Rusted sump.

[DerekEddlestone]

When my MY 2013 C180 Estate went in for the scheduled ATF change recently, the garage added £46 to the bill for a new oil pan. They showed me the old one which the mechanic had cleaned up to reveal an area of corrosion on the side which had spread downwards to surround and damage to drain plug seat. In spite of trying to save the pan by dressing the seat, the garage didn't want to send it out and face a potential claim later on. The garage said that it was one of a series of MB oil sumps that they'd had to replace and although MB are aware of the issue, they are currently fobbing off claims.
I mentioned this to a friend in Newbury who owns a garage and he told me that they had replaced engine sumps that had rusted through, specifically on Vauxhall and Peugeot cars. The belief was that the suppliers of the metal stampings are using poor grade metal or a lower gauge to save weight.
I could smell the oil so I was lucky enough to get a warning before any lights appeared on the dashboard.

 

[renault12ts]

This happened on a Rav4 we have...thankfully wifey stopped when the red light came on.

 

[Petrol Pete]

A sump rusted through on a 4 year old car, what is the world coming to ?

The very LAST thing we would expect to rust on any car would be a metal pan that holds all of the engine oil

 

[renault12ts]

A sump rusted through on a 4 year old car, what is the world coming to ?

The very LAST thing we would expect to rust on any car would be a metal pan that holds all of the engine oil

True, it's counter intuitive...but it doesn't rust from the inside.