Steve, I'll have to differ with your opinion on the wiring. Auto manufacturers have been manufacturing and installing wiring for decades that last the life of the car plus some. By now they should be pretty good at it. MB experimented with different wiring from 93 to 95, albeit for a noble cause. The experiment went wrong and they abandoned that design. The product obviously wasn't thoroughly tested before releasing it for production. This left three years production with engine wiring that will have to be replaced during the life of the car. This is unacceptable. I'm seeing a disturbing trend in the automotive industry where designers are now only concerned with producing parts that last only through the warranty period, not the expected life of the car.

I too think it's unfair that owners have to shoulder this cost because MB was too cheap to thoroughly test this new product during development (I'd hate to think they test all their parts this way). If the problem was cheap clips causing trim to fall off or power seat wiring that stopped working I'd be more inclined to dismiss the problem, but bad engine wiring can potentially be a safety concern. (Anything that would cause stalling in traffic is a safety concern). I've seen similar problems addressed by manufacturers and included in recall campaigns, why not this one? I've also seen similar problems ignored, usually because they would be a financial burden to the manufacturer. This time I believe NHTSA is allowing the public to shoulder the cost. After all, anybody that can afford to buy a Mercedes can afford this repair - right?

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95 E320 Cabriolet, 169K