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$2,000+ repair rock chip in front intercooler/heat exchanger?
Has this happened to anybody else? I don’t trust the dealer/service advisor that diagnosed the issue. They are telling me rocks from the highway can randomly puncture the intercooler/heat exchange and Mercedes will not cover the damage as it is external wear and tear.
I don’t understand what the odds are statistically that makes this car safe to drive if it can easily be cracked by rocks on the highway?
Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!
Last edited by MuffinFlavored; Jan 9, 2019 at 01:17 PM.
Not sure. You should be dealing with the Service Manager for this though. I guess if you have a good relationship with your dealer and the service manager is willing to take one or two extra steps in convincing MBUSA that it is a design flaw by allowing bigger debris entering those big unprotected openings.
Last edited by bobblehead; Jan 9, 2019 at 01:34 PM.
Has this happened to anybody else? I don’t trust the dealer/service advisor that diagnosed the issue. They are telling me rocks from the highway can randomly puncture the intercooler/heat exchange and Mercedes will not cover the damage as it is external wear and tear.
I don’t understand what the odds are statistically that makes this car safe to drive if it can easily be cracked by rocks on the highway?
Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!
What year is your car? If it is a 2018, it may help that MB added a screen in front of the inter coolers to help reduce the likelihood of the occurrence on 2019 models. Looking a my 2019 it seems to be a pretty thin plastic screen that still has square openings all over. I would think the fact that they changed the design would be good evidence of a "design flaw" which may help your case for at least partial coverage. Also, if your car is a 2019,.. that is not good either because it means the update does not work all that well. FYI, you will also see past posts about an aftermarket screen that seems to protect fully without obstructing flow. Hope this helps!
Wow,... good to know. I guess that is why they looked so thin to me But bad - I got to go see where I got that info from... that this was fixed for 19. Now I guess I need the Zungpsort covers... Aaaagh
A member on the M5 boards hit a piece of wood that punctured his engine oil cooler... he drove for 90 seconds and that was probably 85 seconds too long. His engine was toast and BMW obviously denied any warranty coverage even though the oil cooler is so poorly locate underneath the front of the car. His auto insurance covered it like the OPs here. Road damage is comprehensive in nature even when the damage is due to poor engineering.
I'd have to confirm with my wife who is an insurance agent, but as I recall, she once told me that if you hit road debris that is moving then it's an allowable claim. But if you hit stationary road debris then the claim might be denied. Guess the rationale is that you should have been looking where you were going . . .
Pebbles that puncture the radiators would seem to fit the moving category because if they were stationary they'd of course be on the ground.
Suppose it depends too on the state (we're in CA) and the insurance company.
What year is your car? If it is a 2018, it may help that MB added a screen in front of the inter coolers to help reduce the likelihood of the occurrence on 2019 models. Looking a my 2019 it seems to be a pretty thin plastic screen that still has square openings all over. I would think the fact that they changed the design would be good evidence of a "design flaw" which may help your case for at least partial coverage. Also, if your car is a 2019,.. that is not good either because it means the update does not work all that well. FYI, you will also see past posts about an aftermarket screen that seems to protect fully without obstructing flow. Hope this helps!
2018
I just personally felt like the dealer/service advisor/tech were trying to drum up business. I doubt they gashed my intercooler then tried to get me to pay for it... but what are the chances?
I was told by a BMW tech (where I have a good relationship) that this is common for them as well, but like you said, when they repair, they put either a screen or a film or something better than the original part.
If the dealer didn’t do this being shady, I was driving on a perfectly normal highway (aka not rock land).
I hope they don’t just repair the car with the same part... that pretty much gives me zero confidence this won’t happen again.
This happened to me a couple of months ago. It was $1900 for a new radiator (or whatever cooler is in the middle). I had pink coolant leak out onto my floor. It was not covered under warranty of course, but my SA was able to get MBrace to pay for half of it since the car was so new. They also threw in a free 2K differential fluid change, but it still cost me $900. I have the Zunsports grilles now, but have yet to install it.
This happened to me a couple of months ago. It was $1900 for a new radiator (or whatever cooler is in the middle). I had pink coolant leak out onto my floor. It was not covered under warranty of course, but my SA was able to get MBrace to pay for half of it since the car was so new. They also threw in a free 2K differential fluid change, but it still cost me $900. I have the Zunsports grilles now, but have yet to install it.
$1,900 + time to take front bumper off and install it?
Did you have to throw a fit to get Mercedes to cover half? What did you have to say to who to get that ball rolling?
$1,900 + time to take front bumper off and install it?
Did you have to throw a fit to get Mercedes to cover half? What did you have to say to who to get that ball rolling?
Sorry, meant $1900 for the total repair.
Actually, the SA felt bad since the car was so new, so he offered it. I did complain about the bad design, however.
Get the Zunsport grilles. Cheap insurance, very well made, plus they complete the look. I believe another member has an unused set for sale a few threads down...
Sorry, meant $1900 for the total repair.
Actually, the SA felt bad since the car was so new, so he offered it. I did complain about the bad design, however.
Well that's night and day from me getting a door slammed in my face and being told negative reviews online don't matter, now isn't it?
Wow, didn't know you could file it under comprehensive coverage. Thought that was only for fire, theft & vandalism to your car.
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.
Last edited by pentium7; Jan 10, 2019 at 06:39 PM.
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But bad - I got to go see where I got that info from... that this was fixed for 19. Now I guess I need the Zungpsort covers... Aaaagh
