Mercedes Benz
Spare tire lugs not marked clearly. Rip-off!

After stopping my 2002 c230 in a dangerous traffic situation, late at night, to change a flat tire. I completed the task and attempted to drive away. My car locked up immediately, and emitted a grinding noise from the wheel area. The police officer that had been directing traffic around me called a tow truck on my behalf which flat-bedded my car to the Mercedes Benz dealership nearby.

I was informed by my service tech at MB that I had used the "wrong" lug nuts (meaning the lug nuts that I had just taken off to remove the wheel with the flat tire) to install the spare tire. The tech stated that this situation had happened to several customers, but was not a covered warranty item because the car's operating manual included a clear warning not to use the lug nuts that came installed on the car's wheels but to use a different set of lug nuts, specified by this warning, which were stored in the spare tire receptacle. He stated several customers had been upset over the same situation when they had to pay for the same repair, which in my case totaled just under $1500.00.

The regional MB manager denied my claim also, citing the same warning. I disagreed, so I filed suit in a Dallas county court and was granted judgement (won my case) because MB legal representatives failed to respond or appear in court after being duly notifed of the lawsuit.

My claim is based on the fact that the automobile's manual does not mention using different lug nuts in any of the operation or use sections of this guide. The lug nut situation is mentioned in the "tips and hints" portion of the manual at the end of the handbook. The MB CSR rep at corporate I spoke to before filing suit asked me why I would buy and operate a vehicle without first reading through the car's handbook completely. I have owned Mercedes' autos for the last 20 years and I have never studied the manuel page for page, however I do refer to it when needed and do browse through it at the time of first getting each car. However, I did not feel any urgency to examine page for page the "tips and hints" section of this manual.

My contention regarding this matter is that MB fails to properly warn of the need to use different lug nuts when replacing an original factory wheel with the spare tire that comes with these vehicles. This type of information is not a "hint or tip, " but should be clearly marked with a distinctive tab in the operating section of the automobile's manual, a distinctive colored label located on the inside of the wheelwell cover, a distinctive colored label on the tire itself, and the current clear plastic bag containing the lug nuts should be marked with a colored label or replaced with a brightly colored plastic bag that is readibly visible to a driver or emergency roadside assistance person that is changing a flat tire in a nighttime emergency situation.

Two weeks after judgment, Mercedes corporate has not responed to two phone calls placed through customer service, supposedly forwarded to MB's legal department. We will file a lien shortly and continue the collection process using all methods at our disposal. Also, we are going to contact groups that monitor situations regarding practices in the automobile industry that are potentially unsafe/dangerous to consumers. This is not really about the money involved, but to hopefully get MB to rectify this situation for present and future customers.

Imagine this scenario, ater changing a flat on a busy highway in the middle of the night with your family waiting inside the car, you have finished changing the flat and are back behind the wheel waiting for a break in the 55-70 mph traffic rushing by to attempt re-entry in the nearest lane... You see your chance, accelerate quickly into the lane-and your automobile grinds to a halt within a few feet, locked-up completely, you can't move forwards or backwards. The only thing you can do is watch while the headlights from the traffic behind you bears down on you and your family.

Here's a "hint and tip" to Mercedes Benz, listen to your customers before this very scenario happens to some family who was cared for enough to be transported in what they believed to be one of the safest cars available. My case is not isolated, my dealership alone has had this happen to several customers. We pay a premium for these automobiles, is asking for two or three colored warning labels and including this information in the "operating" section of handbook to much to ask? (Also, when you say you will call a customer back, it's a good idea to keep your word.)

Michael
Dallas, Texas
U.S.A.

Company: Mercedes Benz
Country: USA
State: New Jersey
City: Montvale
Address: 3 Paragon Drive

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