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Very Disappointed - Windshield on E350

Mhanson4
Thu, 04 Oct 2018 15:58:14 GMT

I developed a leak right over the driver seat in my 2014 E350. I mentioned it when I took the car in for its annual service. As it turns out, the glue that holds on the glass had failed, and the whole windshield was loose. The car has 61000 miles on it, and MB told me that this repair would not be covered under warranty. (I did purchase the MB extended warranty.) The initial quote was for $860, BUT if during the repair they cracked the glass then I would need to pay for a new windshield at ~$1500. After expressing my displeasure they did reduce the cost of the repair to $360 (or $1200). Fortunately they were able to effect the repair without damaging the windshield. To me, this not about the money. This is about a 'premium' brand not standing behind its product. Is it reasonable that the windshield fall out after four years? I've owned a lot of cars and this is a first! I even escalated this to MB USA, and basically got a big FU, we're not covering it. Based on what they told me in the service department they see this frequently. Seems to me MB is setting themse lves up for a class action at some point. Ironic thing is that they lost at least three sales over this. I was planning a n moving my wife into a 350GLE soon, and was considering a SL for myself in the next year or so. Had also almost convinced a buddy to buy a GLE, but this experience has really soured me on the brand. I love my E350 but I don't think I'll be purchasing another Benz - to me, if they're going to be this way over what is clearly a manufacturing defect, I can't count on them to be reasonable in anything. In contrast, Lexus replaced the dash pad on a 12 year old SUV at no charge because it started to get sticky. That's quite a contrast. If you have a 2012-17 E350, check your windshield. Push from the inside and see if it separates from the frame. Then good luck if you're out of warranty.

Alex
Thu, 04 Oct 2018 20:17:05 GMT

Once the warranty expires, we cannot expect the manufacturer to cover problems that are discovered with our cars. Sometimes they make an exception to maintain good will. Other times, not. Sometimes when we are fortunate to speak to the right person in the chain we get partial relief, like you got. Other times not.That's been my experience with 25 cars of several brands which were purchased for myself and my family, over a 60 year period. You can jump up and down and curse all you want, but that's how it works. If it wasn't so, manufacturers would go out of business because cars are not made perfectly. It's one reason why so many expensive cars in seemingly fine condition get sold for 20% of the purchase price ten years downstream. As for defects like the one you just encountered that show themselves too soon after the guarantee expires, most of us have had personal experience with this and felt exactly like you do. My most recent one was not so long ago. It b othered me and hurt the wallet. But the bad feeling passes, as we continue to experience the benefits of our cars.

Mhanson4
Thu, 04 Oct 2018 22:21:30 GMT

So in that 60 years and 25 cars, have you ever had a windshield literally be ready to fall out? And being told it was a common issue that the dealer sees frequently shows MB is aware of a serious quality defect they've chose to ignore and let their customers pay the price. If this were a Hyundai I'd shrug and assume you get what you pay for; I expect more from Mercedes.

vince
Fri, 05 Oct 2018 18:41:19 GMT

This story pegs my BS meter. The dealer should document the fact that this is common with this chassis/model. If he can document it you may have a better case for full replacement. A search of other forums where folks complain about everything and anything returns no, I repeat no, complaints of this nature.

Dolebludger
Sat, 06 Oct 2018 17:08:38 GMT

I too had an extended warranty through the manufacture on a different make of car and the sunroof glass shattered for no reason. The repair was not covered under my extended warranty, which excludes glass. But in my case, my insurance took care of much of the expense.But in this case, if the windshield was sound (no cracks) and the dealer broke it, the dealer should be responsible for the cost of the windshield.

Alex
Sun, 07 Oct 2018 12:17:48 GMT

Richard, the dealer did not break the windshield. The dealer said that if the windshield gets cracked during its removal when they try to repair the seal the customer would have to pay even more. It did not crack. The problem with the windshield was that the seal did not hold the windshield firmly in place. No, I never had a windshield literally be ready to fall out. But I did have an engine fail, with the odometer at 10K miles and a little past the warranty time period, so I had to pay for a new engine, with M-B contributing 20% of the total cost of around $10K. So you're not alone in having to pay for defects. Investing in a car is risky business. It doesn't always go smoothly. It's one reason why many people lease cars these days.

Dolebludger
Sun, 07 Oct 2018 23:18:39 GMT

The OP did say that the dealer cracked the windshield in the attempted seal repair. This motivated me to review my comprehensive auto insurance documents, and my policy has only a $50 deductible on glass breakage (some policies will be higher and some less). And my policy says nothing about what causes are covered and which are not (though another part of the policy excludes damage that I intentionally cause, of course).So I'd check out the insurance angle. Also, $1500 sounds way to high for a windshield. When I bought my 17 C 43, the dealer offered me a glass breakage policy. Before I said yes or no, I checked out the price of a windshield for that car with some indy auto glass shops. I was quoted $400 for an aftermarket and $800 for a genuine Mercedes windshield. (I have no idea what the difference is.) That quote, and my insurance coverage, caused me to skip the coverage the dealer offered.

vince
Mon, 08 Oct 2018 14:47:24 GMT

Quote from the original post: "Fortunately they were able to effect the repair without damaging the windshield." Also, windshield prices vary. I always use factory windshields. The last one I bought (for my son's W202 C43) was $500. When a stone cracked the windshield on my 2014 ML350 (less that a week old) the windshield was $1400.

Peter Emslander
Mon, 08 Oct 2018 15:09:52 GMT

It all depends on what bells and whistles the windshield has. there are some S class windshields that are $3700

Dolebludger
Mon, 08 Oct 2018 15:12:24 GMT

Yes, I misread the OP.

Alex
Tue, 16 Oct 2018 21:02:49 GMT

This is not an insurance issue because the windshield did not break. The issue is quite simple, but its resolution has two sides: The owner's position is that the windshield leak caused by the glass being loose from its frame is a defect which ought to be fixed of by the dealer at no charge, despite being beyond the warranty period. The dealer's side is that it may well be a defect but because it falls out of the warranty period, M-B won't cover it beyond a rather significant discount, which the dealer gave. The OP says it is not a money issue but one of principle. Fair enough. Because the OP has not commented here beyond his original post, chances are that he's cooled off and forgotten about this already - so much for principle. Nevertheless, the issue and others like it, when owners complain about problems that could be considered as defects, are interesting to discuss because sooner or later all of us encounter them. So the issue the OP raises is not unique. Reason suggests that once a car reaches the end of its guaranty, the owner must pay for the repair or repl acement of anything that goes wrong with the car, unless M-B is willing to subsidize the fix, for its own reasons. If the issue happens in enough cars and is not dealt with as a recall, car owners probably have recourse to legal action. But most complaints from owners in this forum fall into the category where a defect is discovered after the warranty period and the owner feels STRONGLY that M-B ought to pay for the fix because it's the builder's fault, despite the out-of-warranty status of the car they consider a technicality. Chances are good that many of us have been in this position at some time or other so we sympathize with the owner's point of view. At the same time we must also consider the reasonableness of such a position. Is the guaranty period just a technicality? If M-B must cover the repair of defects, for how long must it do so? I'm sure that such issues are discussed in its boardroom and decisions as to the length of guaranty from time of build or time of sale are made there. Once that time periods and mileage amounts for covering defects are established by M-B management, dealers honor these terms as best they can. And we owners must accept the warranty terms. On what other basis can we launch a further beef toward M-B and/or its dealers?

Dolebludger
Tue, 16 Oct 2018 22:32:23 GMT

I agree. If the glass was not broken, there is no isnsurance issue here. And if the New car warranty has expired, I know the dealer position quite well! But I onderstood from the OP that he had an extended warranty. We would need to know the language of that warranty to give an opinion.

vince
Tue, 16 Oct 2018 22:52:57 GMT

Alex, all you say is well put. One thing that I found disturbing with the OP's original post is this - "Based on what they told me in the service department they see this frequently. Seems to me MB is setting themselves up for a class action at some point." I searched high and low can't find any such issue with the subject chassis (or any other, in fact). I have to assume the OP is telling the truth so I find it absurd that a dealer would make such a statement. But, besides the water leak, I also have serious trouble believing that a bonded windshield (which we must recognise is a structural component) could be so loose and there not be all sorts of creaks and racket coming from the "A" Pillar/firewall area. So, my conclusion is that this was an unusual failure, after the warranty expired, and the M-B provided some "goodwill" by reducing the price. For me M-B made fair compensation. I think the dealer made the situation worse by making in my opinion a foolish statement.

Alex
Wed, 17 Oct 2018 12:35:35 GMT

I agree with you, Vince. But there might well be more to this story than has been shared so far. A previous collision, perhaps. When writing a story, it's hard to include every detail that might have a bearing on the cause or outcome. Things that we think are irrelevant we leave out. But as the discussion proceeds, and the OP is sincere, he comes forward to fill in the gaps and the discussion proceeds. Hopefully, everyone learns something. Each of two men have one dollar. They exchange their dollar. Each ends up with one dollar. Each of two men have an idea. They exchange ideas. Each ends up with two ideas.