Your S-Class is still Comand-based. The messaging ramped up significantly for MBUX-based cars.

Here is an email I got today literally minutes after getting out of and parking the car. Guess it wasn't satisfied with just a 10 minute drive

 

Yeah, I understand this
So, if I go shopping and drive the car for only 10 minutes then I have to find a way (in a parking lot !) to drive the car ( or keep the car car running ) for 30 to 60 minutes or connect a battery charger, true ?

 

Not really. Apart for streamliner’s problem with his car, a lot of these messages are just that. Messages…

I never once had an issue ignoring these messages. The car always performs without fail but are due to some stringent software logic where the owner gets a notification each time the voltage drops below a certain limit.
They are obviously using a silly threshold but the issue is that most newer cars have a high dependency of battery power and the odd trickle charger is now a permanent fixture in most garages and showrooms alike.

More performance cars now have a magnetic charging ports for trickle chargers

 

Hmmm, seems like I mentioned using a trickle charger the other day but was told it was a silly and unreasonable idea. The reason so many batteries are dying in late model cars is because there are electrical drains that are constantly active on modern vehicles. I drove Honda Goldwing motorcycles for years and never had to worry about batteries but now I own a modern (2022) Indian motorcycle and it keeps needing a trickle charge if I don't ride it for a week. I'm now aware that there are constant battery-draining things that are active even when the vehicle is completely shut down. Constant GPS tracking activity, modules that are seeking remote starting, key-locating signals, alarm sensors, onboard clocks, etc. On rare occasions I've sat in my various cars to just sit there and enjoy looking at the beauty of the interior when all of a sudden 10 minutes after just sitting there and not touching any buttons I'll here some random servo-motor doing something in the background that I have no idea as to what is going on.

 

A trickle charger is going to seem trivial once we see fully electrical cars requiring full charging to go 400 miles. Regardless of brand, I simply refuse to buy an EV vehicle regardless of brand. I don't see how this silly concept will ever work out for the masses.

 

My local Mercedes dealer just called me and ask to drop my car off next Wednesday. She asked me I wanted a rental. Seems like Mercedes is really tightening their belt and putting more cost to the consumer. I asked, how come I need to pay for the rental, I barely had the car for a month and drove it 2 weeks out of that month. All she can say she agree but can't guarantee if Mercedes will give me a loaner. If this is how it's going to be, I might just get me a reliable Toyota.

 

It was TWO WEEKS ago today that my S580 stranded me. I finally asked my SA what was going on and he told me that they had opened an “Engineering Case” with MB and have had no response as of yet. So, my car sits there. Oh well, when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade, right? Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock…………

 

Let them take there time so they have to buy it back

 

Stream, remind me to never play Poker with you.
Tick tock…

 

Another update: Yesterday, through an email from my SA, MB asked me to “describe in detail, in my own words,” the event that stranded me on April 27th. They asked for the time of day it happened, etc. I don’t know if this was MBUSA or MB Germany asking, but I suspect it was the latter. Crazy that they are just asking this NOW, after more than two weeks in the shop. So, I related the “My S580 Stranded Me Massacree,” in four part harmony with feelin’! Too bad I didn’t have twenty-seven 8x10, color glossy photographs, with circles & arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one, explaining what each one was, to be used as evidence against THEM!

Today is day 17 that the car has been in the FJMC shop. I added it up the other day and my S580 has now been in the shop for 36 days for non-scheduled maintenance issues. I’m now trying to decide what my next vehicle will be. I’m actually starting to wonder IF I will ever see my S580 again! To be continued………

 

Truly amazing Stream! We don't have a Lemon law in the great white north.

What are next steps for you in terms of getting out of your demonic obsessed W223?

 

No Lemon Law? Where are you?

In California, the magic threshold is when a vehicle has been out of service for 30 days or more. Now, I don’t know what the exact parameters are, as to whether the shop visits had to be for the exact same issue, but I don’t believe that’s the case. As I understand it, once the 30 day mark is reached, manufacturers know they are vulnerable and in most cases will simply repurchase the vehicle. If they don’t, there are myriad law firms here that do almost nothing but Lemon Law cases and all fees are paid by the manufacturer. If I don’t hear something positive in another week or so, I’ll be speaking with one of these firms.

 

Sounds like a real nightmare. This is one reason I decided to just hold onto my 2018 S560, too afraid to make a change. Maybe just alert them first that you'd like to lemon law the car and if they try to give you any hassle over doing it then retain a lawyer.

 

Yes, exactly.

Just to reiterate, I liked my 2015 S550 and 2018 S560 so much, I ordered a new 2020 S560, pretty much at the last minute, as the lease on the 2018 would have ended when the 2021’s were out and I did not want a first year W223. The ride quality of my W222’s, all with 18” wheels and MBC was off the charts fantastic. Most comfortable riding cars I have ever ridden in. So, wouldn’t you know it—“best laid plans” and all that—the 2020 was cursed with a harsh 3-2 downshifting transmission. MB said they could not fix it, which I still don’t believe, and they offered to buy the car back. I got them to stretch out the time allotted for the buy-back and ordered a 2022 S580 from Fletcher Jones, only to have the car come in missing some much wanted options, AND Fletcher wanting $10,000.00 over MSRP. I passed on the car and started scrambling.

Lo and behold, an EXACT duplicate of the car I had ordered, but with all the options intact, showed up at MB El Cajon, down near San Diego. I leased it and it was delivered to my home on a flatbed. I couldn’t wait to drive the car, with the “All New” EABC suspension option. Imagine my disappointment when upon driving it for the first time, it rode like a truck—in comparison to my previous W222’s. I switched to my favorite, non-run flat Bridgestone QuietTrack tires and the ride actually got worse. I fooled with the tire pressure, going from very low to very high & everything in between, but still not good. I then went to a set of Continental non-RFT and it got somewhat better than with the original Hankook RFT, but it was still not in the same league as the W222’s. Then the other problems started.

TWICE, within a month or two of each other, while driving down wide open, multiple lane boulevards, with virtually no other cars anywhere near me, clear skies, no wind to speak of, my eyes on the road, the Automatic Emergency Braking system initiated a full blown panic stop. The seat belt cinched up, warning sounds came on, and the car stopped in the middle of the road. Scared the hell out of me. Fletcher said the systems were “performing as designed.”

Then there were the door handles behaving as with a mind of their own, the MBUX just randomly losing all my favorites, the EABC losing its ability to virtually eliminate speed bumps, the suspension making “squishing” noises, etc., etc.

If only MB would have fixed the transmission in my 2020, I do believe I would be a satisfied S560 driver today. Oh well.

 

I don’t know if you brought it up but as soon as you mention the word lemon or buyback, dealers tend to clam up. I’m always told to say nothing, mention nothing and just do it once you reach the threshold without any provocation or forewarning. Be nice and kindly ask they fix the car and if it doesn’t work then just lemon it.

 

Sage advice. That said, I really don’t think the dealers care. It is MBUSA that buys the car back, it really has nothing to do with the dealer. Actually, I get the idea that the dealers love buy-backs, as it gives them an opportunity to sell you another vehicle.

 

You know; once they buy it back, you're going to actually have to figure out what comes next...

 

And I’ve been sweating it every day for the past week!

Current favorites for new vehicles are: MB S500 & GLE450. Genesis G90 & GV80. BMW X5. New Porsche Cayenne. The biggest problem with the German makes is that I’d want to order the vehicle the way I want it, so 10 to 12 weeks. With Genesis, pick your colors and drive away. I would definitely consider a CPO 2019 or 2020 S560, but finding one equipped the way I want it is just about impossible. Decisions, decisions!

 

I would get the S500. What are the odds you get another clunker? Just look at my situation, lol. I think this is plenty fast enough snd you’ll get good gas mileage and save money. I wouldn’t touch the GLE if they paid me.

Also, I know this is shallow and vain, but I don’t think you’ll be happy with a Genesis after driving MBs for so long.

 

It’s a shame the whole story. When it rains it pours. How about a Bentley. They have come a long way. A V12 mulliner or continental GT would be a nice addition to your garage. I’ve thought about a used Bentley convertible myself. I use a wheelchair and the transfer height is right. I had a 2019 E450 cabriolet which I really like but after a year my shoulders were aching from the low transfer out of the car.

 

Cayenne with 19” wheels and air suspension is for you @Streamliner

Try to find one to test drive, you would be amazed with the plushness. Cayenne with 21” wheels and air suspension is excellent as well. Give it a try.

This 2024 Cayenne has 20" wheels and is well optioned with air suspension, leather interior, premium plus package and other goodies. It looks like an allocation at a Sacramento dealer. I'm sure you could negotiate with the dealer for a set of 19" wheels to replace the 20s.



https://finder.porsche.com/us/en-US/...&order=closest

 

I’ve been playing around with the 2024 Cayenne “Build” site. The car I spec is around $130K and would definitely not have a glass roof. Anyway, driving one before I order would be an absolute necessity this time around.

 

As I read this I began to wonder what do they do with the flawed vehicles they buy back. Do they strip it down for parts? Do they send it to some nearest shop to have it repaired and certified to sell it again?

 

They get fixed and resold. Everything is fixable. Lemon designation enters the picture as a statutory consumer protection. Maybe the shop needs 6 or 7 attempts until they successfully fix the problem. This works for them, from a resale point of view, but the consumer has the right to exercise their protections to dispose of the vehicle under the lemon law in their state.

Check cargurus listing for "vehicle history" and you will see vehicles for sale with a lemon-branded title.

 

Since SUVs are in the mix have you considered the new Rover? My business partner just got an autobiography and it is stunning. Rides just as nice as my S and may be a tad quieter.