Spinny201

Hi everyone, long time lurker, first time poster.

Sorry my first post is one with bad news.

I will make a very long story very short. Basically, my girlfriend has a 2012 E350 with a bad engine. Mercedes service called today and basically said the motor has something seriously wrong internally and will need to be replaced.

Obviously this is done under warranty. However, is there ANY CHANCE at all mercedes will buy this car back? I mean, the value of the car will drop signifigantly due to a horrible service history (new motor at 1000 miles).

Besides the fact that buying the car was one of the most horrible experience of our lives (this is our 4th mercedes), the car is now broken!

Basically we want out of this car, it's been a nightmare since day one and now we are at the end of our rope.

If anyone has any insight on how to go about getting mercedes to buy back this car or any options we can explore it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

mjsbenz

You have an excellent business case to demand a new vehicle and I would not accept anything else. It will take time but you need to start the clear messaging very early with the GM of the dealership and to get the Region Service manager to hear your concerns, frustrations and lack of quality. Who wants a lemon back?

Start the ball rolling and be polite while being clear with your expectations.

Spinny201

Thank you for your response. Ironically you are from the same state as me. If you happen to know anyone from (in our area)I can contact directly that would be great.

It's a real shame we have to go through this so I am trying to gather up all of my 'ammunition' so to speak so I can get this taken care of.

Bottom line is, we are not accepting a brand new 2012 E350 with a replaced engine - it is not an option.

leapingpoint

isn't mercedes N.A. headquarter in NJ too?

i think you should just call the mercedes N.A. and raise hell.

Spinny201

Just checked this and you are right, they are about 20 minutes from my house.

I think I will just call corporate tomorrow. The GM at the dealership we purchased the car is pretty much useless as a human. The car is at another dealership now.

Kar don

MBUSA customer service will not give you a new car. Your dealer has to be the one to do this and help you out with MBUSA... otherwise you will have to probably get a lawyer.

WEBSRFR

Yikes! Sorry to hear about that. Did you try to find any specifics as to what is wrong with the engine? I agree with the others... For such a new car you should not accept such a major car as it will significantly diminish the value of your car. Would you buy a car that has had its engine replaced at 1K miles?

RJC

It may take 2-4 weeks of your car being out of service until the replacement is obtained and installed. In many states after 30 cumulative days out of service qualifies as a lemon.

hofb99

Sounds like everyone has some good input for your case on this... Hang in there and I wish you best of luck! Hopefully you can swing a brand new ride out of this!

Kar don

is the car a lease or purchase? You had a brand new car with a brand new motor and it failed, these things happen. I would accept the new motor to be installed and maybe some sort of compensation for all the downtime (1 month's payment?) or if you own the car maybe they can give you a 7/100k powertrain warranty?

ttoE550

I am sorry, but I fail to see any major issue here aside from inconvenience, for which of course the OP should be compensated. A motor replacement is a minor issue, unless it has somehow infected the rest of the car. There is no reason for it to negatively affect the value of the car. In fact, I'd value a car with a new motor more highly unless the old motor expired due to abuse. I do agree that the OP should explore a free extended warranty or perhaps free service visits as compensation for the inconvenience, but havin MB buy back the car seems over he top to me.

leapingpoint

motor replacement is a minor issue?!?!?!

K-A

Damn! That sucks, sorry to hear that. What caused the engine failure? This is one of the reasons I hate being a "test bed" for a new motor (or in this case, a motor just green-lit for U.S use with U.S gas).

Not sure what your rights are, but having a brand new car with a replaced motor does suck. If it's a Lease in which you plan on returning at Lease end, maybe it won't matter as much.

ttoE550

What's the big deal? Aside from the inconvenience and assuming he gets a new motor and not refurbished. At 1000 miles, it was probably a material defect, or less likely a manufacturing error. The failure probably has little to say about longevity.

I have had motors replaced in both Porsches I've owned. Nothing changes. Never has anyone asked me whether the motors have been replaced. As I said, I would place higher value on a car with a new motor, absent indication that the motor expired due to abuse or neglect. A motor is a part, just like a water pump.

listerone

I'm certainly no expert in such matters but it seems to me that unless the car qualifies under your state's lemon law it's unlikely that you'd get a new one.

rjm

My neighbor bought an S550 for his wife 2 years ago. The engine seized up and failed at around 1200 miles. It had something to do with the valve train failing and causing multiple other problems. The dealership replaced the engine and she has been driving it with no problems since it was replaced. They are retired so the car has not been driven very much, but I'm betting that a replaced engine with a 100K warranty on it would be fine. Personally I would request a new car if I had a major problem requiring an engine replacement.

ImInPA

It is my opinion that, while a tragic issue, MB will replace your engine and you will have no further issues. I do not think this will qualify as a lemon law buy-back. I had a car that had an engine replaced under warranty. It did not cause any undue devaluation of the car in any way. Warranty issues are reported differently than the vehicles "service history". The service history is simply the proof that you performed all required services. It would be nice if MB would take your car back as a gesture of good will, however, the corporate world today is not so focused on good will. I would have them fix it and then trade it on another vehicle. That is the easy way.

Kar don

Cars have major components changed all the time (transmissions, etc). My brand new BMW had to have the motor pulled with 4000 miles to have the rear main seal replaced. I got upset at first but it drives fine and it's no big deal. I don't think it's worth the headache for you to stress over getting a new car. It's not going to really change anything for you.

Spinny201

Thank you for all of the great replies. I have contacted corporate headquarters and have initiated a formal complaint. I will hear from someone within 24hrs.

The service advisor also gave me some great advice and he said if I do complain enough they may very well buy the car back and or replace it with a brand new one.

This car was purchased and is not leased.

SolidGranite

Your vehicle will not be devalued. Like the others have stated, get an extended warranty or maybe a free service to compensate for the inconvenience. Going through the process of trying to force Mercedes in to giving you a brand new E just isn't worth the headache you're about to incur. Trust me.

bigh123

Are you being sarcastic? On what planet is replacing an engine minor? It is the heart of a car and not something you can plug out and plug in. Totally unacceptable. This would never happen to a japanese car. They better give you something back big.

ttoE550

Actually, you can just pull it out and plug it in. When I owned my 911, it seemed every time I went in for service they had to pull out the engine to work on some other part of the car (I had a lot of coolant issues). It used to be in F1 racing, they'd design engines to be good for about 2 qualifying laps - then it would fall apart and need to be replaced for the race. It was still the same car, just a different engine.

The "heart" of the car (if there is such a thing) is the chassis. You can change every other component on the car and still have the same car. If you change the chassis, you have a different car even if you use ALL of the components from the original chassis.

petee1997

You will not get a new car,that's what warranty is for. In a case like this they will get a crate engine which is brand new complete with everything on it. It can be installed in less than 8 hours and the car is back to factory fresh. It's not like an accident where often the car is never back to factory specs. This is not a big deal.

The inconvenience is that you will have a short wait for the engine to be shipped if it is not in stock at the warehouse. In the meantime the dealer will give you a loaner and life will return to normal.

That's life, it happens, suck it up.

steelgrey

The Infiniti (Nissan) G35 Coupe 2005 to 2007 6MT VQ35 HR engines suffer from oil consumption issues (bad rings) I have read of numerous engines that had to be replaced. Replacing the entire engine is the only fix. So much for never happening to a Japanese car.

BenzMan369

Echoing others here, please try to determine the technical reason(s) for this failure and let us know. Those of us sitting behind the new 350 D.I. motor want to know.

Based upon what some of you have said, it seems replacing the motor of a brand new Benz may not in reality be the equivalent of a heart-lung transplant. But for those of us who are not technically inclined, it may be very intimidating psychologically nonetheless. Even a successful replacement without complications may leave some with reduced overall confidence in this brand-new, very expensive car, going forward.

To the OP, based on this and the fact you are a 4X Mercedes customer, I would at least go for the "good will" here and attempt to get a new car. As said above, the dealer can-should go to bat for you in cooperation with MB, if you make it clear you "don't trust the car" and "won't be satisfied otherwise." If it doesn't work out, then the MB warranty and a good service department are your friends and you should be OK.

Best of luck getting your issue resolved to your complete satisfaction.