diabolis, you're not even close to having it straight. There were 3 shops involved including both a euro specialist and a diesel specialist. Your assumptions are ridiculous. I've had 2 GL's and a CLK. I've also had 6 BMW's for comparison, and the MB all have had awful reliability issues with the BlueTec as the capper.
Three shops involved... but never a factory trained up-to-date Mercedes tech that you'd find, say, at a dealership? This keeps getting better and better.
I am not a Mercedes fanboy, but please take some responsibility for the choices you've made (and I really don't want to know the rest of the story and why three "specialist" shops were involved to change oil cooler seals) instead of putting the blame where it is most convenient. The diesels don't seize unless you're doing something very wrong. Period.
In another post, I described a 2012 GL350 Bluetec sudden death after an oil cooler gasket failure repair. I was going to put a deposit down on a reman engine replacement ($15000) when I learned that the service station had not been 100 honest with me (lots more to that story). The engine seized while they were roadtesting it after the gasket repladement. To make it short, the service station ultimately filed a claim on their insurance and I got a check instead of a bill. Just bought a Nissan Armada, will never buy a mercedes diesel, or maybe never a mercedes, again.
Good for you, djhagen.
How much was the check?
dave
When Poland is not whole Europe, the common perception there about Western Europe auto culture is to drive the cars without service and sell them when warranty, or lease expires.
Poland has average wages much lower than Western Europe, so Polish buy those cars for lower prices and this is 1 of the pictures they discover
I still am under the impression that synthetics are recommended for cars on the same principals the AGM batteries are. For additional features average driver on average car will never experience in their life.
I did compare several oils years ago on older Ford Powerstroke and both dino and synthetic oils had the same 4 parts of boron.
But when dino oil had 1 of molybdenum, the synthetic had 58. So is it the oil base that makes it better for average use, or is it chem pack?
From what I read, Europe did not fall under the sale pitch. Most of high-end oils are mixes.
Some of the concentrated additive packages are not very soluble in synthetic oil (group IV and V) and are in mineral oil or other petro distillates.
In the highly refined or synthetically produced US group III are sold as synthetic oil. The branch chain hydrocarbons have a higher VI than the straight chain hydrocarbons.
The circular molecules in dino oil dissolve tars better than the branched and straight chain oils. However, the circular molecules break down much more rapidly.
The oil needs for lubrication (wet and dry), protect oxidation, low temp, high temp, solvation of impurity, waste products, etc.
I bought the car at 87k miles, and at 90 the turbo failed. Shop 1 (diesel specialist) replace it and we were on a frequent oil change and addititive program for the next 2k miles (4 more changes) then the cooler gasket failed. Shop 1 sent it to sister shop (euro specialist) to repair. Engine seized after (5th oil change). Shop 3 is euro-only shop to confirm siezure ... except Shop 1 lied about who did the work and what happened. Total miles I put on the car was about 4K, 7 oil changes.
I recommend learning the facts and information before being so quick to criticize.
7 oil changes on 4k miles means your engine was running on constant overdose of detergents and anti acids.
I still do not see diagnose why engine seized? Did they botcher oil cooler seals and run without oil? Or was the oil gelled like on the pictures in this topic? Did you send oil for lab test?
I'm not sure how much they investigated ... but shop1 lied about who did the work and what it cost, so it became a consumer fraud issue over the mechanical issue. They fought with me for 8 weeks about it. My earlier message today was directed at the poster who suggested I should have had licenses MB techs involved. I will agree that this shop I worked with was probably underprepared to deal with this engine (as was I), so the chapter is closed.
Oil cooler change on OM642 doesn't require special skills, or training. My neighbor did it just fine, even wrenching is just a hobby to him. It is lot of work, but nothing really demanding.
But MB does have unique fitting, unique plugs and some engine parts are pretty sensitive to over-torqueing. Meaning yesterdays burger flipper does not qualify.
I'm not sure how much they investigated ... but shop1 lied about who did the work and what it cost, so it became a consumer fraud issue over the mechanical issue. They fought with me for 8 weeks about it. My earlier message today was directed at the poster who suggested I should have had licenses MB techs involved. I will agree that this shop I worked with was probably underprepared to deal with this engine (as was I), so the chapter is closed.
You should indeed look at all the facts. If you had the car serviced by techs who knew what they were doing, aside from not botching up the job itself they would not have had you change the oil 7 times in 4K miles (or 5 times in 3200 miles or whatever it was). Again, whose fault is that? Mercedes?
You should indeed look at all the facts. If you had the car serviced by techs who knew what they were doing, aside from not botching up the job itself they would not have had you change the oil 7 times in 4K miles (or 5 times in 3200 miles or whatever it was). Again, whose fault is that? Mercedes?
MBZ trained tech's vary in quality. Some dealers who would skim on what the WIS required as SOP for the repair and try to claim it's not part of the service.
I've also know an independent who got lots of business from the MBZ dealer when they were stump. The independent was an formal employee who when independent a score ago.
Changing the oil seal is not technically difficult. It's just time consuming due to the poor design (or great design if you're a bean counter trying to maximize repair cost/income).
The OCI under 1000 miles is likely due to sludge already in the engine. The car was likely a lemon and owner was getting rid of it.
Mercedes has reported sludging and transmission problems. Sad that Mercedes is losing their reputation on customer support. (That not the snacks, meals and transportation while car is being serviced.)
Status on any related class-action, recalls, or remedies please? I'm experiencing a Mercedes nightmare currently. My 2010 ML350 BLUETEC's engine just seized at 82K miles, all after regular dealer maintenance in Montana and after several major dealer repairs since 2010 (including AdBlue heater and oil cooler seal leak @ approx. 65K miles, leading to catastrophic engine failure last week). Mercedes says they'll do nothing to assist as my 50K-mile warranty has expired, so my attorney is sending MBUSA a Demand Letter. I'm happy to join forces with others of you who are experiencing, or have experienced, similar issues with Mercedes!
I bought this car new, was my first Mercedes, and I adhered to the dealer maintenance schedule and proper steps whenever a warning light came on. Ironically, not a single warning light was on prior to the engine seizing. MBUSA has denied me any assistance in writing, as has the dealer. I'm reading everywhere of similar oil leaks / pressure issues with this engine. I have a list of major dealer repairs I had done since I bought this car new. I would expect MBUSA to accept accountability and am really disappointed so far in MBUSA. For similar experiences, see also : http://www.mbca.org/forum/2015-02-11...y#comment-form and https://mbworld.org/forums/diesel-fo...ne-siezed.html
Several G350d on sale in South Africa 🇿🇦, with seized engines. It seem to be older models, pre 2012 mostly. It seems to be a general concern. I spoke to an owner whose low milage G350d blew its engine. Consolation is that Mercedes-Benz offers two years parts and labour warranty on the new engines. But why fail in the first place, most with low mileage, well below 60k miles or 100,000km.
One particular item of interest that all seized Bluetecs seem to have in common is a relatively low mileage. They have all been driven less than 10K miles per year, which would suggest mostly short trips where the engine doesn't fully get up to operating temperature and stay there for an extended period of time. The OM642 is a workhorse used in most Sprinters, and in that application it is both more reliable and more economical than any gasoline engine would be... but it is inherenty unsuitable for a grocery getter / soccer mom application. You can partially offset this with considerably more frequent oil changes, but the fact is that diesel engines need heat and are simply not meant for short runs. It is simply the wrong tool for the job.
Three shops involved... but never a factory trained up-to-date Mercedes tech that you'd find, say, at a dealership? This keeps getting better and better.
I am not a Mercedes fanboy, but please take some responsibility for the choices you've made (and I really don't want to know the rest of the story and why three "specialist" shops were involved to change oil cooler seals) instead of putting the blame where it is most convenient. The diesels don't seize unless you're doing something very wrong. Period.
Explain, please, why several low mileage G350d's are on sale in South Africa 🇿🇦, all with engines replaced. It seems to follow a common denominator, the OM642 engines that just fail.
Explain, please, why several low mileage G350d's are on sale in South Africa 🇿🇦, all with engines replaced. It seems to follow a common denominator, the OM642 engines that just fail.
Why they are on sale? Presumably because their owners want to get rid of them and buy new cars.
As to why their engines (original) may have failed, it could be because someone used coconut oil instead of motor oil, or, more likely, that they failed exactly because they are low mileage, 10 year old grocery getters. Hundreds of thousands of high-mileage Spritners don't fail because they are driven and maintained like they should be. Read my previous post.
Several G350d on sale in South Africa 🇿🇦, with seized engines. It seem to be older models, pre 2012 mostly. It seems to be a general concern. I spoke to an owner whose low milage G350d blew its engine. Consolation is that Mercedes-Benz offers two years parts and labour warranty on the new engines. But why fail in the first place, most with low mileage, well below 60k miles or 100,000km.
4-year 50,000 mile warranty on my Mercedes OM642 crate engine.
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
