rayzam

Hi, my 2020 GLS450 driver's seat leatherette is breaking up.It has less than 29K miles on it. Other seats seem to be fine (for now). I'm assuming it will be covered under warranty but I hate leaving the car at dealership for long periods as their loaners are typically small sedans. Has this happened to anyone and how was the repair experience? How long did it take to fix? Do they replace the whole seat or just redo the upholstery?

superswiss

Bad news. Unless it's a clear manufacturing defect, Interior trim falls under wear and tear and is not covered by the limited warranty, especially not with 29k miles on the clock. That's the bottom seat bolster by the door. They will blame it on normal wear due to ingress and egress. That part of the seat wears the fastest, regardless of material. Most people rest their weight on that part of the seat when getting in and out, and that causes excessive wear. It's too late now, but the advise would have been to lift yourself over it when getting in and out.

nc211

Scroll down a page or two on a thread of mine called MB Tex Split. Yes, it is absolutely a manufactured defect and MB knows about it and has issued a fix for it. It should be covered by warranty.

Your photo illustrates the EXACT problem that many others have experienced. I had mine fixed once, did it again. Now they have something entirely new to replace it with. MB admits the original materials are substandard in their communication to dealers to fix it.

chassis

Sorry to see this.

Very common on this low quality and problem-plagued vehicle launch. Read owners’ stories on this site. It’s unfortunate for owners and for the shoddiness and poor execution that MB is now known for.

rayzam

Thanks for the advice everyone! Based on my experience with 14-15 Mercs I had owned before this, I tend to think that "wear and tear" argument is a bit of a stretch. I can see that the quality has degraded somewhat over the years, but still you don't expect this happening at around this age and mileage.
My dealership (Fletcher Jones at Newport) has generally been helpful with repairs. They replaced a cracked wood veneer panel on my 2017 GLS door as well as the frayed aluminum trims of the cup holder in my wife's E-class with no question asked. Next time I go there for service I'll ask them nicely to fix it. Thanks again!!

ILoveNY

is that mb-tex or leather?

rayzam

MB-Tex

Supraholic

same exact issue with mine.. bit over 50k miles..

rayzam

Update: Took the car for maintenance to the dealership earlier this week and showed the seat to the service advisor. He glanced over it and said they see it all the time and had it replaced under warranty. The quality of the MB cars might not be as good as before, but the service remains strong.