Burmeister Speaker Rattle/Buzzing - Video Recorded

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Oct 2, 2015 | 12:43 AM
  #51  
Nope.
Quote: Did you find a fix?! It's driving me crazy
I didn't. Just got it back from the second visit to the dealership where they kept it for 20 more days - 24 days total this far this year. They replaced things and removed thing and nothing worked. I'm supposed to bring it back next week where hopefully Mercedes engineers will have come up with a solution.

We need to start gathering names and VINs of all affected owners. It's the only way to prevent us from all being told that nobody has ever heard of this before. It's what they all say.
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 12:45 AM
  #52  
Ughhhhh just what I should have expected switching over from Lexus. This sucks
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 12:56 AM
  #53  
It sure does.
Quote: Ughhhhh just what I should have expected switching over from Lexus. This sucks
What's the law in your state. Can you return it? I spoke with a lemon lawyer today. We need to gather up enough of us with a single voice. That said, this is a structural engineering problem so it's recall worthy.

So far it appears unfixable. The parts in the door are too lightweight and snugly packed for padding and clearly parts from the new year models have the exact same issue. Even my GLK loaner did it.

Siri sounds like a penny in a Coke can. I am starting to wonder if that's why CarPlay was pulled at the last minute. Anyone who tests that out would spot the issue a mile away.
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 01:03 AM
  #54  
Quote: What's the law in your state. Can you return it? I spoke with a lemon lawyer today. We need to gather up enough of us with a single voice. That said, this is a structural engineering problem so it's recall worthy.

So far it appears unfixable. The parts in the door are too lightweight and snugly packed for padding and clearly parts from the new year models have the exact same issue. Even my GLK loaner did it.

Siri sounds like a penny in a Coke can. I am starting to wonder if that's why CarPlay was pulled at the last minute. Anyone who tests that out would spot the issue a mile away.
I purchased in Alabama but live in Tennessee, this is basically the Alabama Lemon Law: NOTICE AND FINAL REPAIR ATTEMPT
Before commencing a civil action, a consumer must give notice of a nonconforming
condition by certified mail to the manufacturer, and demand correction or repair of the
nonconforming condition. If, at the time of this notice, the presumption of a reasonable
number of repair attempts has been met, the manufacturer is given a final opportunity
to cure the nonconforming condition.
Within seven calendar days of receiving the certified notice, the manufacturer must
notify the consumer of a reasonably accessible repair facility. After the consumer
delivers the vehicle to the authorized repair facility, the manufacturer must attempt to
correct the nonconforming condition within 14 calendar days.

I am going to email MB USA and let them know that I will be pursing this to the extent of the lemon law. I can drive a car with crap speakers. Music is my life and I drive for work.
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 01:11 AM
  #55  
Contacted MB USA
Hi All, I contacted MB USA and let them know that if the problem cannot be resolved, those of us who are eligible will be pursuing the Lemon Law conditions to the extent that are legally possibly in our respective states. I will keep you informed with their response and will post ASAP. Please, I advise you to contact them as well. Just click this link: http://mercedes-benz.custhelp.com/app/ask

Strength in numbers.

Matt
Reply 1
Oct 2, 2015 | 01:27 AM
  #56  
This really got me worrying...Is this affecting all W205 with Burmesters?
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 01:32 AM
  #57  
I can't say for sure on your vehicle. Watch the video's posted above or play the sound/vibration track that was posted in your vehicle and it will be seriously apparent. The fix is the put a modest amount of pressure on the speaker caps in order to stop the vibration and in most cases it seems to be working.
Reply 0
Oct 2, 2015 | 01:34 AM
  #58  
But that's the joke, you can't be driving and holding your speakers steady or asking your passengers to do the same. MB does not seem to have a fix WHICH MEANS:

a manufacturer must pay the following amounts
when it repurchases a vehicle under the lemon law:
1. the full contract price, including but not limited to charges for undercoating, dealer
preparation and transportation charges, and installed options;
2. the nonrefundable portions of extended warranties and service contracts;
3. all collateral charges, including but not limited to sales tax, license and registration
fees, and similar government charges;
4. all finance charges incurred by the consumer after the first report of the
nonconforming condition to the manufacturer, its agent or authorized dealer; AND
5. any incidental damages, including reasonable costs for alternative transportation,
incurred during the period that the consumer is without the use of the vehicle
because of the nonconforming condition.
The lemon law states that a reasonable allowance for the consumer’s use of the vehicle
shall be deducted from the amounts a manufacturer pays when it repurchases a vehicle.
The reasonable allowance for use directly attributable to the consumer is determined by
the following formula:
# miles traveled prior to 1st report of full
reasonable nonconformity to manufacturer/dealer purchase
allowance = --------------------------------------------- X price
for use 100,000
Reply 0

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Oct 2, 2015 | 01:36 AM
  #59  
Quote: I too have been experiencing this issue in my C400 on the passenger side door. It seems to lessen quite a bit if I push in on the speaker grill. This only work temporarily so I hope mercedes issues a fix before it becomes unbearable.
Did your dealership find a fix? This is apparently affecting a lot of people. We are considering action through the state specific lemon laws.
Reply 0
Oct 3, 2015 | 01:17 PM
  #60  
Mine is terrible. The reason why Siri sets it off is that the issue arises from mid range frequencies like a human voice or a rolled off jazz guitar. Any nice fat midrange makes something resonate. The Burmester is poorly implemented.

Oh and putting pressure on the speaker is not a fix. It will warp and damage the grill.
Reply 0
Oct 3, 2015 | 01:24 PM
  #61  
Quote: Mine is terrible. The reason why Siri sets it off is that the issue arises from mid range frequencies like a human voice or a rolled off jazz guitar. Any nice fat midrange makes something resonate. The Burmester is poorly implemented.

Oh and putting pressure on the speaker is not a fix. It will warp and damage the grill.
Yes, not a fix but it makes it evident that the vibration is due to the installation/fitting of the speaker rather than a blown or low quality speaker. Obviously no one is going to drive around with their hands on the speaker caps or ask their passengers to do the same... Lol.

Did you take the vehicle into the service department to try to find a fix?
Reply 0
Oct 3, 2015 | 01:26 PM
  #62  
Hi all, MB USA got back to me and suggested that everyone experiencing this issue take the vehicle into the dealership so there is official documentation that the problem exists. MB says there is a fix. My appointment is next week. Will update again then.
Reply 0
Oct 3, 2015 | 04:25 PM
  #63  
I've not had this issue so it can't be a flaw. It's probably a build issue.
Reply 0
Oct 10, 2015 | 08:13 PM
  #64  
Any luck?
Quote: Hi all, MB USA got back to me and suggested that everyone experiencing this issue take the vehicle into the dealership so there is official documentation that the problem exists. MB says there is a fix. My appointment is next week. Will update again then.
Have they fixed it Matt? They didn't fix mine and said that it was at least a little better. I do think they changed the software and put a limit on the volume. My test tone gets it rattling like a penny in a coke can. They were supposed to get back to me when they had the fix ready - and I haven't heard a word.
Reply 0
Oct 11, 2015 | 07:13 AM
  #65  
My dealer has the fix..........
My dealer knows the fix..........

I took mine in for this issue and got another run around response. I told them the best way to test was on the phone or talk radio channel. When i talked to him on the phone he said they couldnt reproduce the noise and said sometimes, tall buildings will cause the cell phone signal to cut out and get distorted. I told him he miss understood what i was telling him but he kept with the story. So according to my MB dealer who knows everything stay away from tall builds, that the problem.
Reply 0
Oct 11, 2015 | 12:15 PM
  #66  
I want to hear from Matt.
Reply 0
Oct 11, 2015 | 09:42 PM
  #67  
My smart key stopped last night too!
Happened to me last night! I thought the key battery was just dead, but I think this must be the same problem. No way a key battery dies in 10 months...
Reply 0
Oct 16, 2015 | 05:12 PM
  #68  
I've got a C63 S which I got on the 1st of September and my car actually buzzes intermittently from the passenger side door even with the stereo switched off. This might be because of the firmer suspension in the car or maybe even the rumble of the V8 is causing it. It's driving me loopy and I've had no fix currently despite the car going to the dealers many times.

I've narrowed at least the noise with the speakers off coming from the bottom seat adjustment switch. Pushing on that stops the noise.

I also have problems with audio playback but have yet to try this frequency test but will so I can see if it's just coming from the same location or more of the doors.

Very disappointed in this. Even a piece of trim fell off the drivers seat the day I got it near the seat belts. The 2 BMW's I had before were rock solid along with cheaper cars in the past.
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 01:00 PM
  #69  
Quote: Hey I had this problem on my car - speakers replaced twice before they figured out it was the speaker holder that was causing the buzz/rattle. Foreman of the shop fixed it by himself and now they're about almost perfect. The system sounds incredible now - whereas before I was regretting dropping the cash on these speakers.

dopplr, would you mind sharing where your dealer is?

I have taking my car to two dealers. The first dealer was in Akron OH, they tried to fix it twice and failed. The next was Bedford of Ohio, just outside of Cleveland. They are fully aware of the problem but won't touch it. The weekend tech there even showed me the faulty speakers, but come Monday morning, the refused to carry through with fixing it.
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 01:11 PM
  #70  
Quote: dopplr, would you mind sharing where your dealer is?

I have taking my car to two dealers. The first dealer was in Akron OH, they tried to fix it twice and failed. The next was Bedford of Ohio, just outside of Cleveland. They are fully aware of the problem but won't touch it. The weekend tech there even showed me the faulty speakers, but come Monday morning, the refused to carry through with fixing it.
Amazing. How can they refuse to fix a car under warranty? What reason did they give?

Still not got my car fixed. I'll be getting a full refund if it's not sorted this time as I'm not putting up with it.
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 01:55 PM
  #71  
They said that it was as problem for MB, not the dealership. This is amazing to me as well since it is a $100 speaker. Looks like they will spend thousands to fight it, rather than fix it.

I just wish I had played tested the system before taking it off the lot. The loaner that I have is just as bad.
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 02:06 PM
  #72  
Reading all of this is very concerning. I have a C200 on order (due to arrive in January 2016) with the Burmester option. I sure as hell hope that Merc is finally aware of this and will actually attempt to fix this with new builds.

I'd be interested to hear if this can hopefully be resolved on existing cars
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 02:10 PM
  #73  
Quote: They said that it was as problem for MB, not the dealership. This is amazing to me as well since it is a $100 speaker. Looks like they will spend thousands to fight it, rather than fix it.

I just wish I had played tested the system before taking it off the lot. The loaner that I have is just as bad.
Maybe the consumer laws in the US work differently than in the UK / Europe here but how it works here is simple. I brought the car from the dealership, the dealership is responsible for the warranty. Obviously they get paid by Mercedes for parts, labour so they probably make a profit off it anyway.

Now companies can suggest you go to the manufacturer direct (Not normally a car thing but talking goods in general) but you don't have to. If they cannot repair a product for instance they need to arrange for it to go to the manufacturer themselves.

Anyway I suspect based on what most people have said here is that there isn't a Mercedes fix for this yet. If there was it would be on the Mercedes system and people would be getting this fixed without issue.

The odd one where the tech has worked it out has probably been off their own back and the info hasn't gotten back to Mercedes.

Quote: Reading all of this is very concerning. I have a C200 on order (due to arrive in January 2016) with the Burmester option. I sure as hell hope that Merc is finally aware of this and will actually attempt to fix this with new builds.

I'd be interested to hear if this can hopefully be resolved on existing cars
My car is a MY2016 model so you might not get much luck. In fairness I'm not sure it affects all cars or maybe some people just don't care about the rattle. Just if it does affect you, they do not seem to have a tried and tested fix for it yet.
Reply 0
Nov 2, 2015 | 03:29 PM
  #74  
Quote: Reading all of this is very concerning. I have a C200 on order (due to arrive in January 2016) with the Burmester option. I sure as hell hope that Merc is finally aware of this and will actually attempt to fix this with new builds.

I'd be interested to hear if this can hopefully be resolved on existing cars
No they haven't. The 2016 loaner that I have is just as bad, and the dealer who is actually aware of the problem will not even attempt to fix my car. The technician had a speaker and mount on the desk, ready to show everyone that came into the dealership.

Good luck, I hope you are one of the lucky ones with a decent speakers systems. Please note that only three of my speakers buzz, so you may get lucky.
Reply 0
Nov 12, 2015 | 04:39 PM
  #75  
Mine does it, too!
2015 C300 here with interior lighting package, open pore black wood, and Burmester system. Coming from a 2013 C-coupe that I wish I had kept. Took it to the dealer two days ago for this issue. All four speakers in the doors have this problem. I can't even hold a conversation with my phone hooked up to bluetooth, it's so bad. LOVING the E Class loaner with Harmon Kardon they put me in. Would have cost me the same as I spent on my fully-loaded C Class. Do I kick myself for this now, or later?

The tech from the service dept. at my dealership (MB of Beverly Hills) sat in the car with me and confirmed that he could hear the noise, but his comment was that he felt it was coming from everywhere, not just the doors. I tried explaining to him and the service associate that it's plastered all over the internet, people having the exact same issue, and everything you guys have all been through. They both told me that Mercedes "doesn't read forums." The service associate straight up laughed at me when I told her to check this forum. They both said they've never seen this issue before. I also contacted Mercedes directly and they told me they could not diagnose the problem and to take it to the dealer. They didn't confirm whether it was a known issue. So, as a FYI, anybody posting here but not informing their dealer and the manufacturer of this issue is wasting their time. WE ALL NEED TO CONTACT MERCEDES if we want this fixed.

Service tech tried telling me he wasn't sure if he would be able to fix it. I told him I had no issue going the lemon law route with it, if I had to. That got a look.

Has anybody actually had this issue resolved yet? Looks like all of the talk is still about what it COULD be... buttons, speaker housing, trim pieces, lights... Sounds to me like they just need to replace the whole door! lol

Looking forward to that new 4 series I'll be getting once I get my refund
Reply 0
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