Our 2019 GLC, we got a battery warning light, and took it too the dealer. Upon inspection they found that the bolt that holds the Harmonic balancer on the crank pulley had come off. They said based on the damage caused, and with final approval from Mercedes, they are replacing the engine. Lead time is 6-8 weeks.

My question is has anyone had this issue? Has anyone had to have one of their 63's engine replaced?

Are there any options besides replacing the engine? I am not sure how I feel about having a replacement engine in our 8 month old vehicle with only have 2300 miles on it.

Just looking for anyone with experience with this type of situation

 

That is pretty wild. I wouldn't want a replacement engine either unless it was absolutely necessary. Given how they pressure mechanics at dealers to work super fast and cut corners with their pay plans, the percentage chance that they screw it all back together correctly is low. And with such a young engine, it's not like you're coming out ahead as if the engine had a 100K miles on it.

It won't help resale values either to have a non-original engine.

I personally would try to get a second opinion from a respected independent mechanic. It could be the dealership making work to soak the Mercedes warranty. As a Jaguar and Land Rover owner, there's no doubt that those dealers take advantage of the generous factory warranties.

 

I’d go for the new engine, most people don’t want the aggravation with just replacing parts, and an engine tear down would be more costly in the long run for Mercedes, and take longer for you to get the car back.. They also may want to inspect why something like this happened especially with their one man-one engine.

A car like this, doesn’t need to be “numbers matching” like a 69 Z28, to hold value. They cars are meant to be driven, hard. Most people will go get the latest and greatest in 5-6 years. All manufactures have anomaly’s and have failures, Mercedes has had problems in the past with various systems and have been good about fixing them. From my observation.

 

What if it doesn't really need to be torn apart or replaced? Maybe it can be fixed easily and they are just scamming the warranty. That's what I am talking about.

 

Get the engine changed, and ask MB if they can change the engine # in your datacard. That way everything will be in order. There might be a chance they will do it,, since the car is so new, and it's a factory error..

 

In my experience, if the pulley bolt get loose or even missing, depending on how long you drive with that, the crankshaft get damaged, and that will require a major repair. So instead of them tearing the engine apart, and replacing the crankshaft, I would prefer a new engine.

 

To the original poster, here's a video showing what a Mercedes harmonic balancer looks like:


The balancers are keyed on the to shaft. If the bolt came off, and the pulley did not fly off, then it stays keyed to the shaft.

I am not like most people here because I actually work on all my cars from Lamborghinis to Lotuses to Jaguars to Range Rovers, so I know not to have blind trust in "professional" mechanics.

 

That is exactly the problem here. We are much alike, I also work on Jaguars, Ferrari's, and do build race engines for the same, and I neither do, in general, trust "professionals"

But with the little information we have here, a car that is still under warranty, an indy shop we don't know, all odds are against a non dealer solution.

I would say that in this case the owner is better off with the engine change, despite things can go wrong.

If things go wrong at the indy, MB will reject all further claims, and the owner is f...ked.

 

I am just saying to get a second opinion on what is broken and the options to fix it, not to have the indy fix it. Just pay them a few bucks for an inspection. If it were me, I would just look at it myself, but I am guessing the OP is not a mechanic-type.

 

Right, but even if the indy say, it's not a problem, just replace the bolt, my guess is that MB will say to the Owner :" It is at our own risk and if further complications arise, we cannot cover them." .

Is it worth the risk ?

 

Can’t take it to any Indy, as the engine has been partial dissembled. Cooperate had to sign off on the replacement engine, and I guess requested pictures of certain areas. I hope to get more clarification with my SA as they have not shared a lot of info. We just learned today of them going ahead with the replacement engine.

 

Sounds like your car's fate is sealed and that’s that.

If you are in the US, expect the engine replacement to be on the carfax for all to see. Heck, sometimes if the dealer pumps up the tires, that ends up on the carfax.

Best of luck!

 

If your car is leased, then you should be fine as everything is under warranty and you'll be returning the car at the end of your term. But if you own the car, then you might face some issues. But again, everything will be under warranty and engine for sure will be Mercedes original engine with all the parts. I'd either:

• Negotiate maintenance packages and extended warranty on the car if you are planning to keep the car long-term
• Or as your car is practically new, refuse the engine swap and ask them to take the car back and give your money back as this is pretty unacceptable from Mercedes. Just keep pressing hard on them and either get a new car or a refund.

 

Personally I don't think there is any real choice in terms of options.
If MB say the engine needs to be changed then without throwing away your warranty you may just let them at it.

I understand how it feels as I had to have an engine replaced in my VW Touareg a few years ago.
The new engine will have a full warranty from date of fitting.

 

The process has started. My local dealer has been really good to work with (as per usual). I opened a case with MB Corporate just to see what my options are. They said they cannot determine what course of action to take until everything has been completed. I will update this post once everything has concluded. Thanks for all the comments and feedback!

 

this is amazing! only on the internet would you find someone who upon getting a free brand new engine looking for a second opinion. I hope whatever your job is isnt in a decision making capacity.

 

You don’t know much about the mechanical aspect of cars, do you?

Tell us, do you make it a habit of making decision without having a clue??

 

The key word here is "warranty". If you let anyone (including yourself) outside MB tinker around with this engine, you may be in a bad spot financially.

 

Well... frankly the "Good News" in this situation is Mercedes warranty is taking care of what needs to be done to get this repaired the Right-Way .

You mentioned "6-8 weeks" replacement time - two things - (1) is the dealership providing you free loaner for this period ? (2) between you-me-other forum members are you familiar with the Lemon Law's in your state ?

MBUSA - and/or your MB dealer - is not going to stand-up and and say "we want to give you a new Mercedes" - but between you and a attorney you should see where things lay about that due to the length of time your rig will be in the shop for completion of the repairs which have been identified as manufacturer defect...

Now ... that part is NOT a conversation for you to have with your Dealer and NOT a conversation between you and MBUSA... the way this starts (if you decide to do it) is a Certified Letter from the attorney to MBUSA which kicks in a whole other process ..

It's your call...