jangy

Not the head tech, the service manager. If he wants to bring his head tech along, fine. Make it clear that you want to investigate the bolt. The pics you posted earlier did look sheared and NOT ripped out.

CWW

Agreed.

From those pics, it appears the bolt was sheared off or twisted, not pulled out. There isn't enough metal damage and puckering around the hole for it to have been ripped out of its threads by suspension movement.

Skeeter

Damn you guys are cool. Thanks, I'll get on it Monday. Though I don't take to the notion of being in close proximity to the service manager right now

Here are ALL the pics I took with my Iphone and flashlight. Not the best, but I didn't think I'd need ANY evidence, so it is fortunate that I took a single shot...

Thanks again,

Skeeter

Moviela

Skeeter, I know your pain. Once the fertilizer is up over the rims, you need an expert to protect your position. In the little town of Berkeley there is a state supported school with a school of engineering that has no peer in the materials department. I would contact the department chair and ask for the name of an expert to examine and opine the reason for the failure. She might even do it herself.

My eye thinks that neither the bolt or the female threads failed. There might have been a chemical or mechanical thread locker, a delibrate interference fit of the threads to prevent rotation or just plain ole rust or corrosion that caused the bolt to sieze to the captive nut. In this configuration it is not likely that any suspension movement would cause pull-out. I imagine the axial stregnth of the bolt to be in the neighborhood of 20 tons. The extra torque supplied by the smaller pulley turning the super charger faster would be akin to pouring a glass of water into San Francisco Bay and measuring the decrease in salinity in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong. It looks like the bolt was rotated, and this caused failure of the car body sheet metal next to the nut. The marks on the edge of the metal point to rotational force causing the metal to fail.

I would use the Superior Court to enforce your rights. Small claims Court is for amatuers like myself. I would also ask Jerry Brown's office to look into warranty fraud. Last year Daimler tried to get the case law changed to say if the car would move from point A to B, that the warranty was fullfilled. They lost, and had to buy back a car for a smelly air conditioner. The Court might encourage them to buy back yours too.

Hopefully the zone will figure out that repairing the car is in their best interest, and you will be back on the road soon.

Please don't let this make you miss a minute of sleep. There are more important things in life, like the Academy Awards this Sunday. (just kidding)

Skeeter

Just a couple more...

Skeeter

Skeeter

Moviela,



Kind advice. Just painful to contemplate the amount of hassle this will require. Like where to store the car, how to even get it back in a lift so that an expert can examine it, ect. But you are right, time to worry about that is over, I'm here and might as well try to enjoy the ride and document it for my fellow MBers.

Thanks so much for the advice and focus on my attitude, which has been bad. I need to think of this with a bit more levity. Until the time for anger arrives, at which point...

Skeeter

OzE55

You need some high quality closeup photos with a 'scale' in each frame.
Go back with a mate with a quality dSLR/macro lens/ring-flash etc.

You'll get good photos and show your serious without making any 'threats'.
Its a game of chess and one-ups-manship. Making the best bluff could win the game and save the agony.

Perhaps take the photos when the regional reps there. That'll turn up the heat.

Skeeter

I know where this is going to go...

When the car came back not showing the '8' notation in thier system, I said I'd be in the following day. So they probably took it off the list, reassembled everything ($1k labor to take it off, strange) and put the tires on. Of course the next day, when I went in to take the car to a NORMAL dealer, the 8 was there and I decided to leave the car there pending resolution.

So getting it in a position that would allow the regional rep is going to cost me $1k. Bet on the dealer charging me that to do the teardown to get it to the point that the broken bolt is visible. I guess I get the $1k back if I prevail, so what the hell.

I'll bring a professinoal DLSR with a good flash, etc. AND my new HD video camera and a good, wide dispersion flashlight.

Thanks!

Skeeter

CWW

If that's the case then GET THE CAR OUT OF THERE. Even if it costs you a pile, have it towed to one of the mod-friendly dealers that people here recommend, and then have them go to bat for you.

Personally, though, like I already said, I would hire a lawyer like yesterday and wash my hands of the situation.

jrcart

While you're at it you should send an e-mail to the Dealerships owner and GM with a link to this thread attached to it so he/she can see what everyone thinks about his/her dealership and business ethics. This could end up costing them more money in the long run in lost future business than if they would have just fixed the problem or tried to warranty it up front. There is a BMW dealership 3 miles from my home, but they have such a bad reputation I drive to a BMW dealership that is 20+ miles away, as do most of the people I know that own or buy BMW's.

C32madness

I feel that you should step back and re-evalute the situation. Anyone that threatens lawsuits has not been in one and know how expensive they can be. The bottom line is your want you car fixed as cheap as possible. This means total money spent to fight the dealer etc.

Being a former bodyman I feel like I know whats happening even without seeing the pictures. The area that is stripped/broken is part of a factory panel that is welded into place like many parts of the unibody. Like accident repairs MB's approach is to replace the panel. Not a cheap or easy task. The better approach is to contact a good welder fabricator to reconstruct the area. I work with a local porsche tuner (SCARGO) who has an inhouse fabricator who could build anything from scratch. I have also worked with a welder/fabricator in the past who did fabrication work on my 69 bronco that was mind boggling.

Bottom line is you need to choose how you want to spend your money. The cheapest and easiest path is the one I describe. While it may not be fair and just the out of pocket and repair times will be quickest. Have it looked at by a fabricator before choosing the path. I bet the total repair will be less than $2,000.00 from the fabricator.

CWW

I've been involved in a few lawsuits, and sometimes it's the best option. FL is like the wild-wild west when it comes to customer service and financial responsibility, and things like the OP's situation happen pretty much every time you turn around. In any event, at a certain point going to court becomes the only option. That's where the OP is at in this situation. They told him to F* off already, so it's time to go to the next level.

In this case, the OP will be suing under breach of contract and should be entitled to recover fees and costs in addition to the cost of getting his car fixed, so the "expense" you are referring to should be borne by MB and not the OP.

As to having a body shop do a redneck fix by using a bigger bolt and welding the torn metal back together, I really hope you're kidding. This is a benz, not a Yugo, and it should have the parts replaced properly.

jangy

Yes Skeeter, it is a game. I know you hate the service manager right now, but he hates you more. Having to deal with you on something that may be under his authority is scary for him. Demand that he take that ride with you, along with the gent that rode with you the first time.

I agree with lots of pics. BE extremely friendly and do not ask for help. They know what you want at this stage. Go in with a smile and just say you need some pics.

C32madness

I was refering to having a high end fabrication shop like my local porsche tuner not some redneck body shop. I watched these guys fab stuff on 200k porsches. I would not let a bodyshop do the work.

CWW

Sorry, misunderstanding on my part. I agree there are fabricators out there who do good work, I just saw "'69 Bronco" and "bodyshop" in the same post and my mind was running to the tune of Jeff Foxworthy under skeeter's E55 holding a beer and a blowtorch saying "well it dun' werked on the bronco, it'll work on this 'un".

I have personally never been particularly happy getting anything done at a bodyshop that I could have had done somewhere else, and even on paint and sheetmetal (which is what they're supposed to be good at), I usually have multiple return visits to correct things. Again, it could just be my location....since like I already alluded to above, customer service and integrity are dead and buried down here.

Personally, I'm thinking he should have the car transported to one of the dealers who is known to be mod-friendly and do everything through them. Then they will be responsible, in addition to whoever's private business they outsource the job to, for the quality of the finished product. And, they might even go to bat for him with MBUSA if he makes friends with them and explains his situation.

OzE55

I wouldn't take it anywhere till there is no other option - ie the judge tells you to get stuffed.
Once you take it away it's not their problem. They wont care. There's no pressure for them to conclude the matter.

The other dealer wont touch it, even if mod friendly. MBUSA has already said they wont reimburse the work so the next dealer will be stuck with a big repair bill - unlikely they will take the hit.
You need to show them that you wont go away and you're serious. Take the photographs again and again. Be an annoyance.
When you go to the dealership re-explain the problem to the first person who sees you - "they wont fix my car which is under warranty, can I speak to the service manager please". Talk to the service manager, calmly, infront of other customers at the busiest times. Do it in person, not by phone. Keep saying "this car in under warranty and I want it fixed to my satisfaction". You dont have to explain the mods etc etc. Lose the detail in the general conversations. Have all the information for meetings - only meet with dealership people if someone else is present - take a mate who looks like a lawyer ("want to bring a friend who understands these issues" Dont tell them he's a lawyer if hes not).
I would show them the big glossy pictures (print 8x10s at home, splash them onto the customer service counter infront of others). Dont allow them to copy your information etc - make them spend time and money doing the research. You're trying to test their will and endurance - you want it to be easier for them to fix-it than continue on. Keep coming back to what you want - "fix my car which is under warranty"
If it gets nasty put a sign inside the windscreen and park it, legally, out the front of the dealership - "They wont fix my car under warranty" in big bold signage. Its not liable, its the truth. The 'they' remains open to conjecture. That'll spice it up!
Take you're best poker face, always. This is guerilla (cheap) style negotiating before the lawyers (expensive) get involved. Do you have the 'guts'/drive/endurance to do this? If you dont either call the lawyer, now, or tow it and fix it and move on.

CWW

Thing is: He needs to sue dealer #1 and MBUSA, regardless of what he ultimately does with the car. That takes months at a minimum, and often a year or more.

In the meantime, I am assuming he wants his car back, right? So, to do that, I am suggesting he take it somewhere else in pieces. Why pay these jerks for diagnosing what they obviously broke themselves, and for putting it back together?

At this point, he should deny payment on the diagnostics already done and refuse to pay them another cent for further repairs, and take it somewhere else to be fixed. He is going to have an entirely new part welded in, so he can save the old part for evidence, along with the photos he will take when he goes to the dealer on Monday. There is no reason to leave the car as-is, may as well get it up and running and then let the attorney recover the money.

Additionally, if Dealer #2 happens to talk to MBUSA for him and say "hey, there's no way that extra 20hp did this...we see these kind of mods all the time with no problem" it's certainly not going to hurt his case, and quite possibly might help.

Skeeter

The 'non-update' update: I'm waiting on a couple of leads which have developed over the board here before I launch my calls and complaints. 1-2 days before the generous offers of help from fellow members here pan out or don't, but until then I'll plan my case and hope for the best.

Thanks again to all who offered help and advice. Hopefully I'll have some good news by week's end!

Skeeter

neveo

not sure if this will help but a few months ago a sf benz tech advisor reffered me to a indy shop a few blocks away. the shop is owned and operated by a former MB tech who spent over 10 years at SF MB, they do a lot of mod work and are Kleeman dealers... said some employees take their cars to this shop for mods, for whatever it's worth. let me know if you want the name of the shop

mjr24

Get a lawyer. Using the whole "you are going to cost you guys the sale on my next car" is not going to make them blink. I did that with the dealer on my issue when I was looking at the SL55 or another SL (which was expensive as you were getting 3 years ago) and they cared less.

aintME

Wow, I just read through the whole thread. Sorry to hear about your predicament Skeeter. We've dealt with MB of SF many times and have crossed paths w/ L.B. My one word description of him = A$$HOLE. Good luck to you and keep us posted.

Taximan1

yeah, an aftermarket pulley could have caused that........ Un(f'ing) real... All the money we pay for these cars, and get treated like that...


Good luck with it... I agree with some of the others advice.. Just walk away, and take it to another dealer... Some of these guys like to play "inspector" to make them feel important.. Other dealers will just fix the problem.. Move onm and try some plave else, before starting any wars.. That would be my advice..

SLK55R

his problem is his car is already flagged in the mercedes system. If it wasn't I'd say walk away.

CWW

He can't. The azzhole at the dealer marked his car "Status 8". His warranty is now void.

He needs to hurry up and hire a lawyer like myself and everyone else have been saying.

BMWEATR

exactly! the dealership and mbusa will not do jack ***** for him. its pointless to keep calling them. get a lawer! what he's doing know is exactly what they want. to keep wasting time and then he gets ***** down and gives up.