Mercedes fails, time chain , oil leak , need help

[salam]

hi every one I hope every one is fine and surviving these difficult times .
this is my first time here and seeking your advice and to learn from your experience. I will try to make this short as much as I can

I have Mercedes E class 220 premium diesel 65 plate ,I bought it brand new from Mercedes dealer and have full history service and maintaining from Mercedes and I have done 115k miles on it . I had an oil leak so I took it to Mercedes dealer for a full dingoes and the charged me £110 , the told me the leak is coming from the rear main seal and its a big job and it will cost me £1500 to fix and when I asked them what could be the reason that cause that they fail to give me an explanation, I told them to go ahead after they confirm to me that is the only issue with the car and that should stop the leaking also clear any warning light , the next day they called me and told after they took the gearbox down that I have another issue with the time chain and it needs to be replaced and it will cost me less to fix it now since they are on the process of fixing the oil leak issue and reduce the labour cost and said it will cost me another £1500 so total £3000 , also they failed to give me a proper explanation for the second issue apart its very rare to happen at this age and miles of the car, at the end we agreed to be charged £2700 , told them how long it will take to be fixed because I use the car for work and they said from 2-3 days . after a very long 3 weeks they told me to collect the car and its ready and in fully working order and its been road tested and I have a 2 years unlimited warranty , I paid and collected the car , after 15 minutes driving the car away from the dealership the engine sign light appears and a message saying coolant liquid needs top up also a lot of white smoke coming from under the bonnet so called them and they told me to drive back to the dealer , after a week they called me for the second time to collect the car and everything is fixed and they even did an extended road test and some part they failed to work because they have been disturbed due to the major repair and been replaced " one of those part was the exhaust system , collected the car and after 30 minutes I stopped the car and tried to start the engine and it won't start and there was a funny noise coming from the engine while I was trying to start it and engine light came on too, called Mercedes and they told me to try start it and drive back to them and I did.

while they were trying to fix the car for the third time I raised a formal complaint to Mercedes as I was very stressed and unhappy " about the repair , time to fix it , and customer service " and its effecting my income . after a while they called me to collect the car for the third time and every thing has been tested and working fine. collected the car the next morning and after driving away for 15 minutes away from the dealership the engine light came on and called them and drove back to them to drop the car.

this is reaching the 8th week since they car been with them and they called me from the dealership last Thursday saying that they need to replace 2 noxes for the exhaust and this fault is not related to the originals repairs and I need to pay for it and it will cost over a £1000 , and they will try to help me and write an email to Mercedes head office if they may agree to contribute to the cost of this repair and they should get the good or bad news on Monday morning .

Mercedes-Benz complaint team got back to me saying that they are confident the retailer should give me all the help I need regarding this matter and that was their final decision and if I am not happy with their decision I can contact the motor ombudsman .

this caused me a huge amount of stress mentally and financially and I feel they have breached my rights as a costumer and consumer at many points . I paid for a full dingoes and that fault was never there and they check the car many times and they never mentioned such a thing and it only came on after they did the original repairs which they should take full responsibility.

not sure what to do now and can I take any legal action against them? and if I can do anything what's the best place to contact? or has anyone experienced something similar? could this be a Company or manufacture fault ?

Note : my car is one of cars effected by the Mercedes emission cheat and I already made a claim, don't know if that could be related to this matter.


Apologies again for the lengthy message and I would appreciate any help and thank you in advance.

 

[DSK]

Really sorry to hear of this but I can appreciate the stress through repeated failures to put a car right costing you thousands each time with no end in sight.

There’s seems to quite a bit going on that I’d not expect at that mileage. However more importantly I feel the problems are down to the spanner monkeys these dealers employ, who is not even trust to be able to make a cup of tea, let alone be let loose of mechanical repairs. Sadly dealers have a 2 finger salute to customers and care.

From experience with BMW personally and a few years back where I helped a family member to get a full refund on a new Range Range Rover that spent more time in the garage than on the road, the only way to get an idea if it’s worth perusing is, get an independent mechanical assessor to go through the events until now as well as have an initial chat with a suitable lawyer. This will tell you what your position is and allow you to make the suitable decision but, I think due to the history and the so called upkeep, you are in a good position.


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[EmilysDad]

Presumably they had to change the NOx sensors because they'd applied the latest software ... hence the management light.

 

[peterws1957]

Pretty dreadful experience there. Sorry but 8 weeks is a ridiculous amount of time for a repair, no matter what the problems were. They replaced part of the exhaust system - why? What has the timing chain got to do with the gearbox? Also sounds as though they also did the infamous "update" without your knowledge which apparently causes problems with the Nox sensors. Difficult to comment without knowing what precisely what work was done and exactly why. MB customer service have also clearly fobbed you off.

Difficult to know what to do next really. Legal action can be very expensive indeed, with no guarantee of success. If it was my car, I'd be tempted to get all the paperwork together and find a respected indie to take the car to for an inspection of the work carried out. Ok this will cost a bit more, but may help you with a case to the Ombudsman if you choose to go that route. One thing I would be doing is not to use that dealer again. Find a good indie.

 

[mioba]

contact the motor ombudsman.

contact trading standards.

tell MB and the dealer you are doing the same and do it.

insist in next 2 services being free.

Stick to your guns

 

[peterws1957]

It could of course be that the work for the oil leak, and for the timing chain was necessary and the OP has simply had to pay MB dealer rates, which as we know can be high. A detailed explanation from the dealer is required. There still remains the amount of time taken to effect the repairs and the NOX issue which I wouldn't be paying for!

Perhaps as a preliminary step, an adverse Google review will get their attention? Dealers generally don't seem to like it when grievances are aired for all to see.

 

[Mr Greedy]

I had read that the NOx sensors often fail due to moisture/water ingress.

If there were plumes of white smoke, would this indicate water in the exhaust gases? If so, how did this get there? and could this have cause the NOx sensor failure?

Another example of why not to use most Mercedes dealers for complex repairs.

Good luck

 

[Jim2]

Removing the transmission to replace the oil seal ( Crankshaft , I presume ) would probably much quicker than an engine out job, and I'm sure that it is standard practice. Also under the circumstance ,it would be the ideal time to replace the timing chain tensioners and guides if they needed to be replaced. Fine up to that point. What happened after that was far from fine. I'd visit an Indie first port of call and get a full report from him of what is actually needed now to have the car running 100%, then I'd get some legal advice, and from that point onwards, I'd let the solicitors do the talking.

 

[ssheikh93]

I can't believe the standards of MB dealers and cars these day. I would seek legal help this sounds like an absolute joke and I wished you came to the forum from the beginning

 

[DSK]

I can't believe the standards of MB dealers and cars these day. I would seek legal help this sounds like an absolute joke and I wished you came to the forum from the beginning

Trouble is the public accepts this by and large by never fighting back and then proceed to buy another.... the dealers and manufacturers are laughing themselves senseless drowning in profit. A dealer is only there for one thing, to sell you a car and their workshops are a licence to print money.

I think the OP stands a good chance of getting something back from the dealer/MB provided the support from a mechanical engineer and the right lawyer have the right evidence to play with.


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[malcolm E53 AMG]

Sad to hear of the OPs problems and he probably has been unlucky.

Who knows whether the timing chain needed replacement or whether it was more proffered as a ‘while we’re in there’ suggestion which is fair enough. Assuming the oil seal and chain replacement have been done correctly the car should run ok and he has a two year warranty on this. Regarding the Nox sensors with the originals having covered 115k miles I very much doubt there will be a goodwill gesture from MB I’m sorry to say.

My view on the current MB offerings is that if you are going to do a high mileage in these cars factor in the cost of extending the warranty beyond 3 years which could be incorporated as leverage in the discussion when purchasing.

 

[EmilysDad]

.....

My view on the current MB offerings is that if you are going to do a high mileage in these cars factor in the cost of extending the warranty beyond 3 years which could be incorporated as leverage in the discussion when purchasing.

Is 115k miles a 'high mileage' these days? I bought 3 six pot Vauxhalls (Senators & an Omega) at that kind of mileage & then put another 70/80k miles on them in my ownership with no such problems.

 

[DSK]

Is 115k miles a 'high mileage' these days? I bought 3 six pot Vauxhalls (Senators & an Omega) at that kind of mileage & then put another 70/80k miles on them in my ownership with no such problems.

Yes but manufacturers realised its not profitable to make reliable cars that are also maintainable, so engineers get pushed aside and overridden by accountants which means the vast majority of the public will need to buy a car on tick every 5 minutes and continue to line the pockets of dealerships when it throws a wobbly.

In fairness a rear main seal is a rear main seal but, my gripe is with what should have been a straight forward fix for a competent mechanic (despite a big job) has meant that the OP has been taken advantage of through what I believe to be poor workmanship and ethics.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Is 115k miles a 'high mileage' these days? I bought 3 six pot Vauxhalls (Senators & an Omega) at that kind of mileage & then put another 70/80k miles on them in my ownership with no such problems.

My view relates to the 4 pot engines in the main with the addition of stop/start (additional top end wear) and Adblue systems (unreliability) there is plenty of potential to bite the high mileage owner

 

[Jim2]

My view relates to the 4 pot engines in the main with the addition of stop/start (additional top end wear) and Adblue systems (unreliability) there is plenty of potential to bite the high mileage owner

If Skoda can build a car that had 400'000 klms on it when my Daughter traded it in 3 years ago, and still meets it driving around the city,,surely MB can at least do as good? It was a Skoda Roomster 1.4 petrol engine, and She bought it new in 2008. Properly maintained, MBs should be good for at least 300'000 miles.

 

[DSK]

My view relates to the 4 pot engines in the main with the addition of stop/start (additional top end wear) and Adblue systems (unreliability) there is plenty of potential to bite the high mileage owner

Stop/Start - accelerated wear = win-win for manufacturers to make even more money on parts and repairs. I never used it on one of my cars, and find it to be one of the biggest load of tosh in cars. People should learn to just drive more economically if they think stop/start makes any sense.

 

[DSK]

If Skoda can build a car that had 400'000 klms on it when my Daughter traded it in 3 years ago, and still meets it driving around the city,,surely MB can at least do as good? It was a Skoda Roomster 1.4 petrol engine, and She bought it new in 2008. Properly maintained, MBs should be good for at least 300'000 miles.

People will still continue to go through repeated pain to own a 'badge', image seems everything in this day and age.

 

[star]

Rear mains rarely fail, the ones I have seen leak were caused by a plastic timing chain rail shattering and getting stuck under lip of seal. The rail shatters due to the chain slapping it. So one job can lead to another.
Chains can be worn at much lower mileage, seen the rattle as low as 75k.
As above with nox sensors but the can fail at any time and depending on what’s fitted, you may have to fit a pair.

 

[salam]

thank you everyone for your inputs and advice I really do appreciate it .

I will keep you updated with any progress and updates regarding this matter.

at the main time if anyone know any good indie and solicitor or any other recommendations or advice please keep them coming .

thank you .

 

[LostKiwi]

I'd be having a word with the dealer along the lines of "Given all the hassle and inconvenience you've caused me sorting out my car I'd expect this to be free as a form of goodwill for the poor service to date". If they don't play ball a few well placed posts on social media detailing your story might get the ball rolling...