New Member from South Florida with Question
07-22-2014, 10:21 PM
#1
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2010 E350 Coupe
New Member from South Florida with Question
Hello! I am excited to join the group! I have a 2010 E350 coupe that I bought new. This is my first Mercedes and I absolutely love it. Has anyone had an issue with the interior wood trim panels? My drivers and passenger door panels warped and became unglued on one end and were replaced while under warranty. The same trim panels and now the strip over the glove box are warping again. My local service manager presented the issue to MB who declined to offer any post warranty repair. I know another South Florida E350 owner who had the same problem and received no approval. Is this a common problem? Any suggestions on how to get MB to repair? It is very annoying to have my dream car with cheap looking panels sticking out!
07-23-2014, 02:28 PM
#2
Senior Member
I have the same problem on an '02 S500 that I own. Mine weren't actually glued on, but rather snap in place, but as I live in Arizona, I think the heat/sunlight eventually warps them. They put new snaps on, but said they didn't think they'd last long and they didn't. Only thing to do is order new wood trim pieces. As I don't drive the car much, I just live with it.
Sorry to hear this. Quality is not what it should be on MB's.
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02-04-2018, 03:02 PM
#8
Junior Member
02-05-2018, 11:00 AM
#10
Junior Member
Yes, it is somewhat of a common problem, especially in hot climates. About a year or two ago, there were a lot of posts on this forum about fading wood and wood coming unglued.
I also have a 2010 E350 coupe and live in So Fla. My first problem occurred about two years ago. The wood strip above the glove box door strarted warping and came loose from the chrome piece it was glued to. I tried to gently raise the wood a bit so that I could apply some epoxy glue, but the wood snapped. Fortunately the entire wood/metal strip is simply snapped into the dash. I purchased a new strip at the dealer (over $200) and snapped the new piece into place.
Next, the wood on the drivers door started warping and the forward edge came loose. This wood/metal piece does not simply snap in. You need to remove the door panel in order to replace it. The dealer wanted about $400-500 to replace the loose piece with a new one.
I decided to try to glue the loose portion myself. There was a recommendation on the forum as to exactly which epoxy glue to use, but I can't seem to locate the information at this time. Before attempting to apply the epoxy, I made the following preparations:
I masked the chrome trim and the entire area around the loose wood section to prevent any epoxy from getting on anything else.
I cut a length of 1" X 2" wood to fit between the wood strip on the right door and the loose wood strip on driver's door. I also had two cloths available to use at each end of the long wood stick to prevent marring the wood strips on the door. The wood stick is used as a wedge to keep the loose wood on the door tight against the epoxy after the epoxy is applied.
I VERY VERY CAREFULLY slightly lifted the loose wood section and using Q-tips CAREFULLY cleaned the back of the wood and the metal using lacquer thinner, BE SURE NOT TO GET ANY LACQUER THINNER ON SURFACE OF THE WOOD! I also used another Q-tip and alcohol to CAREFULLY clean the area again.
After all the above, I mixed the epoxy and used a popsicle stick to apply the epoxy to the underside of the wood strip and the metal. I was VERY CAREFUL not to get any epoxy on anything else. I then pressed the loose part of the wood strip into the epoxy. While holding the wood strip tight, I checked to see if any epoxy oozed out and cleaned up the little bit that did.
Finally, I used the pre-cut long 1" X 2" stick between the right door wood trim and the driver's door wood trim to hold the loose wood in place, using the cloth between the ends of the long wood stick and the wood trim on the doors. I let the epoxy cure for 24 hours before removing the long wood stick.
The glued wood strip is holding perfectly. I am pleased with the result. It is not perfect, but if I do not point out where I glued the wood trim, no one else would notice it.
Now, I can see that the wood strip on the passenger door is getting a little wavy. It has not come loose yet, but if it does, I will try the same procedure as I did with the driver's door.
Hope this helps.
I also have a 2010 E350 coupe and live in So Fla. My first problem occurred about two years ago. The wood strip above the glove box door strarted warping and came loose from the chrome piece it was glued to. I tried to gently raise the wood a bit so that I could apply some epoxy glue, but the wood snapped. Fortunately the entire wood/metal strip is simply snapped into the dash. I purchased a new strip at the dealer (over $200) and snapped the new piece into place.
Next, the wood on the drivers door started warping and the forward edge came loose. This wood/metal piece does not simply snap in. You need to remove the door panel in order to replace it. The dealer wanted about $400-500 to replace the loose piece with a new one.
I decided to try to glue the loose portion myself. There was a recommendation on the forum as to exactly which epoxy glue to use, but I can't seem to locate the information at this time. Before attempting to apply the epoxy, I made the following preparations:
I masked the chrome trim and the entire area around the loose wood section to prevent any epoxy from getting on anything else.
I cut a length of 1" X 2" wood to fit between the wood strip on the right door and the loose wood strip on driver's door. I also had two cloths available to use at each end of the long wood stick to prevent marring the wood strips on the door. The wood stick is used as a wedge to keep the loose wood on the door tight against the epoxy after the epoxy is applied.
I VERY VERY CAREFULLY slightly lifted the loose wood section and using Q-tips CAREFULLY cleaned the back of the wood and the metal using lacquer thinner, BE SURE NOT TO GET ANY LACQUER THINNER ON SURFACE OF THE WOOD! I also used another Q-tip and alcohol to CAREFULLY clean the area again.
After all the above, I mixed the epoxy and used a popsicle stick to apply the epoxy to the underside of the wood strip and the metal. I was VERY CAREFUL not to get any epoxy on anything else. I then pressed the loose part of the wood strip into the epoxy. While holding the wood strip tight, I checked to see if any epoxy oozed out and cleaned up the little bit that did.
Finally, I used the pre-cut long 1" X 2" stick between the right door wood trim and the driver's door wood trim to hold the loose wood in place, using the cloth between the ends of the long wood stick and the wood trim on the doors. I let the epoxy cure for 24 hours before removing the long wood stick.
The glued wood strip is holding perfectly. I am pleased with the result. It is not perfect, but if I do not point out where I glued the wood trim, no one else would notice it.
Now, I can see that the wood strip on the passenger door is getting a little wavy. It has not come loose yet, but if it does, I will try the same procedure as I did with the driver's door.
Hope this helps.
