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On my recent visit to my trusted independent service center, which specializes in Mercedes-Benz, they noticed serious corrosion problems. There were no symptoms to alert me to any problem. Also, I never received the notice from MB so how would I know?
My mechanic asked me to sign a waiver (which I never have had to do before) that stated the rear subframe was rotted completely through; needs to be replaced ASAP; and is unsafe to drive. The rear brakes lines also had corrosion. This tells me the car is unsafe to drive, and must be fixed.
It seems that MB issued an "extended warranty" to replace and pay for the rear subframe, but not for the rear brake lines (approx. $3,200 for lines) which sit right on top. I contacted MB Corporate who said they 'may' offer some assistance. I have an appointment next week with a MB dealer who must provide an estimate of the damage and cost to MB for their approval before doing any work.
The National Highway and Transportation Safety (NHTSA) original investigation into the rear brake line corrosion began on 4/24/2020. Since then, there have been many of the same complaints filed.
No one should ever have to get into a car and worry about these two safety issues. It’s very important that Mercedes-Benz recognizes its responsibility to not only its customers, but to all the other drivers on the road who can be negatively affected through accidents caused by these corrosion issues.
If you want to make a difference, protect all drivers on the road, and help convince Mercedes-Benz to take financial responsibility for BOTH the corroded rear subframe and rear brake lines, please do two things:
Yes, I agree. My backing plates or dust shields and my brake lines were rusted out badly, I replaced those, my sub-frame is rusty but no hole or cracks just yet, but it's on it's way and another year in the salt belt will do it, maybe two, I am going to the dealer soon to see if they will replace it.
Add me to the rear brake line list. I forgot where the giant thread was but this is at least the W212 forum. Had my car in for rear wheels/tires/TPMS/alignment today. They returned the car to me and as I was driving home I realized the brake pedal was soft. Eventually it went to the floor and the light came on. I believe what happened was the brake pedal depressing tool they use was the last straw for my rear brake lines. It was better to happen that way than in a panic stop and it probably only had a handful of panic stops left.
Dealer confirmed no current brake line coverage. I will file an NHTSA report for the fun of it. It just sucks because I was under it 2 weeks ago for an oil change and some other services. I did note the rear brake lines looked really bad and thought, fun times ahead. What's also kind of crazy is it blew out where the line runs by sort of the driver's feet area so it appeared like a front line at first. I am having the shop quote me for Cu-Ni for both rear lines and we'll see what happens. I am pretty seasoned when it comes to blown brake lines but I did NOT expect it to happen to the most expensive car I've ever purchased (2014 E63S sedan).
FWIW the tech did say my rear subframe looked pretty good, but it may have been replaced before (I guess it was better than he would expect to see given the rear brake line condition).
Finally submitted mine. I ended up using my local tire ship for the repair. They used copper nickel and replaced basically the entirety of both rear lines from the front to the rear. It was "only" about $900 out the door, which is a hell of a lot less than what the dealer charges.
04-30-2024, 06:23 PM
CORROSION ON REAR SUBFRAME & REAR BRAKE LINES
