my rear subframe saga

[Davidmotorman]

Where to start I have worked all my life most of it as a PCV driver what money I earned mainly went to my children So when I retired I spent some money on my self and bought a Mercedes But not being rich I found myself buying a W204 2010 C Class 220 CDI with some service history and only 59K on the clock and 11 months MOT A very happy chappie I was Then one day while slowing down for a set of traffic lights the rear of my car wanted to turn right So I thought ok one of my rear brakes is not working so of to my local garage and left it with them a couple of hours he phoned me he said can you pop down and see this When I got there and saw the state of the front of the rear subframe he had to pick me up of the floor it was totally rotted So I nursed it home then straight on the phone to my nearest Mercedes dealer Inchcape at Derby the girl on the phone was lovely and told me to bring the car in as soon as you can and leave it with us for the day so I did Later that day the lovely lady called me and said they would replace the subframe completely free of charge and also offered me a curtesy car I had to wait 2 weeks for the subframe arrive but I didn't mind as it was free So if there is anyone out there who has the same problem Please try your dealer first I can not stress enough how polite and professional Inchcape at Derby where 5 stars from me

 

[Germgh0st]

Nice result

 

[Teego]

Rare praise indeed for an MB dealer.

 

[MikeinBucks]

Last week my car starting swerving on breaking. I took the car to my local specialist who explained that the subframe had rotted through and snapped. My car is a C220 sport 2009 with 137000 miles with part MB history and the rest independent. I have owned it for 5 years and it's been amazing. I was quoted by my specialist £1,500 for a replacement being fitted. Having seen that others had had success with MB I thought to contact them. I called them on the Weds and on the Thursday it went in for a safety check. I was told later that day (as already known) that the subframe needed replacing and that in the opinion of the dealership the issue was substandard and that they would request MB to cover the cost. I was called the next day to say that Mercedes would cover the full cost. Less than a week later my car is returned fully fixed and cleaned. I cannot praise Aylesbury Mercedes enough. They handled the whole issue with empathy and concern.

 

[grober]

Difficult directly related manufacturing defect for Mercedes to avoid as its in essence an item that has no moving parts to wear out, or possssibly effected by inadequate servicing or high mileage and therefore no plausible deniability.

 

[Tonygw]

wow great story's this gives us all hope!
Thanks guys!

 

[Justintyme]

Regardless of the location of the MB dealership, or how fancy it is, when it comes to servicing / repairs, it all boil's down to the quality of the mechanics. Like every other facet of the human race, you have the average ones, the good ones, the extremely good ones ( these guys are kinda religious in their attention to all things MB ) and of course you have the ones who are in the wrong job. So nice to hear a few happy customer stories.

 

[Martin 1]

I booked my CLK into Sytner Northampton for a timing chain, two weeks later I took it in, A week later I rang them, "No, not ready, we're waiting for parts, it'll be a few days more, would you like to take it back ?" no says me, I phoned them a week later and got the same c**p, again phoned after a week, they said it will be ready in another four days, that's a total of five and a half weeks for a three day job. When driving it home, a large hose fell off, dumping all the coolant. That took them another 3 days, I had to phone the service director to get it back. They don't employ mechanics, only kids who are taught to plug things in. Absolutely appalling. You'll have a job convincing me that they're not all the same.

 

[Justintyme]

I booked my CLK into Sytner Northampton for a timing chain, two weeks later I took it in, A week later I rang them, "No, not ready, we're waiting for parts, it'll be a few days more, would you like to take it back ?" no says me, I phoned them a week later and got the same c**p, again phoned after a week, they said it will be ready in another four days, that's a total of five and a half weeks for a three day job. When driving it home, a large hose fell off, dumping all the coolant. That took them another 3 days, I had to phone the service director to get it back. They don't employ mechanics, only kids who are taught to plug things in. Absolutely appalling. You'll have a job convincing me that they're not all the same.

As I mentioned in my post, when it comes to mechanic's, you have the Good, the Bad and the downright Ugly in terms of performance. And ultimately, the workshop floor is where reputations are made or destroyed. Don't be fooled by opulent and comfortable waiting and reception area's..the real business is being done out of customer sight.

 

[Martin 1]

Mechanics ? ? ? ?

 

[DrummerTJB]

Where to start I have worked all my life most of it as a PCV driver what money I earned mainly went to my children So when I retired I spent some money on my self and bought a Mercedes But not being rich I found myself buying a W204 2010 C Class 220 CDI with some service history and only 59K on the clock and 11 months MOT A very happy chappie I was Then one day while slowing down for a set of traffic lights the rear of my car wanted to turn right So I thought ok one of my rear brakes is not working so of to my local garage and left it with them a couple of hours he phoned me he said can you pop down and see this When I got there and saw the state of the front of the rear subframe he had to pick me up of the floor it was totally rotted So I nursed it home then straight on the phone to my nearest Mercedes dealer Inchcape at Derby the girl on the phone was lovely and told me to bring the car in as soon as you can and leave it with us for the day so I did Later that day the lovely lady called me and said they would replace the subframe completely free of charge and also offered me a curtesy car I had to wait 2 weeks for the subframe arrive but I didn't mind as it was free So if there is anyone out there who has the same problem Please try your dealer first I can not stress enough how polite and professional Inchcape at Derby where 5 stars from me

I hadn’t seen your thread until this afternoon, but this morning I took my 2011 220c CDI Saloon into Inchcape Nottingham for an inspection with the same problem as yours and tonmy astonishment I got the same response and they are now fixing my subframe free of charge too. They didn’t even quibble and like you, the staff member, Emily was so helpful. However, they didn’t stop there and are also replacing my corroded rear brake pipes free of charge too. So a good result all round as the bill excluding VAT would have been a combined c.£2700!

 

[Highnoon]

Where to start I have worked all my life most of it as a PCV driver what money I earned mainly went to my children So when I retired I spent some money on my self and bought a Mercedes But not being rich I found myself buying a W204 2010 C Class 220 CDI with some service history and only 59K on the clock and 11 months MOT A very happy chappie I was Then one day while slowing down for a set of traffic lights the rear of my car wanted to turn right So I thought ok one of my rear brakes is not working so of to my local garage and left it with them a couple of hours he phoned me he said can you pop down and see this When I got there and saw the state of the front of the rear subframe he had to pick me up of the floor it was totally rotted So I nursed it home then straight on the phone to my nearest Mercedes dealer Inchcape at Derby the girl on the phone was lovely and told me to bring the car in as soon as you can and leave it with us for the day so I did Later that day the lovely lady called me and said they would replace the subframe completely free of charge and also offered me a curtesy car I had to wait 2 weeks for the subframe arrive but I didn't mind as it was free So if there is anyone out there who has the same problem Please try your dealer first I can not stress enough how polite and professional Inchcape at Derby where 5 stars from me

To a point my early experience mirrors Davidmotormans. Ten years ago I bought a 2005 C180 that served me well, but decided to upgrade it six months ago and bought a 2009 C180 Blue Efficiency from a reputable dealer. It came with a full service history (by Independent Mercedes Specialists) a full MOT history, and is immaculate throughout. Not a spec of rust. And then it all went wrong. I took it to my local garage to have what I thought was a calliper problem fixed, but it turned out to be the rear subframe that had broken away through corrosion. So long story short. Local Mercedes main dealer didn't want to know. Mercedes head office refused to replace under the 30 year anti-corrosion warranty on the basis that it hadn't been serviced by a main dealer. Appealed to CEO but same response. After two emails to CEO, seven emails to Customer Service, four phone calls to local main dealer, I only received two replies, both declining to help. On no occasion was rust noted either on service reports or MOT's, and yet Mercedes divest themselves of responsibility. Like Davidmotorman, I am retired and in need of personal transport, and I actually believed that Mercedes might help. But unlike David I've had to bear the cost myself. And all because I wanted to drive a decent car.

 

[mobair36]

A long story I will try to shorten!!! Just before last Christmas I put my 10 yo E class in for it's MOT! had a phone call to say the rear subframe was rusted to bits! The car should not be driven!! The day before I had driven a 100 mile round trip on the motorway at 70mph! Told the cost would be lots of wonga! Obviously, nothing could be done until the new year! In January i phone a local Indy Merc specialist for advice! I was told to try cpeaking to my local MB dealer from when I had actually bought the car! They told me to bring the car in for inspection which I did a few days later. After half an hour the service manager came out and told me the sunframe was the worst they had seen! BUT, MB would pay for the repair!! great, but there was a waiting time of two weeks for the new part and then it could be done untill the 28th! The part arrived and they said to bring the car done as the may be able to do it sooner! I delivered the car on a transporter as I was told the subframe could break up at any time! I eventually got the car back on the 29th all done! great! However, I was more than a bit annoyed that I had been totally unaware of the problem, ie no notification or recall, and had been driving a seriously dangerous car! Not what I expected from a Mercedes! It seems that everyone except Mercedes know about the problem!! Mercedes do in fact of course know full well about the problem! Anyway, I wrote to MB UK expressing my anger and concern that there has been no notification or recall! Yesterday I had an email reply from MB. They were very sorry to hear about my problem etc etc, but said there were NO ISSUES with my particular model and they were unaware of any issue that would justify a recall!! Absolute nonsense! It seems that some owners get the job done for free, but a lot don't! This is of course a very serious safety matter! In 1968 MB started to offer a 30 year corrosion warranty. Initially, it required owners to have a full MB service history, but that was canceled by the EU! I will reply to their emai, and tell them that if no action is taken I will be contacting the motor ombudsman as there must be a notification or recall! Watch this space! I apologise for any spelling mistakes etc!

 

[EndlessMoneyPit]

How long should a subframe last?

 

[Corty]

How long should a subframe last?

I should imagine the lifespan of the car ideally, I don't think they are classed as a wear and tear item.

 

[190]

How long should a subframe last?

Yes the lifetime of the car.

The obvious question is why did MB take extensive rust prevention measures on the body of the car by galvanising it and not bother to do the same for the subframe. And not only that, but also make the subframe of thinner metal to save weight. The result was predictable.

 

[such01]

Blimey - I should get my 2012 W212 checked out then. Is it straightforward to check?

 

[sjmaxwell]

There are many documented cases on the R171 SLK sub frame that have exactly the same issue that some, but not all, have had done under warranty but don't be fooled into thinking other makes don't have issues, I remember my brother had an A4, 2003 vintage that many suffered rust around the roof bar fixings despite never being used. Audi didn't recognise the issue and many owners went to court in order to force them to pay. But even then new claims were refused unless taken to court!!

 

[ray_hennig]

How long should a subframe last?

Mine's 30 years old.

E

 

[amazighman]

Mine's 30 years old.

E

Had a lexus Ls400 which spent all its life in Cornwall seaside , subframe was solid so was the rest of the car , in fact that car will outlast me