I recently picked up my 92 400E from a local body shop that had done some insurance repairs. The car's front end was totally smashed. The following parts where repalced:

Radiator, AC condensor, Aux fans, too may lines and hoses to mention, belts, water pump, ect... you get the idea.

I picked up the car last Friday, first thing I noticed was that the steering was really slugish and heavy and the car was making a tapping and grinding noise. Without ever drivivng out of the shop I checked the power steering resevoir and found that it was empty! I asked the shop what the deal was? The shop added some fluid and said it was no big deal they must have forgot to fill it. Ok so off I went. After a few miles my engine started to over heat.
I said enough is enough so I puled it over and had it towed to an authorized repair shop to have the car checked out thoroghly. The shop found that the replacement radiator was defective, and I had a leaking power steering pump. The insurance company's damage accessor was called to check the car out. Now the accessor claims the leaking power steering pump is not a result of the accident. I did not have a problem before the accident with the power steering pump, but now it leaks so badly that all the fluid leaks out , so something happened to cause this? How can I proove that this was caused by the front end damage when there is no visible damage to the pump that the accessor can see?

What did he say when checking out the car ? If he is saying that it cant be bad because its new perhaps you could get a statement from the shop saying that they filled it up before and it drained out by the time you drove it. Also the proof of the incorrect/damaged radiator would help support your case I would think as far as the quality of work from that certain repair shop goes.

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88 300E
03 911 C4S
2008 Triumph Speed Triple

My pics --> www.BrettAdamsDesign.com

bet they test ran it with out fluid..............

William Rogers.............

The power steering pump was not replaced, they made a visual inspection after the accidnt and determined that it did not sustain any damage. Hard for me to believe since everything in the immidate vacinity was damaged even the black plastic distrib/rotor spark retardant cover behind the power steering resevoir was cracked and had to be replaced. Can't figure out why they are not willing to replace such an important part? Must be really expensive?

Actually through FastLane here depending on what one you get prices range from 114 to 184. So in respect to the other parts they replaced its not too bad at all. Typical insurance company though

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88 300E
03 911 C4S
2008 Triumph Speed Triple

My pics --> www.BrettAdamsDesign.com

P/S wasn't bad until you brought to that body shop. Don't tell me you brought it to a body shop that the insurance co. recommended. You won't be able to prove it most likely. It is up to the Claims agent. I hope you can at least get the radiator changed out though. What did the agent say about that?

Ok, I've had my poor 400E at the shop for over a week now and the accessor was called out again. The accessor says the leaking power steering and engine over heating problem are not a result of the accident. The shop says that it must be?

What do I do next? The accessor's word against the shops? Do I have to call in a third party?

Picked up my 400E from the autorized mercedes repair shop , had to end up paying out of my own pocket for a diagnostic to confirm that I have a leaking radiator and power steering pump and they found more problems with the car, now there is an electrical problem, headlights, fog lights and wiper mototrs all do not function, and the car is totally out of alignment, really low on the side of the car that sustained the brunt of the impact. The insurance accessor sees no visible evidance of damage to the power steering or radiator or anyhting for that matter. The accessor says I need to bring my car back to the original body shop that did the work for any further repairs. Here is my problem, the original shop will not take my car back!
They claim they did everything they where supposed to and that any problems that my car has now where present before the accident. I guess my only option
is to bring them to court? and report them to the BAR.

who is your insurance company.

I think the ins. co is playing with you. I would call the insurance company and ask to speak to someone higher up. Then ask if you can record the telephone call. If they say no, I'd commit the feloney and record them anyway.

And then you ask the relevant questions.

what happens if a shop is inept? must you still utilize there services?
will the insurance company ever allow a car to go back into the shop after a pick-up?

you get the gist, ask all kind of relevant questions, answers must either be in writting or on tape. And each state should have an insurance commisioner, they may be able to help.

Something really fishy is going on with the bodyshop, accessor, and insurance company. I had orginally asked the insurance agent that the check be sent out to me and that I would pay the shop directly at the completeion of the repair. Mysteriously it somehow ended up going right to the bodyshop? I would not have paid the shop one cent if I had my way. The bodyshops workmaship was mediocre, my hood is misaligned, the grill sticks out more on one side than the other, there are all kinds of loose screws, dissconnected cables, missing headlight parts, the engine overheats, the powersteering leaks, the headlights, fog lights, wipers, all do not work. I asked the shop to use mercedes coolant, they used prestone and lost the gallon of coolant that I gave them. When I noticed that the power steering was empty they came out with a bottle of ATF fluid, whitch I stopped them from using and had to supply my own. I also think its kind of strange how they had me pick the car up on a Friday right before they where closing so I could not bring the car back.

Bottom line is I did not have an electrical problem, engine overheating problem, or leaking power steering before the accident. Now I do, the body shop says they did their part, and can do no more? The insurance agent is referring me to the accessor, the accessor is referring me back to the bodyshop.

The accessor is a real piece of work! he started telling me that most of the problems where probably caused by the car being towed from the accident. That I should go after the towing company. Talk about passing the buck. Wish I had that conversation recorded. He went on and on about how its an older car and I shouldn't really bother and should just give up.

I feel kind of bad going on and on about this since it really isn't tech related, so this will be my last post on this subject. If your interested in the outcome of this saga feel free to e-mail me.

Thanks for all the usefull advice and words of encourgement. I'm sure I'll get this thing resolved eventually.

Two thoughts:
State insurance commissioner
Local "investigative" media--newspaper or TV most likely. Some of these really like digging into this stuff, especially when it starts looking like collusion between/among the claim adjuster, the shop, and/or the insurance company. It doesn't help that you have a Mercedes, but it does help that it's not brand new and you've been trying to resolve this on your own, etc. etc. It may even be enough to say to the adjuster, "Here's what we're going to do: First, we're going to stipulate that the car was in proper order before the accident, which it in fact was, and that anything wrong now is the result either of the accident or the inept work at your shop, which in fact it is. Second, the local MB expert is going to fix this, and your company is going to cover it, since the repairs weren't done properly at the shop you identified, and they clearly don't have the expertise to work on this car. Your other choice is to explain to TV13 why we've got all this weird stuff between you and XYZ shop, as well as a car that has stuff broken that was ok when it went in. Your call..."

For future reference, find the really good shops in your area, and what insurers they work with. Some of them may actually have good relations with your insurer; one of the very best and most respected around here is an approved shop for AAA, which means that my AAA coverage kicks in without an adjuster having to get involved at all and they automatically accept the shop's word--all of which goes away if AAA gets even a whiff of abuse, which is the incentive to keep it all clean. There's also a fairly meaningful warranty on the work.

Good luck with it all! And DO report to your local Better Business Bureau.

__________________
Craig Bethune

'97 SL500, 40th anniversary edition

'04 Olds Bravada (SWMBO's)
'06 Lexus ES330
'89 560SL (sold)


SL--Anything else is just a Mercedes.
(Kudos to whoever said it first)

I wouldn't pretend to advise you on legal matters, but logic tells me that you should find a shop you trust and have the car assessed and probably fixed to a standard you can use at least.

With the estimate of repairs or the receipt of repairs inform the insurance company of your loss. Be ready to use a lawyer to talk to them. They will not fight in court a matter of only a few thouand dollars.

If the radiator was replaced it should be warranteed. The whole job should work, be warranteed, or supplemented for further compensation. You may not have a case on the PS as those pumps leak all the time, but their repairs should work.

__________________
Steve Brotherton
Continental Imports
Gainesville FL
Bosch Master, ASE Master, L1
33 years MB technician

"CBDO" + "Stevebfl" are both correct.

in Addum; California has some of the most stringent consumer protection in
the U.S. ... Avail yourself!

CALL Bill Handel "Handel on the Law" , broadcasts out of Los Angeles: Free
Legal Advice . He lives for this kind of rip-off expose.

why did the PS pump not have fluid in it? Must have been from the accident or the repair shop stole your good pump? Or it could be anything else...careful about accusing people though.

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Current Stable:
1994 S500 v140, 210k miles, white with grey.

Former Mercedes in the Stable:
1983 300CD Turbo diesel 515k mi sold (rumor has it, that it has 750k miles on it now)
1984 300CD Turbo Diesel 150 k mi sold
1982 300D Turbo Diesel 225 sold
1987 300D Turbo Diesel 255k mi sold
1988 300 CE AMG Hammer 15k mi sold
1986 "300E" Amg Hammer 88k mi sold (it was really a 200, not even an E (124.020)
1992 500E 156k mi sold
etc.