Hi All,

I've read previous threads on here on this topic before.... just checking if anyone has had the fix from the dealer where they install a gel pack in the headlight unit to absorb moisture? Was it a success?

I've had a long struggle with two local dealerships & mercedes-benz UK on this matter, they kept telling me it was normal. Honestly it looks terrible its the first thing everyone commented on when they saw the car. To make matters worse I showed it to a MOT (annual car test required in the UK) test center technician and he told me it would most certainly fail the test and would require fixing. As the car would be out of warrant when this test would be due I'd end up footing the bill, something I wasnt at all happy with.

Over a 4 month period I kept taking photos which clearly showed the moisture level was getting worse see the attached photos.

After emails to the Mercedes-Benz CEO of both the UK & Germany, they finally have agreed to install the gel pack in both head lights to fix the issue, its due in for this work in another few weeks.

Just checking on here if anyone else has had the same issue & possibly the same repair? what was your outcome? Did it resolve the problem?



Feb 19





Dec 18

 

Had Gel Packs, they do not work long term. One headlight got damaged due to moisture getting into Ballast, Light blew out while car was in for service for unrelated item. Then they tried to blame me.... you will see Mercedes will fail at supporting owners. Nothing but the best is just like a Hollywood Lot, Looks great on the outside, but at the end of the day, its just another car... Its a great car when the quality holds up and they stand behind the product, but when they will not cover dumb things like door handle lights that blow out within 2 years, that's sad.

 

It's very disappointing ,a low tech solution I have ever read at one of the forums suggesting to put a pin hole at the edges of the headlamps to overcome fog issues ,I don't know

 

Yes indeed it sound like a temporary solution for sure... surely they know these gel packs can only absorb moisture for a limited amount of time.

Fact its most certainly a MOT test failure here in the UK, customers will be left with cars they can drive or insurance on UK roads.... not something I'd expect from such a high end car.

I've checked similar cars online for sale in the UK and dealer photos are showing moisture too so its well known.

My car is an early 2017 model, there was face lift model released in late 2017 with slightly different head lights (see below) i.e. there is a three strip day light led/ turn signal I wonder if the issue was resolved in this release.... anyone one here with a late 2017 or later model seeing the same moisture problems?

Maybe this is a possible solution request the newer facelift headlight units.

 

Unlike headlights manufactured years ago that created heat inside the assembly and drove out moisture the newer bulbs such as LED’s run much cooler and thus the moisture problem.

 

Found this video..

 

Got mine replaced under warranty. Brand new pair. A few months later, same issue happened. Oh well...

 

Under B2B or CPO?

 

B2B. Although, in the interest of full disclosure, I do know one of the lead techs at said dealer and this got done without any pushback. It is sad however that I brought this topic up at other dealer and all were very nonchalant about it claiming more or less "it happens." I found this to be a ****ty response given that this is Mercedes and a S Class.

 

Just to come back with an update as I started this thread some time ago.

I had the desiccant silica gel packs installed in both headlights over a week ago, havent seen any moisture issues since, Ill report back if things change.

They didnt have to remove the front bumper in the end to do this work.... just letting anyone else know as I was kinda worried about that.

For anyone out there no getting anywhere with this issue, i was in a similar position until I emailed the Mercedes CEO in both the UK & Germany expressing my disappointment with this issue, within a week I got a call to say they had the parts for the repair. Prior to this my local dealer told me they wouldnt be doing a repair until droplets formed on the inside of the headlight.

Just a heads up for anyone else.

 

Any update on your situation? I'm going through the exact same thing as we speak. I'm picking my car up today from the dealership- they put in the gel packs and as mentioned above and they claim it's completely "normal." It's unfathomable to me that MB builds a 170k car with headlight assemblies that build up enough moisture to not only have a serious negative aesthetic effect, but that also are in jeopardy of not passing an inspection.

Nothing like driving around in my beautiful, luxurious, refined 170k "AMG" with 2 headlamps that look like they're out of the local junkyard. Its actually embarrassing. I tell those that ask "MB says that's totally normal and there's absolutely nothing wrong". LOL. What a joke.

 

Totally agree with you, I too am embarrassed by this as its the first thing people say to me. I got the gel packs install April 2019 only after sending emails to the Mercedes CEO in the UK & Germany, 6 months later moisture is appearing again. Prior to that I was told by two dealers it was normal but it would most certainly fail the national vehicle test here in Ireland.

How about we collect all the VIN numbers of cars/customers with this issue and take a single complaint to Germany showing it multiple customers.... I'd be willing to coordinate this if others are interested.

 

I'm in…. The gel packs are a temporary solution. My lamps get so bad that droplets form on the inside. Depending on the right conditions, the fogging can be quite severe. 8 months after they put the gel packs, on headlight ballast failed and they blamed me.. WTF. After contacting corporate, the replaced the entire headlight assembly. 6 months later out of B2B, the other light is severe (water droplets) even with the gel pack, they tell me I need to replace the assembly, I told them it was reported under B2B, but no luck with corporate, waste of time on the phone.

As of today, DIC states Low Beam Failures in both lights, and the Left bulb will flicker like a Disco. Have an appointment next week. Corporate will only do a 1-time gift. Use it wisely!!!! P.S. I also have MB Extended Warrantee, useless... Less than 48K on the car, 2014

Oh and Night Vision will not work at night due to the Headlamp failures.... Big Safety issue....

 

thanks for this. I paid $1000 to replace my headlamp. Wish I had seen this.

 

Right back to the problem I had six months ago again... gel packs are no solution. Only difference this time is its only one headlight unit and not both showing this problem.

Please post your head light images here and private message me with your details (VIN, Name, Address & Email Address etc), once we have enough members highlighting this problem ill contact Sindelfingen in Germany.

 

So looks like the moisture finally killed my right dipped beam.... I've had it with this car!!!

 

It's normal for these car to build some level of moisture, but only a little, however in your case based on the photo attached in your earlier post, the moisture level seems to be 10x more than the "normal" level of these lights. Despite that the moisture build up is normal for these lights but the level your light had seems to be due to a problem with the light assembly itself as it's way more than all other cars. This is an indication of a bad seal or manufacturing issue!!!! I bit you if they replace them for you you won't see this much of moisture even under extreme humid weather conditions.

 

UPDATE.
Car went in for service, Multiple errors on the DIC for headlamps, flickering headlight on left, error shows up for right, night vision only works during day. Also rear noise between 56 and 65 MPH ( This was reported during Warrantee period) test drive was able to duplicate at that time but no solution, its normal.

So, everyone, please keep ALL documentation / Photos etc. Both headlamps had water, not just a bit of vapor at the top, enough that the water would drip down on the inside. Dealer installed gel packs in both. Problem continued, then while car was in for service for another item, I received a call the right headlamp was out. They took the assembly apart and showed me photos of the ballast covered in corrosion and black crud. They said this is not under warrantee, I said the assemble is defective and reported this months back, they stated the gel pack leaked. After multiple conversation with them that this was reported several times with photos of severe moisture, they replaced the entire headlamp assembly. Fast forward 1 year, the above errors were reported with the rear noise. I received a call that both headlamps failed and electronics damaged due to moisture corrosion. Repair cost for both headlamps and electronics over $10,000- WTF. I submitted documentation on the rear axle noise from the forum as this is a known problem, I figured I have the MB Extended warrantee, rear is covered..... Well was I wrong on that also..... The seal and bearing are NOT covered. Cost to fix the rear noise $2,600-. Manager made me a deal, I pay for Brake pads and rear end work, and he will cover the Headlamps. I had no choice but to pay for the rear, the pads were fine and they were willing to remove them off the estimate. P.S. the cost to replace the tiny LED bulb in the Front Passenger External Handle over $400-. Not....

For those members wanting to know if they should take out the MB EXTENDED WARANTEE, I say NO. Read the fine print!!!!!! LITERALLY, PRINT IT OUT AND R E A D IT, IT BASICALLY COVERS THE POWERTRAIN.... It basically ONLY COVERS PARTS STATED and NOTHING ELSE. WHAT A Gimmick. Steering Linkage Failure NOT COVERED $680- Rear Axle Noise NOT COVERED $2,600-
Keep your $$$ and do NOT take out the MB Extended Warrantee…. Just my experience.

So, according to the Dealer, the New Headlamps for the W222 Late 2013 on are a redesigned assemble and do not require Gel Pac's. Time will tell, its winter now, will report back in summer...

EVERYONE WITH GEL PAC REPAIR, HAVE THEM CHECKED!!!! They do and will fail. MB Warrantee on any repairs out of warrantee are only 12 months. The Gel Packs can only absorb so much moisture, then they just disintegrate, damaging everything in the headlamp assembly after it leaks into the electronics. They should publish a TSB or notify ALL Owners that had repair done. It was a patch, not a fix... And can cost you dearly...

 

Oh my god "Nice Ride" your last post is making me feel sick here, i honestly cant believed how badly you were treated.

I've posted on Mercedes Benz Sindelfingen facebook page today, you can take read of their replies on the headlight moisture issue .... quite obvious they arent will to anything about this... for me at least.



Id suggest everyone starts uploading their experiences of this issue with photos, maybe only then will they take this serious.

 

I will post all photos I took as well as estimate to repair. I will blank out Dealer as truly its a MB issue. Dealers have rules to follow dictated by MB.

Again, anyone that had Gel Pac Installed, have it inspected, it can cause more damage than the temporary repair.

 

Just to note they have removed comments I made earlier today which referenced this site etc.

 

Quick Update:

So had the car inspected at the MB dealership, and yes as expected the moisture has damaged the electronics in the control unit (please see the photo below).

As the car was still under warranty they agreed to replace the headlight and both control units which they did so within 2 hours, I was impressed by this so fair play to dealership. As said before this is Mercedes design issue and not a dealership issue.

Drove the car for 2hrs immediately after the new headlight was installed and once I got home moisture has started appearing in the new headlight already, so I suspect this is going to reoccur again.

I've since started looking for a solution myself I came upon this website: https://www.micro-dehumidifier.com/.

Ive contacted them and if its suitable think ill be giving this a try. Ill post back later on the result.

 

How does the moisture enter the headlight? Is it vented?

 

This is a helpful comment. Surely Mercedes knows this. Maybe the solution is a heating element.
Edit: Just watched the video above. They mention a membrane. Is a possible fix a membrane that would filter out water moisture but allow air to pass through it?

 

Nice Ride and SClass350d - Thank you for posting your experiences with this giving potential W222 buyers a heads up on potential issues. I'm one who tends to be in the buy after the warranty is expired and self insure but these kinds of problems can certainly undermine that strategy. There really is not a post warranty cost effective solution to a problem of this nature, short of being able to repair the circuit board which looks beyond repair.

BTW NiceRide where do you live? Assuming SClass350d is in UK where it would be very damp. Just wondering if it is particularly wet where you live.