Car is 2 months old, but sometimes the driver's side front door will unlock the car, but I am unable to open the door. The only way to open the door is to manually lock the car again and unlock it using the key fob. It only happens intermittently and not on any of the other doors. I don't think it's a key fob battery issue because everything else works fine (e.g. trunk opening, push-button start). I know I have to take it to the dealer, but is this a known problem?

 

A "known" or expected problem - no - however the symptoms you describe can be caused by a failing sensor inside the driver's front door handle - which in this version of the Mercedes Keyless Go would require replacement of the entire exterior handle assembly.

Your dealer would need to confirm my diagnosis - then would place a exterior handle on order for N/C replacement for you.

Keep the beat !

 

I tend to agree with Fab, sounds like a defect to me. I've never had a failure with keyless go.

 

The keyless system on the X166 is a bit finicky compared to the old X164, perhaps because the lock button is now a capacitive touch instead of a mechanical button. There's also a longer delay before the system unlocks.

I find that if you close your handle around the doorhandle, the system will leave the car locked -- it somehow registers this as a lock event overriding the unlock.

If you place your fingers behind the handle and pull immediately, that door will still be locked and the handle will move without unlocking or opening the door.

If you place your fingers behind the handle and wait momentarily -- just a half a second hesitation -- then the unlock event happens and the handle will open the door.

Conversely, when locking by pressing the touch sensitive area, it's important to not have a stray finger that might touch the inside of the handle and unlock the car as soon as it finishes locking itself.

I really dislike how the car just hasn't been thought through -- if all doors are closed and there's no key inside and no movement inside, if the key fob moves out of range, the car should just lock itself ... and of course, this should be a user-definable preference setting.

The other thing is the annoying "bong" sound and message to not forget your key ... in a car with keyless (keyless!) operation, this message is idiotic at best and basically just another very annoying noise like a car from the 70's that buzzes if the key is in the ignition and the driver door is open. Sheesh.

Someone at Mercedes needs to wake up and smell their crappy electronics design and get some better designers on the job. The only car I have now with a worse cabin and electronics design is the Porsche and it is truly hideous. The Prius has a better cabin design by far! For example, imagine you're driving along at night and you decide you want to turn off the nav display to reduce the light glare ... this requires a concerted effort and several clicks, assuming you already know exactly what you're doing and you will have to take your eyes off the road. In the Prius, it's a button and you can remember where it is and turn off that display conveniently without taking your eyes off the road. And no, I don't like talking to my car. "Kit ... " And since I don't have an American accent, half the time, if I say "display off" the delightfully inane voice confirms "calling 911 emergency" ... ! : )

 

Thanks for the input everyone. Will try the pause before pulling the door handle. If that doesn't work, will take it to the dealer.