Some Advise please regarding my new Merc.

paye

Hi,

Sorry for the long post.

I was hoping if someone can offer me some advice regarding a new vehicle I purchased 2.5 months ago.

I bought a £25k approved used Mercedes from a main Mercedes dealer which has a slow coolant leak fault somewhere as a warning light popped up on the dash yesterday. The car only 2 years old with 11,000 miles on the clock.

I took the car into Mercedes dealer (not the place I bought the car from but another one) who checked the car over yesterday who confirmed there is a problem somewhere, but they will need to investigate the car further as the test and checks they carried out yesterday did not show of any visible coolant leak.

When they checked the level of the coolant yesterday it was very low considering I topped up the coolant to the max last month.

The coolant was also topped up just before I picked the car up from the main dealer so that three times in a space of 2.5 month.

This morning I went to the same dealer who sold me the car and complained about the problem I am experiencing, but to be honest they tried to fob me off by saying I'll have to book the car in and the earliest they can check the car will be late January which is not acceptable. I suggested if they would put in writing that they will take full liability if I made the problem worst by driving the car until late January which they obviously declined to do, but then they suggested I call roadside assistance who would be able to come out check and book the car in to be inspected at the dealership and at the same time arrange a loan car for me which will be a lot quicker then booking the car in at the dealership.

I followed what they suggested and will be dropping the car off tomorrow to the dealer that sold me the car.

Now what I am really concerned about is if the problem turns out to be a simple fix I don’t have a problem with that, but if they had to start stripping bits of the engine to find the fault which the other dealer inadvertently mentioned then there is a problem and would like to exercise my rights to a replacement vehicle on a like for like basis or a refund, would I be able to do this or do I have to give the dealer I bought the car from one opportunity to fix the fault even though another main dealer has already tried to find and fix the issue?

What is the best way going about this?

Is it worth me emailing the dealership letting them know of my intention if they can't find and fix the fault I will be handing the car back?

If however they say they fixed the fault but the same problem re appears after 6 months can I still request a replacement car or refund?

It's blatantly obvious the car had the problem prior to me buying it.

I'd also like to hear about other similar cases where people ended up handing the car back after 30 days and if so how they went about things.

:beer:

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

I think you are probably over-thinking this. If it has taken 1 month for the slow leak to drop the level on the water, then that is really a very slow leak (though it should be water tight) and it is not surprising that they did not know of it and also not surprising that they wouldn't spot it on an inspection.

It is likely to be 4 things, a problem on a joint not being fully tightened, a stone in the radiator, the water pump itself or a pipe that has got a nick in it.

As it is an approved Merc you will have a warranty and as it is under 3 years old it will have the remainder of manufacturer's warranty. In the circumstances, I would expect them to replace the fault under warranty as it is an approved car even though they could argue that a holed radiator was fair wear and tear.

I would leave the what if until it happens. It is very unlikely to be an expensive component. The worst option is that if it is a slightly loose joint, then it suggests it could pop off at some point leading to a catastrophic loss of coolant so I think you are right to be concerned.

Also, from their point of view, they have a workshop which no doubt is closed for the best part of two weeks because of Christmas which will give them a backlog, so don't think that they are being deliberately difficult or unreasonable.

It is upsetting to have a problem on a car which is your pride and joy and you thought you were buying into something special with Mercedes and their customer service. Unfortunately, it is just a car, and Mercedes are just car dealers and makers.

I don't think a minor leak would qualify as a fault that any reasonable person would consider grounds for rejection.

EdGasketTheSecond

IanMSpencer wrote: »

It is likely to be 4 things, a problem on a joint not being fully tightened, a stone in the radiator, the water pump itself or a pipe that has got a nick in it.

..or 5) Head gasket which is more serious.

OP is there any 'cream' on the oil filler cap or the dipstick?
Can you check under the water pump and see if it is dripping from the weep hole?

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

EdGasketTheSecond wrote: »

..or 5) Head gasket which is more serious.

OP is there any 'cream' on the oil filler cap or the dipstick?
Can you check under the water pump and see if it is dripping from the weep hole?

But would also be a warranty repair.

It strikes me that also the dealer was trying to be helpful and use a way of working around the service backlog in using the Mercedes breakdown system if it is a serious problem.

Mercdriver

IanMSpencer wrote: »

But would also be a warranty repair.

It strikes me that also the dealer was trying to be helpful and use a way of working around the service backlog in using the Mercedes breakdown system if it is a serious problem.

When I had my E class, my dealer suggested the same work around when I had a very slow coolant leak (was a perished rubber washer in the EGR if my memory serves me correctly. In the event, I waited for them to be available, and mine was out of warranty so I had to pay for the repair.

mchale

You do realise you should be checking fluid levels weekly.

n217970

Is it a 220 CDI? There was a batch that have a dodgy part, not sure of its correct name but its the black plastic moulded part that houses the fuel filter. It has a load of coolant pipes going to it and has the EGR cooler bolted to it. Problem is it does not mate to the cylinder head very well. For some reason the head has 3 threaded holes but the part only has 2 holes/bolts. Mercedes released an update part with 3 holes. If you shine a torch done that side of the engine and can see loads of coolant under that part then thats your problem.

Its further complicated that the problem only shows when the engine is under load (pulling a trailer, etc) so a normal pressure test may not show any problems.

Ectophile

mchale wrote: »

You do realise you should be checking fluid levels weekly.

You should. But if you need to, then there's something wrong with the car.:D

Modern cars shouldn't be leaking fluids.

paye

I dropped the car in today at the dealers. I'm just hoping it's a relatively minor fix.

I hardly check fluids but I will start to when I get my car back.

paye

n217970 wrote: »

Is it a 220 CDI? There was a batch that have a dodgy part, not sure of its correct name but its the black plastic moulded part that houses the fuel filter. It has a load of coolant pipes going to it and has the EGR cooler bolted to it. Problem is it does not mate to the cylinder head very well. For some reason the head has 3 threaded holes but the part only has 2 holes/bolts. Mercedes released an update part with 3 holes. If you shine a torch done that side of the engine and can see loads of coolant under that part then thats your problem.

Its further complicated that the problem only shows when the engine is under load (pulling a trailer, etc) so a normal pressure test may not show any problems.

It's a c220d (2016), not sure if it has the same engine as the one above you mentioned.

n217970

paye wrote: »

It's a c220d (2016), not sure if it has the same engine as the one above you mentioned.

Yep thats the one, although the one I saw was a 2015