bytesandbits

Need some advice - I have a 2008 E350 and whenever I am driving with the AC turned on and the air recirculate button set to Fresh Air I feel light headed and eventually get a headache in about 15 mins or so of driving. I noticed that if I turn on the recirculate button then I am fine and can drive long distances. The car is still under warranty so I took it to the dealer and he said that he had never heard of this problem before. He still went ahead and did a chemical and ultrasonic cleaning of the duct system, checked the evaporator sensor, replaced the dust filter, evacuated the refrigerant and did a dye test for leaks, added new refrigerant.

I thought there may be a Carbon Monoxide leak somewhere in the engine that was getting sucked in through the air intake so I bought a CO home detector and left it in the car with the AC running and it did not detect any CO.

Looks like there is definitely some gas coming into the passenger compartment but both the dealer and I am at a loss what next to do.

Any suggestions?

Vik888

do you smell anything or just get headaches?

Is the dust filter the same thing as the activated charcoal cabin air filter?

bytesandbits

No smell. Starts with feeling light headed and then converts to a headache. The dealer said that the technician smelled mold so he offered to clean the system based on a TB from Mercedes.

Yes, I believe the dust filter is the same as the cabin air filter.

Vik888

Research air cond issues on this forum. I've read about people getting odd smells and what not and various suggestions on how they resolved them.

I also recall reading about a SDS setting on how often the air cond system drains or something like that.

W219CLS55

I had the same problem in my wifes Jetta in2002. We were never able to fix our eyes would get irritated as well and people said it smelled like crayons but we thought it was mold. :-/

skiahh

If you're using recirc, it could be something in the car that the system is picking up and circulating.

Have you cleaned the interior of the car to within an inch of its life?

Vik888

recirc is not recommended for extended periods of time .. thats why it auto shuts off after i think 10 or 15 mins.

bytesandbits

Update - I took it back to the dealership and asked that one of their technical guys drive the car for 30 minutes and see if they experience the same problem. True enough they did experience the same problem. The dealership kept the car for 7 days and tried everything that they could think of. They called Mercedes and were advised to start removing the dash and looking at stuff inside the dash. I think the dealership did not want to go through the hassle of the long labor so they offered to put me in a different car. I went from a 2008 E350 with 20K miles to a 2008 E350 4Matic with 18K miles. Paid some $$ for the upgrade to 4matic but am happy with the exchange. So far so good with the exchanged car.

Thanks all for your help, advice and guidance.

97W202

bump for a great solution!

vettdvr

I would buy a CO alarm that goes in a home and put it in the car to see if it trips. This would confirm the CO question. It might be CO. Very dangerous stuff.

Vik888

I wouldn't have paid squat and used the money for a lawyer and gotten ALL my money back on the car. Totally unacceptable for a Mercedes.

charliele729

Some people are just happy that they are taking care of, not everything has to include a laywer and suing people and companies. They did take car of him by exchanging him another car and a upgrade to 4matic, for some people that is all they want. Glad the outcome went out your way.

BTW, why is recir only suppose to be a short period of time?

Vik888

I agree with you there but considering what our cars cost, he shouldn't have had to then fork over even more money to resolve a severe and very serious manufacturing defect. I wouldn't have parted with money basically and would only involve a lawyer if they required me to pay even more money to fix a mfg defect. Ultimately, what does it cost MB to build these cars that they couldn't have just swapped this guy's car?

I think its because it keep recirculating "used" air and isn't pulling in fresh air.

I rarely drive with it on unless I see smoke/exhaust and I rarely if ever smell anything bad coming through the cabin filter and I'm in SoCal, smog city.

I've even drive during wildfires here in Socal with ash falling and very little if any smoke smell came into the car.

I haven' tested it but I believe the recirc turns itself off after 10 or 15 mins?

220S

I'm guessing that it could be more than just economics. I imagine that they also take in 'setting precedents' on account, too. Kinda like how case law works. It may not have been a mfg defect. The cause was never determined and MBUSA said to take apart the dash and find out, but the dealer didn't want to do it.

They probably wouldn't want to 'give' somebody a new car based on the assumption (or implication) that there are perhaps potential problems with other cars, too.

I think that's why manufacturers hesitate with recalls, etc.. They always seem so overly cautious for admitting responsibility, taking liability, etc..

K-A

Nice to see the Dealership help you out like that. They should be recommended.

Nobody wants to have their car ripped apart, for something they had no part in, especially.

I wonder what they'll do with the car. HOPEFULLY not sell it to some other poor dude.

Dema

CO doesn't smell, so you can just die without idea. Is CO problem reported only for German cars?

charliele729

The recir does shut off automatically after a certain amount of time and i really didnt know why either. Now that makes sense of getting fresh air in. NO more recir for me, lol. Did he actually have to fork out extra money? or was it an even exchange???? If he did have to fork out extra money, then I take my word back and get a lawyer because this is a hazardous and none of this is the consumer fault.

Barry45RPM

He is not out any money, he paid for fewer miles & AWD, thats all. Enough with the Lawyers. He's thrilled and the Lawyer would have cost him much more than his upgrade did.

Quick & clean... and his dealer did the right thing by him. Right quick.

tashakes

I agree on that point 100%, no lawyers getting involved was the best thing that can happen.

BUT..... I pity the poor schmuck that gets stuck with the car. It will most likely be sent to auction without a branded title, so it will come back to haunt MB sooner or later. All they saved was the headache with the OP. In the end they will have to address the issue, and hopefully that will happen before someone gets really sick.

bytesandbits

I did think about getting a lawyer but then the dealership was very forthcoming and responsive. The way I looked at it is that the maximum liability for MB or for the dealership - it is to either fix the issue at hand or replace the defective car with another one.

They offered to attempt to fix the car and really tried for 7 days while I had a Mercedes loaner from them. They put in a call to Mercedes only to be told that they did not have an option but to start opening up the dash to check things out. I don't know the agreement between Mercedes and the dealership for under warranty repairs in terms of what amounts the dealership gets reimbursed for doing under warranty work, but I guessed that at some point the dealership did the math and figured out that the effort and resources involved in opening up the dash and attempting to isolate the problem and fix it would not be worth it.

I was offered (in my opnion) a better car with lower miles and a few months more warranty for some extra dollars.

Also, the issue with the previous car was with fresh air coming in and not recirculated air as some have mentioned above. I did think about CO and did get a digital CO detector and checked it out and the detector did not record any CO in the car. It was truly baffling.

I was told by the dealership that the car would not be fixed and would be sent off to the auction. Yeah I feel sorry for the person who will buy the car but I really cannot do much. I'm sure the person before me also had the problem and I had to fend for myself. I hope some of the work the dealership did to detect and fix will show up on the carfax report and may deter a future buyer from buying this toxic dump.

Vik888

Just post the VIN of your old car. It might save a few people from buying it. I don't know if thats entirely legal or not, but whatever.