it all went well in past 11 months, no sign of any problems
I actually had it start/stop several times driving ~60 km yesterday
and this morning , it would not start any more
( all eletricals behave absolutely normal )
two technicans from the dealer replaced the battery - no luck
i withness this baby towed away from my parking lot ....
any one had similar experience to share

cnt
p.s. i probably had to give up my upgrade plan with any MB models

 

sorry to hear that.

now, how bout RS4??

 

Did you get a CEL? I had to have my MAF replaced, sounds a bit similar.

 

E55 baby!

 

man... that's scary.

 

I hope that all will be "Resolved"

 

Man that sucks!!! So far I only had minor issues with my 03 C32. I heard their were alot of electrical issues with the C Class.

 

it will be nice if you can elaborate your experience and what was done by your dealer
tks
cnt

 

I had virtually zero problems with my C55 for 11 months. No signs of any parts of malfunctioning or noise / sounds that would make me to suspect that one day this car won't start. I hate to think this way but I am tempted to start worring about QA process in the South Africa factory.....Ever since I had a used E36 yrs ago, I only buy new cars and the oldest one was five years. I never experienced that I wont start a car if it were not the battery problem. How can I face these people including my wife that a 11 months USD110K Mercedes is not even more reliable than a 10 yr old one. I must dig out exactly what the hack is going on with them.

Is the RHD CLK 2006 made in Germany? I probably get a RHD CLK55AMG made in Germany.

 

I am sure that the "Problem" will be found. No car is perfect and thats what warranties are for. But I do feel your pain

 

You have one electrical problem, and you completely give up on the car? That's a bit rash isn't it?

 

maybe the fuel pump died. my 328i ran well for 75k and then the fuel pump died. it wouldn't start either but the dealer repaired it fast.

 

Thanks for your concerns.
Yes, I want to know the root cause of this problem. Is this a known problem on some of the W203 ? Or was that an isolated problem which happened to be on my car. My previous car was a 2001 W210 E320, it had never failed me even once ( though it did have a air cond pump failure at its 3rd year ).
To be honest, I had downgraded from a W210 to a W203 for sake of an AMG engine in it; and when everything seemed to go well and I almost believed that W203 is still a MB-quality production ( except the case where the first problem occured after 5 days I picked up my new C55 - the rain-wiper failed me in a big rain storm )

Anyway, I will report the situation to this thread - it is very very strange. No one here with C55/C32 could not start their car ( its milege is only 15000km ) without a warning sign at all !
I thought CLE63 ( the CLS verison of 2007 C-Class ) is my next upgrade; and I have to revisit this. May be I will get a E63 instead.

cnt

 

South Africa factory? I thought the C55 was built in Germany. Are HK destined C55s built in S. Africa?

Mez

 

all RHD c-class cars are from SA, all CLKs are from germany... bremen.

 

RHD C-Class are built in SA production line.
LHD are still built in Germany.
For C55, they built the AMG engine in Germany and shipped it to SA for assemble.
The China production line is up soon, I SWEAR I WILL NOT BUY A freakin MERCEDES BENZ built just next door ( I know the German thinks differently :p )

 

Thanks for the info. Sorry to hear about your issues. I am very interested to know what the issue is in case the gremlins visit me too. Please keep us informed. I just got my C55 2 weeks ago. Loving every minute of it.

Mez

 

South Africa....there's your problem!!!! :p jk

 

Mez

I am definitely eager to know the root cause. After 11 months fantastic ride, the C55 never let me down and I almost believed that my next upgrade will still be a W204 , and until......now. I have to be sure if this problem an isolated case or something quality issues hidden in the W203 production line that we did not know. We cannot accept a high-end sports car sleeps without waking up with absolutely no sign of any previous problems ( the last time I was driving it normally for more than 50km journey was only less than 10 hours before discovered the incident )
If it were the engine's 'starter' failed , I would ask why a 'starter' would fail in 11 months?
I am shocked not because I lose face ; I am upset because we here really don't have much choices for a supercar for a budget of USD100-120 apart from M3, C55, SLK55.

cnt

 

Did the 'check engine' light show up when the car start/stop several times while you are driving?

If the 'check engine' light showed up, i guess your car probably had the same problem as my car. (It's a bad experience and the car needed to be towed to the dealer to get repaired.)

 

forgot to mention you can join the rest of the cry baby here http://www.mercedes-benz-usa.com/index.php at their complain site.

my older brother read that site and thought that his Bimmer's better...but in reality they are all the same. After reading through some of the complains on that site I have one conclusion: PEOPLE FUKING COMPLAINS TOO MUCH ABOUT THEIR CAR especially for those that have never owned a MB or any German cars at all.

edit: reading more and more of the complaints on that site...it's hilarious. I swear that these ppl are probably those that only bring their cars to the dealership and have no idea how to do even the most simplest maintainese such as changing a light bulb. also for anyone who's reading it...pay attention to the model year they posted on there. They are those who buy first year cars without knowing what the first year car will certainly have more problems.

 

 

NEVER. Neither I noticed any signs of faults , nor the technicans came over who replaced the battery at the first instant. One of them said, one batch of W203 had a battery problem i.e. dies quick ; but they said they had to check the chasis in order to know whether the car belongs to that 'batch'.
So, my original battery was not dead as the one they put it in also not making the car to start. That's why my C55 was towed ( the parking lot is on 7th floor man )

 

very funny

 

Not of any surprises , the dealer replaced the entire 'starter'.
( not sure what is a starter )
It was not electrical nor engine failure.
A MB costed me USD110K , 11 months ! And, this shhht happened , and what's next ?
Anyway, I am writing a letter to MB to complain unsatisfaction of their product; and also I will want to see a detailed explanantion why they cannot control the quality of a very basic component in South Africa factory.

Honestly , I will not buy another MB car made in SA. So, I will get the german made CLK or E next time , no matter how wonderful W204 is going to be.