super.mario

So I got 3 year old 2014 E550 4MATIC with 58000 km on it, one year of original manufacturer warranty left on it, CPO warranty, and I purchased additional extended warranty up to 160,000 km or 7 years which ever comes first. So far so good.

The car had problems with passenger door not closing well (it required a bit more force that usual, or else it would bounce back), which the dealer promised would be fixed before we pick up the car. That was the only thing we noticed while test driving and inspecting the car. But we were re-assured multiple times by our sales person and sales manager that if we do find something wrong with the car in the first couple of weeks of ownership, we could bring it back and it would be fixed on warranty without issues. The sales person and manager spend a lot energy raising our expectations very high. The car also came with winter tires mounted on rims.

Come car pickup day, and the door was still not closing. It still didn't close, but they said no problem bring it back and we'll fix it. They also screwed up and forgot to prepare the winter tires for us on pickup day, so I had to arrange that later with the service department. After taking the car home (it was Saturday), we noticed that the rear bumper chrome bar that goes right above the exhaust pipes had a slight dent on it.

So I took the car in for service and asked them to fix the door and replace the chrome bar. Then they told me I would have to pay out of pocket for the chrome bar since that is considered cosmetic damage and not something covered by warranty. I tried pushing back a bit, but they would not budge so I paid out of pocked (but Canadian CPO checklist does say that car should be free of dents, dings, scratches, rips etc for both interior and exterior).

To change the chrome bar they had to take the bumper cover off. That's when they noticed the plastic panel below where the bar mounts to is also cracked. They also ordered that part and I paid out of pocket. Two days later (apparently just taking the bumper cover on and off took he service technician 4.5 hours) I pick up the car and the door is now having a different problem. The door latches but it is now not flush with the body, it's actually slightly ajar. So back into the shop once more. Finally, after 3 attempt they manage to fix the door closing problem.

But after getting the car back I notice the bumper cover is now not sitting flush with the body. Under the break lights on both sides it's peeling and protruding out from the body. We also finally managed to go on a longer ride with the car and notice that the lumbar support on passenger seat is not working at all. Motor engages but nothing happens. So back to the shop again.

This time they kept the car for 3 days. They took the passenger seat out and replaced entire assembly with the lumbar support pump and bladder (they claim bladder was folded when originally factory installed and that lumbar support could never have worked). They also re-seated the bumper cover. Excellent. This time I am thinking everything is finally taken care of and I can finally have the car and move on with my life.

But no such luck. I get the car back after 3 days and have to rush to a cousins wedding and later when I take a look at the car, the bumper is still pealing and not sitting flush but this time only on the right hand side. The left is fine now (it was always sitting a little better). I call my service advisor today and ask what is really going on here and if something got damaged on either the bumper cover or body so it can't be mounted back properly. He suggests that nothing is damaged and that technicians in the shop had a really hard time re-seating the bumper cover. But he may have to get me a new bumper cover, which does not make sense to me. If the original bumper cover is not damaged, why would new one be easier to re-seat and install properly? In any case he said he would talk to the technicians and call me back by the end of the work day. Well the day ended and there was no call.

In any case, my ongoing saga with the car continues. I've bought the car 3 weeks ago and only had it in my possession for a week.

The whole experience is turning rather sour for me, and I'm thinking I made a terrible mistake. This is an authorized Mercedes dealership that boasts that one of it's technicians is highest rated in Canada, yet the buying experience and service experience is turning out to be quite a bit worse than I've had with decades of owning Toyota, Honda, Nissan. Something like this would be quite unimaginable with Nissan where every problem I have had with my Maxima was always addressed within a day and no repeat visits for same problem ever in the 11 years I've had the car.

Now my confidence in Mercedes is shaken quite a bit and I'm not sure if I want to keep this car at all any more.

Sorry for the long post.

DC-IT

Sorry to read about your bad experience with this vehicle.
I highly suspect your vehicle must have been in an accident to have such body defects.
The crack under the bumper is a tale tell sign?

Can you insist on a full vehicle service history and verification if it has been in a collision?
Have you called M-B Canada to complain about the condition of the car and see if M-B has any history of this car?

Which dealership did you buy it from?

aquinob

Sounds like the car was in some sort of accident or mishap. Did the Carfax show any reported accidents? Not sure how else to explain a door not closing right or cracked parts. I think I'd be telling them to take it back if they covered up its history.

homeofstone

I agree with previous comment. The car had been damaged in some way before you purchased it.

super.mario

Thanks for your reply. I did ask for full service history before I bought the vehicle. There was only normal scheduled maintenance and winter/summer tire mounting in the service record. Absolutely nothing out of the ordinary.

I am going to call Mercedes Canada tomorrow and speak with them about my case.

I bought the car from Victoria Star Motors in Kitchener, Ontario. I will also have to speak with their general manager/owner about my experience.

super.mario

Thanks for your reply. The service department explained the door problem was caused by the door hook mounted on the car body not being screwed too tightly and that it moved up/down and bit. They had to re-position it a bit and that solved the problem. When they did they also moved it outward a bit so that's why the door wasn't flush with the body. After they adjusted the door hook position up and in it was all good.

Their explanation sounds plausible but I don't really trust them any more.

MB Marko

I would defiantly call corporate office, if you bought a CPO it has to be mint... My tip for dealing with corporate don't get irritated(but say your actual emotions calmly), be very polite and they will go above and beyond for you.(at least they did for me no matter how mad I really was inside) It will all hopefully get resolved in the end.

I also would go out and just buy the full car proof report, yes it suck but it might be worth your time to just check it on your own.

When i bought my car they showed me the car proof on the computer very quickly, it always bothered me i didn't take my time with it. Lucky for me they didn't lie, i bought the report and am happy i did.

also i made the manger and sales person sign that if there is any report on it, I get a full refund lol. So i guess i was just paranoid but better I cover my ***, I've done this for every car i've bought hahaha.

good luck!

MBSebas87

Sorry to hear about your misfortune! I guess you just happened to purchase a faulty vehicle

thefisch

Perhaps the door and bumper issues are all misalignment like they said. The maintenance report would not show any body work done. That would be on a carfax or other kind of accident report. You could also take the car to a mechanic or body shop and ask for an inspection to rule out an accident. They should be able to spot any paint or body work.

PeterUbers

But how is the ride ... The e550 is an awesome car with a great engine!!!

KEY08

^ Exactly. These are cosmetic issues.

The G Man

It sounds like your car has been in an accident before, perhaps it was repaired in an independent body shop. I always make sure all problems are fixed before I sign on the dotted line, these dealers will promise you the world until you sign on the dotted line, after that, you are just another customer who complain too much. Good Luck.

AllenOU

Cosmetic issues. The car is used. This is why I personally never buy from the actual dealer. God luck

sleeperZ96BT

The challenge I have found is that sometimes you don't uncover things until you and/or other people have spent some time in it. For example - I found that the rear parktronic sensors aren't working on my new to me 2013 E550 I picked up Saturday. Why didn't I notice? Easy, I only pulled it into a space forward facing where it would have kicked on and it worked. I also flagged that the brakes were pulsing a bit and the calipers were sticking on the rotor when you let your foot off the brake. They said it was due to rust on the rotor from sitting a few days and that the caliper sticking was normal and if it still did it, they would go back over them.


Why can I not take them at their word? I've been in cars long enough to know that rusty rotors can develop in the MA weather if sitting for a few days and can cause a minimal pulse, but that if it doesn't rectify itself after some meaningful driving theirs warping on the rotors. Not having owned an E550 before who is to know if the brake pedal sticking is normal. I told them I've never seen it in my life, they said it was normal, I'm pushing back after driving an E350 my neighbor has in the same year and it not doing it.


I say all this because I KNOW my dealer will address these things because they have in the past and told me they would this time. Anything I find within the first week they fix historically and have even flagged a repair needed the day I took delivery (non-critical - the sunshade needs to be replaced). It sounds to me, based only on reading the OP's replies, that this is a bad dealership. I would do as a few had advised and contact MB corporate (or whatever it is called) and provide this information to them and I suspect they work with you on some amicable resolution.


Your patience is far greater than mine given the amount of time it has been in the shop.


Best of luck!
Brian


Edit: forgot to add that I also agree that it sounds like the vehicle may have been struck in the rear given what keeps on happening. Have a body shop look it over as someone suggested.

The G Man

Rusting on the rotor from sitting around should work itself out after a few stops, a long test drive would have determine if the vibration and sticking is due to the car sitting around on the lot or not.

super.mario

The car has airmatic suspension, fantastic purring V8 engine and fantastic brakes (AMG brake calipers, brembo pads and enormous rotors). The ride is very plush (it feels like hovering over the road rather than being on the road), acceleration is fantastic on straight line, but cornering is very labored (the car weights 4500 lbs after all) and there is more body lean than I'm used to (I've driven Nissan Maxima with sport tuned suspension and thick stabilizer bars that handled like on rails, but the price for that is feeling every tiny road bump).

I'm happy with how the car drives (minus the rough automatic downshifting that everyone talks about, which is not present when manually shifting). If it weren't for the other body problems I'd be perfectly happy with the car.

super.mario

I talked to Mercedes Canada, they opened a case for me and are willing to arbitrate with the dealership for me if the bumper problem is not resolved to my satisfaction. The dealership meanwhile has asked me to bring in the car and they will finally take it to their associated Mercedes certified body shop to take a look at what is wrong with it, since they can't figure it out. They are not suggesting new bumper cover any more.

I'm dropping the car off again tomorrow morning and we'll see how it goes from here.

PeterUbers

I had Benz buyback two 2014 e550's in 2014 over the rough shifting trans ... Can't believe they couldn't fix that

super.mario

Wow, are we talking about the same kind of issue here?

I live on top of a hill with a school zone with 40km/h (25 miles/hour) speed limit starting mid hill. So when I go down hill in 5th gear and enter the school zone I break gently, and the downshift to 4th is very noticeable, like when you blip brakes abruptly when driving. Is this what you mean by rough shifting as well?

I also notice these rough shifts when I'm breaking harder (it's like the transmission should be put to neutral when breaking rather than downshifting like that).

hyperion667

sheesh, I was upset just reading this! Sounds just plain AWFUL! I hope they step up for you

sleeperZ96BT

I 100% agree which is why I will have them look at it.


I'm happy for the OP that there's a case opened. Seems like it will give the dealer the motivation they need to fix it and fix it well!


Brian

sleeperZ96BT

My wifes 2014 GLK 350 does this, only it's more pronounced on the 3-4 upshift at slight throttle and 4-3 downshift in a situation like you mention. I flag it each and every time I drop if off for service figuring that if there is ever an issue it's logged appropriately, especially when it runs out of warranty. It's not consistent, but when it does happens it is pretty noticeable. Her 2013 GLK 350 did not do it (it had other issues and they bought it back).


Brian

PeterUbers

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...-lovely-6.html

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...50-4matic.html

same issue well reported all over here as you know ... I got out while I could, sorry it's never going to be smooth- still a sweet ride

alexSF

I was just looking at a 2012 E550 4MATIC. It wobbled on the freeway when the DISTRONIC braking kicked in. I nearly bought it but had second thoughts the next day. I've learned my lesson. NEVER buy a car that has anything wrong with it no matter what the sales guys promise you.

If it's so easy to fix, then why haven't they already fixed it before trying to sell it?

Walk away and find a car with no issues.

That said, the 2013 E350 I bought the next day already has issues. The lumbar support only works intermittently. That will now have to go into the shop. It's very worrying that the seat is so complex and uncomfortable when not working correctly. Just give me a comfortable non-adjusting seat please Mercedes!

BetterTomorrow

So sorry to read this!
I got my new to me 14 E550 not long ago with sight unseen. I found it in another state, dealt with a sales woman, and blindly trusted that the car was in good condition as she promised. Only issue so far was high pitch whistling at high speed which I fixed.