wizzaofoz

My W221, 2011 build 3 litre V6 diesel (commonly called a 350), had an engine bay fire which dealer says was caused by a Material Malfunction of the injector bleed back line...


In English that means the line came loose whilst I was in cruise at 110Kms on freeway, and sprayed diesel everywhere.....fire ensued long story which wont bore you with...We jumped and ran and are OK..


Has any other MB owner with a W221 or W222 which has same diesel engine, had this problem or seen any newly issued service campaign bulletins to rectify.

Nuru

Hmm, did you recently have any service work that may have involved the injectors - cleaning? Seems like a peculiar thing to happen?

wizzaofoz

Hi Nuru


Yes car had an "A" service on 15th...without any tinkering with fuel system as all was ok...However dealer forgot to top up the AD BLUE..which required me to take car back on 20th...They said all fixed but when I started engine it ran terribly rough...handed it back again without leaving dealership...They kept it all day and returned it later saying they had fixed it and had flushed the system...Since informed the cause of the engine running rough was contaminated AD BLUE..so they cleaned out tank and drained system...no mention of cleaning injectors


Dealers insurer denies all liability and says its a problem for MB as the manufacturer as the injector low pressure leak off venturi line is a "push fit"


Beats me as to how...


1/. The line could come loose...as would appear has not happened on any other S 350 Diesel anywhere to my knowledge


2/. Why Contaminated AD BLUE can make engine run rough unless put in the wrong tank.


Thoughts please....Wizz

Mike5215

Not sure how it works elsewhere but in the US if the dealer balks at liability (and they virtually all do) the claim can be handled by your own comprehensive (fire, theft, glass etc) insurance coverage and your insurance company can deal with getting the dealership to pay them back. Whatever portion of the damages they recover they'll reimburse your deductible to you in that proportion.

Here, most insurers belong to an association that handles internal disputes via a binding arbitration system with a three judge panel that reviews evidence and makes rulings. The question here is not the type of fitting Mercedes designed for the line, but rather whether the tech properly seated the fitting when it was removed and reconnected.

Was the car a total loss?

Nuru

I would suspect that during the system flush that the injectors were touched and one or more was left loose. I mean a diesel catching fire because of fuel leak involving the injectors?

Mike is correct thought, but I would press MB on this one and I would have my insurance do a thorough investigation of the cause.

Mike5215

If they paid out anything substantial, subrogation against the negligent party (in this case the dealership) would be automatic. In the US, dealers carry a specialized form of coverage called "garage keeper's liability". The deductible is usually pretty steep ($5k per event is normal) so the dealer is on the hook for the first $5k. As a result they'll fight pretty hard to deny liability.

Obviously the dealers case would be MUCH better if they hadn't just got done working on the very thing that caused the fire. If I was on the garage keeper's liability side I'd be finding a way to settle that thing

Best just to let your own carrier pay you and then they can go fight it out with them.

wizzaofoz

Hi Mike5215 and Nuru


Thought about insurance claim, but it was NOT a total loss, plus circumstances were a little more complicated than what it might seem, so did not pursue that angle, and went after the dealers and also MB


Let me explain


Car was a December 2011 delivery S350 diesel...and was our pride and joy...with 40,000 kms on clock


The first incident in this sad saga occurred on a Saturday afternoon, 10 days after the AD Blue situation and 600 kms from home on an interstate freeway...We just ran out of power and sat for 4 hours besides the freeway waiting for MB Assist...not knowing what had occurred....


The tow truck driver found the fuel leak as diesel was everywhere under the bonnet and on the roadside verge. we were towed to a nearby town and spent the weekend there in a local motel.


On the Monday we were then towed to a nearby city some 90kms away where there was a MB Dealer, who found the loose fuel line and rectified it plus cleaned around the engine bay...we then went on our way.


The second incident occurred 3 hours later when all hell broke loose...when we (two 71 year olds) jumped and ran for our lives.


Another two truck and yet another nearby MB dealer...who confirmed what we already knew and that a fire had occurred in the engine bay, when the hot air purge that burns off soot within the system had interacted with the residual diesel that was on and or about the exhaust pipe caught fire and burnt the adjacent wiring loom etc...


We were stuck 900 kms from home, and deeply traumatised to say the least.


Since that date, lots of ducking and weaving.


Hence my call on this forum for some help.


My question guys is why did my car engine run rough after contaminated Ad Blue put in, instantly within the dealers premises..when had not been driven more than 20 metres (say 20 yards)..


ie Does Contaminated Ad Blue cause an engine to vibrate roughly


If contaminated AD Blue is put in its correct tank, what is the normal flushing procedure..


Appreciate your advice


Wizz

BenzV12

I can't help you sorry but I have also seen at other MB Forum a W222 caught fire in Germany and firemen put off the fire .I don't remember whether that was a diesel powered car though
Your are 2nd I have heard of this with catastrophic failure .I can not see how an Ad Blue gets contaminated

Nuru

So the AdBlue was contaminated and the car ran rough. Seems that there is a sensor there that can tell if the emissions are not what they should be. I kinda though the car would stop if the AdBlue is detected to be bad, but I guess not.

There is probably a MB procedure for draining the AdBlue tank. I would imagine there is something to facilitate this on the bottom of the car.

Jason B

Ouch, that is scary! I had a S350, a 95 (the last time Mercedes made a S diesel in the USA) that turned into a "runaway diesel". If you don't know what that is, it's when a diesel engine goes full throttle and the engine blows. That's what happened to me and one devilish thing that diesels can do.

Imagine driving on the highway and the car just goes full throttle and you can't stop it. After you freak out and hit the brakes, and the car is still going like mad. Slamming on the brakes and trying to slow it down. Eventually get it stopped and engine still going crazy. Even turned the key off, and you still can't stop it when it's a "runaway". Finally, the engine blew and it went up in smoke.

Car had to be scraped. It happened after the dealer replaced two rods in the engine. They tried to say it had nothing to do with their repair. I fought and fought, had the oil and gas analyzed but then the samples were lost. How convenient. The dealer took the car to the auction with no engine. I loved that car. White with black interior which had to be special ordered to get that combo back then, as it didn't exist. The said they'd give me a brand new car for invoice, which was when the W220 came out. I didn't like the car, and had to wait until the w221 when back to it's heavy feeling roots. I just have a bad taste in my mouth with Mercedes dealers and diesels now. Your best bet is to have your insurance company raise hell with them, or get an attorney.

wizzaofoz

Hi all


Thanks for the advice...


yes, lawyers on the job..


That S222 that caught fire in Germany in April 2014 was reported as being an S350 diesel...although I note there has been nothing published since as too cause.. it was just 2 weeks old...same engine as my old one.


On another note, once the dust had settled, I traded my fire damaged W221 in on a new W222 350L in diamond white, with the AMG body package...looks great....


I still believe in the S Class...and now await lawyers updates...my day in court will come...


The sad thing is that I, a committed MB owner..my new one is our 5th.
You would think that some one in MB would care....Wizz

Nuru

Hopefully you have informed them of that in your communications and that you have a lot of friends on this forum and others discussing this catastrophe!