deftguru

Our vehicle, 2015 MERCEDES-BENZ GL450 4 MATIC was purchased in 2017 with only 28K milage and had one owner prior to purchase. The vehicle was taken in for service due to the sound of water swooshing around while driving. We additionally noticed service code violations on the dash that lead to it being inoperable. It was determined by the dealer and to no fault of ours, that the vehicle was inoperable due to water leakage via the back tail lights. This lead to build up of water on the floor of the vehicle and the corrosion of the battery terminals. There was literally a puddle on the floor of the GL450. The dealership to us we needed a new wiring harness and likely other components I may be unaware of. The vehicle was taken in May 24, 2019 and has been at the dealership ever since. The expected wait time for a new wiring harness to be manufactured from Germany and shipped to the United States is at least two months!

Has anyone experienced this with their GL450? We have never driven our GL450 in any puddle or any high water. We have had throughout the last two years regular rain fall and normal change in weather. We are in norther jersey and have not had any abnormal weather. We leave our vehicle parked outside most days when it rains

We are delighted to have a 2019 GLC as a loaner while we wait for our vehicle, but as a family of six the use of a GLC if we all travel is becoming a safety concern. We have a family trip in September and I hope we will have our GL450 by then, but if not then we may have to rent a larger vehicle. We have a 2 year old toddler and by law we are required to have a child seat and it will be impossible to fit four kids in the second row w/ luggage and a stroller.

Should we be reimbursed if we have to rent a larger vehicle if our GL450 is still in the shop come September for our family trip? I am told dealerships to not allow any vehicle larger than GLC as a loaner.

Additional Backdrop Information & Evidence:
About the two year mark of ownership, several error codes were emitted (see photos) until one day the vehicle failed to operate and told us to take it in for servicing. We initially would see the following error code upon entering the vehicle and starting it after having parked it over night. The following message was consistent about one a week: "Transmission Not in P Risk of Vehicle Rolling Away". Not only did we leave the car in Park (P), but we also used the emergency break prior to turning off the vehicle.


Then one day, the vehicle would not operating and could not be driven with the following message displayed on the dash: "Service Required Do Not Shift Gears Visit Dealer". After waiting a day, we did not see the message and promptly drove the GL450 to the deanship for further inspection.


We were told there is nothing anyone can do to expedite the servicing of our vehicle as this is standard operating procedure to wait up to two months or more for a wiring harness to be manufactured and shipped to the United Sates from Germany.

Photos of Water Damage:

SaniDel

Deftguru:

This is a bad situation and you have my condolences. We had a defective wiring harness in a early-production Lexus GX470. Lexus declared it non-repairable so we got a replacement vehicle. Perhaps you should pursue that option with M-B?

WRT loaner vehicles ... on a recent service visit our dealership loaned us a 2019 GL450. Demand a loaner vehicle equivalent to yours.

Whatever loaner vehicle you get ... hold it until you are satisfied!

deftguru

SaniDel: Thank you for your advice and condolences. I was a bit discouraged, but after your response I reached out to Mercedes corporate. They were kind enough to listen, but that was about it. The best they could do is a cash incentive towards the purchase of a new or pre-owned vehicle. Total bummer! I paid off this GL450. I have had this GL450 just a little over a year. It has been inoperable in service at the dealership for over 5 months now. The least the dealership could have done was provide a same size vehicle or reimburse us for having to rent a larger vehicle for family trips during the summer considering there are six of us.

Still waiting for our vehicle….

hambone1983

This is very strange. Few months back I noticed the rear tire compartment noisy and had water in the bottom but not as much as here. Ripped it apart and dried it out. Tracking the source of the leak was the top of the rear glass where the seal was thinned out. Also found out that the rubber seal by the lock mechanism was not sealed right so had to dry the back and seal everything. So far no water. Can you confirm where the water was coming from the lights?

im finding some really lame issues on an expensive car like this.

deftguru

Interesting to hear this. Our vehicles are parked outside almost all the time, even though we have a garage. Our GL450 is tad longer than the garage, unfortunately. It stays parked outside all the time. I say this because I think most GL owners park their vehicles out of the elements and inside for heavy rain and or snow. Hence, why this issue is likely not as wide spread as it would be.

To answer your question, the water I am told entered the vehicle via the rear tail light (right-side) and through the broken seal that is in-between the rear door (highlighted in the photo). This seal depending how much the rear gate is used may need to be changed.


Replacement seal for trunk door of GL450