Mercedes-Benz awful reliability
Discussion
Dave Hedgehog said:
the Germans do appear to make the odd lemon car from time to time, my mate calls them friday afternoon cars on the grounds of how much beer they are allowed to drink 
my first RS3 was plagued with problems, wouldn't start, perpetual trim squeaks / rattles, steering vibration and eventually the engine lunched itself, its replacement was faultless for 4 years
Over here in DE they call them monday morning cars due to the hangover.my first RS3 was plagued with problems, wouldn't start, perpetual trim squeaks / rattles, steering vibration and eventually the engine lunched itself, its replacement was faultless for 4 years
Dave Hedgehog said:
the Germans do appear to make the odd lemon car from time to time, my mate calls them friday afternoon cars on the grounds of how much beer they are allowed to drink
I think everyone has always called them Friday afternoon cars. The idea being that everyone rushes through their work because they're just looking forward to going home for the weekend and hoping to clock out early.Davey S2 said:
SteveNottm said:
Well done Mercedes. I'm unlikely get another one ever again and will clearly be telling everyone I know about this. That's how to build brand loyalty...
Somewhat OTT don't you think?Even in this day and age its unrealistic to expect a car to have no niggles whatsoever. Cars are increasingly complex and these things happen.
Sounds like the issue is more with the dealer.
I would reject the car. The last gen MB E Class was top of its class in the Which reliability survey so they're usually good, but this is a whole new gen of car.
Wouldn't blame you for looking elsewhere next time. Is this the new 220d? Its a new engine I think, so perhaps the old case of niggles with the first batch of new tech. Perhaps an A6 TDI with the well proven CR 2 litre engine would be better....
My Dad had a 200T in 1983 - it ate a water pump fairly early on.
Then he and is business partner both got 230TEs in 1986. His partner's car snapped a timing chain and put a rod through the block fairly early on. My Dad's was the best car he ever had.
You'll always get the odd one or two with random quality problems. It could be somethings simple as a dodgy earth. The real problem is dealer ability.
Then he and is business partner both got 230TEs in 1986. His partner's car snapped a timing chain and put a rod through the block fairly early on. My Dad's was the best car he ever had.
You'll always get the odd one or two with random quality problems. It could be somethings simple as a dodgy earth. The real problem is dealer ability.
Just for a bit of balance I had a brand new E Class Estate in 2014 and ran it for 2 years and 20,000 miles with no niggles. Need some tyres a service in that time that was it. We also had 3 others at work, all the same. Very reliable cars generally, sounds like the OP has been unlucky. Hard to say if this is a MB HQ or dealer issue tho. Good luck getting it sorted.
Timbola said:
Yet I've had new BMWs which have run for years without issue.
Everyone has their anecdotal evidence.
Exactly.Everyone has their anecdotal evidence.
Our office managers `lovely` 20000 mile 1 Series has just consumed another £1000 for a BCM & another module because the rear light seals stopped sealing & there was 3" of water in the boot & the BCM connectors are on the bottom of the module & not the top!!
2 years ago it was a `Phone integration thing on the idrive for over £500.
Trims rattle like F
k, but its a BMW so apparently its allowed to..... Absolute PoS!!greenarrow said:
Davey S2 said:
SteveNottm said:
Well done Mercedes. I'm unlikely get another one ever again and will clearly be telling everyone I know about this. That's how to build brand loyalty...
Somewhat OTT don't you think?Even in this day and age its unrealistic to expect a car to have no niggles whatsoever. Cars are increasingly complex and these things happen.
Sounds like the issue is more with the dealer.
I would reject the car. The last gen MB E Class was top of its class in the Which reliability survey so they're usually good, but this is a whole new gen of car.
Wouldn't blame you for looking elsewhere next time. Is this the new 220d? Its a new engine I think, so perhaps the old case of niggles with the first batch of new tech. Perhaps an A6 TDI with the well proven CR 2 litre engine would be better....
It is annoying but quite an over reaction to say never again and I'll do my best to put others off the brand as well.
As stated all manufacturers have niggles (even breakdowns) but it's how the dealers and support services handle it that's important.
How, pray, would a starter motor failure cause a sudden (middle of road) breakdown when the car was clearly running. The starter has a long holiday between starts and isn't usually implicated in running unless you have a BMW Isetta 500 which had a dyno-starter. My doubts seem to be borne out by it breaking down a second time even though the starter was replaced.
motco said:
How, pray, would a starter motor failure cause a sudden (middle of road) breakdown when the car was clearly running. The starter has a long holiday between starts and isn't usually implicated in running unless you have a BMW Isetta 500 which had a dyno-starter. My doubts seem to be borne out by it breaking down a second time even though the starter was replaced.
Do new MBs have stop/start?Over the years I've found that Mercedes are either bomb proof or complete lemons 
A friend of mine had 13 faults on a Merc he bought from a main dealership with Warranty (was 3years old) a huge array of niggles (sunroof broken etc)
Another friend of mine worked in a main dealership as a mechanic, he told me that the amount of new Mercs requiring replacement engines is eyebrow raising. Not just the cooking models, AMGs etc were relatively common.
On the other hand, some seem to last forever with no issues!
A friend of mine had 13 faults on a Merc he bought from a main dealership with Warranty (was 3years old) a huge array of niggles (sunroof broken etc)
Another friend of mine worked in a main dealership as a mechanic, he told me that the amount of new Mercs requiring replacement engines is eyebrow raising. Not just the cooking models, AMGs etc were relatively common.
On the other hand, some seem to last forever with no issues!
I just sold an old CLK430 and funny enough (or not so funny at the time) that car gave me my first breakdown and RAC call out since, er, I think it was 1990, or 1991.
camshaft position sensor. Other than that it was a lovely car.
I still think its shocking that a brand new car breaks down twice in the first month. All brands have niggles, but this is a 40 grand car from a premium brand for pete's sake.
Perhaps its just a "rogue car" in which case, why cant it be rejected under the sale of goods act for being defective?
camshaft position sensor. Other than that it was a lovely car.
I still think its shocking that a brand new car breaks down twice in the first month. All brands have niggles, but this is a 40 grand car from a premium brand for pete's sake.
Perhaps its just a "rogue car" in which case, why cant it be rejected under the sale of goods act for being defective?
ralphrj said:
motco said:
How, pray, would a starter motor failure cause a sudden (middle of road) breakdown when the car was clearly running. The starter has a long holiday between starts and isn't usually implicated in running unless you have a BMW Isetta 500 which had a dyno-starter. My doubts seem to be borne out by it breaking down a second time even though the starter was replaced.
Do new MBs have stop/start?
Benbay001 said:
Davey S2 said:
Even in this day and age its unrealistic to expect a car to have no niggles whatsoever. Cars are increasingly complex and these things happen.
Yet plenty of manufacturers manage it regularly.For some reason team Germany are forgiven because they used soft touch plastics or something.
It always amazes me how people write off an entire brand just because of one part failing, which said car manufacturer (should be called car assemblers really) didn't even make themselves.
Yes it's annoying and inconvenient to break down, but the car was recovered, taken to the shop and no one injured. Breaking down in the Australian outback could have more dire consequences, so perhaps a little perspective wouldn't go amiss on these things.
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