bsccp

Sport/navi with P2. 34,xxx. Love the car, great handling and very quick. Purchased it in Dallas from an indie dealer at the end of December and it was off lease and still has 4 months on standard factory warranty.
Had it vetted by an indie MB mechanic with 20+ yrs and he said it was very nice and it was very clean inside and underneath. He said he'd like it for his own car.
Ok now after about a 1000 miles I noticed a low speed rattle (10-30 mph) on surface streets. Every bump and surface imperfection gets a rattle. Took it to the local dealer and the tech tightened the fog lamp bracket.
Guess what, rattle was still there! Went back a week later and took the service manager around the block (which included brick streets) and he said there's a rattle but it could be a heat shield or sway bar bushing
Understand that I had test driven another 2010 E550 with 44K from the same dealer two weeks earlier and it had a bad left front strut. It was supposed to be a CPO car! Told the salesman and he said they had replaced the right front the prior week. Seriously?
So I get a phone call from the same service manager and he said they had replaced both front sway bar links which is what I had suspected due to the frequency. Then he says that the car has been in a front end collision. Neither CarFax or MB service history shows any event and more importantly the indie mechanic didn't see any damage or repairs!
So two questions: has anyone else had issues with front sway bar bushings or end links @ 35K? And has the dealership tried to blame a fantasy collision?
Sorry for the ramble, thanks

drsaab

Find a dealer who can put a paint meter on the car. It will tell you if all original paint or not.

RichM

It may not be fantasy. CarFax only shows what is reported by an insurance company. If the car was repaired without making an insurance claim, or at a body shop that does not report to CarFax it will not show up. Same thing with VMI. If it was not repaired by an authorized MB repair facility or an insurance claim was not filed, it won't show. Have the dealer put the car up on a lift and show you where the car was repaired.

bsccp

The indie did a complete "bondo " check and there was a very small repair area on the drivers ss front fender at about 12 o'clock. Not a deal killer but got a price drop. Indie also put the car on the lift and we walked the car front to back.
It was very clean and if he felt it had been in a wreck he would have seen it. This guy flys a jet fighter for his toy he's very detail oriented!
And yes I'm aware of the weaknesses of CarFax but right now I'm more interested in weaknesses of the front suspension of the E series?

RichM

Depending upon where the car came from, this may not be unusual. You see many end link and bushing failures on cars from the northeast and Midwest where they use lots of salt, sand and chemicals for snow, and roads that have serious pothole issues. Since you bought this off lease low mileage car from an independent dealer, it most likely went through auction. Where was this car originally registered? Also have to wonder why this car was not sold by the dealer when it was turned in.

A small fender bender is much different than a collision. For your peace of mind, I would ask the dealer for proof of a collision, and what parts they feel were replaced. Unless the dealer is refusing to repair the car under warranty due to a collision, this is just another warranty repair to them. They have no reason to manufacture a fantasy.

boltonblue

time to check on that carfax guaranty!

drsaab

Carfax only guarantees a non salvage and non lemon title. They have no guarantee on previous accidents.

bsccp

Ok, was out of town for three days and had the dealer pu the car. They replaced both the sway bar end links which I thought it sounded like.
The service manager calls me and tells me what they did and still made an inference about a collision. No proof just him trying to avoid any further front end work!
Then in the next breath he's trying to pitch me on the 40K service (D I believe) which is $1400 at his shop!
Well guess what? I now have a different front end noise. One that is more apparent at a higher speed. Steering seems a bit tighter but still way noisy!
Next step is to take it to my old time domestic mechanic and go for a ride and put it on his lift and sort this out (he was a MB tech in his youth). Also will be taking the car to a local indie shop for oil changes and the 40K because his rate is about 1/2 the dealer. All MB parts and fluids, etc.
So either struts, lower ball joints or strut bushings. I will figure this out!

RichM

I see you bought this car in Dallas. If you are in DFW, I have two indies that I can recommend. If you would like their names, let me know.

drsaab

Just buy prepaid maint. $699 will cover your 40k and 50k service. Kinda like a secret deal they don't tell you about.

bsccp

Ok, dealership replaced both front sway bar end links. Have new front end noise!
Took the car to a local car wash and had a midlevel wash that utilized under car spray and the noise went away. Suspected that the new end links needed lube, etc? Nope, noise came back in a couple of weeks. Remember I live in a very dry area of the world.
Took the car to a local indie for oil change. He dropped the front tray and drained it the old fashioned way using the correct MB oil 5W-40 Mobile One and correct MB filter. Guess what? Front sway bar bushing are shot. 35K.
Dealership had not bothered to inspect!
The indie also found that the rear transmission mount was shot. I had noticed that when I backed out and shifted into D I felt something kinda go thump. According to the indie a very common problem with the MB rear tranny mounts (his term was consumable item). Not just the E series.
So off to the dealership on Monday to get these items covered under warranty. I look forward to the excuses

bsccp

Ok, after the two previous attempts the dealership finally got it right. Turns out that there is a bulletin regarding front end noise. Replace front struts!
LI32.25-P-051123

They replaced both front struts and the car now rides and sounds like a MB! Arnotts are about $450/ea and the Mercedes are about $800/ea so I can understand the reluctance but if you have a defective product do the right thing!

My car also has the faded burl walnut issue. I found the correct bulletin number for it and called the SA and guess what? They actually had a full wood kit in stock! Another customer had set up to install under warranty but that car was traded in at another dealer and never installed. Score for me!
LI68.10-P-050415 or LI68.30-P-053962 for MY2010-2011 with 08/11 as clean point and a specific range of VIN's.

2nice4me

BSCCP, did your make any loud "clunck" when backing up? My 2011 randomly makes a loud clunk noise, I still have to bring it back to the dealer (to replace the wood as well) but it is hard to replicate.

bsccp

2nice4me. The symptoms I had were pretty much what the bullentin states: Noise, squeak between 15-40 mph. It is very obvious on a surface street or brick/cobble. It seems to be related to the frequency of suspension movement at lower speeds. The rougher the street the more noise you will hear in the passenger compartment! You will not hear it at freeway speeds.

MB has had an issue with the rear transmission mounts according to my indie mechanic. I had a recent oil change and because of the frequency of failure he checked mine. According to him it was failing. The dealership said it had not but replaced it under warranty anyway. Makes you wonder? Requires putting the car on a lift and then unloading (jacking up) the rear of the trans to see if the rubber has separated from the metal housing of the mount otherwise you will not see any problems because it is under load and compressed.

Anyway, if your rear transmission mount has failed/failing you will hear a "clunk" anytime the trans goes through a significant torque change. In my case I thought I heard it when I backed out of my driveway and changed from reverse to drive.According to the indie the noise is more near/under the front seat area, which makes sense since that is where the mount is located.

There is also a bulletin out regarding the trans shifting at stop to low speed, requires a firmware update. Like a pause or hesitation to get going.