Wildgeese

Ok. 2012 GLK 350 4-Matic.


So there is a hairline crack just behind the oil drain plug, leaks oil at about a drop ever 5 seconds.


Am I totally screwed here or what? I'm a garage wrencher for most things but I have a feeling this involves lifting the engine and that's where my skill level drops off.


Any suggestions on what to do?


Thanks.

sblvro

What happened? How did it crack?

Wildgeese

I have no idea how it happened but it's there.


From perusing various sites it seem that some MB pans can be dropped without a big hassle while others depend on hoisting the engine, just wondering if anyone has ever had to do this on a GLK.

formerjeepguy

How about some details?

Are you still under warranty?

Are there any signs of impact damage?

If there are no signs of impact then it could be a casting defect and may be covered by warranty.

Wildgeese

Don't see any signs of impact damage, the entire area is pretty clean and there are no obvious scuffs or dents or anything. I bought the truck used and it was missing the plastic skid plate which protects the area, I've been driving without until the plate I ordered arrived.


Being a 2012 I believe it's still under warranty since the truck is under 4 years and 50k miles. I'm preparing myself for being told by MB that I'm out of luck on a warranty fix. I bought the truck from my old man who has been a long customer of this particular MB dealership but have no idea if that will help the dealer conclude they should fix the damage.


So I'm trying to figure out how big a deal this would be to fix it myself in case the dealer tells me to get lost.

sblvro

They can pull the records and have your old man do the service appointment since he's original owner unless it's already titled to you.

rmfnla

Missing skid plate is a red flag; could have been an impact on the plug itself that caused the crack but the now-missing plate stopped the area from getting scratched.

You bought it from your "old man" meaning your father? If so, did you ask him if he knows what happened?

Either way, this does not sound like a warranty issue to me.

FWIW, I've repaired many oil pans with JB Weld, but for best results you really need to remove the pan and patch from the inside, and I suspect removing the GLK pan will not be easy...

Wildgeese

Not titled yet since we're still in exchange and refinance mode. Any idea how MB dealers are when dealing with this sort of thing, do they look at such damage as avoidable on my part and thus my fault?


Anyone out there know how to pull the pan and what the full process is?

Wildgeese

I crawled around the entire truck before taking it from my Dad and the crack was not there, he had it sitting in his garage for a while and there were no puddles whatsoever, it's definitely happened since I've owned the vehicle. He bought the truck in used condition himself and the plate was missing when he got it, I guess he never thought to replace the plate himself.


Who knows, maybe it was damaged somehow under his ownership and my driving caused the crack to finally go all the way through the pan, either way I'm thinking there will probably be a fight with the dealer. I wonder if the absence of the plate would really make a difference in their minds, though now that there is a plate installed they would technically never know it had been missing in the first place.


Ugh, this sucks.

rmfnla

Warranty covers stuff on the car that stop working, not stuff done to the car, so I'm guessing it's not going to go well...

sblvro

If there is no obvious damage signs then it can be called a factory defect-covered

rmfnla

Let's hope so...

bop11

If this is an AWD, the front drive axle goes through the oil pan, not so with a RWD. So much harder with AWD to change.
If it appears to be damage and the dealer won't fix it under warranty, your insurance should. Depending upon the deductible, you should be able to get it repaired for less than $1000 or $500 or $250 or what ever the deductible is.
However, I high centered my 2010 AWD GLK bad enough to need some front suspension parts, $3k worth and there was no damage to the drive line or the oil pan. The truck was sitting on a 6" wide concrete curb with the truck supported on the engine and transmission two wheels off the ground. The damage was done when it was pulled off the curb. That was over 30,000 miles ago and I have no oil leaks from either engine or transmission. So maybe it was a flaw in the oil pan.
I hit that curb with the driver side front tire at about 5 mph and it just climbed over it. I hit the brakes but the anti lock system thought that the front wheel, being in the air, was spinning so it applied the brake to that tire allowing the truck to climb over the curb with the left rear and drive the truck down the curb. With my foot hard on the brake, and two wheels off the ground, the anti lock stopped those wheels but let the ones on the ground go, moving the truck forward at idle speed. I had to move it out of gear to get it to stop. Wierd situation where anti-lock is not so great.

Wildgeese

Well, the dealer basically told me to get stuffed, that they've never seen a flaw like that in a part to cause a crack so I must have gone "Four Wheeling" or something. No warranty coverage.


Yeah, that's it, I took a GLK wheeling. Seriously? You idiot. Left that dealer, went to another dealer across town and saved a cool grand on the repair, even so it's going to cost $1800.


I'm at home now, having a scotch or ten to drown my sorrows. Thanks to everyone for the feedback.

bop11

If the dealer said it was not a fault then you should consider it was something on the road that caused it so it should be covered, less deductible, on your insurance. That's why you have comprehensive.

rmfnla

Certainly worth a try...