "its all design features" including wind noise, clicking noise from engine department misaligned bumper.... There is no fix for them.
For those that didn't read my saga. I ordered one, took a ride with sales manager who has since become a friend. I refused the car and they returned it to Vance for faulty wind noise and bumper. They ordered RWD replacement with no deposit.
They really went to bat for me and had MBUSA override and order acoustic glass from Germany. This isn't an available option in USA, but is identical part they can drop in. It has DOT stamp and is legal. Just a pain for MB. But my dealer said they will stop buying c class if MB doesn't help find a fix, they hear many complaints of the wind noise in the 2015 c300/400. It will be here in a couple weeks. If improved enough, I'll buy it!
I'd reccomed anyone with issue to get acoustic glass sent. You'll get many " No, can't do that" answers before a yes. A yes is possible. I'm proof.
If you already have the car you'll have to pay for the acoustic front side glass. It's about $140/side. My dealer rolling mine into the deal and determined to help the issue.
In my other cars with wind rush from large mirrors, it was a huge help. I'm optimistic help it will here.
Last edited by HelenR; May 15, 2015 at 02:10 PM.
For those that didn't read my saga. I ordered one, took a ride with sales manager who has since become a friend. I refused the car and they returned it to Vance for faulty wind noise and bumper. They ordered RWD replacement with no deposit.
They really went to bat for me and had MBUSA override and order acoustic glass from Germany. This isn't an available option in USA, but is identical part they can drop in. It has DOT stamp and is legal. Just a pain for MB. But my dealer said they will stop buying c class if MB doesn't help find a fix, they hear many complaints of the wind noise in the 2015 c300/400. It will be here in a couple weeks. If improved enough, I'll buy it!
I'd reccomed anyone with issue to get acoustic glass sent. You'll get many " No, can't do that" answers before a yes. A yes is possible. I'm proof.
If you already have the car you'll have to pay for the acoustic front side glass. It's about $140/side. My dealer rolling mine into the deal and determined to help the issue.
In my other cars with wind rush from large mirrors, it was a huge help. I'm optimistic help it will here.
So, I call MBUSA and after a few days I get a case manager. He tells me that the wind noise is present in all W205's and that it is a "design characteristic". I told him that it is not present in all W205's and therefore something can be done about it. He said there is no fix and that I was mistaken as he drives a C300 and his also has wind noise and MB says it is normal for the W205. So, I asked if MB is admitting to a design flaw? He said, absolutely not! It's a "design characteristic". I couldn't help but laugh. I asked to talk to someone else who might make more sense of this for me. He said there was no one above him for me to talk to.
The wind noise bugs the hell out of me and makes me really regret buying this car. What is worse though is being lied to by MBUSA. Do they really think calling this flaw a "design characteristic" somehow makes it alright? How cynical can you get? To be honest, I've never dealt with a car company with such a crappy attitude toward customer service. Seriously. These guys are the worst. I hope somebody successfully sues these jerks.
Well, I'm not sure what to do now. Is there anyone working for Mercedes-Benz who actually gives a sh*t? If you know who this person is, please let me know.
If MB won't fix my car, then I will need to be compensated somehow. I'm thinking keeping others from being cheated by MBUSA would be a good start. My goal is to make sure none of my family, friends, acquaintances or strangers I cross paths with ever buys a Mercedes. I'm off to a good start. Had a couple in the market for one ask how I like my C300. I told them it's great if you don't mind a misaligned bumper, seats that could bleed and wind noise that makes it sound like the window is cracked open when it isn't. The C300 came off their list. It's a start.
The sound measurements quoted in the forum are sadly meaningless using smartphone apps does not give accurate sound readings, all measurements have to be taken 1m from the source for example so a measurement adjacent to the apparent source is not a true comparison with say levels quoted in regulations.
If it is a matter of noise caused by air entering a small gap it must be capabale of being fixed, if it is more that it is the movement of the car through the air a charateristic of its shape etc and the fact that other noises are no longer audible then it is a design issue and the decision is what type of noise you can live with in a car. I for one detest the raucous sound created by ferrari etc, personally i can see no attraction listenIng to what to me sounds like a whining engine about to blow up....... for others they love it.....so it is a simple subjective choice.
Just one little point about noise, the lower the ambient noise level the louder other sounds can appear, at night for example people talking in a street sound louder than in the day.
Will update my experiences once i have my car however i would urge readers of this forum researching the car to try it for themselves and not discount it based on the reported experiences here......there seems to be a lot of subjectivity amongst the complaints as well as some cars do have seal issues. Ask my husband about noise in a 211 e class and he would condem the car, ask me and i felt it was better than average though not perfect and i would hope could be improved. The reality of course is that you can never escape noise in a car even an electric one!
This sound is very discrete, in top front of window if one has it, and honestly, a good number of people just won't hear it. And if you don't and it doesn't bother you, definitely don't sweat it!
For those that didn't read my saga. I ordered one, took a ride with sales manager who has since become a friend. I refused the car and they returned it to Vance for faulty wind noise and bumper. They ordered RWD replacement with no deposit.
They really went to bat for me and had MBUSA override and order acoustic glass from Germany. This isn't an available option in USA, but is identical part they can drop in. It has DOT stamp and is legal. Just a pain for MB. But my dealer said they will stop buying c class if MB doesn't help find a fix, they hear many complaints of the wind noise in the 2015 c300/400. It will be here in a couple weeks. If improved enough, I'll buy it!
I'd reccomed anyone with issue to get acoustic glass sent. You'll get many " No, can't do that" answers before a yes. A yes is possible. I'm proof.
If you already have the car you'll have to pay for the acoustic front side glass. It's about $140/side. My dealer rolling mine into the deal and determined to help the issue.
In my other cars with wind rush from large mirrors, it was a huge help. I'm optimistic help it will here.






