2001 E320 wagon door rust
Thread Starter
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Joined: Oct 2004
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2001 E320 wagon door rust
E320 owners take heed:
18 months ago I found a significant amount of rust along the upper edge of the passenger-side door, under the weather-strip. Took it to the dealer and they politely repaired it since the car was still under the factory warranty. Repairs involved grinding off the rust treating the metal with some kind of chemical then prime and paint and installed a new weather-strip. This looked as good as new for a while but then the rust came back. Now the dealers and their body shop had a different story. I'm told they do not warranty rust repairs. The body shop told me the rust is between the door panels at a seam and the regional rep will not authorize then to replace the door. They advised me that they really cannot stop the rust and the only thing they'll do, "out of the goodness of their heart", is sand off the rust and repaint it (would even remove the weather-stripping like last time). I was told explicitly not to bring it back again for this problem.
When I bought this car this was the last problem I thought I'd have within 5 years. Benz has really let me down. I'd recommend every E320 model 210 owners to check under their doors' weather-strip and keep your fingers crossed.
As for me, I'll cross Mercedes-Benz off my future car purchasing list forever and sell this one while the body shop's repair is still hiding the cancer.
18 months ago I found a significant amount of rust along the upper edge of the passenger-side door, under the weather-strip. Took it to the dealer and they politely repaired it since the car was still under the factory warranty. Repairs involved grinding off the rust treating the metal with some kind of chemical then prime and paint and installed a new weather-strip. This looked as good as new for a while but then the rust came back. Now the dealers and their body shop had a different story. I'm told they do not warranty rust repairs. The body shop told me the rust is between the door panels at a seam and the regional rep will not authorize then to replace the door. They advised me that they really cannot stop the rust and the only thing they'll do, "out of the goodness of their heart", is sand off the rust and repaint it (would even remove the weather-stripping like last time). I was told explicitly not to bring it back again for this problem.
When I bought this car this was the last problem I thought I'd have within 5 years. Benz has really let me down. I'd recommend every E320 model 210 owners to check under their doors' weather-strip and keep your fingers crossed.
As for me, I'll cross Mercedes-Benz off my future car purchasing list forever and sell this one while the body shop's repair is still hiding the cancer.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 3,861
Likes: 3
From: Jacksonville Florida
209/W210 Estate /W211 modded by MBENZNL
Do a search on the rust...MB WILL replace the doors....Its a KNOWN problem!
The Doors rusted on my 2000 W210 estate at 30k and six years old
They rust under the door seals at the top of the door..
As MB has a Service bul re this to apply sealer on the replacement doors
And My Wagon has never seen snow/salt..
Its washed AND waxed WEEKLY....
Dont give up...They WILL replace the doors!
Use the warranty repair order as proof they PATCHED the problem Instead of doing the job correct
The Doors rusted on my 2000 W210 estate at 30k and six years old
They rust under the door seals at the top of the door..
As MB has a Service bul re this to apply sealer on the replacement doors
And My Wagon has never seen snow/salt..
Its washed AND waxed WEEKLY....
Dont give up...They WILL replace the doors!
Use the warranty repair order as proof they PATCHED the problem Instead of doing the job correct
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 3
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Yeah I've done the searches before, read the threads, and know about the rust issues but guess what, this website doesn't hold any value with MB. Their reply was my car was the only one they've ever seen like this and then they even tried to blame the rust on this one door on the fact that I live near the ocean (if you can believe that). Everyone knows the first repair was done under warranty and that too didn't make a difference to the body shop, service or region rep. The answer was just sorry it's not covered and after expressing my displeasure I'm specifically told not to come back again about this problem. I had a lot of long term plans for this car but I'm just not that much of a diehard MB loyalist to put up with this treatment. There are more than enough other car companies that want my business.
I'm glad things worked out differently for you. Good luck to you and other with your Benz. I won't be back to MBWorld as it’s on to better things for me. Bye.
Live N Learn
I'm glad things worked out differently for you. Good luck to you and other with your Benz. I won't be back to MBWorld as it’s on to better things for me. Bye.
Live N Learn
