Where to start?

Hello, I'm new to the forum and actually joined to provide a heads up to anyone who owns a 2020 GLE350.

Long story short, the line that feeds washer fluid to the rear wiper started leaking. We noticed a blue stain on the headliner on the drivers side just above the rear seat. It was dropped off at the dealer last Friday. They still have it. Not because the parts were not available, but because the ENTIRE interior of the vehicle had to be removed. All seats, carpet, interior body panels, head-liner, and center console. Everything, the service writer advised, but the dash. Even the brake booster and part of the brake system under the hood had to be disassembled in order to run the new line to the rear wiper. WOW! What an engineering feat. To replace a washer hose, the entire interior and brake system needs to be removed. I expressed my concerns to service department and they agreed that it was an engineering disaster to design it that way.

My service writer also stated that he hopes ours was a fluke, and that they don't see any more of these issues, due to the immense undertaking it requires to repair.

I contacted MBUSA Customer Service to express my concerns that our brand new $65k MB SUV with 6k miles on it had to be, in a sense, disassembled to repair a washer hose. My concern was met with attitude and brush off. The CS rep went as far as to advise me to take up my concerns with the service department. The CS Rep asked "what do you want us to do about it? It's getting repaired". She further stated that there was nothing she could do about how the vehicle was designed, which I understand, however a little compassion for an upset customer would've been sufficient. Apparently she doesn't appreciated spending what we spent on such a "marvel of engineering" only to have it torn apart by a MB mechanic at a dealership.

Our concern is that the vehicle won't be assembled as it would be at the factory. Our concern is that our vehicle interior was assembled by a mechanic and not factory technicians. Maybe our concerns are misplaced, but having the entire interior removed and replaced on a vehicle barely 6 months old is greatly alarming to us.

 

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news for your situation, but I lived through a similar experience years ago, and there is virtually no way it will look like a new vehicle when they are finished with the repair. Better prepare yourself for when you retrieve your vehicle. I had a 1996 S320 SWB, and when the car was a week old, I started seeing dark marks appearing all over the parchment leather seat surfaces on all of the seats, front and rear. Long story short, a technician at the factory in Germany used the wrong marker to label the underside of the leather, which was routinely done to specify the seat location in the car prior to installation. My local dealer had to replace all of the leather, and not only did it not look anything like a factory job (loose all over), they broke the rear view mirror and scratched the door sills and all of that had to be replaced. I couldn't live with the car in that condition, and MB corporate offered zero sympathy. I sold the car and bought a 1998 SL 500. I didn't take a significant loss because it was a leftover at the end of the model year and the dealer dropped the price significantly. The buyer never even noticed, but I'm a perfectionist and he wasn't.

 

Wow, that is some rough luck.
I agree with you that empathy is a basic trait required of any client servicing.

 

Update...

I went by the dealer today and saw the carnage first hand. The service writer advised that after several calls to Mercedes it was determined that a repair to the hose vs replacement would have been a better option. Mercedes advised since no such repair parts were available, the tear down and replacement hose was the only option. He said repairing the hose and splicing in a new peice would've taken an hour and would have meant only dropping down the rear of the headliner.

Furthermore, I informed the service writer that I should've been contacted and informed ahead of the tear down. Something as involved as removing the entire interior should've warranted informing the owner. Not after the fact.

Still no follow up from MB USA as I requested. Our first Mercedes experience is not going well.

 

That sucks big time! Did you get photos of it torn apart?

 

I snapped a few picks but they had installed the seats and carpet already.

Here are a few I took yesterday.

 

Sorry but that's absolutely ridiculous for a car that's just come out. That thing will never be put together as tight as it was from the factory and there's gonna be more rattles in the end.

 

So sorry for you ��I hope they manage to assemble it all in a good way.

 

Do Mercedes Representatives chime in on these forums? I'd love to hear their opinion.

 

This is too bad! Im starting to regret my choice

 

I am not familiar with that specific repair on your GLE - and I understand that in this case to get the repair "done right" required interior tear down - and as a MB Owner of course it's shocking to look at the "carnage" as you put it. It's hard enough for me to look at any Mercedes in interior or engine tear down - even though it's not my MB.

The work done as dictated by Mercedes US is what needs to be done in their opinion to get the "job done right" - and you're right to assume this was a fluke deal with that rear washer hose since I have not heard this happening on this forum (I could have missed something) from W164's on up..

The interiors when assembled at Vance are done with primarily labor/airtool - unlike body panels which are done by "Kuka's" - and interiors aren't engines either - with proper tech shop time your interior can be reinstalled 100% to factory spec - this isn't rocket science - it's a question of tech labor time.

If you want to go for Lemon Law - best to keep records of the down time - and records when you get it back - and get attorney's opinion/assistance - "Lemon Law Replacement" is NOT something any manufacturer does willingly - and in this case your issues is not a safety issue ..

 

The photos show a typical headliner removal procedure. Many vehicles, including Toyota, would be similar. Lots of trim pieces need to be removed to remove the headliner, which is normally one contiguous component. The seats remain installed in the photo, when will they be removed?

Inconvenient, but not unusual.

 

"Typical headliner removal" not withstanding, this should not, in any way, be typical to repair a washer hose. Per the service writer, this is the most unusual and unnecessary tear down for something so simple he or his mechanics have ever had to undertake. The dealership has had the vehicle for 10 days. These pictures were taken on day 8. The rebuild had already commenced. The seats had been removed earlier on, before I took the pics. The seats, carpet, headliner, all interior plastic panels (most of which are still removed in the pictures), and center console. Due to the routing of the hose and accompanying wiring harness (apparently both are required for this repair) all of the interior had to be removed to include the brake booster and several brake components under the hood. Everything but the dash. The pics were taken after the seats had been reinstalled.

We have been promised the vehicle would be ready on Tuesday. A 12 day repair for a rubber washer hose. The service writer advised that a repair of the hose would have taken an hour. Apparently, MB has a repair kit forthcoming. So there may be others out there. The repair kit, per MB is not ready for release yet.

 

6K miles? That's hardly a new car. But this story still sux to read and I hope it gets properly sorted out!

Edit: I just saw your pictures and if this was me I'd be so fawking pissed off I wouldn't be able to see straight!!!

 

At the end of the day it is bad design and MB should be ashamed.

For someone to say it is a "typical headliner removal" is unbelievable, wonder how they would feel if it was their car and in my opinion 6000 miles is a new car.

 

The service associate is being empathetic, as he/she should be doing.

Neither the headliner removal procedure, nor the routing of the rear washer tube, are unusual. 20 year old Toyota SUVs have the same headliner removal procedure and rear washer tube routing.

This is a very inconvenient situation, for sure.

Did you mention if the service associate gave you a definitive root cause of the washer fluid leak? It could have been a pinched or cut washer fluid hose. Such a thing can happen during the assembly process, uncommonly and unfortunately. It can also happen when the component supplier ships to M-B a damaged fluid hose or headliner+fluid hose assembly.

The decision by M-B to field repair by splicing a hose section, vs installing a new hose, can be called into question. A new replacement part is always the better option. A field repair can fail in unexpected ways.

From reading this section of the site, it seems the V167 is having new platform teething pains.

 

Is the hose actually rubber, or is it plastic? I would expect the latter, though I would think rubber might be more resistant to damage.

 

I'm not sure you are grasping the whole situation I have described. This is not a typical headliner removal. And I'm certain it's not quite the same as a 20 year old Toyota headliner removal. You are trivializing the situation. 6k miles on a 6 month old vehicle is indeed a new car.

It's not a simple headliner removal. I would not have an issue with the headliner removal. It's the removal of the entire interior PLUS portions of the braking system that are the issue.

 

Wait what?? I don't think Chassis even said anything about it not being a new car.......I did. It has 6k miles on it. Do you think a car at a dealer with 6k miles would be considered new? How can you be offended by the fact that it isn't new!? While I do completely understand your anger and frustration with the car and it's current state of affairs; I can't understand the sentiment of offence.

 

My apologies to chassis, I have corrected my post. This whole situation has me quite steamed.

And in my opinion, a car purchased in April of this year (6 months ago) is indeed still a new car. Maybe not by Kelly Blue Book standards but to the one making the payments on it, it most certainly is.

 

I agree that a car less than 6 months old is "new" in common usage; not on a dealer's lot, of course.

 

No apologies necessary.

It's a low mileage, nearly new, car with a warranty repair that is time intensive to correct. Very annoying and inconvenient.

The work to rectify the defect is typical, and not unusual, for vehicles of this type in the modern era. Again, very annoying and inconvenient.

 

I can understand completely and please excuse my retardation. I'd be pretty out of my mind in a situation like yours. Hope they can make this right for you by putting everything back in it's place!

 

Another reason why I lease. No matter what happens there is light at the end of the tunnel even if it's 30 months away. Sorry you had to endure this mess.

 

Same here. Car will always be under warranty, and problems can be forgotten at end of lease.
I view lease payments as a subscription service for transportation with the ability to travel when and where I want. I just have to add in maintenance fees as well.