Plastics falling to bits on 2 year old C63
Discussion
I've got a 2018 C63 estate as I (like many of you) have a particular fondness for fast wagons.
Unfortunately build quality hasn't been overly encouraging and bits have been routinely breaking for the past 9 months and - most upsettingly - Mercedes don't seem to carry any burden of responsibility to fix the problems.
It's mostly switchgear - every single window switch in the car is either like a wobbly tooth or it has fallen out. The same for the boot release switch - that broke off after a couple of uses. The passenger sun visor vanity mirror cover fell off on what I believe to be first use 2 weeks ago, the plastic had gone brittle and just snapped at the hinge.
The car was due in at Mercedes because of a check engine light so I'd asked them to resolve these niggles, and thought little more of it.
I later get the call that they perceive all of these breakages to be "outside influence" and therefore wouldn't seek to address them under warranty. I'm not remotely heavy handed with the vehicle, nor have I had any similar problems in the myriad of vehicles I've owned previously. For a vehicle of this value I'm surprised they took such a stance.
Furthermore, the price to replace these items was eye-watering. The broken vanity mirror cover? £135. All told fixing the broken switches was going to run to £600.
I declined the work and decided to write to Mercedes Head Office. Short of taking to every item in the car with a clawhammer I'm not entirely sure what they were accusing me of doing, but if the franchise wasn't able to assert these problems as warranty related, then I needed the OEM.
Sadly, head office sided with the franchise and insisted that they couldn't even influence the price of the job.
So I'm now obtaining the bits from breakers yards on eBay and replacing them myself at about a sixth of the cost.
I can't say that I'm enamoured with the brand after this experience!
I was going to consider upgrading to an E63, but I think I'll rethink that plan entirely. Don't fancy having more wobbly teeth switches!
![](https://thumbsnap.com/sc/f2p28grw.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="https://thumbsnap.com/f2p28grw" Target="_blank" rel="nofollow">[img]https://thumbsnap.com/sc/f2p28grw.jpg)
Unfortunately build quality hasn't been overly encouraging and bits have been routinely breaking for the past 9 months and - most upsettingly - Mercedes don't seem to carry any burden of responsibility to fix the problems.
It's mostly switchgear - every single window switch in the car is either like a wobbly tooth or it has fallen out. The same for the boot release switch - that broke off after a couple of uses. The passenger sun visor vanity mirror cover fell off on what I believe to be first use 2 weeks ago, the plastic had gone brittle and just snapped at the hinge.
The car was due in at Mercedes because of a check engine light so I'd asked them to resolve these niggles, and thought little more of it.
I later get the call that they perceive all of these breakages to be "outside influence" and therefore wouldn't seek to address them under warranty. I'm not remotely heavy handed with the vehicle, nor have I had any similar problems in the myriad of vehicles I've owned previously. For a vehicle of this value I'm surprised they took such a stance.
Furthermore, the price to replace these items was eye-watering. The broken vanity mirror cover? £135. All told fixing the broken switches was going to run to £600.
I declined the work and decided to write to Mercedes Head Office. Short of taking to every item in the car with a clawhammer I'm not entirely sure what they were accusing me of doing, but if the franchise wasn't able to assert these problems as warranty related, then I needed the OEM.
Sadly, head office sided with the franchise and insisted that they couldn't even influence the price of the job.
So I'm now obtaining the bits from breakers yards on eBay and replacing them myself at about a sixth of the cost.
I can't say that I'm enamoured with the brand after this experience!
I was going to consider upgrading to an E63, but I think I'll rethink that plan entirely. Don't fancy having more wobbly teeth switches!
The switches are poor quality.
I’ve got a 2017 E Class and the boot switch on the drivers door broke - it just fell apart when I used it. It happened the first time I used the switch after I bought the car as an AUC at 2 and a half years old, so I’m not sure if was actually broken by the previous owner. MB Preston replaced it under manufacturers warranty without question though and I bought it from another dealer. I noticed when I closed the drivers window the other day the switch was a bit loose.
I had a 67 plate C350e before this and I didn’t have any problems with it all in the 2 years I had it. The E Class has had a few quality issues.
I’ve got a 2017 E Class and the boot switch on the drivers door broke - it just fell apart when I used it. It happened the first time I used the switch after I bought the car as an AUC at 2 and a half years old, so I’m not sure if was actually broken by the previous owner. MB Preston replaced it under manufacturers warranty without question though and I bought it from another dealer. I noticed when I closed the drivers window the other day the switch was a bit loose.
I had a 67 plate C350e before this and I didn’t have any problems with it all in the 2 years I had it. The E Class has had a few quality issues.
Mental note to scratch any current Merc of the next car purchase list. Think I stick with keeping my 15year old Evo Wagon serviced for the forseable in which none of the original switches appear to have any wear issues present . Double failure from Merc to have issues with bits that shouldn't be an issue in 10 years of use let alone 2 and then not to offer fix under warranty is shocking.
seopher said:
I was going to consider upgrading to an E63, but I think I'll rethink that plan entirely. Don't fancy having more wobbly teeth switches!
I've had a 211 E500 and a 212 version and I've found the interiors to be rock solid. Nothing seems to break rattle or squeak. I wouldn't write an E63 off on the basis of some s
tty materials in a C Class. I quite often read comments from C63 owners who feel a bit let down by cabin materials.It's really annoying to hear of poor service in what is fundamentally part of the 'service industry'. Especially when these issues could be rectified so easily and is a great opportunity to turn an unfortunate scenario into a huge positive for the customer and the brand.
I think there are some parts of the motor industry that really need a shake up.... 1990s' David Brent attitudes in a world where the consumer experience is king will simply not sustain itself. In the corporate world of B2B this is also the case and a key driver for change / multi-million/billion pound buying decisions.
On a more positive note, my 2017 E220d W213 has just completed 40,000 miles, no rattles, shakes or broken switches, despite the best efforts of young children!
The service I've had from Marshalls Mercedes in Southampton has been exemplary.
I think there are some parts of the motor industry that really need a shake up.... 1990s' David Brent attitudes in a world where the consumer experience is king will simply not sustain itself. In the corporate world of B2B this is also the case and a key driver for change / multi-million/billion pound buying decisions.
On a more positive note, my 2017 E220d W213 has just completed 40,000 miles, no rattles, shakes or broken switches, despite the best efforts of young children!
The service I've had from Marshalls Mercedes in Southampton has been exemplary.
Interesting!
My C63S is an earlier model and made in Alabama (US market cars are all made here, engine in Germany). While its not bad, its clear to see that some of the materials and fastenings were cheaper than previous Merc models. So the quality and build might not have dropped, the perception isnt great. That said though, my issue is squeaks and rattles, not failures or broken things. These are easily resolved, if a little annoying. Though the hot summer sun here is playing havoc with interior plastics at the moment.
But I would say that things like the touch items like the window openers do feel high quality. They are better than my Cayenne was (Merc electrical parts in it) and certainly better than other cars I have had. I am surprised that you are seeing failures like this. Mine is a 2016 model, and I was lead to believe that they improved things from there - have you seen an older one? Is it better or worse? And given the age, I would be pushing back on the dealership though. I had the lower plastic bits on the side go bad and become unstuck - both replaced FOC by the dealer with no hassle.
My C63S is an earlier model and made in Alabama (US market cars are all made here, engine in Germany). While its not bad, its clear to see that some of the materials and fastenings were cheaper than previous Merc models. So the quality and build might not have dropped, the perception isnt great. That said though, my issue is squeaks and rattles, not failures or broken things. These are easily resolved, if a little annoying. Though the hot summer sun here is playing havoc with interior plastics at the moment.
But I would say that things like the touch items like the window openers do feel high quality. They are better than my Cayenne was (Merc electrical parts in it) and certainly better than other cars I have had. I am surprised that you are seeing failures like this. Mine is a 2016 model, and I was lead to believe that they improved things from there - have you seen an older one? Is it better or worse? And given the age, I would be pushing back on the dealership though. I had the lower plastic bits on the side go bad and become unstuck - both replaced FOC by the dealer with no hassle.
Gassing Station | Mercedes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff