I will grant you the date details were off, but the facts are the same. The balance shaft in these model years are manufactured with defective metals by MB own admission in suit. They can and do fail prematurely. Should watch out for this. Anyone purchasing a vehicle with the M272/M273 should be aware of this issue is what I am saying. The repair is on you at this point in time and can be 4-6k. A section of the suit reads as follows:The Mercedes class action settlement is for “all current and former owners and lessees of Mercedes-Benz branded automobiles equipped with M272 or M273 engines bearing serial numbers up to 2729..30 468993 or 2739 ..30088611, found in the Subject 2005 – 2007 Model Year Vehicles respectively (the ‘Subject Vehicles’), who purchased or leased their Subject Vehicles within the United States.”

The first defective engine class action lawsuit was filed against Mercedes in 2010 in a New Jersey federal court over alleged problems with the M272 or M273 engines.

“The engines are equipped with defective gears in their balance shafts (in the event of the M272 engines) or with defective idle gears (in the case of the M273 engines),” the Mercedes class action lawsuit alleged.

“These defective gears wear out prematurely, excessively, and without warning, causing the vehicle to malfunction, the ‘check engine light’ to remain illuminated, and the vehicle to misfire and/or stop driving,” the complaint added.

 

3 specific model years is a far cry from every model year, which in this case is 8 years. If you have a bone to pick with Mercedes over this engine, fine, but don't spread misinformation.

 

The vehicle is beautiful exactly the same color as the 2006 that we had! Enjoy - when we first got our 2008 we had an issue with the rear door latching - sometimes it would go down and just when you thought it was going to close it would go back up again - sometimes it took 3 tries for it to lock - that has stopped now and it latches every time. What is the inside configuration? We have 3 rows seating 7 - Congratulations!

 

latch is common you can try to adjust it so it closed tighter. In the end you may just need a new latch mechanism. there are cheaper aftermarket. I changed mine. palid like $60 for it , ebay may 2021. works fine.

 

Thanks! I love this color. I never thought I would own a blue car but glad I got it. I'm going to hold off on doing anything to the hatch and hope it might work itself out. I also have the 3 rows of seats but I actually just bought a rear center console to turn it into 6 seats. I like that console since it has cup holders and storage. I also have the video screens on the headrests which I just figured out how to use. Luckily the remote control came with the car. The only thing I'm not that happy about is the beige interior. This color gets dirty really fast. I had the gray interior in my old w203 and thought that was bad. But I'm not complaining, lol.

OK sounds good, Thanks. I'm actually just going to hold off on it for a little bit and see if it fixes itself. If it doesn't, Ill get it checked in a few months..

 

well, these lower cost latches come from china. And if your latch goes and wont even close anymore then you will have to go for a few weeks with rope holding the hatch closed from the inside like I had to do. Order the latch before its too late.

 

Hey Guys,
I'm going to be installing a new head unit soon and was wondering if there was any way of making the dual headrest monitors in the 2nd row work with the new radio. Its a Kenwood ddx9907xr.

Here is how the R350 looks now. First mod was switching out the middle row center seat into a center console. Its now lowered on Ceika coilovers and WORK Wheels LS406 with Pirelli Pzero's.

 

not to hijack the thread, but where is a common source for the water that accumulates in the bottom of the spare tire well? Our daughter has had her R350 for a few months now, and we just learned that they were standing water in the bottom of that spare tire area. Her car isn't equipped with keyless go, and I don't see any other electronic components in that area other than the subwoofer, but it was bone dry. Whether this water intrusion has anything to do with the battery failure and the dead battery that she got a day after replacing her battery, that's the mystery.

 

Typical is the taillight seals. Another possibility is the panoramic sunroof if you have it. I believe mine was leaking through one of the tailgate seals but I was never actually able to chase it down. I just moved all of the electronics out of the area, cleared the drain hole, and left it alone.