2006_C350

How is the 2014 shifter different? Anyone have a pic to compare?

pinipig523

I think your only option would be to accidentally go into neutral. YOu wouldn't die from it.

Your angry wife or drunk buddy however.... you're on your own on that one.

BenzV12

That's , I didn't expect that
Actually,I find MB's gear selector is the best and I do use it effortlessly .Just push it up with my little finger sometimes using ring finger so that I can select thru gears
Whereas , in our Cadillac, it takes some quite force to get it moving out of gears lol
BTW, ripping a stalk off is not an something like sailing in uncharted waters for me .Our Cadillac's stalk was broken off a few times and each time I had to push it down in it's place and it was right side stalk that functions wipers , cruise control .

I think you should be first among MB Owners to put a dent on MB's robust stalk, may be not as hard as I thought it would be .

petee1997

It took me a while to get used to the electronic shifter but now I prefer it. I use just the little finger to put it in gear and it's very similar to using the signal light arm. My wife's car has the console shifter on her E350 and given a choice, I would not go back.

The break down on the OP's car is an anomaly. This is the first time I have ever heard of this thing breaking off.

Obviously the OP has a very good dealer and from his comments, is on top of the situation. It's a long shot of this ever happening again and he can be assured, he is still driving one of the safest cars out there.

CEB

You'll want to approach this very carefully.

Depending on any previous issues, it probably doesn't fall under the lemon laws so making a blatant statement like "I won't take the car back" because that may backfire on you.

You are under no obligation to take the car back after a repair but the dealer is under no obligation to take it back either. He can, however, start charging you storage costs if you don't pick it up.

Me? I would write a certified letter to MB explaining the problem. I would also contact a lemon lawyer but making idle threats to the dealer is useless.

JDBKLYN89

Thank you for the advice, I plan on sitting down with the owner of the dealership Monday and just calmly explaining that given we have had 10+ cars from them and have never had a single issue along this lines of this, a major piece of equipment malfunctioning, I honestly no longer feel safe or comfortable driving this specific vehicle anymore. I have about 9 or 10 months left on this lease and on my end am wiling to upgrade to a CLS550, an 85k car vs. my current 63k car. I don't feel that it is an unreasonable request, and certainly worth it for them to keep our relationship, as we currently own 1 Mercedes and lease 3. I will see how it goes.

Arrie

That "spacer" probably was a bearing assembly that allows the hub turn backwards while the wheel goes forward. Tranny locked up will not allow pull the car unless one side can turn backwards.

YYZ-E55

FYI, the CLS 550 has the same DIRECT SELECT shift lever as your E-Class. You should go with the CLS 63 if you want to feel safe since it has the console-mounted AMG DRIVE SELECT lever.

JDBKLYN89

Thanks for the suggestion, sounds like an awesome idea but at 24 years old the insurance premiums for an AMG just wouldn't be justifiable. Im not too worried about getting another vehicle with this same direct select shifter, as I've had absolutely no problems with it in 6 of the past cars we've had. Contrary to popular belief I am not a hulk smashing shift lever breaker! This was an isolated incident reflective on an issue with this specific vehicle. I feel like if I there was an issue with the design of the lever or my operation of it a problem would have come up at some point between 2007 and now.

JDBKLYN89

So that's what that was! It was actually a pretty swift maneuver and I was very impressed with roadside.

petee1997

So really what is your complaint? You acknowledge this is an isolated problem and you don't mind getting a "new" car with the same gear selector. Your present car will be repaired under warranty. What is your argument for special treatment.

At 24, you must be using the royal "we" since it would be difficult for you to personally have had six MB's with this shifter. In any event, MB has a program for early return of rentals without penalty. I don't lease so I am not sure how many months they will absorb but it is at least three months.

One thing for sure, you will get further negotiating with the dealer than playing hardball. Lemmon law certainly does not apply in this case.

JDBKLYN89

Not exactly looking for special treatment. This specific vehicle has not lived up to my expectations of reliability and quality from a Mercedes Benz vehicle. This was a dangerous and very disheartening malfunction of a very key piece of equipment. Given that the car is over a year old I never had suggested that it qualified under the lemon law. But I am not going to feel comfortable driving a car every day worrying about what is going to happen next. This is my 3rd w212 and the only one i've had a major issue with. I will calmly explain this to my dealer who I have a great relationship with, and hopefully we can come to an agreement where everyone is happy and I can leave with a vehicle I am fully confident in.

And yes while I've technically only had 4 vehicles titled to myself with this specific shifter it is sort of you grab which ever car is at the foot of the drive in my family so I've driven each and every one of our vehicles a fairly even amount of time.

petee1997

How was it dangerous? The brakes still work and by turning the engine off, the car automatically goes in to park.

JDBKLYN89

Is that a serious question? Thank god i happened to be in a parking lot at the time, but having your car suddenly become completely disabled on a public street, bringing traffic behind you to a stand still for almost an hour is most certainly a dangerous situation. Had this happened on a busy street or at night the situation would have been extremely dangerous.

pinipig523

How is a gear lever breaking a dangerous situation? The only time you're going to be using your gear lever is when coming out of a parked situation. You're not traveling ANY miles per hour at this point.

Breaking down at night is NOT an excuse to say the car is not safe. The simple act of breaking down at night can happen to any car and from any particular reason.

pinipig523

So your issue is the gear lever but you're wanting to get the CLS550 which has the same gear lever.

Hmm....

Sounds like you're either looking for any reason to get out or you're simply not thinking straight.

JDBKLYN89

Again, issue is not with the gear lever design, which would be in cls550. Have had half a dozen other Mercedes Benz vehicles with this same exact lever, never a problem. Problem is with my SPECIFIC VEHICLE and the manufacturing defect that caused the shift lever to break off in my hand at 8,000 miles. Anybody who doesn't see the how this was in a possibly dangerous issue must not live in a major city like NYC and had never seen what happens when a car becomes completely disabled out of nowhere and shuts down an entire street.

CEB

He's 24, 'nuff said.

Rich parents, entitled, take whatever car is in the driveway.

His family bought multiple cars at the dealership - he didn't. The outcome depends on his family's relationship with the dealer but he might just screw that up.

pinipig523

So explain to me how this is dangerous again? Any car can break down. THis was a fluke man.... have you seen anyone else with the same issue?

It'll be fixed. Just because your lever broke doesn't mean your car is a piece of crap.

And for someone who poses with all that muscle, you're not the typical person who should be so worried about breaking down in the middle of the night. That's what MB Roadside is for. Stay in the car.

OMG man... act like a man.

JDBKLYN89

Dude, totally uncalled for and inaccurate. I have paid for every single one of my cars myself since I was 18 years old, what my parents have is not mine, and i was raised to believe that. I am the one who goes through cars much faster than anyone in my family, so am primarily responsible for our relationship with our dealer. I have had 5 brand new Benz's myself and I paid every single cent, nothing handed to me. This kind of talk is not appreciated and not constructive in any way. Please keep the conversation related to the topic. Thanks!

CEB

Yeah. Right...

JDBKLYN89

Hey man, to each his own I guess. I have certain expectations from my
Vehicle, your's may differ. In my opinion a major material defect like this is enough of an issue that the car has not lived up to my expectations. If you don't agree that's great, but at the end of the day it's up to me to decide if I'm
happy with my purchase or not and to attempt to rectify the situation as I see fit. There have been other issues with the car that I over looked but this was the final straw for me.

JDBKLYN89

Come on, I know we can do better than this. Not what this forum is about.

hyperion667

that is a good point about the fluke aspect......does seem pretty bizarre and I can't recall anyone else having an issue with this......no disrespect of course as you're much more muscular than me LOL....
but as you said, I'm sure you have great standing with the dealership....I know I do

it'll all work out tomorrow

JDBKLYN89

Thanks man! I'm sure you do, can only hope to have a fleet like yours on day
Yep I am the first to admit that this was a fluke, definitely never something I even imagined would ever happen. Thinking logically I'm sure it was something like one internal piece being off center that weakened the metal over a course of a year. Either way I have never had any complaints about Benz customer service before and I am sure I won't this time. Confident that we Wil be able to come up with a solution that works for everybody.