I've just bought a 2011 E220 coupe - very nice car. Its warranty period has passed. The only problem I've found is with the chromed handles that tilt and slide the front seats.
I don't know what the core of the handles is made of but they are covered by a 2-sided thin metal sheet which is chrome plated. The two sides of the metal sheet join right on the narrow edge of the handle where the hand forms a grip.
The metal has split along the join, forming a double razor edge. This is obviously very dangerous. It has occurred on both the passenger and driver's seats.
It seemed like a design/manufacturing fault to me and my guess was that it must have affected other E-series cars.
My local Mercedes dealer confirmed that they had seen this before. They mentioned that Mercedes had issued (from stock) a significant number of replacement handles recently. Apparently, two replacement handles would cost a total of £70 (inc. VAT) and the fitting charge would be based on about 1.5 hrs. labour per seat. So, its a fairly expensive fix.
I'd be interested if anyone has come across this problem and how they resolved it.
I don't know what the core of the handles is made of but they are covered by a 2-sided thin metal sheet which is chrome plated. The two sides of the metal sheet join right on the narrow edge of the handle where the hand forms a grip.
The metal has split along the join, forming a double razor edge. This is obviously very dangerous. It has occurred on both the passenger and driver's seats.
It seemed like a design/manufacturing fault to me and my guess was that it must have affected other E-series cars.
My local Mercedes dealer confirmed that they had seen this before. They mentioned that Mercedes had issued (from stock) a significant number of replacement handles recently. Apparently, two replacement handles would cost a total of £70 (inc. VAT) and the fitting charge would be based on about 1.5 hrs. labour per seat. So, its a fairly expensive fix.
I'd be interested if anyone has come across this problem and how they resolved it.
