It happened to our (orginal owners) 1998 E 430 also. With 77,000 miles. We had to replace the Air Cond pump and top control arms at the same time . All different issues but all shockly early on for a car that had been very well taken car of.

Has anyone had any luck getting MB to stand up for any discounts or refunds on repairs like these> I sent Customer Care a letter and got a forum letter back with my name mis spelled!

The harmonic balancer on my 1999, C43, 113-V8 is getting ready to fail. The rubber is pushed out on one section of the ring and is sure to fail in the next week or so.

I have started conversations with my dealer to get it fixed at MB's expense but they are putting up a little fight.

Until then I cannot drive the car.

Jeff

It happend to my car with only 58K miles. It has damaged lot of front end components. I just got estimate today about $ 2,000 plus. There was no pre-alarm or indications.

If this is trend, is there recall notice issued?

What members are doing for this?

Go back through this thread, and you'll see that different people have gotten different responses from their dealers. If you're the original owner of the car, you may get some relief from the dealer. Of course if the car is under warranty they'll cover the whole thing. The shop foreman at Mercedes-Benz of Houston North, Charlie Johnson, tried to get Mercedes to help me out by covering the towing bill from Lufkin, and I would have paid for the repair. Since I am not the original owner, and the car was out of warranty, they refused to give me any relief. Ended up doing it myself, with a little advice from Charlie, who was very helpful. Fortunately for me the damage to the upper oil pan and front engine cover was only cosmetic.

Mercedes and NHTSA do not consider this to be a recall issue because it's not a safety problem.

Good luck!

__________________
Lenny

There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games. --Ernest Hemingway

'10 GL550/'04 BMW 545/'99 BMW 323/'98 ML320/'87 VW GTI (race)

Can anybody tell what are the things a customer should check visually or ask the dealer after MB dealer has completed the reapir work associated with failure of harmonic balancer, oil pan, belt, etc.? For example, part$ of new balancer to check if it is improved design, any noticeable vibration, any leak etc?

Alright, how in the world do I post a new question? Please somebody HELP me!
Lisa

__________________
To exist is to change, to change is to mature,
to mature is to go on creating oneself
endlessly.

Henri Bergson

I took my 98 E320 Wagon in to my indy for its 60K once over. I asked him to replace the balancer. It showed no signs of deterioration, but once off the car you could see it was about to come apart sometime in the future. The rubber was separating. He installed a new balancer and bolt which was covered by my Heritage service contract. Cost was less than $200 to Heritage. My mechanic told me the Benz dealer was very interested in all the details of this near failure and had to order the part as they were out of stock. I never would have had a clue if it wasn't for this forum. Thanks!

__________________
David
Tucson, AZ

98 E320 Wagon 66K
00 BMW 323i Sedan 38K
93 Volvo 945T 100K DECEASED 4/18/03 R.I.P.

Hit the Back button on your browser, then look for the New Thread button shown below in the upper left portion of your screen to post a new question.

Attached Thumbnails

 

Thank you for the post and I actuallyfigured it out after I placed this one! Sometimes I just need a wee bit more patience!
Lisa

__________________
To exist is to change, to change is to mature,
to mature is to go on creating oneself
endlessly.

Henri Bergson

I have a 99 ML 430. Today, with 65K on the clock, a loud rhythmic sound came from the engine. Increased with speed. Opened the hood and saw the harmonic balancer about to separate from itself. Drove slowly to dealer where it was confirmed. Because of this forum I inquired about a good-will repair which I was assured would be strongly considered. The dealer has seen this quite often and made the diagnosis within a minute of opening the hood. I inquired if the new parts were modified to be improved.... they said yes.

Seen It Ton's Cust Had One Come In That Wore Through Timming Cover ... But Newer Style Seems To Be Okay : Just Thought I'd Add That

I have a 2000 E430 that I suspect has a build date of 1999. Should I be worried about this and have the dealership replace the part with the updated on just in case?

If you don't have it replaced, I would keep a close eye on it.

Just though I would let everyone know, the MB dealer is having my car towed in and doing the repair free of charge. He said that they are about to do a recall on that part and basically just wanted to know where to pick up the car.

Good news.

Ron

I'll have to see it to believe it!

__________________
Paul 1987 300 SDL; 2000 ML; '69 MGB; '68 VW Fastback