$2,000+ repair rock chip in front intercooler/heat exchanger?
Zunsport Grills installed for my E63S I took the risk for a couple hundred miles until I was convinced performance from air intake from another forum member was not affected using them.
I mean, aren't pebbles common things on the road? I feel like this is the same as the car melting if it sees snow...
I mean, aren't pebbles common things on the road? I feel like this is the same as the car melting if it sees snow...
I mean, aren't pebbles common things on the road? I feel like this is the same as the car melting if it sees snow...
Back to the topic I no longer fall in love with cars I lust them and "use" them I know I want out in 3 yrs or 30 months if there's a pull ahead. MB is the best about this MBFS is good MB reps with dealers can make customers happy. I didn't even tint my windows because I didn't want to spend money on the car but I did pay the $320-$340 whatever it was to get the Zunsport to avoid the headache took me way longer to install than most people because I use painters tape to make sure I didn't scratch the paint. While the grills look good it annoys me the S65 has the proper stock protective grills.
TL;DR I'm annoyed but not angry glad I did my research, also glad I read this forum to make sure I was able to get the best lease deal and find the best dealership to work with which made me have to ship it in. I'm in SFL and dealing with Autonation (Mafia) is unacceptable will never ever get a vehicle from them.
They were trying to argue that I “collided” with a pebble off of the freeway... come on lol
When insurance meets physics...
Again CA insurance laws my be different than other states. Also some insurance companies or their claims people may be better than others about correctly classifying and paying the claims.
Not really any different than a windshield claim. In fact, it takes more energy to get a pebble higher up to strike a windshield so you’d think radiator strikes would be more common than windshield strikes, though radiators may be more forgiving than glass when hit.
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
That being said it isn't "difficult" at all very easy to do just do it carefully. The side grilles for the intercoolers those clip on but be careful I had bent them a little so they would grab and ended up little scratches on the inner plastic when pushing them in. Not on the paint though.
Again CA insurance laws my be different than other states. Also some insurance companies or their claims people may be better than others about correctly classifying and paying the claims.
Not really any different than a windshield claim. In fact, it takes more energy to get a pebble higher up to strike a windshield so you’d think radiator strikes would be more common than windshield strikes, though radiators may be more forgiving than glass when hit.
That being said it isn't "difficult" at all very easy to do just do it carefully. The side grilles for the intercoolers those clip on but be careful I had bent them a little so they would grab and ended up little scratches on the inner plastic when pushing them in. Not on the paint though.
But sure use painters tape as a precaution
Just take your time and be patient. The center grill was a little tricky because of its length and how it fits into that space.




Much better without the editing but for me, I like how the horizontal slats in the lower air ducts tie in with the vertical and horizontal lines of the grill. I'm sure I'd be singing a different song if I lost one of the coolers to a rock...
Driving along the highway, hit a pebble, week long, $3k inconvenience.
King of bad luck/karma or something.
Last edited by CALBenzo; Jul 11, 2019 at 11:51 AM. Reason: Grammar
That was one thing that I triple checked and verified, that my extended warranty is Mercedes not some third party.
Now that's not to say that a Mercedes dealer won't try to milk some $$ from Mercedes corporate here and there, but if they make a practice of it I would imagine it puts their dealership or service department in jeopardy.
Finally, as I've noted before, the repair for a rock striking and penetrating the radiator should be covered by insurance under the comprehensive portion of the policy, same as a windshield. It is a no-fault claim and should not affect rates.
If you it a stationary object on the road, that can be a collision claim and could result in an at-fault finding and rate increase. But moving objects are treated differently.
You can't strike a stationary rock and have it pierce the radiator unless it is a really big rock, and then you'll have other issues to deal with. A small pebble sized rock has to be moving in order to strike your radiator, same as a windshield. My wife is an insurance agent in California. She's explained this to me enough times now that I hope I have relayed it correctly.
That was one thing that I triple checked and verified, that my extended warranty is Mercedes not some third party.
Now that's not to say that a Mercedes dealer won't try to milk some $$ from Mercedes corporate here and there, but if they make a practice of it I would imagine it puts their dealership or service department in jeopardy.
Finally, as I've noted before, the repair for a rock striking and penetrating the radiator should be covered by insurance under the comprehensive portion of the policy, same as a windshield. It is a no-fault claim and should not affect rates.
If you it a stationary object on the road, that can be a collision claim and could result in an at-fault finding and rate increase. But moving objects are treated differently.
You can't strike a stationary rock and have it pierce the radiator unless it is a really big rock, and then you'll have other issues to deal with. A small pebble sized rock has to be moving in order to strike your radiator, same as a windshield. My wife is an insurance agent in California. She's explained this to me enough times now that I hope I have relayed it correctly.






