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There was a period of time in my life where every car I owned eventually blew out one or more brake lines. My wife's 2000 Malibu (this happened in 2007 as we were driving to our first home for the first time), my 91 Ranger, 93 Caprice, 99 Dodge Ram, 05 Cadillac STS, 96 Buick Roadmaster. Back in 2020 when I bought my first Mercedes (04 E55) I was hoping that would be the end of my brake line trouble. Then I started reading threads like this. The good news is, I have not had a brake line failure on a Mercedes, but my 07 S550 is the only Mercedes I've had that I even drive in the salt. I did my best to treat it with CRC HD Corrosion Inhibitor so we'll see.
wow, that's crazy and scary to hear. Be safe friend!
Yes it is most assuredly a safety defect. Needs to have about 50-100 people listing this a safety defect before they will do anything....it would help if owners that had a crash due to failed lines posted at that NHTSA site too'
I would think MB has outsourced these lines and the "corrosion coating " isnt doing anything at all. Hell i had steel lines on my 1965 Bug that were over 50 years old and they looked great So why do MB brake lines fail after 10 years? No its not the effect of driving conditions. its crap steel and coating that is causing this. Prolly Electrolysis effect corroding from where the mounting clips attach to the body...dissimilar metals and all that...
This is what we should expect from MB now " the best or nothing" meaning nothing and we crash now....for which we pay a premium cost to replace with the same crap product
Thread starter said it “We can see that the failures will continue to happen as more vehicles get older and more brake lines corrode.”
It’s wear and tear.
Service B Inspection.
etc. etc.
When new and in proper service order, the material choice as installed is the best per DOT and OEM.
—-
My 2005 w203 just popped a similar leak…as you describe, above/near subframe and the leak was from within a clip.
It cost me a little brake line, two unions.
If going forward, against Mercedes:
- Be prepared to show bi-annual brake fluid changes, with the proper fluid at the very least…
No OEM will fit stainless, the proper stainless at that. Between the cost and the different structural abilities of stainless v. proper steel…look it up.
That may all be true, but MB lost a customer, me, because of this issue and I'm sure many others will be looking at other OEMs for their next purchase as well . . . Brake lines failing under 10 years is completely unacceptable and I won't support a company that considers that 'normal'.
me too - rusted subframe, rear brake lines and rear springs
Took my car in for service - the subframe is rusting and the dealer ordered a replacement. I bought springs, which they will replace for free when replacing the subframe.
However - they have quoted me ~$3100 for replacing rear brake lines (subframe out) and ~$5220 (!!) for replacing with subframe in.
Took my car in for service - the subframe is rusting and the dealer ordered a replacement. I bought springs, which they will replace for free when replacing the subframe.
However - they have quoted me ~$3100 for replacing rear brake lines (subframe out) and ~$5220 (!!) for replacing with subframe in.
wow! that looks insane! id like to know exactly where that piece is located. shoot me a message.
2012 E350 coupe front to rear replaced heavily corroded. Failed thankfully 20 miles from home. £255 for a local garage to replace and they were shocked at the extent of the corrosion hidden because of the undertray so not picked up at the annual MOT check in January.
Two years ago had front and rear offside replaced due to corrosion also.
Has anyone positively identified the cause of this corrosion? Is it from road treatment chemicals, contamination of the brake fluid, galvanic disintegration, etc.?
I believe the cause is a combo of untreated line that is abraded in each retaining clip/bracket. Basically rust begins there from relative motion (the car driving, thermal cycling) plus dirt and debris is ground in, and the rust spreads outward from those brackets. All cars have brake line retaining brackets so I don't really understand what's worse about these. Too tight? Too loose? I highly doubt Mercedes uses "substandard steel." All cars use essentially mild steel as far as I know, though some have a coating which CAN help but isn't a guarantee. I am sure the buyer of my E63 in 2014 would have paid the $104k + an additional $250 for stainless steel lines. I don't know why this isn't a thing.
I will file a complaint. There is a chance I will just have the local shop fix this because I want to drive my damn car. Normally this would be a DIY project but on this car I am more willing to just pay to make it go away. Definitely frustrated.
Oh, the shop tech did say my subframe looked pretty good, to the point where he wondered if it had been done before.
01-22-2024, 09:46 PM
So why do MB brake lines fail after 10 years? No its not the effect of driving conditions. its crap steel and coating that is causing this. Prolly Electrolysis effect corroding from where the mounting clips attach to the body...dissimilar metals and all that...
