In 1975 my father bought a 450 SL new from a local dealer. He owned it until his death and in 1992 it passed to my ownership from his estate. I have been maintaining it for almost 30 of its 45 years and it is still in very good condition. Recently a mechanic told me the subframe and engine bushings need to be replaced, and while I was researching the topic I ran across an article detailing the Mercedes campaign for addressing the problem American import 107s had with cracks forming in the subframe. For a time - beginning in the '80s when the problem first appeared - Mercedes would inspect and repair or replace the subframe at no cost to the owner. I am told that program ended 10 years ago.
I called the mechanic to ask if he had noticed any cracks in the subframe: He had not. I called the dealership I use to ask if there had ever been such an inspection or repair on this vehicle. They had trouble looking up the service history, asked me twice for the VIN, put me on hold for a long time and eventually hung up on me. A typical dealer experience, in other words. Lastly I called the dealership parts department to find out if the plates that comprised the subframe repair were still available. Parts told me there was one set left in the country and the dealer would not release them.
So... Here I am: A failure of the subframe at speed could be catastrophic. I can't in good conscience transfer ownership of the car to someone else with this potential defect. My two remaining options are to only drive the car slowly, locally, or commission a third party to design and make the repair. Which brings me to this forum: Has anyone else dealt with this problem and how did you resolve it?
Thanks for your replies.
I called the mechanic to ask if he had noticed any cracks in the subframe: He had not. I called the dealership I use to ask if there had ever been such an inspection or repair on this vehicle. They had trouble looking up the service history, asked me twice for the VIN, put me on hold for a long time and eventually hung up on me. A typical dealer experience, in other words. Lastly I called the dealership parts department to find out if the plates that comprised the subframe repair were still available. Parts told me there was one set left in the country and the dealer would not release them.
So... Here I am: A failure of the subframe at speed could be catastrophic. I can't in good conscience transfer ownership of the car to someone else with this potential defect. My two remaining options are to only drive the car slowly, locally, or commission a third party to design and make the repair. Which brings me to this forum: Has anyone else dealt with this problem and how did you resolve it?
Thanks for your replies.
