Idiot car design SLK200 R172. No laughing matter

[Blobcat]

i will check my ml in the next few days . maybe benz will issue the same pick hammers sncf fit next to the doors on trains. seems unlikely but i check.

I have one of those (not from SNCF though) in my centre arm rest, although it's there more for the seat belt cutter than the pick hammer.

 

[mioba]

I am pretty sure that this cant be right, for example in the event of an accident one has to rely on mechanical opening of the door to release trapped occupants, ie firefighters or so would smash the window to open a door from the inside.

 

[V6Matty]

Just given something a test, locked the car from the inside and tried to get out, I couldn’t, the lock pops up but the door doesn’t open?!?
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0DP135EcjSBlxnrn2W97UduKA

 

[Wighty]

I have one of those (not from SNCF though) in my centre arm rest, although it's there more for the seat belt cutter than the pick hammer.

Me too buddy , one in each car , that’s how I roll

 

[Rappey69]

I had a totally flat battery.. Unlocked driver door with mechanical key, felt the mechanism move.. opened door. Leant over to passenger side, pulled door handle - nothing? the button popped up i think though. couldnt open it from outside either..
Drivers door did let me back out ! No way to open boot either as no key hole.

 

[ajlsl600]

fd by tech again. n no key hole to open boot, nuts. unless yr the dealer.. as i age i seem to find less attraction to modern cars ,smoke n mirrors comes to mind . offer u loads at point of sale baffle us with gadgets and reinventing the wheel when in reality all roads lead back to the dealer with dtf tech .

 

[sl500amgsport]

My daughter has exactly the same model and had a flat battery. She sat in the car until I arrived and upon arrival voila, she opened her drivers door and got out.....

The drivers door was unlocked and still opened.

Mercedes SL500 R231

 

[whizzer74]

I find it hard to believe that any car - not just cars built by MB - could go through the normal rigorous and lengthy gestation period without the manufacurer making sure that at least one door (and certainly both front doors) can open internally under any conditions.

What would happen, for instance, if a car was submerged in water due to an accident and no door would open?

I would have died, simples. But at least some you have checked and shown the problem is not a one off

 

[whizzer74]

There are two things at play here.
1. MB don't use deadlocks.
2. The door somehow re-locked after he opened it with the physical key.

For it to relock suggests there was power in the system or the door was faulty (putting aside the deadlocks).

There was no indication of power from the courtesy lamp on entry just the do closing and the locking pip up but the door handle did not engage the opening mechanism.

 

[McDonald]

Just given something a test, locked the car from the inside and tried to get out, I couldn’t, the lock pops up but the door doesn’t open?!?
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0DP135EcjSBlxnrn2W97UduKA

A potential death-trap. Scary.

 

[whizzer74]

There was no indication of power from the courtesy lamp on entry just the do closing and the locking pip up but the door handle did not engage the opening mechanism.

I did not see any glow from the internal lights so the battery was flat. Door closed behind me and the the handle did not engage anything mechanical to indicate it could open the door. I just sat there with nothing I could do with the exception of releasing the front bonnet and getting a neighbour to connect a charger to the engine that activated the door locks.

 

[whizzer74]

I did not see any glow from the internal lights so the battery was flat. Door closed behind me and the the handle did not engage anything mechanical to indicate it could open the door. I just sat there with nothing I could do with the exception of releasing the front bonnet and getting a neighbour to connect a charger to the engine that activated the door locks.

 

[whizzer74]

Update, this is a design feature of the car specific to the UK that has a double lockfeature. Re-reading the manual, you have to deactivate the motion sensor feature when leaving the car otherwise it cannot be opened from the inside. When I got locked in the sensor was not deactivated and by default when the door closed behind me I became trapped. A stupid feature in my opinion.

 

[ajlsl600]

Do remember, when they released the w168. The press rolled them on corners. So nothing much should surprise us, however unlikely it may seem