HELP - advice please?!??! - clutch gone on a HP contract mercedes A200 in 6 mnths

dingoville

I am a Mercedes customer, currently paying monthly towards an MBFinance contract on a Mercedes A200. This is my second car as a Mercedes customer.

Within 6 months of having an A200 on contract purchase, with 15 plate, I have been unlucky enough to have the clutch "go" completely. The suggestion is that it is my driving that has caused it - so no warranty likely to cover it. The bill could be £2100 if deemed "external influence" and no warranty is accepted. To investigate further, they are requiring my undertaking the potential £2100 bill. I am not happy to undertake this as, fundamentally, I can't afford it. I also do not trust the dealership to be honest in its diagnosis. So we are at a point where there seems no way forward. And (though I am insulted that the suggestion is my driving has caused it) if it is my driving, then I am worried it could go again and again every 6 months, so I am not keen to pay the repair and have the car back.

Any advice is very welcome, and urgently needed.

Detailed breakdown of events below:

Last week, I noticed power issues when applying pressure on the accelerator. I was concerned the clutch was “slipping”. As I have never had the clutch slip on any previous vehicle I have owed or driven, I was not sure my diagnosis was correct. Nevertheless, I contacted Mercedes to book it into be looked at.

On the Wednesday (5th April), I decided I should take the vehicle down to the Merc dealership from where I had purchased it. I thought it may be a diesel filter issue (as this had plagued my previous car purchased from them), and tried to run the car through the gears on the dual carriageway by the showroom. The car began to show very strange symptoms like flashing lights to advise gear changes when the car was already in that gear.

As I came to the end of the bypass, a smell of burning solder grew and the clutch pedal became loose. The peddle then became firm again and I was able to get the car into the dealership.

On the 6th April, the car was looked at by the dealership. I was informed that the clutch would need replacing and that it would probably not fall within the warranty cover. The suggestion was that my driving would have caused the issue. I was informed that to fully investigate whether any faults had caused the issue, and therefore decide on whether the warranty would cover the issue or not, would involve major work. And to begin this, I would have to undertake, by authorising the investigation, an agreement to pay £2100 if the result of the investigation deemed the issue to be “ware and tare”.

In shock, I investigated options of how to find £2100. To get the money needed, I would need to borrow the cash, and repay around £150 each month. When added to the £285 I pay monthly and to the £55 service fee I pay, the total monthly cost, I would now face for the A200, would be almost £500 per month. Fundamentally, I don’t think this is in any way affordable.

As a customer of a reputable manufacturer like Mercedes, I choose to pay a premium price for the peace of mind the quality of the product should bring. I purchased a 2015 number plate car in September, and I feel I should be able to expect the clutch to last till past April.

Apart from being slightly offended that it is suggested “my driving” may be to blame, I am not comfortable with the idea that if my driving is the cause, after paying the £2100, I will then have another three years or more with a car that could suffer the same fate potentially every six months. How do we know the previous owner did not do the damage?

I explained this to the service rep at the showroom, who said he would speak to his manager and the sales manager, to discuss ways forward.

I was promised a call back. No call came through to my telephone. No voicemail was left.

The next day, Friday 7th April, I called in at 9.10 am and spoke to the service manager who said he would speak to the Sales manager and have me called back. I received neither a call back nor a voicemail on Friday. I called in around six times, asking to speak to the sales manager to be told that he was with a customer, away from his desk, on the forecourt. I was reassured each time that he would call back the same day. When I called at 5pm, the receptionist promised he would call back by the end of the day. When I called at 6pm, the receptionist and the sales manager had left.

To date, the dealership's sales manager has neither accepted nor returned my calls.

I then contacted MB finance at around midday. I could not have been more reassured by the series of employees who handled my 45 minute call. I was advised to raise it with their complaints team (CAC). A very diligent and helpful gentleman took all the details and reassured me that he understood my shock, concerns and the stress the issue was causing me, and he offered to investigate further.

At 4pm, I called the CAC back. This time the person I spoke to had a very different tone and was insistent that I would need to agree to the potential bill. He made it clear that, contractually, I was liable to pay. He advised that the dealership was willing to pay £200-300 towards the investigation. I asked how much the investigation alone would cost and he suggested I called the dealership back.

I called the dealership and finally spoke the senior sales manager.

He did not understand the separation of the investigation cost from the repairs. He also said he could not begin any extensive investigation until I authorised it and agreed to pay potentially £2100.

He also mentioned twice that by involving the complaints team, I had changed the way would be able to work to resolve this. He said that the CAC team’s involvement would make “everything more formal” and stopped him being able to work things out or discuss things “man to man”. I can only take this to mean that he was voicing his frustration at the involvement of MB finance head office and that it could make things more difficult for me. He said he would speak to his Managing Director in the morning (Tues 11th). He has not come back to me yet.

I then called the CAC back to express my alarm at the slightly threatening tone used by the Sales Manager at Caterham about the involvement of the CAC. The lady who spoke to me was very sympathetic and reassured me that the involvement of the CAC would not change anything.

And this is where I am now:
1. I have no car to drive, for which I am paying monthly.
2. I cannot get the car back on the road without undertaking a £2100 bill.
3. A monthly cost of £500 (which is what the loan repayments of £2100 and the monthly payments in my contract will total) is unaffordable and unfeasible.
4. I am without any trust or faith in the dealership, as they have ignored/avoided my attempts to contact them, not managed to return my numerous calls and even suggested there will be adverse consequences caused because I contacted MB Finance.
5. I am still shocked that I am being blamed and my liability is suggested for the clutch damage, as I have had the car less than 8 months.
6. Fundamentally, I wish I had never taken a contact with Mercedes and would ideally want to walk away from the contract with immediate effect.

I am therefore appealing to anyone to advise me on a course of action to resolve this hugely stressful situation.

From my research, I realise that legally the clutch can be deemed my responsibility. However, in several cases, the clutch going so soon after purchasing the car can lead the dealership to show some flexibility as it is very unlikely the damage was caused by the driver.

I am left with no faith in the dealership, little faith in Mercedes cars and a huge problem that I cannot see any way to resolve. Meanwhile, I continue to pay monthly for a car that I am unable to drive.

Any advice or experience shared will be gratefully received.

Ideally, I would like to return the car and cease payments by leaving the contract early. I realise contractually this would be abnormal. However, I believe the situation in which I now find myself and the dissatisfaction I am currently experiencing is also abnormal. In all honesty, my credit rating is currently very poor, and I am willing to take the hit on this and would love to give the car back and wash my hands of the car and my commitment to the dealership.

I am unable to pay the 90% early termination stipulated in the contract if I terminate early. But what would they do if I was willing to return the car immediately?

Thank you for your anticipated help and advice.

rob7475

I had a 2 year old Hyundai with similar issues. The dealership tried telling me it was my driving style (I've been driving nearly 20 years and average over 20,000 miles a year and have never worn a clutch out) They told me the clutch was worn and I'd have to pay for the repair as warranty didn't cover it.

I ended up complaining to Hyundai UK (via their UK CEO). They were very helpful and got me a hire car whilst they forced the garage to strip the gearbox. It turned out that the clutch wasn't worn at all and there was a gearbox fault. They returned my car a month later, very apologetic about the dealership's diagnosis of clutch failure and offered a free service.

I'd suggest finding who the UK CEO of Mercedes is and emailing him. This will get passed to the 'executive team' who are much more helpful than the standard customer service route.

dingoville

rob7475 wrote: »

I had a 2 year old Hyundai with similar issues. The dealership tried telling me it was my driving style (I've been driving nearly 20 years and average over 20,000 miles a year and have never worn a clutch out) They told me the clutch was worn and I'd have to pay for the repair as warranty didn't cover it.

I ended up complaining to Hyundai UK (via their UK CEO). They were very helpful and got me a hire car whilst they forced the garage to strip the gearbox. It turned out that the clutch wasn't worn at all and there was a gearbox fault. They returned my car a month later, very apologetic about the dealership's diagnosis of clutch failure and offered a free service.

I'd suggest finding who the UK CEO of Mercedes is and emailing him. This will get passed to the 'executive team' who are much more helpful than the standard customer service route.

Hi there,
Ok, so I am not going mad in trying to dig my heels in on this then?
Your example is almost identical to mine, and, actually, you had the car for more miles and for longer time.
Hmm... I have already contacted the CEO and await a response.
Thanks again.
Hugely appreciate your time and kindness in responding.

Chris

System

As I understand it it is a 15 plate which has had the clutch fail at 2 years old. Unfortunately you make no mention of the mileage, either what it is now or when you bought it 6 months ago. When I bought my Mondeo at 2 years old it had 38,000 miles, my previous one I bought at 3 years old had 90,000 miles on. So it being 2 years old isn't an indication that its low mileage so we need some clarification.

It could quite possibly be your driving depending on the mileage and type of journey you do. My grandfather used to go through a clutch every 12 months because he wore medical boots, used to slip the clutch to hell when setting off/changing gear and rest his foot on the clutch pedal all the time. It could quite possibly be the driving style of the previous owner so when you bought the car the clutch was in a poor shape however unfortunately you can't check when you buy a car without spending several hours removing the gearbox. And clutches are consumable items so wear tends not to be covered by warranty.

In regards to the investigation, it takes several hours to remove/replace a gearbox on those cars and the garage isn't going to do it for nothing so they want a guarantee that when they've taken it off and it turns out to be a chargeable repair that you're going to pay for that work, not just turn round and say "sorry can't afford it" leaving them with several hours of labour costs and lost workshop earnings. The number of people who've done that over the years who have done that to garages has resulted in the abuse of goodwill so you now pay the normal hourly rate for having a fault diagnosed which is usually offset against the cost of the repair or cancelled if it is a warranty claim but in short nothing is going to get done to find what the fault is until you agree to putting your hand in your pocket in the case of the fault being a non-warranty one.

dingoville

Tarambor wrote: »

As I understand it it is a 15 plate which has had the clutch fail at 2 years old. Unfortunately you make no mention of the mileage, either what it is now or when you bought it 6 months ago. When I bought my Mondeo at 2 years old it had 38,000 miles, my previous one I bought at 3 years old had 90,000 miles on. So it being 2 years old isn't an indication that its low mileage so we need some clarification.

It could quite possibly be your driving depending on the mileage and type of journey you do. My grandfather used to go through a clutch every 12 months because he wore medical boots, used to slip the clutch to hell when setting off/changing gear and rest his foot on the clutch pedal all the time. It could quite possibly be the driving style of the previous owner so when you bought the car the clutch was in a poor shape however unfortunately you can't check when you buy a car without spending several hours removing the gearbox. And clutches are consumable items so wear tends not to be covered by warranty.

In regards to the investigation, it takes several hours to remove/replace a gearbox on those cars and the garage isn't going to do it for nothing so they want a guarantee that when they've taken it off and it turns out to be a chargeable repair that you're going to pay for that work, not just turn round and say "sorry can't afford it" leaving them with several hours of labour costs and lost workshop earnings. The number of people who've done that over the years who have done that to garages has resulted in the abuse of goodwill so you now pay the normal hourly rate for having a fault diagnosed which is usually offset against the cost of the repair or cancelled if it is a warranty claim but in short nothing is going to get done to find what the fault is until you agree to putting your hand in your pocket in the case of the fault being a non-warranty one.

ok: I've driven 10,000 miles and it was around 18000 on the clock when purchased.

But the issue is currently that I can't afford it and so I am telling them now... therefore I am stuck paying for a car I can't drive 6 months into 4 year contract. Or I borrow £2100 and end up paying around £500 a month for the car... absolutely stuck!

AdrianC

You have a car that has covered 28,000 miles in 2 years.
The fact that 18,000 of those miles in 18 months was not with you driving is irrelevant to your case.

If the clutch has worn out - and it sounds as if it has - then there will need to be strong evidence of a mechanical fault causing that excess wear if the warranty is going to cover it. Read the Ts & Cs of your warranty - it will specifically exclude wear and tear, especially on friction material.

The fault was clearly not pre-existing at the time of purchase, since you've covered 10,000 miles in six months without any problem.

I called the dealership and finally spoke the senior sales manager.

He did not understand the separation of the investigation cost from the repairs. He also said he could not begin any extensive investigation until I authorised it and agreed to pay potentially £2100.

I think the one not understanding is you.

To diagnose the fault and cause, the car needs to come apart. The gearbox needs to be removed. This may well require the removal of the front subframe. Once the car is apart, it needs to go back together again, unless you'll be removing it in pieces, completely voiding the warranty and probably the finance agreement. Since the affected parts will be out, it makes zero sense not to put it back together using new parts. The car is now at an M-B main dealer, so very high labour rates and parts prices. If the warranty accept liability, you will have to pay nothing. If M-B offer a goodwill payment, you will have to pay the rest. Otherwise (and this is the most likely scenario, bar the token £200 they've already offered), it's your bill.

If you have so little financial reserves, may I suggest driving such an expensive car is probably not appropriate? There are 9 25k-30k 15 plate A-class manual diesels on M-B's approved used website. They range in price between £15k and £20k.

dingoville

AdrianC wrote: »

You have a car that has covered 28,000 miles in 2 years.
The fact that 18,000 of those miles in 18 months was not with you driving is irrelevant to your case.

If the clutch has worn out - and it sounds as if it has - then there will need to be strong evidence of a mechanical fault causing that excess wear if the warranty is going to cover it. Read the Ts & Cs of your warranty - it will specifically exclude wear and tear, especially on friction material.

The fault was clearly not pre-existing at the time of purchase, since you've covered 10,000 miles in six months without any problem.

I think the one not understanding is you.

To diagnose the fault and cause, the car needs to come apart. The gearbox needs to be removed. This may well require the removal of the front subframe. Once the car is apart, it needs to go back together again, unless you'll be removing it in pieces, completely voiding the warranty and probably the finance agreement. Since the affected parts will be out, it makes zero sense not to put it back together using new parts. The car is now at an M-B main dealer, so very high labour rates and parts prices. If the warranty accept liability, you will have to pay nothing. If M-B offer a goodwill payment, you will have to pay the rest. Otherwise (and this is the most likely scenario, bar the token £200 they've already offered), it's your bill.

If you have so little financial reserves, may I suggest driving such an expensive car is probably not appropriate? There are 9 25k-30k 15 plate A-class manual diesels on M-B's approved used website. They range in price between £15k and £20k.

Thanks for your help. I meant no offence when saying the sales manager "did not understand" as it referred to the fact I had been told there was a separate cost for investigation and replacement by the CAC team. I think that was an error on their part.

I absolutely agree that driving a less expensive car would be ideal. But at this point in time such a suggestion doesn't help. I would LOVE to drive a less expensive car. But the dealership, to a certain extent, have had me over a barrel since my last car was returned.

I would LOVE to leave my contract with them and simply purchase a secondhand car for £2000 ... my life would be improved immeasurably through reduced financial stress and no more need to work with this particular dealership.

But the problem is I am currently stuck at the start of a 4 year contract, a potential £2100 bill, no car and with no way out.

- any advice on how to extricate myself from the situation would be most welcome.

Chris

Penelopa.Pitstop

You mentioned Caterham dealership. Last time I visited them, they had plenty of ex-corporate A-class cars. Was your car registered to Mercedes by any chance before you bought it? Maybe this can help a bit with negotiation and some good will gesture?

Muscle750

End of the day do you think youve done the clutch by driving like a plank yes or no reading between the lines i think you know the answer.

arcon5

£2100.... Jesus Christ they are trying to pull your pants well and curly down to your ankles

vikingaero

There must be 1001 independent garages who can repair that cheaper than Mercedes. Mercedes wanted £5,500 for a new automatic gearbox in my Dads A-Class. We took it to an independent who repaired it for £1,300 for a new valve body (+£100 for transportation from Kent to Surrey).

If they are not willing to contribute then get it repaired elsewhere.