Quality Issues
by David Morgan (04 Oct 05)

It started badly. My first contact with the E320 CDI estate was accompanied by a loud arthritic creaking as the door mirrors unfolded with the remote locking opening sequence. Acutely aware of Mercedes' struggle against charges of falling quality standards I feared the worst. The car I was preparing to drive cost more than £44,000 - hardly the price of a chuck-it-in-the back holdall - and even at its pre-options price of £38,045 any hint of inferior quality is unacceptable. When you buy a Mercedes you have a right to accept the best. Quality on a car bearing the three-pointed star should be as natural a feature as see-through glass - no exceptions.

I went round the E320 CDI load carrier with a fine toothcomb looking for flaws. I forgave the broken boot floor-lifting handle, snapped by some ham-fisted tester, and a loose rear trim panel could be put down to carelessness and not a quality shortcoming. But ill-fitting central console lids and the creaks and groans from the door mirrors were hard to accept. An irritating steering column squeak didn't help.

The electrically folding mirrors infuriated me every time I locked and unlocked the car. The steering column squeak was loud enough to make itself heard through a corner at 60mph. This is a Mercedes estate car - creaks and groans should be confined to the Georgian antiques you carry in the back.

No manufacturer is immune from quality weakness - Audi, BMW and even Lexus have had their low points. What is different about Mercedes is that it once held the quality high ground and the sad fact is that the company is no longer master of the art. Mercedes needs to recognise that and take action to stop sales haemorrhaging.

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