My front right airmatic strut went out about 2 weeks ago. I had the car towed to the dealership and had them go ahead and do maintenance work and other minor repairs, but this strut repair is causing a HUGE issue now and I need some guidance.

Unfortunately, my third party extended warranty is not covering the strut, but I have read things about members using Arnott Industries rebuilt OEM struts at a significantly lower price than the dealer. I purchased one that arrived on Tuesday, but the dealer has now told me the car is not rising and that the strut they received is defective. Mind you that these refurbished struts come with a LIFETIME warranty. At this point, I requested Arnott send out another strut same-day or overnight at no additional cost for me, but they have told me they will not do that unless they see a picture of the strut they sent and where it is leaking. They apparently "test" all these units before they are sent out. I personally visited the dealer this morning, which was completely out of my way with work obligations, and my Service Advisor and the tech informed me the leak is internal but they will snap a picture of it the best they can to show it is defective.

Now at this point, I'm waiting for a call back from the dealership regarding Arnott HOPEFULLY sending another, working strut out. If all goes well and the second strut is sent out and does resolve the issue, I would have a new problem on my hands. I am going to be charged for the labor of the installation and removal of the apparent defective strut. Do I have any legal recourse against Arnott to reimburse me for the charges related to that faulty strut? I have a feeling they are gonna try and get out of it any way possible.

If it turns out that the second strut does not work either, I am believing the issue was mis-diagnosed by the tech and at that point, I want a regional manager of MBUSA involved. I would request that they figure out what exactly the real problem is and cover ALL the expenses related to that particular repair for the aggravation it has caused me.

Is this the appropriate route you all would take? Give Arnott a chance to fix this and foot the bill in hopes it does resolve the issue? And if not, take my request over the dealership's head and get a regional manager involved?

Long story, I know, but I need to vent. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Unfortunately all I can say is that I feel for you. It's really too bad that Mercedes created a part prone to failure that costs so much making these vehicles almost impossible to justify the cost of maintaining them when they are just about 7 years old.

You'd have a really hard time getting MBUSA to do anything for you in this case because you are not using a MBUSA part.

I still have 3 years of extended warranty left but it's a real shame that I will have to get rid of a car that I otherwise love due to this issue once the warranty expires.

I've read sporadic reports of people having issues with Arnott struts and I was really hoping they had a solid product by now. Please keep us posted.

 

If it comes back that I do get a second strut and that also is not solving the failure, I'm having a hard time believing that is the real issue. I've read a few people who had their struts replaced only to find out that wasn't what was causing the problem in the first place. At that point, I would want to talk to a regional manager to verify that is the real problem, but I could have these Arnott struts shipped back and bite the bullet for a new one. I only want to talk to MBUSA if I believe that the issue was misdiagnosed.

 

Also, out of curiosity now if I have to end up buying a new one, does anyone know the actual MB OEM part number for this full strut assembly (passenger side)?

 

Will have an update for you guys in the evening or tomorrow morning. This has gotten downright stupid.

 

2113206013 (list $1100, parts.com 786)

 

So even with Parts.com it is still about twice the cost of the $399 Arnott struts... That's one expensive part. Perhaps this is why they eliminated it in the 2012 E550.

 

Funny thing is, I've read a couple people have tried purchasing these struts through parts.com but their order was cancelled because they couldn't find a dealer to source the part at their listed $786 price.

Update is still hopefully coming tonight or tomorrow.

 

https://www.getmercedesparts.com/oem...des-parts.html $825

 

fwiw, it wasn't eliminated per se. To imply that it's because it's an inferior product is only speculation. The RWD E550 was eliminated from the W212 portfolio for the US market and only the AWD E550 without Airmatic option has remained. This also may change later on. Airmatic is still used by MB in the US market on other models, and also worldwide.

 

Isn't my statement still true thought about Airmatic being eliminated in the 2012 E550 with the best information currently available? At least as far as the US is concerned... I personally think this was a very bad decision. They should have replaced it with something better or made it more durable without just yanking it out as I Airmatic adds a lot to the dynamic driving dynamics of the E550.

Maybe Mercedes will eventually adapt a version of their Magic Suspension for the E class. I just hope they make it more reliable and practical to maintain cost-wise.

 

Actually you have made 2 mistakes, first purchasing an aftermarket warranty and second purchasing an aftermarket part. Cant fault MB for this but it does not excuse the failure. The few pennies you saved do not make up for the costs you will be incurring. Learn a lesson?

 

A few points Sosh, since you do not know the whole story.

One...the car was not eligible for any type of MB warranty. Was not CPO'ed and over 50K miles when I purchased it. Nothing I could do but buy an aftermarket warranty if I wanted it. But the fact that I got it $7K under BB value with no previous damage (in damn near perfect condition in my mind) at the time of purchase considerably eases my pain. Please don't feed me baloney saying I should have purchased a CPO when I had that type of deal from a very well respected non-MB dealer here in Dallas.

Two...it's a refurbished OEM part that apparently came with a lifetime warranty. Not necessarily what I would consider a full aftermarket part seeing as how it's still MB produced, but I guess I can see your point. My SA even told me she's had customers go this route before with no complications.

Three...as I've now stated twice but you apparently just glossed over...I was only going to get MB involved if it turned out the strut was not the reason for the failure in the first place. It would not be the first time that has happened. I've read of a couple of cases of just such an instance. If it turned out a new OEM strut did not correct the issue either, you would not to involve a regional manager for the aggravation the dealership has caused from mis-diagnosis?

It's funny, I was talking to my brother about someone coming into this thread posting a remark just like that, because, you know, there is always one. Congratulations, you are that someone. But, I appreciate the condescending attitude.

 

Well you did buy a higher mileage car, the savings may have made that a bit easier for you to do so. However it is way out of warranty and I do not think that the MB rep is going to help you. After all it was bought from a non dealer with no warranty and the part involved was not an authorized MB part. If it had been me I would have purchased a CPO ed car even though it would have cost considerably more. However I do not buy any used MB's.
You have forgotten that the most expensive used MB is usually the one with the lowest purchase price.
I have owned 3 MB's with airmatic (no E Classes though) and I have never had an issue with any of them. Could be a mis diagnosis, even my MD has a few of them. If so your case is still not with the factory and all you can expect from the dealer would be some sort of discount on the labor to change one strut. After all you supplied the part...I am sure that went over well with the dealer also!

 

Well I got the car back in July 2007 with 55K, so it was terribly over mileage at the time for four years in service. It's at 86K now.

My point with getting in contact with a regional manager is that I would find it hard to believe 2 separate struts from Arnott would both be defective if I was to get a second one. I mean it's possible, but highly unlikely. I would just assume at that point the strut couldn't be the issue. I talked with the SA at length before I purchased that part, and they told me it was fine to go that route as many customers have done so. I figure a remanufactured OEM part with a lifetime warranty would be a safe route since many others on this board have done this exact thing with admittedly varying degrees of success. That was unfortunately my mistake.

A new, OEM strut is on the car and it is ready to go. I would much rather pay MB and that dealership for the part than let Arnott have a dime of my hard earned money. Will post a new message shortly explaining my situation with Arnott for what I feel was terrible customer service for a defective part that was sent to me.

And thank you Konig for the link to that new part. You have been a massive help to me these past four years. I sincerely appreciate it. I'm sure I'll be needing that website at some point for the driver side.

Ewing Autohaus here in Dallas has been nothing short of wonderful through this whole situation. For any and all Dallas owners, they are the dealership to work with.