Yes the interior handles are the culprits. When I bought my CPO 02 4.4i, both front interior door handles showed some peeling. Those were replaced under warranty.

The new-car warranty ends this January, so I plan to get all 4 replaced for the future. According to my service rep, the handles will chip and/or peel over time regardless of nails or watches rubbing against them.

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2008 ML320 CDI | Iridium Silver | Black ARTICO Leather | Premium Package (H/K Logic7, Parktronic, Rear Heated Seats, Rear Power Hatch, DVD Nav, 10-way Front Seats w/ Memory) | Backup Camera | Aluminum Running Boards | 4500K MTEC Low-beam HID | 30% Metallic Tint | Boomerang2 Recovery System | Weathertech Front Floorliners | Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V1 Winter Tires