DBOC205

That truly is a shocker Stan. My jaw dropped when I saw those pics.
Hope they get things sorted out for you soon - keep us posted on the outcome.

StanNH

I was, to quote an Irish friend, "gob smacked" when I opened the door to get in the car this morning. My wife was with me, and neither of us curse, but there was a loud stream of profanity that echoed through the White Mountains this morning.

I still find it hard to believe that stuff like this can get through whatever testing is done before production starts. It's just inexcusable and isn't doing much to instill any sense of customer loyalty with me. I sure hope MB steps up and makes this right.

MBNUT1

I thought about the same thing. Given that the car is tested in cold climates there must be a difference in the seat material processing between what was tested and what has found it's way into your car.

npa201

Damn, I wish I had seen this thread and the MB-TEX thread before buying my C300 last week. After going through this thread, I went to check my rear tail lights and what do I find:
1) The left tail light sticks out towards the trunk and towards the bumper is recessed. (See Pics Below)
2) The right tail light just sticks out like the original poster. (See Pic Below)

Man I wish I had taken possession of the car during the day as I would not have accepted this.

Also, I have a question for you guys: I noticed the night I took possession of the car (presumably it was washed by them) while it was cold out (but clear) that the plastic casing for the front headlights were fogging up a bit. With the holidays I have not driven the car much since last Tuesday. Is this normal to see that fogging? It was gone the next morning. Should I bring this up as an issue as well (I don't recall seeing this issue with our 2014 BMW X5).

Now I just want to see if there are any cold days to see if the MB-Tex issue pops up. I'm more stressed out about this car purchase AFTER buying it rather than before. Not cool Zeus.

floridadriver

According to Vic Viper who is a guru, the front fogging normal and the rear light fixture supposedly easy fix. Definitely bring it up and will be fixed. Don't let dealer sell you on 'it's normal'. I'd show the copy of TSB and have them document they cleaned your MBTex at dealer per the sheet. A comp gift card for parts and accessories not out of question to ask for either since the dealer delivered you the car w/o checking either. Epic fail at many levels IMO that any car makes it to your hands like that.

DBOC205

To see a growing list of issues and inconsistencies with how the bumper & tail lights meet up, you'd be forgiven for thinking there's a bit of a design fault in the way that the bumper clips onto the back. It hopefully isn't all just down to sloppy assembly processes. At least that way they may actually design a proper fix for the problem.

I'm glad these things are being pointed out - will definitely help for when I take delivery of the car.

goherdibg

I checked my car last night and saw the same as pictures #1 and #2 - but on both sides. At the top of the bumper it appears to be pushed in and does not meet the quarter panel flush - which then lends itself to making the tail light appear to be sticking out. In reality, the bumper is not aligned correctly.

This is a toss up. Do I leave it as is? It does not appear to be allowing water to leak in as far as I can tell. Or....do I take it in and hope the dealership doesn't do more damage than good - even if they accept this as an issue? My guess is they will need to completely remove the bumper and shim it out or adjust a bracket (if possible). My fear is they do something to chip paint or remove undercoating (hidden under the bumper) causing rust issues later. What to do? What to do?

bdwg22

I had almost exactly the same post a few pages earlier. My left taillight is off and the top of the bumper is pushed in. Also my headlights were fogged at delivery as well. I'm taking it in when I pick up the plates.

mei_hawa

The dealer replaced my headlights. but I somehow feel the range of my headlights are very short. is the angle of the projector adjustable or fixed? Maybe I should bring the car back to have them re-aligned?

StanNH

The low beams on my car were off ... had to have the dealer re-adjust them. High beams were okay though.

BoboPolo12

There should be a simple way to manually adjust the height/throw of the low beams. Check out this link on a similar question on older MB models. The principle should be same as in the W205. I would look if I had the car, but unfortunately can't. You can always go to dealer as well, but this might save you a trip if someone else could confirm this. Should be a 2min job. Just please be reasonable and considerate of other drivers

BenzC400

My C400 has the same bumper/taillight alignment issue on both sides. I stopped by the MB dealer this morning. ALL 20 or so C Classes on the lot(300 and 400) have the same issue. None of them were lined up correctly. I have an appointment in 2 weeks for the drivers door LED light malfunction repair. I'll bring this up too.


I have the same concern that attempting to repair this may cause other issues, especially related to the Drivers Assistance Package sensors/radar in the bumper area.

gocal73

I know the oozing seats have taken the limelight away from this issue (probably a MB trick to distract us), but I still find this tail light/bumper issue irritating and want MBUSA to fix it. Has anyone had this issue resolved yet? How did it turn out? How receptive/supportive was your dealer? thanks!

BenzC400

Does anyone have a C Class with proper fitting rear bumper and taillights? Do they exist? Maybe someone with a car built somewhere other than Alabama. I'd like to have photos of what the proper bumper and taillight alignment looks like to show the dealer when I bring this up. I want to be ready for the possible "that's the way it's supposed to look" and "see, all the cars on our lot look like that, it's normal." response.

Glyn M Ruck

Vic posted some pics from Sweden.

mplex

Here's a video from Alabama covering how the biggest upgrades to the factory to build the C was in the body shop, and how this car is assembled using techniques the factory was previously unfamiliar with. Clearly they have more to learn on the assembly side. We have a new C on order and I'm hoping they either resolve the issues over the winter factory break, or we'll have to reject the car upon delivery.

http://archive.courier-journal.com/V...Assembly-Plant

Count Laszlo

300,000 units a year, wow.

Amazing.

Thanks for the video.

floridadriver

Thanks for posting, interesting!

Does anyone know if that's 'normal' that they would resolve many issues while the factory was shut down during the break?

StanNH

I picked up on the retraining, retooling, the use of new adhesives and ways of attaching body panels, and new technology too. That might explain some of these early assembly and QC issues.

bdwg22

Has anyone taken theirs in to fix the bumper and taillights? We're they able to fix it?

djdj

July '14 Alabama build. VIN number under 1,000. Bumper and taillight fit all good.

StanNH

My August build, VIN in the 27xx range, has no tail light fitment issues either.

newyorktoLA

I have an August build as well, VIN in the 14xx range and I have tail light and bumper fit issues. Seems like QC is all over the place...

BlackjackM

Which showed (albeit to a lesser extent than some others) inconsistent bumper fit.

StanNH

Yeah, but you got a fuel filler door that fit. Mine wasn't even close to fitting.

I wonder if they even have someone doing final fit and finish QC.