theinternot

Hi all,

This may be my first post on here. I'll try to keep it short.

Basically, my 06 ML350 (purchased CPO late 2009) is 2 months out of extended warranty and up until a few weeks ago I was telling everyone that it had been one of the most reliable cars I had ever owned. oops.

The fuel pumped failed about a month ago. I had it diagnosed at the stealership. And, since it was out of warranty I figured I'd save $500 and have it done at a shop a few miles away.

Literally, from the moment my wife left the shop and went to the next door gas station and filled up, my ML has turned to ****.

Here is a picture of the ground at the gas station as she was filling the tank... yup, it's fuel:





Obviously, she went right back and they hurriedly tried to fix the problem. I had surmised that they hadn't seated the pump properly. This was verified as such from the technician. Which leads me to believe they do not possess the proper tools to do this job... but, I digress. The car is "fixed" and no more fuel is spilling out of the top of the tank and down to the ground. The car smelled great for at least 2 weeks.

Forward one week...

Wife is on way home, stops and fills up again and reports that the engine is "shaky" and not driving "nicely" like it usually does. I take it for a spin and notice it is running rough and steering is heavy... feels like an almost complete loss of power steering. ****. Gas gauge instantly drops to half. ****.

Have car towed, yet again, to a different shop with a 35 year Mercedes tech. I am suspecting the power steering pump is failing (and expecting to be told the rack is toast). Tech says car drives fine. WTH?!? But, codes indicate a bad fuel sending unit AND issues with Transmission/Valve body. Sweet! ****. Tech recommends to take back car to shop for warranty work. Car seems to drive fine.

Car is returned back to the shop that installed new fuel pump. Didn't notice any line item for a sending unit on the invoice. Was the sending unit replaced with the pump? I don't know. However, they say that the sending unit is faulty (I already knew this from the previous tech, and that there are in fact two sending units because of the saddle tank). They say I need to leave it for two days so they can warranty the part. They never said anything about which side failed, or that there were two sides. I just let them do the repair and wait to see the result.

I get the car back two days later and fuel gauge is working again, car is running ok.

Jump to today...

Wife goes out in the morning... everything is fine. She goes out to run an errand in the afternoon and the entire dash lights up, car just cranks and cranks and never fires. Same symptoms as when the pump failed originally, only slightly different. The engine cranking is much faster this time in rapid succession.


I have a friend of mine with a snap-on diagnostics unit come by and he sees following codes:





Nothing to do with fuel (and I don't remember there being any when the pump originally failed), but he runs a test on the fuel pump and it shows the pump just die:




Then he pulls the seats back and looks at the seals under the seat. I check the driver's side passenger rear tank seal under the seat, and as I suspected it's been opened. So now, I am thinking they were just swapping out unit's on each side seeing if did anything, rather than actually knowing what the problem was.


But the best part is, they used duck/duct tape to close it and it had peeled back (presumably from the residue of fuel)... basically just lying on top of the hole. Both sides are like this:












So, my questions are these:

1. Is that much damage normal to the rim of the opening? Would I expect the same type of damage had the work been done at the dealership?

2. Is there a definite proprietary tool necessary for properly doing this work?

3. Is there a correlation between these issues and the lids not being securely sealed under the seats?

4. Is there any possible correlation between these issues and the seeming loss of power steering and poor running my wife experienced?

5. What recourse do I have if any of the previous questions are "Yes"?

EDIT: Forgot to mention, the shop is sending a tow truck in the morning to pick the car up and check it out... but, that doesn't exactly make me feel any better.

komp55

I'm all for saving money too, but your aftermarket shop completely botched the repair. And the use of duct tape? Beyond belief.

My advice would be that if you plan to keep the vehicle for a while, take it back to the MB dealer and have them correctly fix the issues. They'll warranty their parts and labor. Yes, it will painfully cost more, but over the long run, it will be worth the peace of mind, particularly knowing that your wife is the primary driver of the vehicle.

Cyber GS

I agree with komp55, I would have it repaired at the MB dealer.. Yes it will cost more but it beats having duct tape sealing the fuel pump.

I would tell this aftermarket shop that unless they refund your money you are going to report them to Consumer Affairs pictures and all..

It may not get you anywhere, but I doubt very much that they would want others to know that their tool of choice is duct tape..

And just thinking about it, I wonder how many of their other customers are driving around with duct tape holding parts of their cars together.. This shop really should be reported..

Good Luck..

theinternot

Thanks for the replies.

The shop picked up the car this morning. They tried starting it in the garage and it would just crank. Then I get a call this afternoon saying the car started right up.

I told them I was upset with their workmanship and the use of duct tape to seal the lids. They said they didn't want the car filled with fumes from the sealant because it takes 8 hours to cure. So, they used duct tape. Um... yeah.

My bull****-o-meter is in the red with them right now. I just don't trust a word they are saying to me now.

I am pretty upset. I think you are right as well. As soon as I get the car returned, back to the dealership it goes.

xxGenericSNxx

Did you charge with a credit card? If they refuse to refund your money you can issue a chargeback because you didn't get what you paid for.

sosh

Well in my estimation its your fault. However you did save a nickle. Now just bite the bullet and take it to the dealer and be prepared for a large bill. Don't blame anyone but yourself.

theinternot

Hi sosh,

I can appreciate your sentiment, and it was ultimately my decision.

However, your cavalier attitude is offensive. A "nickel" as you say might not mean very much to you... gauging from your sig you have many expensive vehicles and I can assume you are fairly wealthy.

I am not.

I purchased this vehicle CPO with extended warranty for my wife so she would have a nice "office" as she does most of her work on location. I sacrificed in order to have the "privilege" to drive this vehicle.

This is my first MB, and my first luxury vehicle outside of warranty, and also the first major issue I have had with a vehicle repair. In addition, I am not the type of person who doesn't take care of their vehicle or fails to perform service maintenance. So please spare me your arrogant ****ing attitude.

I was asking for advice not someone to spank my bottom.

theinternot

Thanks for the tip. I am gonna have the damage evaluated at the dealership and go from there. I did pay with a credit card and depending how things play out I may get my credit card company involved.

sosh

My financial situation is none of your concern as your's in none of mine. My point was that the least costly repair in the long term can cost more upfront not even considering the peace of mind factor considering the car is driven by your wife. The repair you had done is certainly not only sub standard but was downright dangerous with the fuel leak. Also keep in mind that MB's are reliable very safe and comfortable vehicles but no one has ever said that they were the least expensive to maintain.When in fact they may be the most expensive to maintain as they age.

theinternot

I was just gonna make another comment to further this... but am deciding to edit it.

If I've misinterpreted your tone, then my apologies. I have already accepted my culpability in this matter and am only looking for useful advice.

Taking the car back to the dealership is a given.

I know the lids on these units are factory sealed and are a pain to remove. I am mainly looking for advice on whether the damage was excessive so I can look into having the repair bill sent to the shop, and whether the issues we've been having would be related to a faulty installation of the fuel pump and/or sending units. It is also serving as a portable catalogue of events that has already proved useful by having this post viewed remotely by several mechanics.

The consensus I have received is this shop blew it, and that I should have spent the extra money to go the dealership. I have learned a lesson and will be paying for it.

Feedback from people who have actually done this kind of work was the goal when writing the original post.

hubert

If you decide to get the credit card involved make sure you have the pictures you showed on here and all the paper work and trust me you will get your money back and have the butchers at the shop pay for their mistake because like somebody already said this was also safety issue. It's so sad that shops like that still exist, just imagine how many people are driving in cars that are not safe because of this one shop. Good luck with everything.

Benzo 003

Sosh does come off as extremely arrogant, as he is. He constantly "boasts" about all of the different vehicles he owns and has owned. Regardless of the topic, he works his stable of past and present vehicles into it.

All Sosh has ever added to any thread is to tell everyone to take their issue to the dealer. Probably part owner in an auto group that owns a few dealerships.

I would definitely get a stop payment started on the botched repair. As for another shop, if I cant do it myself, I go to the dealer. I just cant trust shops in my area with my car. My 08 ML is my first Benz and I do everything to keep it perfect. I am not wealthy by any means, so saving a Sosh mispelled "nickle" is what I'm all about.

Good luck.

Cyber GS

Were you able to get this resolved to your satisfaction?