Bought car on 7/12 and with only 200 miles driven, the check engine light came on, drove to grocery store 10 miles away. On the way there I noticed that it was slow and would not accelerate. When I came out of the store and returned to car and it would turn over like it was going to start but it wouldn't. On the 2nd or 3rd try it would not even hardly turn over.
Called husband who brought jumper cables, had them hooked up 0 minutes with his vehicle running and we then tried to start and the same thing happened, turned over at first but would not start and would hardly even turn over on the 3rd try. We called a tow truck and it was towed to his shop in Columbia, TN where he said he could check the codes and find out the problem and save me money. Initially he said the code read "crankshaft sensor" and "alternator".
Finally on 8/14 he said wiring was bad going to the sensor but he put new wires on, he said he didn't put alternator on because he felt it was the wires bad and not the alternator. On 8/17 we went to pick up the car and he charged me $550. which was mostly labor. I left and within about 2 miles the "check engine" light came back on. I called him from my cell and he said that he may have forgot to turn off the check engine light with his decoder. I drove back and he turned off the check engine light.
I proceed across town (5 miles or less) and was still in the city limits when the "check engine" light came back on. I called the mechanic, he didn't answer phone, I left him a message on voice mail. My husband was following me and we planned on stopping to eat but when this happened again, I told him that the car was probably going to go into limp mode again and leave us stranded in a restaurant parking lot, so I thought it best if we just drove on home. We pulled in front of our house and I turned off the engine and guess what....it would turn over but would not start.
Three weeks in the shop, $550. gone down the drain and I have the same problem I started out with. I sent the mechanic a text message, but no response to that yet. Today I called the shop and left a message with someone there and he said he guessed they would have to come and get the car and that he would tell the owner to give me a call. I bought the car because my husband is 80 and he wanted a MB before he died and it has been a problem since we bought it. Items listed in the ad for the car were missing and the dealer was a total ass and would not make good for the missing items, tried to commit fraud by trying to get us to pay twice for the car, but I contacted the state police and put the BBB after him.
The car is pretty, rides good when it is running, but we haven't figured out yet how to keep it running and still have some money left in our pockets.
Update from Dec 13, 2015: Car sat in front yard and would not start for a month. Mechanic did not call me back so I got another mechanic who towed vehicle to his garage in Shelbyville, TN He fixed some additional wiring, put on the new alternator and belt I had purchased since the first mechanic did not put one on even though a generator light was coming on. He also replaced the crankshaft sensor that the first mechanic had put in and for which the code was coming up and he replaced the rear battery with a new one which was under warranty. He felt it would start now, but it didn't. He attempted to reprogram the ecm but it did not work. He then towed the vechicle to the Mercedes Benz dealer who refused to even test the vehicle until it had an Interstate Mercedes Battery in it. The battery that was in the car when I purchased it was an AC Delco, which after driving over 50 years I considered to be better than an Interstate battery. They charged me $50. just for taking out the AC Delco and temporarily
putting an Interstate Battery in to run the test. They then said that the ECM (the brains) was defective and had to be replaced and low and behold nobody has one, not even Germany and it will not be in until March. I bought this on 7/12, drove the car twice or 200 miles and they want $3500. to fix it if and when the parts come in. This is the WORST possible customer service I have ever see in my entire life of over 65 years. How can they have the nerve to even sell a car that isn't even any good after 88,000 miles and they can't even get the part for 4 MONTHS, They claim that the defective alternator which the first mechanic said he was going to replace and then didn't is what caused the ECM to go bad. Does anyone out there know of a really, really, good lawyer in Middle Tennessee in or near Nashville? If so, I need a name or names and phone numbers. Thanks.
Update from Mar 12, 2016: After installing a new ecm, check engine light was still on, Mercedes Benz of Nashville stated the alternator was bad. We had just installed a new alternator prior to bringing the car to Mercedes. Since they wanted $1200. for this and the installed alternator was still under warranty the car was transported via rollback to my mechanic in Shelbyville, TN. The auto parts dealer honored the lifetime warranty and gave us another alternator. The mechanic had proper test equipment and tested the alternator with and without a load and it was working fine. It was installed and the mechanic stated that the ecm that was installed by Mercedes Benz of Nashville was not allowing the alternator to charge correctly. The car was towed again to Mercedes Benz of Nashville where they installed a remanufactured alternator and charged me $873.44 plus $479.52 in labor. Lo and behold it was not fixed, alas there was another Code they said and it was a Battery Control Unit located in the trunk also known in Haynes manual as "earth" unit. A new unit was supposedly installed at a cost of $487.60. We were told car was ready. After paying the bill which totaled $2075.51 they said they would get the car to us in a minute. After waiting at least 10 -15 minutes the mechanic from Shelbyville who went with me said wonder where the car is it is taking an awful long time, I said Joking that maybe the car won't start. He said it better be fixed this time after all this expense. The Asst. Service Manager, initials TB came by and asked if he could help us. The mechanic told him we were waiting to pick up a car. He took the four digit number off the paperwork and went down to the intercom phone and asked where our car was. Over the intercom came the reply that "they had to jump it". Mercedes Benz of Nashville had insisted the time in was up there before that they install two new Mercedes Benz batteries in the car when the battery in the rear was a brand new AC Delco and they had just put a new remanufactured MB alternator on the car plus the new Battery Control Unit and it still would not start***. After the car was brought up, they said the "check engine light" had came on and they read it and said it needed a "Crankshaft sensor". We advised that we had already put two (2) of these new crankshaft sensors on the car and it had not even been driven anywhere. They removed the check engine light and the mechanic got in it to drive it home as he wanted to check it out. In about 3 miles the check engine light came on and the car went into limp mode. I was following in my little, very reliable Toyota Corolla with 50,000 more miles on it that I have only replaced front brake pads once and tires, of course, and routine oil/filter changes. Although I never had phone contact with the mechanic I could tell the car was not running right. When we got to the garage in Shelbyville the mechanic was checking the car out and found that Mercedes Benz of Nashville had left a hose unhooked and the left front turn signal was not working. It was working when we took it to
Mercedes Benz of Nashville. The mechanic replaced the bulb but it did not work. He checked and told me that I needed an entire headlight assembly because the socket was "melted". I called MB-USA and told them that I felt it was the stupid "inferior" cheap wiring that was put on cars from the early 1990's thru 2005. From what I have read they were supposed to have put better wiring on the 2006's but I would not trust Mercedes to tell the truth anymore that I could throw a bull by the horns. MB-USA stated they were issuing a citation or some such thing as a slap on the wrist because Mercedes Benz of Nashville should have checked my car out the first time without making me put in the new batteries. They also said they would have them come up with corrective measures to fix my vehicle and Mercedes Benz of Nashville would get in touch with me. That was Wednesday March 9, 2016 and this is March 12, 2016 and no call yet. Mercedes Benz of Nashville are parts "replacers" not mechanics. Another MB dealer told me that the codes were only there as a guide to check the item, out and see it it is working or not and then a mechanic is to go on looking at a different code until he finds the real problem. Someone needs to inform Mercedes Benz of Nashvile of this because all they are after is money they don't give a hoot about the customer.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Bought car on 7/12 and with only 200 miles driven, the check engine light came on, drove to grocery store 10 miles away. On the way there I noticed that it was slow and would not accelerate. When I came out of the store and returned to car and it would turn over like it was going to start but it wouldn't. On the 2nd or 3rd try it would not even hardly turn over.
Called husband who brought jumper cables, had them hooked up 0 minutes with his vehicle running and we then tried to start and the same thing happened, turned over at first but would not start and would hardly even turn over on the 3rd try. We called a tow truck and it was towed to his shop in Columbia, TN where he said he could check the codes and find out the problem and save me money. Initially he said the code read "crankshaft sensor" and "alternator".
Finally on 8/14 he said wiring was bad going to the sensor but he put new wires on, he said he didn't put alternator on because he felt it was the wires bad and not the alternator. On 8/17 we went to pick up the car and he charged me $550. which was mostly labor. I left and within about 2 miles the "check engine" light came back on. I called him from my cell and he said that he may have forgot to turn off the check engine light with his decoder. I drove back and he turned off the check engine light.
I proceed across town (5 miles or less) and was still in the city limits when the "check engine" light came back on. I called the mechanic, he didn't answer phone, I left him a message on voice mail. My husband was following me and we planned on stopping to eat but when this happened again, I told him that the car was probably going to go into limp mode again and leave us stranded in a restaurant parking lot, so I thought it best if we just drove on home. We pulled in front of our house and I turned off the engine and guess what....it would turn over but would not start.
Three weeks in the shop, $550. gone down the drain and I have the same problem I started out with. I sent the mechanic a text message, but no response to that yet. Today I called the shop and left a message with someone there and he said he guessed they would have to come and get the car and that he would tell the owner to give me a call. I bought the car because my husband is 80 and he wanted a MB before he died and it has been a problem since we bought it. Items listed in the ad for the car were missing and the dealer was a total ass and would not make good for the missing items, tried to commit fraud by trying to get us to pay twice for the car, but I contacted the state police and put the BBB after him.
The car is pretty, rides good when it is running, but we haven't figured out yet how to keep it running and still have some money left in our pockets.
Update from Dec 13, 2015: Car sat in front yard and would not start for a month. Mechanic did not call me back so I got another mechanic who towed vehicle to his garage in Shelbyville, TN He fixed some additional wiring, put on the new alternator and belt I had purchased since the first mechanic did not put one on even though a generator light was coming on. He also replaced the crankshaft sensor that the first mechanic had put in and for which the code was coming up and he replaced the rear battery with a new one which was under warranty. He felt it would start now, but it didn't. He attempted to reprogram the ecm but it did not work. He then towed the vechicle to the Mercedes Benz dealer who refused to even test the vehicle until it had an Interstate Mercedes Battery in it. The battery that was in the car when I purchased it was an AC Delco, which after driving over 50 years I considered to be better than an Interstate battery. They charged me $50. just for taking out the AC Delco and temporarily putting an Interstate Battery in to run the test. They then said that the ECM (the brains) was defective and had to be replaced and low and behold nobody has one, not even Germany and it will not be in until March. I bought this on 7/12, drove the car twice or 200 miles and they want $3500. to fix it if and when the parts come in. This is the WORST possible customer service I have ever see in my entire life of over 65 years. How can they have the nerve to even sell a car that isn't even any good after 88,000 miles and they can't even get the part for 4 MONTHS, They claim that the defective alternator which the first mechanic said he was going to replace and then didn't is what caused the ECM to go bad. Does anyone out there know of a really, really, good lawyer in Middle Tennessee in or near Nashville? If so, I need a name or names and phone numbers. Thanks.
Update from Mar 12, 2016: After installing a new ecm, check engine light was still on, Mercedes Benz of Nashville stated the alternator was bad. We had just installed a new alternator prior to bringing the car to Mercedes. Since they wanted $1200. for this and the installed alternator was still under warranty the car was transported via rollback to my mechanic in Shelbyville, TN. The auto parts dealer honored the lifetime warranty and gave us another alternator. The mechanic had proper test equipment and tested the alternator with and without a load and it was working fine. It was installed and the mechanic stated that the ecm that was installed by Mercedes Benz of Nashville was not allowing the alternator to charge correctly. The car was towed again to Mercedes Benz of Nashville where they installed a remanufactured alternator and charged me $873.44 plus $479.52 in labor. Lo and behold it was not fixed, alas there was another Code they said and it was a Battery Control Unit located in the trunk also known in Haynes manual as "earth" unit. A new unit was supposedly installed at a cost of $487.60. We were told car was ready. After paying the bill which totaled $2075.51 they said they would get the car to us in a minute. After waiting at least 10 -15 minutes the mechanic from Shelbyville who went with me said wonder where the car is it is taking an awful long time, I said Joking that maybe the car won't start. He said it better be fixed this time after all this expense. The Asst. Service Manager, initials TB came by and asked if he could help us. The mechanic told him we were waiting to pick up a car. He took the four digit number off the paperwork and went down to the intercom phone and asked where our car was. Over the intercom came the reply that "they had to jump it". Mercedes Benz of Nashville had insisted the time in was up there before that they install two new Mercedes Benz batteries in the car when the battery in the rear was a brand new AC Delco and they had just put a new remanufactured MB alternator on the car plus the new Battery Control Unit and it still would not start***. After the car was brought up, they said the "check engine light" had came on and they read it and said it needed a "Crankshaft sensor". We advised that we had already put two (2) of these new crankshaft sensors on the car and it had not even been driven anywhere. They removed the check engine light and the mechanic got in it to drive it home as he wanted to check it out. In about 3 miles the check engine light came on and the car went into limp mode. I was following in my little, very reliable Toyota Corolla with 50,000 more miles on it that I have only replaced front brake pads once and tires, of course, and routine oil/filter changes. Although I never had phone contact with the mechanic I could tell the car was not running right. When we got to the garage in Shelbyville the mechanic was checking the car out and found that Mercedes Benz of Nashville had left a hose unhooked and the left front turn signal was not working. It was working when we took it to Mercedes Benz of Nashville. The mechanic replaced the bulb but it did not work. He checked and told me that I needed an entire headlight assembly because the socket was "melted". I called MB-USA and told them that I felt it was the stupid "inferior" cheap wiring that was put on cars from the early 1990's thru 2005. From what I have read they were supposed to have put better wiring on the 2006's but I would not trust Mercedes to tell the truth anymore that I could throw a bull by the horns. MB-USA stated they were issuing a citation or some such thing as a slap on the wrist because Mercedes Benz of Nashville should have checked my car out the first time without making me put in the new batteries. They also said they would have them come up with corrective measures to fix my vehicle and Mercedes Benz of Nashville would get in touch with me. That was Wednesday March 9, 2016 and this is March 12, 2016 and no call yet. Mercedes Benz of Nashville are parts "replacers" not mechanics. Another MB dealer told me that the codes were only there as a guide to check the item, out and see it it is working or not and then a mechanic is to go on looking at a different code until he finds the real problem. Someone needs to inform Mercedes Benz of Nashvile of this because all they are after is money they don't give a hoot about the customer.
- Karen C., Shelbyville, TN, US