I saw this, this morning.
http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/31/Auto...ex.htm?cnn=yes

 

I just read it on http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ercedes_recall

 

I love the picture the AP is using. A Porsche in the middle of the MBs???

 

Yup, we are all on our way for a recall visit.

 

At least Mercedes are doing the honourable thing and recalling their cars. In the meantime, owners of water-cooled 911s are suffering oil leaks and engine blow ups down to a design flaw in the engine; Porsche are doing nothing, least of all fixing the problem even in current production. Recalling to replace all the affected engines would bankrupt the company. So, if your car needs a recall, take time to mainline on the free coffee and accept that MB really are trying to do something about their quality.

Can you imagine the grilling Robert Bosch are getting for their screw up, not just with this but SBC as well?

 

good to know MB is on top of things but about porsche i have a 2002 and havent had any problems at all in the past 3 years of having the car maybe its bec i have only 18k miles on her?

 

It's all to do with the Rear Main Seal (RMS) and the machining of the crankcase. Take a look and renntech.org and you'll get a feel. Not all cars are affected, but it makes an extended warranty mandatory. Say what you like about MB build quality but you don't get this stuff.

 

Lovin, you know a lot about these cars, I will be curious to know what you find out about the recall and also how it affects us in particular, considering both of us own 05 SL600's.

 

I did not see where it included the V12??

 

A new low water mark for Mercerdes. 1.3 million vehicles over three and a half years are recalled and somehow, people here see a silver lining. How pathetic but predictable.

They are replacing voltage regulators, battery control software and "braking systems" (whatever that means).

The good news is that in the same article it was reported that both Hyundai and Kia have announced recalls so at least MB is in good company with these carmakers who have exceeded MB in both quality and customer satisfaction.

 

Yea, I'd MUCH rather have a Kia than my SL

 

With the vast amount of technology in these cars, issues will come up, they stand behind them and fix them. It is an inconvenience, but our technology is far superior to the competition. So they lose money, who cares!

 

As is obvious from some peoples posts who will never post a photo, we do have some people in our forums that I could guarantee don't even own a Mercedes.

 

Fora, not Forums. If I could fix the header for all these websites with "forums", I would. Sigh. I knew I took Latin for some reason. And no although I don't currently own a Mercedes, I have ordered one. I have had several in the past. However, I do take you meaning, and I agree, many comments are less than helpful in the fora.

 

Why are you here? You are nothing but negative things to say.
Your ID says you own a S430 , why do you own a Benz?
If you indeed own a 997 then you know first hand what crappy quality is.. maybe you should get a Kia and Hyundai since they make the most reliable cars. MOst people spending $10-15k for a car are pretty easy to satisfy... give them power windows and locks and they are happy!

I dont give a rats *** what anyone says, MB makes one hell of car.. Half the problems are related to over engineering their cars.
When MB starts making cars that look like a KIA then thats when I STOP buying them!

 

The S class I have has been OK. To answer your question I own one because I like the ride comfort and style of this particular car. It's too early to tell about reliability.

FYI Porsche has been at (or near) the top in reliability, RMS issues and the Cayenne notwithstanding. Considering that these cars are driven by enthusiasts (presumably quite agressively) its surpirising how well they do, in fact, hold up.

Being a sycophant and a shill does not help MB improve their product. They need constructive criticism.

You're anger toward me is misplaced. It's MBs penny pinching compromises, progressive decline in reliability and owner dissatisfaction that should worry you instead.

I read in one of the press releases that MB states that its quality control has improved and that they are now only fixing "legacy" problems. This in response to the 1.3 million vehicle recall. How could these be "legacy" issues when 2005 vehicles are included in the recall? What a joke. This reminds of answers I sometimes get when I ask patients whether they smoke. They'll say "I quit". When I ask them "when did you quit" they answer "2 days ago."

Oh, OK, I'll believe it when I see it.

 

A dealer let me drive a Cayenne for about a week, it SUCKED! The drivers seat was built on what appeared to be a wooden box that was already separating, rattle city inside the vehicle and the crazy thing kept raising itself so high it looked ridiculous. A neighbor has a 911 Carerra, it always seems to be in the shop for something.

Sell your S-Class and buy a Cayenne or a six pack of hyundais.

 

The Cayenne has had terrible reliablity (of course we all know how good the M class is, right?). The 911 has sustained its excellent reliability record in spite of an overall decrease in Porsche reliability because of teething problems with its SUV.

MBs problems, however, are not limited to one model of vehicle. They appear to be systemic problems and bode poorly for this once pround company. In fact the public is slowly coming to this realization and MBs profits are suffering as a result. They are generating profits overall solely thanks to its Chrysler division.

 

I dont care how bad the quality is, I'm getting a 2006 SL55. Why? Because I'm a IT guy, love my gadgets, and can't find anything even remotely as technologically advanced.

More gadgets = more gadgets will break. Sucks, but I'd rather have the gadgets than not.

Also, I own a plane. If most of you owned a car that had as many problems as planes have, and maintenance issues all year long, you'd ride a bicycle.

MB IS THE BEST .. BAR NONE.

JD Power, etc., basically don't take things into account like the # of gadgets when they do their survey. So a bicycle is the most reliable. Lets all go out and buy that!

 

Gigots and gadgets do not have to break. Lexus makes cars with more superior technologically advanced gigots and gadgets, and Lexus cars seem not to break at all. But Lexus cars look like the south end of a northbound mule to me. So Mercedes telling us that their car breaks, because of the abundance of gigots and gadgets is a sorry *** excuse.

Below is an example of the problems after a week of bringing the car home. All the items below got fix/replaced. My SL500 is running fine now.

1. Moon size crater holes in the passenger side headrest. I am asking myself how did quality control miss that. One dealer said it was normal, and they pissed me off. Another dealer replaced headrest with no questions ask.
2. Both side dashes had white spots. I am asking myself how did quality control miss that.
1. Windshield had a stress crack from the inside below the dash.
2. All 4 wheels had defective paint. Took a year to get 4 new wheels.
3. Glove box would not open
4. Center console piston would not hold console cover up.


I do appreciate the fact that Mercedes is not trying to hide the recall, or it may be to big to hide.

 

My dealer told me today that the notice he got today from MB said the recall does not include SL600's or any V-12's for that matter.

Anyone get the same information?

 

Yes. I have read two articles on the subject and they both say that the recall affects Mercedes 6 and 8 cylinder models.

 

I don't know if this was directed at me or not but, in any case, the reason I don't post photos is because I can't imagine why someone would be interested in seeing a black on black S class and silver on black Porsche. If I had an unusual color combo or aftermarket wheels that would be different but I don't.

Anyway......