Hi, can anyone help with the following situation?

I have been driving leased SLK 300 for two years and have never had problems with it. Recently I brought it to the dealership for service B. A few days after I tried to open the top (first time since the service) and heard a loud noise from inside the car. It sounded like one of the moving parts hit some obstacle and was grinding against it. The roof stopped for a moment, then there was a click like something released the roof, and it opened completely.

There was nothing outside the car that hit the roof or prevented it from opening smoothly as had been the case before the service.

Later when I closed the roof I heard the same sound of a moving part struggling to get free of some obstacle. The second time the top got stuck in a half-open position. It took me several attempts moving it slightly back and forth with the roof operating knob to close the top back.

I called the dealership. The service adviser asked to bring the car in. He said the car might need a fix and assured me it was covered under the warranty.

A week passed since I had brought the car in, and the service adviser called me back. He said:

"We have an expert from Mercedes who looked at the car and determined that you have bent hinges. The cost to repair is $15,000. The warranty does not cover it because the source of the defect is external: you must have hit something with the roof when opening it. Please call your insurance".

Well, I know better than any expert: I did not hit anything with the car top. If someone did hit the roof and damaged the hinges, it could only happen when the car was taken from me for the service.

Does anyone know what to do in this situation? Sure, I can call the insurance. But then I have to pay the deductible and my premium will go through the roof after $15,000 claim. Does not sound fair to me.

Your advises are very much appreciated.

 

On the basis of your explanation, I don't believe an insurance company would honor your claim either since you haven't hit anything with the car or with the roof itself.
I suggest you set up an appointment for a calm but firm face-to-face meeting with your dealer's service mgr and take a voice recorder with you...$15K is serious money. They may believe (or prefer to believe) the hinge damage was from some external source, but there may be other possible causes. Record their statements and explanations, and get them to express any other possible causes for the damage, as well as express what amount of force would cause the hinges to be bent? How many times did they raise and lower the roof during their diagnosis? Their diagnostic actions may have caused some or all of the hinge damage as well...who can say for sure?
Good luck...know a good attorney?

 

If you go in with a tape recorder, the service manager will automatically assume an adversarial relationship. Of course, in my experience if the MBUSA rep has already seen or discussed the situation, the service manager is already in a non-reversible position. The dealer is not going to pay $15,000.
Have you called MBUSA Customer Care? If first rep. doesn't offer an acceptable solution, ask to speak to someone at the next level. AND there is a next level. Work the chain.