BillSD

Hi all, I'm hoping to get some advice on a potentially expensive problem that we're having with our '21 GLS450. A couple of months ago the center console display stopped functioning. So MBUX, nav, radio, bluetooth, climate control display, driver profiles, all of it stopped working. When I took the car to the dealer for service, they said that the control unit was damaged. I thought great, it will be covered by our warranty since we've only owned the car for <2 years (20K miles). The dealer said nope because we had spilled water on it and they can't submit it to MB for warranty. I didn't even know it existed - they explained that it sits on the floor underneath the front passenger seat. I asked why such a critical piece of equipment that apparently is easily damaged by water would be placed where the 2nd row passenger side feet are and they said it's not their problem. I'm not denying that there could have been a kids water cup that landed there, but when I asked the dealer to show me the damage and prove that water had damaged it they said that it is MB policy not to open up the control unit. I asked if they could prove to me that it wasn't a faulty control unit and they said no but it was clear that water had corroded the unit (again, without opening it). They could only show me a picture of a metal box. What's even more frustrating is that the faulty unit is apparently not in stock at any dealer (I've called several) and it's been draining our starter battery. If I damaged it, I'll pay for it ($8500). But something doesn't feel right about this. Thanks in advance.

konigstiger

Can you identify the possible path of moisture that they claim caused this? For instance sunroof drains (a-pillar) and A/C condensation line (alongside of transmission tunnel) can become blocked and cause leakage to driver and/or passenger floor.

BillSD

Thanks. The unit is actually on the floor under the passenger seat. The dealer just said that we spilled water on it. Again, with the placement on the floor at the feet of the passengers in the second row, it's possible that we spilled a bottle/cup. But why would you put a multi-thousand dollar part there? And so easily damaged by water... I'm so disappointed that they won't submit a warranty claim for it.