[Wiz]

Cleaning the car today I noticed some odd blemishes to the roof rails which look like they've got some kind of corrosion under the lacquer. Has anyone ever encountered anything like this? The car is just a few months old with less than 4000 miles.

 

[roytheboy]

How bizarre. I guess that's something to do with the night-package coating, which I don't have. MB will almost certainly put this right for you under the warranty. In fact, they will probably be very keen to get the rails to their UK or German HQ where they can do tests to find out what the cause is.

 

[Wiz]

Thanks for the reply, it does look odd. My only fear is that it's been caused by the traffic film remover theyuse at the hand car wash, but the marks are 100% restricted to the rails, there is nota single mark anywhere on the restof the car which would indicate that the finish they use on the rails might be reactive. I think the answer may be to have the refinished, hopefully under warranty and then lacquered with a clear topcoat to stop it happening again.I'd be very interested tofrom anyone else with the night pack who may have noticed something similar.

 

[roytheboy]

Again, from experience I am very confident that MB will sort it all out for you

I'm no expert but it looks to me like a chemical reaction *under* the lacquer, so I doubt if it's anything that might have been added above it.

 

[Sprint24]

I have exactly the same on my GLA which also has the night package! On mine, the lower window frame has the same marks/discolouration. When I wipe it, it disappears only to return again pretty quickly. I have not yet contacted MB regarding this, but now you have mentioned it, I may do..... as it detracts from the overall look of the car

 

[Wiz]

Thank you for letting me know Sprint - Please do contact Mercedes, they are currently considering mine for a warranty claim but haven't confirmed one way or the other yet. The dealer seemed to think that a very strong acid had been used on the car as the marks are where a liquid has eaten quite deeply into the surface of the finish. I don't think that's true, else it would have marked the bodywork too, which it hasn't, but I think that the anodised finish on the night pack is reactive to traffic film remover, which makes it a terrible idea. If I do get my roof rails replaced, I think I'll pay to have the clear coat lacquered else it could easily happen again.Thanks for posting.PS. You can cover the marks up by rubbing bumper/plastic gel on them. It only lasts a few days but works as a temporary fix.
Edited by: Wiz

 

[Wiz]

As an update:</font>My local dealer came back to me to say
that the parts would be replaced under warranty – but the old parts would need
to be sent back to Mercedes for inspection and they could subsequently change their
minds after seeing them

. That sounds a little odd and slightly ambiguous but at
least they didn't say no.</font></font></font>

</font>

 

[Thirty]

I sometimes don't trust what the hand car washes use. I noticed on my BMW that the alloys started to corrode not long after I started using the local wash, never had any issues with that before.

 

[Thirty]

ps - just read this about Traffic Film Remover. I would maybe go somewhere else to wash your car!
"Traffic film removers are designed to remove a large amount of dirt and chemicals from a vehicle which means that there is a high concentrate of chemicals that could damage your vehicle, but if used correctly with the right dilution and on an appropriate vehicle you will not have any issues.
A great traffic film remover always contains non toxic chemicals; this ensures the best quality for your vehicle. Some traffic film removers contain hazardous materials that may help to remove the dirt but can damage the vehicles paintwork as well over time, making sure the product contains none of these can prevent this from happening."