I have just - unfortunately- filed an action for Benz to buy back an 04 E500 after repeated failures to fix this car. Has anyone else done this and what has your experience been like? As an aside- The Benz factory rep was contacted after the 4th or 5th fix attempt had failed and was downright hostile rather than proactive and customer satisfaction oriented. The dealer service mgr agrees that the car is still not fixed and can only offer to keep trying to fix it. It has spent over 30 days in the shop. If they are trying to rehabilitate their reputation- they are not doing a great job. Any input in re similar experience would be appreciated.

 

Similiar experience with my last two BMW's (E60 both 545's), first one BMW took back for bad paint and the next one spent 27 days in the shop (8 months and less than 10k miles total) for a whole bunch of different things...BMW just kept trying to fix it but because, for me according to them, nothing was really safety related (although my tranny was a safety issue to me, different story for a different day) and nothing broke more than 3 times before being fixed (although I did have something like 17 different items...including 6 revs of software, a new steering rack due to steering failure, a new gas tank, a new instrument cluster...I could go on)...lemon law for me was still about 6 months off if at all...I gave up sold the car with full disclosure to someone that didnt seem to care...jumped over here to MBZ and have been trouble free ever since. Good luck to you...sometimes you just get a bad car doesn't seem to matter what type it is

 

Sorry to hear and I have no advise, but can I ask what the problem is that the dealer can't fix???

 

What kind of repeated problem you have? Maybe your car was built on a Monday, LOL. All in seriousness, what you said that you are doing the right thing, however your profile didn't mention what state you are in, normally you go through your State Attornery General's Office since the dealer seem downright hostile and taken things casaual instead of being accountible to get it fix right and first time, not second, third time around.

 

The car has a constant -wheel hop- resulting in an unsettled - constant vibration like- ride which never stops and feels as if one was driving on a corrugated road surface- all the time. not in the steering wheel but in the seats. Wheels are perfectly balanced and perfectly round. It is not tires- it is an admitted acknowledged problem both by the dealerI service manager and the MBUSA rep. They have no idea what it could be. I bought new tires and ( no change) I was very patient etc. To be clear the dealer was wonderful- The MBUSA rep- well - less than wonderful. Actually was kind of adversarial and unsympathetic. a real d**k.
But he doesn't matter. The action is taking place in PA.

 

It is my opinion that your problem would have been resolved quicker if you had escalated this matter higher up the MBUSA food chain (i.e.: MBUSA Regional Operations Manager) rather than proceeding through lemon law especially since your dealer’s service manager is backing you. Just because your MBUSA SPOM disagrees doesn’t necessarily mean MBUSA disagrees.

 

Also, once action is filed....

 

Actually- the MBUSA rep- flat out said that they were only willing to continue to diagnose. I contacted MBUSA directly and informed them that I wanted them to repurchase this car from me - it had met all Lemon Law criteria for a favorable ruling for me and that I was offering them the courtesy of doing it quietly on their own without the added expense and reporting requirements of the Lemon Law process.
The MBUSA rep returned the call with little more than "MBUSA IS NOT REPURCHASING THIS CAR" and that was that.
My 1st MB and last.
Any manufacturer of anything can build a bad one. But it is the support and attitude I received from this manufacturer under these conditions which tells me all I need to know about any future purchase considerations for me . This was text book - how not to deal with an unhapppy customer with a legitamate problem who was very patient while they tried to fix it.

 

Good luck with your lemon law suit man, you'll need all the luck and money. I don't know if what sounds like a comfort issue from what you described will be very favorable to you.

 

Geez. Never heard of that one before.... If its that obvious, then it should be fixable. Remember the grass is always greener.

 

Check you PM.

 

It is not a comfort issue ( and I would not describe it as such- this acutally causes my butt to go numb on a long drive due to the extreme nature of the 'vibration like ' effect.) Again it is like driving on a never ending - never ceasing corrugated road. The wheels actually hop constantly and this is a safety issue as well. The new tires are cupping again - but across the tread not the circumference. I agree it should be fixable- but it has so far not been. In a $65K car this should not be so. We'll see. I did everything I could to get it fixed - including new tires at my expense. The car was in the shop over 30 days. There is some part - some assembly - somewhere that is not right and apparently not identifiable. My goal was not a new car or a buy back. I wanted them to fix it and to be able to like and enjoy this car. It is a lemon. It does not have to break down on the side of the road regularly to be considered one.

 

Right, so check your private message…

 

Well that sure sounds like a lemon to me, and I'm shocked that MB wouldn't try to trade you into another car. Has this gone on the entire two years you've owned the car? ( you mentioned it was an 04)

 

Oh boy, seriously, these cars are even less reliable than Italian cars now.

 

Sadly, just another example of declining Mercedes quality and a company that wants to ignore these issues rather than address them. There has been so much "technology" built into these cars in recent years, the MB Service Centers can't keep up with them. Kinda like Microsoft using its customers to test their beta software.

 

Hold up a second here. First off, it sounds as if the MB Dealer AND MBUSA are both working with the customer on this. But, understand this:

1 - MBUSA is NOT interested in sweeping a problem under the rug by "quietly" buying it back. When and if MBUSA buys it back, they LEMON stamp it. After all there are liability issues with acknowledging a problem and then selling it off.

2 - The PROCESS of getting your car bought back under the Lemon Law concept is extremely defined and MUST be followed.

Arguing the comfort vs safety aspects are crazy. Fact is, MBUSA will only acknowledge it WHEN and if it appears that you have all your ducks in a row.

It is simply not realistic to expect that a comany can be much more proactive than that.

I am not bashing you or your problem. I have been through the lemon law process myself and have learned first hand.

As for the Lemon Law process being any more stream - lined, I have NEVER heard of any manufacturer that is better than MBUSA.

Give up on the brand, if you'd like, but that's not how I work. Don't be confused by the players in the game. Each has a different responsibility and motivation:

Dealer Service: Wants your business AND must keep MBUSA happy so that they do not get black balled, etc. There is 0% chance that any Service employee can officially expedite the process. If they do, they may retain a customer, but they will get a bad rap with MBUSA of trying to abuse the system to make money. Think about it, the dealer ends up selling 2 cars, if you "Lemon Law" and get another!

MBUSA field rep: Deals with people like us daily, so he / she ends up stereotyping us and getting a system down of who gets through and who is blocked. We may make it personal, but it is their job to deal with loads of BS.

Things you can do:
Compilate the data to show that it is a lemon qualifier and add a summary. Communicate the concerns higher up the ladder, but realize that MBUSA will never "trump" an MBUSA decision. What may happen is that you can show that you are organized and following the path that leads to lemon.
The only thing MBUSA stands to lose by delaying the process is added legal fees associated with your getting a lawyer and the added depreciation in the car once they do buy it back.

Good luck and stay patient. I can tell you that a numb *** is definitely NOT a sign of an MB. I hope that you reconsider this being your first and last once the ordeal is over.

Good luck.

 

Keep dreaming.

 

declining? Stay tuned, if that is what you think.

 

If you will read this months ( maybe last months) Automobile Magazine , they interview a lemon lawyer. This was almost a full page article. When asked which car manufacturer had the most cases - he stated that it was Mercedes. The mfgrs with the least were BMW and Honda. So much for this being rare.

 

Actually there was an article in this or last months Automobile Magazine with a prominent lemon law lawyer. When asked which car mfgr had the most cases , he stated that it was Mercedes. The mfgrs with the least number were Honda and BMW. So much for this being a rare issue with Mercedes. Furthermore, I would guess that both Honda and BMW each sell more cars than Mercedes which only makes this worse statistcally.

 

I read that same article...not surprised.

 

Of course Mercedes would have more complaints that lead to lemon law claims. Mercedes buyers expect the cars to be flawless. If you bought an $8,900 Hyundai would you expect the same quality as a Mercedes?

 

No I would not expect the same quality if I had bought a Hyundai ( which btw gets better every year and is a very decent car now) . But I would expect them or any manufacturer to fix a problem nonetheless within 4 tries -regardless of the price tag of the car. Your argument that we expect a higher degree of excellence in a MBUSA product is not a defense when it is not delivered. If it is promised it should be delivered. Furthermore , if you read Mercedes advertisements- they extol the excellence ,the "top of the car business" quality and experience that a Mercedes is supposed to be. That said ,the issues with this particular car are unacceptable no matter what the brand. It is a totally horrendous driving experience. Just look at the -lower than Hyundai' ranking MBUSA cars currently have and you need not look further. I bought this car -paid the bucks- because I wanted a fine car to enjoy. I did not get this. The MBUSA rep was dismal in his lack of zeal to get this fixed. He was argumentative and adversarial from the get go. I have owned 4 Lexus products before this and can tell you that they have been terrific. One had a factory issue that needed an engineering upgrade to fix. It was the entire model that needed this.They came up with it- installed it- and the car is still perfect ( I still own it ) 04 GX470) They couldn't have been nicer and more responsive. MBUSA could learn a great deal from them in terms of the reverence they have for customer satisfaction and excellence of the product itself. Some will defend a brand no matter what. MB is not what it used to be-at least for now. I have no doubt that these cars will once again be great and as reliable as they used to be.But this particular 04 E500 is clearly not .

 

That used to be the case, not anymore; we all know Lexus has taken over in the perceived flawlwss dept, but MB still has the best styling and most powerful engines vs. Lexus.