Rear subframe corrosion - UK

[Fastcar155]

Hi , Mercedes over the last 50 years have been the premier passenger car producer in Germany.

Whilst the product has many technically advanced to me the car potentially has a service life of perhaps 10 years by certain models.

No readily available parts at present for major issues that makes the car unsafe to drive.

Maybe not yet in the Lancia league re structural issues but time will tell how long MB products will last on British roads.

I must say I am surprised that the DVLA and other government agencies have not picked up the problem !

 

[alexanderfoti]

^^ usually holed or already broken is my experience. Cannot be sure how long this free subframe replacement will last though

 

[alexanderfoti]

I must say I am surprised that the DVLA and other government agencies have not picked up the problem !

I suspect they have a legal liability for this issue, as they rust from the inside out and don't get picked up on MOT. I cannot see why else they would chose this issue to cover FOC but not 100s of other engineering failures that have cost the owner money (Valeo radiators, etc etc etc etc)

 

[Fastcar155]

Hi , I do find it hard to believe that Mercedes UK are not aware of the rear subframe issue in general terms.

Mercedes should have instructed servicing dealers to thoroughly inspect this part and report back.

The same could be said of the rear break pipes problems.

No doubt British road conditions cannot help the problem but on my car they state rear subframe manufactured from strong light materials.

 

[E350John]

Well done Jonus, I have been waiting for 5 months to get the work done at MB service center Brooklands who have kept the car waiting for a subframe from Stuttgart, I am assured that the subframe is delivered for use on my vehicle only but I doubt that this is the case.

My car has now been fixed, it took 5 months 11 days I declined an offer to replace rear brake line when the subframe was out as they wanted £1454 I was told this was half the normal price because the subframe was off anyway. I drove from Brooklands to my Indy who failed the MOT because the bolts holding the subframe on were loose, the 4 bolts I saw were 5 to 6 mm proud of the subframe still the good news, they did not re-use the old bolts. I contacted the service center for any news 4 times during the 5 months wait and was told my patience was appreciated. I followed the formal MB complaints procedure about the long time delay waiting for subframe delivery I was told I would get a response within 7 days, I complained 3 times and allowed 14 days between each I never got a response from MB head office other than a sorry for the delayed response, I am not holding my breath. I had drafted a letter to the Guardian but the work was done before I sent it off, I would not be patient for so long in the future.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Hi , I do find it hard to believe that Mercedes UK are not aware of the rear subframe issue in general terms.

Mercedes should have instructed servicing dealers to thoroughly inspect this part and report back.

The same could be said of the rear break pipes problems.

No doubt British road conditions cannot help the problem but on my car they state rear subframe manufactured from strong light materials.

I am convinced MBUK are fully aware of the issue and have been for some time.

 

[mjs4321]

Wishing I had seen this topic before getting my subframe replaced following MoT failure at local garage. I will write to MB but little chance of financial help I guess. Would you advise I write to MB HQ or local dealer first? W204 2011

 

[mjs4321]

Pic of offending article.

 

[E350John]

As you will have seen from my posts on this issue, you may be better off having the work done by an independent and getting rear brake line changes at a sensible price. Ask mb head office for some contribution towards your repair costs and approach the Guardian columnist who helped the poster here who was originally refused FOC replacement. They should have recalled the cars fitted with the potentially dangerous subframes. I was not allowed to drive the car away from the MB authorised repair center.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Like I said .I am convinced Daimler Mercedes Benz are fully aware of this issue but simply choose not to recall all of the cars on safety grounds , yet they recall three quarters of a million cars because one sunroof fled off a MB into the road .....in the USA

 

[cws196]

Like I said .I am convinced Daimler Mercedes Benz are fully aware of this issue but simply choose not to recall all of the cars on safety grounds , yet they recall three quarters of a million cars because one sunroof fled off a MB into the road .....in the USA

Isn't it always like this in the UK and Europe due to less 'eager' legal systems, class-action lawsuits less common and generally weaker consumer law....

 

[Petrol Pete]

Isn't it always like this in the UK and Europe due to less 'eager' legal systems, class-action lawsuits less common and generally weaker consumer law....

Yes.

 

[mack100]

I'm reading this with a great deal of interest and some trepidation. My 2011 reg W212 has just failed it's MOT because of a corrosion hole in the subframe forward arm mount.
Mercedes in Hampshire have agreed to look at it next week and I'm desperately hoping for a goodwill gesture on their part.

One thing I'm concerned about is the fact that it hasn't always been serviced at a Merc main dealer. I bought it used at 3 years old in 2015 and had it serviced at the main dealer until 2019. I then became quite ill and was unable to get it there so since then I've used what they call a Mercedes Authorised Repairer which means they only use Mercedes parts and the service history is on the Mercedes system. I'm concerned they may use this to wriggle out of a goodwill replacement. The engineer I use has told me that several of his customers with the same problem have had a free replacement.

I've done quite a bit of reading about this and one thing caught my attention. I read that Mercedes used to use aluminium for their subframes without any issues but the problems began when they switched from aluminium to using pressed steel of doubtful quality. I wonder if anyone here has heard about this.

 

[mack100]

Mercedes Farnborough have inspected the vehicle and submitted a claim to Mercedes Germany seemingly bypassing Mercedes UK. Just heard that the claim has been accepted and it's now awaiting parts. I've also just requested a courtesy car from Mercedes UK, pigs might fly but you never know!

 

[Sub8]

WoW - thats shocking!

Any occurance of this on earlier s/w211?

Although the 211 has its own collection of rust hot spots!

 

[mack100]

WoW - thats shocking!

Any occurance of this on earlier s/w211?

Although the 211 has its own collection of rust hot spots!

I believe that this problem can occur with any vehicle in the range that has pressed steel used for the subframe rather than the aluminium subframes previously used. I'm happy to be contradicted on this.

 

[Sub8]

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Mercedes Farnborough have inspected the vehicle and submitted a claim to Mercedes Germany seemingly bypassing Mercedes UK. Just heard that the claim has been accepted and it's now awaiting parts. I've also just requested a courtesy car from Mercedes UK, pigs might fly but you never know!

Good news that it has been accepted. I’ve heard of requests for courtesy cars being declined by dealers - I suspect because the job can be as short as a day or two, but the wait for parts can be weeks or months - but you might get lucky. Definitely worth asking.

 

[mack100]

Collected the car this morning from Mercedes Farnborough after waiting a number of weeks for the subframe to arrive from Germany.
I'm very happy the way Mercedes Farnborough have handled the whole situation, less happy with Mercedes themselves for fitting substandard subframes in the first place.

 

[Jonesy767]

Hi all - looking for advice please as there must be people out there with similar issues.

My 2011 CLS350 was in to a main dealer for a safety recall 6 weeks ago (steering), which is all done and fine. Whilst it was in they gave it the usual visual inspection and found that the rear subframe is corroded. Something that'll cost me £3k+ and a shed-ton of time to fix (v long lead time apparently).

A bit of investigation seems to show that this is a known issue. In fact there's a class action been kicked off in the U.S. about it. I can't remember what the corrosion warranty is on my car but suspect it's now just outside, as its getting on for 12 years old.

I asked the dealer to contact MB to see if they will cover the cost on the basis that it's a potential safety issue. Also I'm guessing passing my MOT in November is going to be an issue now. Can't now seem to get any of my calls returned from the dealer...

Anyone had a similar issue? Anyone had MB pay for the repair? Or at least contribute?

Really frustrating cos other than this the car has been a dream to live with. Had it from new and now close to 100k miles and plenty more to go if I didn't have this issue.

Any advice or anecdotes I could use would be gratefully received.
cheers!

I discovered mine had serious corrosion on rear subframe discovered on hearing a small knock plus light judder , taken to my independent service centre road test under heavy braking car rear slewed to one side , up on ramp everything looked ok for 2023 model surprising clean with original paint on frame coil springs etc but up in a tight corner weld fractured and frame hole with corrosion .

Contacted MB they will replace and cover labour all without fuss .