Exploding Panoramic Sunroof

[Andrew Draper]

On 12.6.20 I was driving my 350GLE along a quiet Dual carriageway when there was a huge bang like a shotgun going off.I couldn’t figure out what had happened until my daughter told me to look upwards at the hole that had been blown outwards through the sunroof ( no glass came inside the vehicle).In America there is a class action lawsuit happening due to the multiple occurrences but despite this Mercedes UK is denying any knowledge of a problem and is refusing to repair under warranty.I know they are probably trying to avoid the cost of a recall but human lives must come first.

 

[Blobcat]

Hello & welcome,

Thankfully not that common with Mercedes (lots of other makes suffer more with exploding sunroofs), although the low frequency of occurrence doesn't help you unfortunately. Hopefully you and your daughter are safe and your insurance will cover it.
As the glass is toughened it could have been a stone or a flaw or a number of other issues that caused it to blow.

 

[Andrew Draper]

On 12.6.20 I was driving my 350GLE along a quiet bridgeless dual carriageway when there was a huge bang inside the cabin like a shotgun going off.Couldn’t see the cause until my daughter pointed at the hole that had exploded outwards from the sunroof ( no glass inside).Even though this has happened multiple times in America and a lawsuit is presently happening Mercedes UK is denying any knowledge of a problem and is refusing to repair under warranty. I know the cost of a recall would be big but a potentially fatal problem like this should not be ignored by Mercedes.I have reported it to the DVSA who I hope will force some action from Mercedes.

 

[Andrew Draper]

On 12.6.20 I was driving my 350GLE along a quiet Dual carriageway when there was a huge bang like a shotgun going off.I couldn’t figure out what had happened until my daughter told me to look upwards at the hole that had been blown outwards through the sunroof ( no glass came inside the vehicle).In America there is a class action lawsuit happening due to the multiple occurrences but despite this Mercedes UK is denying any knowledge of a problem and is refusing to repair under warranty.I know they are probably trying to avoid the cost of a recall but human lives must come first.

How come views and replies have gone and N/A has appeared?

 

[Blobcat]

How come views and replies have gone and N/A has appeared?

Your threads have been merged. If the same question is posed over multiple areas of the forum it becomes very confusing for members to know which thread to reply to and clutters up the forum.

 

[Andrew Draper]

How come views and replies have gone and N/A has appeared?

How do I unmerge and get replies?

 

[Blobcat]

How do I unmerge and get replies?

See reply #5

 

[LostKiwi]

How do I unmerge and get replies?

You don't.
Posting the same thing in multiple places is seen as spamming the forum and moderators will clean it up as you've found. There's no need to put the same post in multiple areas.

 

[Andrew Draper]

I believe a court case is presently happening about this problem in America.Basically your sunroof explodes outwards without any warning and without any external impact.Mercedes UK are pleading ignorance to the problem and are refusing to cover under warranty.Has anybody else had or heard of the same problem.

 

[bertb1]

Hello
I’m sure this happened to one of the members not Long ago


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

As above a I’m sure I recall the post, do a search for exploding pan roof

 

[Blobcat]

Hello
I’m sure this happened to one of the members not Long ago


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

As above a I’m sure I recall the post, do a search for exploding pan roof

I’ve merged the threads (again) as same issue for same member

 

[AIW]

On 12.6.20 I was driving my 350GLE along a quiet Dual carriageway when there was a huge bang like a shotgun going off. I couldn’t figure out what had happened until my daughter told me to look upwards at the hole that had been blown outwards through the sunroof ( no glass came inside the vehicle).In America there is a class action lawsuit happening due to the multiple occurrences but despite this Mercedes UK is denying any knowledge of a problem and is refusing to repair under warranty. I know they are probably trying to avoid the cost of a recall but human lives must come first.

Hi Andrew, All I can add is snap! or maybe kaboom!! because that's what it sounded like when the sunroof on my new S Class AMG Line Executive Premium + car blew up and showered me with broken glass - as I drove sedately in quiet luxury on a deserted dual carriageway. I know some people say it doesn't happen often to a Mercedes Benz but it doesn't feel that way when it happens to you. Its dangerous and well documented - if tempered glass is safe in Mercedes supersized panoramic sunroofs why do Volvo use laminated? Even better why not just use tempered glass for windscreens too, its lighter, stronger and cheaper than pesky laminated stuff that doesn't shatter. There are many reasons why tempered glass can explode like this and it can't always be down to the "road chips" that mean no warranty claims - even if Merc would like us to think so.

 

[Craiglxviii]

Hi Andrew, All I can add is snap! or maybe kaboom!! because that's what it sounded like when the sunroof on my new S Class AMG Line Executive Premium + car blew up and showered me with broken glass - as I drove sedately in quiet luxury on a deserted dual carriageway. I know some people say it doesn't happen often to a Mercedes Benz but it doesn't feel that way when it happens to you. Its dangerous and well documented - if tempered glass is safe in Mercedes supersized panoramic sunroofs why do Volvo use laminated? Even better why not just use tempered glass for windscreens too, its lighter, stronger and cheaper than pesky laminated stuff that doesn't shatter. There are many reasons why tempered glass can explode like this and it can't always be down to the "road chips" that mean no warranty claims - even if Merc would like us to think so.

Everyone else other than Volvo uses tempered glass in sun/ pano roofs. Volvo only use laminated as they have a number of unique design standards mainly relating to snow load that can only be accommodated by higher strength material.

 

[AIW]

Good point, I expect its similar to overloading a flat roof building with a sudden 6 foot snowfall and the roof collapsing under the weight?

 

[Craiglxviii]

Good point, I expect its similar to overloading a flat roof building with a sudden 6 foot snowfall and the roof collapsing under the weight?

Identical principle yes. What makes it worse is that snow has a settling effect; there’s a static load build up then if it “cracks” that can become a sudden dynamic load.

To give you an idea, it’s enough to increase the cost of a wiper motor from around €13 to €21 to include a snow load clutch in it.

 

[AIW]

I can see that Ferrari probably decided to use laminated as well to protect from the load you get with a collapsing cloud of volcanic ash. Pompeii is a classic example of how a build up of ash can result in catastrophic pressure build up and roof collapse. Not sure why Tesla decided upon laminate though - maybe it safety once you get larger glass roof surfaces like in the Merc's panoramic S class sunroof?

 

[Craiglxviii]

I can see that Ferrari probably decided to use laminated as well to protect from the load you get with a collapsing cloud of volcanic ash. Pompeii is a classic example of how a build up of ash can result in catastrophic pressure build up and roof collapse. Not sure why Tesla decided upon laminate though - maybe it safety once you get larger glass roof surfaces like in the Merc's panoramic S class sunroof?

Ferrari and Tesla use it because their economic delivery model allows enough in the vehicle budget for it. Simples.

 

[peterws1957]

This is a strange one, since Mercedes have done a recall on exploding sunroofs on other models. Wasn't there a post on here about someone getting a recall for this on his 11 year old MB.

 

[V6Matty]

This is a strange one, since Mercedes have done a recall on exploding sunroofs on other models. Wasn't there a post on here about someone getting a recall for this on his 11 year old MB.

That was for sunroof not pan roof,