Oracle

I just towed my car into the dealer to make a repair due to a defective part. While there they found another expensive repair needed due to ... another defective part. They also replaced some other parts, and had to tow the car back the next day because one of the new parts was ... defective!

Genuine Mercedes parts. You see them advertise all the time - Use only Genuine Mercedes parts to ensure quality. Seems to me they make a darned lot of defective parts. Anybody else notice this?

ellcapitan

The center brake light comes to mind. I read once that M-B was outsourcing some parts production to China and India, and it took them a good while to get a handle on quality.

Glyn M Ruck

The center brake light I'm told by my dealer still breaks due to slamming the trunk lid. I've been asked to be careful.

Will it still break on a final production 2009?

I also have to ask the question. You don't say what parts other than your manifold. Is the dealer competent? Is the dealer scamming you? Are the dealer techs any good or just bodge parts exchangers? A bad Tech can do a lot of damage. I supervise my car at dealer services otherwise I keep well clear. More time at dealers frequently = more trouble.

Kevwood

Well said and I couldn't agree more.

Been there done that, luckily the Service Manager at MB I've befriended here in Dubai is a top notch guy (British) with tons of years with MB both in the UK and here. When I take my car in he personally oversees all the work and does the final checks and road test - it's a fantastic feeling when you trust someone with your car, especially when you have a car that's far from stock.

Glyn M Ruck

Yes - I today have one of those relationships with my service manager. He has moved branches & I moved with him. He won't even allow them to wash & vacuum my car if I'm not present. 3 cars back Benz had to replace all the woodwork in my car thanks to careless use of a vacuum nozzle. This damage was done at 5000Km and I was pissed.

Oracle

I wrote MBUSA and told them I consider their parts quality and reliability nothing short of embarrassing. Not based just on my CLK but on forty years of owning high-end MB cars and finding them to be the least reliable vehicles of any I have ever owned.

They responded, not surprisingly, "Once a vehicle leaves our possession, many factors are beyond our control that have a direct bearing on repairs which can become necessary as age/mileage accrues. For example, has maintenance has been performed per factory recommendation, current/prior owner's driving habits, conditions under which a vehicle has been operated, etc. It has also been our experience an original manufacturing defect in workmanship or material will present itself shortly after a vehicle has been placed into service."

I guess that about sums it up - Buyer Beware according to MBUSA.

Mka77

WOW! What a response. Thanks for sharing. Kind of why after previously owning three, this is my last.

Rudeney

What were these defective parts? MBZ is right - they can't control what happens to the vehicle once it's loose on the roads. Some of their parts failures can be quite frustrating, but in their defense, they were very helpful with my timing gear (i.e. balance shaft) problem. I think when they have known chronic problems, they will "quietly" stand behind them. Unfortunately, there is an acceptable random failure rate for any given part. Of course no one wants to be in that small percentage, but the reality is, someone will be.

Oracle

A brand new part installed by the dealer and failing out of the driveway can in no way be regarded as anything but a defective part and not the fault of the operator.

Parts that Mercedes has redesigned over and over again due to failures are defective and not the fault of the operator.

Rudeney

Again, what parts are we talking about here? And if a brand new installed part failed "out of the driveway", then the dealer (and MBZ) should (and usually do, IME) stand behind that and fix it.