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Timing chain

Finley2024

New Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2024
Messages
1
Location
Gloucestershire
Car
Mercedes ml350 2013
Hi I have a 2013 mercedes ml350 blue tech, I had the timing chain rattle and decided to take it to a mercedes dealership, they changed the timing chain, they ran it in the workshop and they said it sounded good, they cooled the engine and then took it for a driving test and the engine seized, they are saying it wasn't there fault, they are saying that it was because the chain was loose and then they put a tight chain on that was the problem, they took the sump pan off and they found swarf and sludge, they said the oil was in poor quality the oil was change this March with mercedes approved oil. They have agreed to waive the labour chain replacement labour, but if I put a secondhand engine in I am still looking at a £8000 bill.
Does any one have any suggestions what I can do to get some compensation from mercedes and what other option I have for engine replacement.
Thankyou in advance. Steve
 
Hi I have a 2013 mercedes ml350 blue tech, I had the timing chain rattle and decided to take it to a mercedes dealership, they changed the timing chain, they ran it in the workshop and they said it sounded good, they cooled the engine and then took it for a driving test and the engine seized, they are saying it wasn't there fault, they are saying that it was because the chain was loose and then they put a tight chain on that was the problem, they took the sump pan off and they found swarf and sludge, they said the oil was in poor quality the oil was change this March with mercedes approved oil. They have agreed to waive the labour chain replacement labour, but if I put a secondhand engine in I am still looking at a £8000 bill.
Does any one have any suggestions what I can do to get some compensation from mercedes and what other option I have for engine replacement.
Thankyou in advance. Steve
Hi Steve,

Sorry to hear of your problem.

Bit of a difficult situation with the garage that did the work.

Out of interest where did you buy it from, and how long have you owned it?

What’s the mileage and service history like - sludging would indicate an issue with the frequency of oil changes or oil quality etc?

In terms of compensation from Mercedes - unless you bought the car from them recently or can prove they were negligent with the chain replacement I don’t think they would be liable to pay any.

I think I remember the V6 diesels having issues with big end bearings on the crank.

It’s probably easier to cut your losses with the engine but it would be interesting to know why it has seized - oil pump working okay etc, chain not snapped or something like that..?
 
Nope....you would have to prove a direct correlation between the new chain being fitted and the seizure. The coincidences in the time it happened will not be enough. To do that you would need to take it to an independent expert engineer to do an engine autopsy to see the exact cause of the failure and prove their liability......not cheap. They would be looking for missing bolts, incorrect torques, poor quality parts timing issues etc etc.
 

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