2 year old C Class Coupe paint problem!

[jonnymerc]

Well I reported my problem way back in November last year with FIRE OPAL RED :fail , Last week I had a call from MB MAIDSTONE they had a call from MB GERMANY to say they have agreed to repaint my car they have 2 cars to paint before my car but at least I have finally had a positive responce from Mercedes
Just a bit more information on this ,Had a word with a guy at MB body shop they told me the problem seems to be in the drying process at the factory ,Where the top of the car IE BONNET ,ROOF ,BOOTLID is dried more quickly than the sides of the car as it goes through heaters it's only a problem on the week colours like RED that could be one cause OR they said it could be happening on cars that have had the paint treated with a paint protection from new

 

[erisaman]

Hi Guys,

Do anyone have any pictures please of there defected paint?

Much appreciated

I'm not sure if I am allowed to quote from another Forum (I'm a newbie) but there are pics available on Home - Mercedes Benz Owners under the heading "W204 Microblisters" (you may need to Search 'Red Paint Issues') on the Forum as it's on a 2013 thread. It may be the start of this long trail.

Apologies if I'm 'out of order' here.

 

[jonnymerc]

Hi Guys,

Do anyone have any pictures please of there defected paint?

Much appreciated

I hope you can see this picture, If you can it's about the best one I have on this problem

 

[riders]

Hi
From looking at that picture my car had exactly that problem but all over.
I couldn't get a picture as good as that though.

 

[jonnymerc]

Hi Riders
It is very difficult to photograph, You have to lucky with the light depends on the time of day

 

[navzptc]

Well the wife's SLK arrived back from the garage today after having had its full rub down and re-spray, and very happy with how it looks.

Must admit that the local MB garage have been very helpful throughout this process, and it has been totally painless getting this fixed

 

[jonnymerc]

That looks very very nice , Have you gone all round it with a fine tooth comb ..Sometimes it looks great from a distance , Hopefully it looks great close up as well as it does from a distance . Where did you have it done was it a MB body shop

 

[navzptc]

Have had a quick look around and can only find 2 popper fixings missing from the front window rubber moulding by the wipers - will just pop into dealer sometime and get them replaced

It was carried out by MB at their repair centre near Southampton - Pleased with how I was updated regularly by them on how it was going

 

[SmartMAC]

Mine is back after a first time fiasco when the car was returned to me with paint defects and damaged trim. I had a quick look and the car looks as good as new now. I'll check properly again tomorrow but I am confident they have done a better job this time.

 

[jonnymerc]

Mine is back after a first time fiasco when the car was returned to me with paint defects and damaged trim. I had a quick look and the car looks as good as new now. I'll check properly again tomorrow but I am confident they have done a better job this time.

That's great news when you check tomorrow I hope it still looks good I think Mercedes should give us all free serviceing for this paint fiasco

 

[SmartMAC]

That's great news when you check tomorrow I hope it still looks good I think Mercedes should give us all free serviceing for this paint fiasco

I had a proper look today with the good weather as I was swapping from Winter to Summer wheels. I have to say, I am very happy with the work this time. I have only managed to find 2 very minor trim related issues which I have fixed myself easily. The paint job itself looks immaculate and the car looks as fresh as it did the day I bought it almost 4 years ago.
So very happy overall.

 

[elisetype25]

Glad you got this sorted.

I always thought the C and E class looked great in the Red, especially the Estates.

Alot of cars seem to struggle with red paint, especially Vauxhalls.

Enjoy the car, it would be a shame if such a great colour choice turned sour for owners.

Best regards, Neil

 

[jonnymerc]

Finally got a date when my car goes in for a full respray 26/03/15 at last ,Ongoing problem been waiting since 1st November last year .

Fingers crossed Maidstone body shop do a great job

 

[Jensen541]

Finally got a date when my car goes in for a full respray 26/03/15 at last ,Ongoing problem been waiting since 1st November last year .

Fingers crossed Maidstone body shop do a great job

I was just about to enquire as to roughly how long this process would take….. Please keep us updated with the progress etc!

Sadly, I hold my hand up requesting to be added to the list of people that have this problem (2012 C250 - Fire Opal).
I noticed it a few days before I took the car back to the dealer due to some 'flaky lacquer' on the bonnet (second occurrence). MB Dartford acknowledged that the whole car was showing signs of this fault (approx one month ago).
I am now currently awaiting a response & all I have been told is that it's in the hands of MB Germany.
I'm sure I'm no different from everyone else in saying I felt totally sick when I realised what the problem is.
My biggest concern, is that the fault is repaired PROPERLY. I'm struggling to get my head around the 'properly' part……. As I see it, surely the only way this can be done is by totally stripping the car to a bare shell, blasting & repainting.
Can this be done cost effectively by MB? I would have thought it would be cheaper in most cases to just replace the car?
I am not prepared to accept a general repaint if that makes sense?
The other thing that concerns me is, approximately three years ago, I had one of my cars 'vandalised' & it went in for a complete re-spray under the insurance.
The car was painted at a large 'Main Dealer' body shop in Maidstone (NOT MB!!) & quite frankly, the job was appalling:fail…… Whilst I am not someone that slaps the 'tar brush' across all similar companies, it is a nagging doubt in the back of my head.

Any thoughts/views/personal experiences would be gratefully received…..

Regards,
Andy.

 

[markjay]

Welcome Andy.

A respray can be done well, or not... I agree it is a cause for concern, however my point is that you should not automatically assume that a respray job will be substandard. But do make it clear to the dealer that if the outcome is less than perfect, you intend to reject the repair.

As for sandblasting to bare metal... this is not necessary for a car that has no rust or dents. From your description, the issue appears to be with tbe lacquer layer peeling. The paint needs to be rubbed with sandpaper to alow 'key' for the new paint, then resprayed. As said if done well the car should be perfect.

 

[Jensen541]

Thank you for your welcome Markjay.
Unfortunately, from what MB tell me, the peeling lacquer is the least of the problems. The whole car is 'infected' with this 'pimple' issue that I believe starts right underneath the paint, not from the surface. I am informed this does require stripping back to metal?

Regards,
Andy.

 

[jonnymerc]

Went to MB MAIDSTONE this morning to pick up my nice re sprayed C Class On very close inspection found the bonnet covered in very small dots in the lacquer :fail The start of blisters the rest of the car had quite a few very light scratches in the lacquer :fail when I phoned them I told them I want the car dried off when I come because of the rain we have down south it looks like they used a leather with grit in the leather so not very happy at the moment and of course rejected the car

 

[SmartMAC]

Went to MB MAIDSTONE this morning to pick up my nice re sprayed C Class On very close inspection found the bonnet covered in very small dots in the lacquer :fail The start of blisters the rest of the car had quite a few very light scratches in the lacquer :fail when I phoned them I told them I want the car dried off when I come because of the rain we have down south it looks like they used a leather with grit in the leather so not very happy at the moment and of course rejected the car

It's not acceptable that this happens so often. Be sure to talk to the manager before the car is return to you and get assurances that there are no issues with it. Already bass enough this happened and we have to be wasting time getting it sorted.

 

[Jensen541]

Went to MB MAIDSTONE this morning to pick up my nice re sprayed C Class On very close inspection found the bonnet covered in very small dots in the lacquer……..

How is your progress on this going Jonnymerc?
I recently contacted MB customer services direct as I have still had no response from the dealer I returned it to. When I was asked if I could arrange a time for them to inspect it, my head nearly popped!
The dealer had it for nearly four hours one morning (with me sitting around waiting, having just finished a nightshift) to 'inspect' it.
Well, it turns out the guy that inspected it first time around 'no longer works for MB'…… and they don't have enough 'information' & needed to inspect it again. I was absolutely livid….
It appears after two months, we have got absolutely nowhere.
The guy I spoke to this time suggested that the usual course of action is to strip the visible 'exterior' paintwork & respray.
This raises another question for me. If the paint fault is left un-rectified, will this eventually lead to rust forming on the bodywork? If so, how can the problem be fully sorted with a 'visible exterior' paint job? surely I would be left with a car that has an increased risk of rusting on the areas that cannot be accessed?
Unfortunately, I can't start much of a negotiation with MB until they formally advise me of what they intend to do.

Frustratingly, my car continues to sit unused.

I hope everyone else is making a bit more headway than I am!!!

Regards,
Andy.

 

[jonnymerc]

How is your progress on this going Jonnymerc?

Hi Andy not very well, I have refused the car 3 times now The first time blisters appeared on the bonnet and wings after respray plus car covered in swirls in the laquer They repainted the wings/ bonnet went back second time the car still covered in swirls in laquer so rejected again told them I am disgusted with MB returning a car back in this condition :fail So they contacted the paint company who advised them to use a product to try a get rid of swirls went back a third time although the car was better could still see swirling in laquer so rejected a third time so now a guy is coming down from MB head office who is going to give a final decision YES it's a good job NO it's a bad job if it's Yes it's a good job I am going to give the car back and try to get a replacement car same spec same year or newer roughly same mileage if I can't get that I will walk away

So not going to well hope yours goes better Andy