Rusting Mercedes 2007 ML.

[television]

Hawk read what you have said and argue with yourself, not with me thank you

 

[hawk20]

Hawk read what you have said and argue with yourself, not with me thank you

Try reading it and quoting what I actually said next time.

 

[television]

Try reading it and quoting what I actually said next time.

I would never embark on that again with you, never thank you, you can read what you have said

 

[hawk20]

First you quite wrongly state I have never dealt with rust -even though you had no means of knowing whether that was true or not. And then you completely misquote what I said about the rust on the OP's car.

I shall be very happy if you manage to refrain from doing this in future.

 

[television]

First you quite wrongly state I have never dealt with rust -even though you had no means of knowing whether that was true or not. And then you completely misquote what I said about the rust on the OP's car.

I shall be very happy if you manage to refrain from doing this in future.

As before read what you have said

 

[hawk20]

As before read what you have said

I have done. And quoted it accurately. Pity you cannot apologise.

 

[Xtractorfan]

This is a picture from the tail gate of an 06 ML 320 CDI which we had in today.. I was surprised to see this bubble of rust on the Tailgate and there is no visible breakage in the paint film, so it is not a stone chip or paint damage....http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=12316&stc=1&d=1281645882

 

[dieselman]

I am now in an incedible position where our 2006 CLS has more rust on it than the 1984 panels hanging on a '79 Granada!!

That's a bit worrying as it's a mainstream model, built in Germany and well after Mercedes claim the rust problem is sorted by using galvanised sheet.

I don't see how it can be the steel used as most car body steel is recycled, but as a part of the recycling process impurities are removed as slag.

From what I see it's due to poor design leaving vulnerable edges exposed and then poor primer and top-coat application. The primer doesn't really seem to grip the metal very well in certain areas.
this is the poor pre paint prep observed in a previous post. I suspect he steel isn't being properly cleaned prior to paint application.

 

[television]

That's a bit worrying as it's a mainstream model, built in Germany and well after Mercedes claim the rust problem is sorted by using galvanised sheet.

I don't see how it can be the steel used as most car body steel is recycled, but as a part of the recycling process impurities are removed as slag.

From what I see it's due to poor design leaving vulnerable edges exposed and then poor primer and top-coat application. The primer doesn't really seem to grip the metal very well in certain areas.
this is the poor pre paint prep observed in a previous post. I suspect he steel isn't being properly cleaned prior to paint application.

When I removed some rust with stripper so as not to disturb the metal there were microscopic holes in the metal, brown in colour

 

[dieselman]

When I removed some rust with stripper so as not to disturb the metal there were microscopic holes in the metal, brown in colour

I understand what you are saying, but that could just be because the rust has already migrated through the steel before becoming visible on the exterior.
don't forget there would be no wax rustproofing applied to the rear of the panel and the paint coat there is rubbish.
The very nature of steel manufacture excludes rust from the finished product.

 

[television]

I understand what you are saying, but that could just be because the rust has already migrated through the steel before becoming visible on the exterior.
don't forget there would be no wax rustproofing applied to the rear of the panel and the paint coat there is rubbish.
The very nature of steel manufacture excludes rust from the finished product.

No this had not come through the metal and it was on the face side, I have used a spring loaded center punch for years to test these things to see if the metal was porous, and it was not

 

[dieselman]

My suspicion is that the primer fails to make a proper bond to the steel and draws moisture under it for a long time before there is anything visible by way of a bubble.
The moisture allows rust to gradually eat away at the steel under the primer, thus the pock marks you are seeing and also along with the spider webbing often seen.

 

[television]

My suspicion is that the primer fails to make a proper bond to the steel and draws moisture under it for a long time before there is anything visible by way of a bubble.
The moisture allows rust to gradually eat away at the steel under the primer, thus the pock marks you are seeing and also along with the spider webbing often seen.

For sure there is something wrong with the primer and the bonding, as we all know most cars get a stone chip and nothing much happens, nothing happens on my 12 year old V70R there are a few chips, but nowhere near as bad as the MB and they have never been touched up, but at the same time still tiny chips, unlike the huge scabs that appear on MB's from nowhere. My V70R wheel arches are as good as when it left the factory

 

[Matt32AMG]

Well for what it’s worth talking of rust issues, a couple of months ago I had all four corners, (wheel arch return flange edges), stripped back to metal to remove rust on my 32. They were prepped, primered, top coated with body colour and stone guarded, the final touch was that the arches were then wax oiled.

In general a good job except, having got my car back from the body shop, I thought I’d take all the wheels off and give them a birthday and afford them a thorough clean and polish.

First I noticed the lacquer was chipped on several of the bolt recesses, (i had the wheels refurbed 12c months ago and they were perfect, but Imagine my horror when I was unable to undo the rear wheel nuts on the nearside rear wheel without getting a three foot long extension bar on my socket wrench. But worse still, having given cleaned that wheel and refitted, I moved on to the nearside front wheel. I undid the front nearside wheel nuts with my fingers! The only thing keeping the wheel on was the wheel locking nut. The offside front wheel wasn’t much better and was clearly under-torqued as was the corresponding rear wheel.

So I rang the MB approved body shop, only to make them aware of what I had found. They totally dismissed what I was saying, insisting that the wheels were put on correctly. I said how can this be, I undid the wheel nuts with my bare fingers? The chap on the end of the phone said “we check these things thoroughly, they are always checked and double checked and signed off with two signatures. I said “Well with respect, that maybe the process but this simply can’t have been done, as I would not have been able to do what I’ve just outlined . If the wheel bolts are tightened correctly to the torque settings, they would not come undone. He insisted they were fine. I said “So you are suggesting I’m lying to you? Why would I do that? There is absolutely nothing in it for me to do so, nothing to gain, the job was a warranty repair, Mercedes were paying for it, so it’s not like I’m trying to negotiate anything off the price. I’m simply drawing your attention to the fact I could have had a serious accident because of this, as of course your chap who delivered the car back to me”. (Salisbury is some 30 miles away from my home).

So the moral of this story is, if you go to MG Cannon of Salisbury, and have the wheel arches treated to remove the rust, or any job for that matter that require the wheels are removed, when you get the car back, hopefully in one piece, check all the wheel nuts are tightened as they should be.

The sad thing is that the proprietor, missed the point entirely, that I was trying to inform him that something as simple as this, got under the wire and could have had serious outcomes. All he had to do was acknowledge what was being said and he would look into it and ensure something like this didn’t happen again. End of full stop. It’s called customer relations. Instead he inferred, because of the processes they use, I was a liar and that I was impossible to please and a very difficult customer.

Needless to say I won’t be using their services again.

 

[television]

Thanks Matt..I hope that it last OK after all that.. If only firms new how to relate to customers

 

[merc7]

For sure there is something wrong with the primer and the bonding, as we all know most cars get a stone chip and nothing much happens, nothing happens on my 12 year old V70R there are a few chips, but nowhere near as bad as the MB and they have never been touched up, but at the same time still tiny chips, unlike the huge scabs that appear on MB's from nowhere. My V70R wheel arches are as good as when it left the factory

Trade-in your sl for new model R231 in 2012 aluminium body i believe not rust i hope

 

[television]

Trade-in your sl for new model R231 in 2012 aluminium body i believe not rust i hope

I do not like the shape of the new one,,and no more new ones for me.

My body is all alli apart from the rear wings

 

[Developer]

In a previous life I spent many years working at Longbridge, including stints managing the build of development cars (test vehicles) from Body in White to finished car. There were many occasions, due facility breakdowns in the manufacturing process, where bare panels or complete BIW bodies were stacked and stored in areas (including outside) not really suitable for untreated metal.

When the facility was fixed there was pressure to get the stockpiled panel sets and bodies back into the manufacturing process. Contaminants, pre galv or pre paint could be there to stay, right up till the time they decide to show themselves (like my tailgate bubble).

Whilst clearly not the cause of large scale rust problems ala W210, I'm suggesting it may help to explain "rogue" bodies getting into the system (like this rare ML) and wouldn't be unique to Rover.

Car factories aren't the sterile environment you might think they are.

 

[Xtractorfan]

I do take your story and its contents very seriously.. But you have to understand the attitude taken by the Person you were speaking to at the MB garage... No one takes responsibility for anything that goes wrong, it is a part of business.. Once they had admitted it might have happened there they are leaving themselves open to the possibility of serious litigation from all and sundry..
MB are doing the same with the rust issue and hoping that people will go away and forget all about it...

 

[Matt32AMG]

Thanks Matt..I hope that it last OK after all that.. If only firms new how to relate to customers

Well it was caught early as the car is garaged when not in use, so I'm hopeful that the measures taken will halt the progress of rust. Fortunately this process didn't involve having to paint the wings.

As regards their customer service approach Malcolm, well more fool him. The company has garnered negative feedback for his careless arrogant attitude over the simplest and most important of things. Safety.

As the saying goes “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it, and if you think about that, you’ll do things differently”

Well he just committed the first mistake in business, not listening to his customer. He won't get that chance again, not from me.