[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Mercedes Service - OUCH (Page 1 of 3)
Posted: 6/10/2015 2:59:07 PM EDT
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OK, I got a 2013 MC350 that needs a service. 20K miles on it. No issues I'm aware of. So I called the dealership to get an idea what this "B" service would cost.
$619 Yeah they check a whole bunch of stuff but I mean really? Your mechanic spends an extra 1.5 hours looking at stuff to tell me I don't need it or hey - maybe we can sell a new air filter? Am I being cynical? Or a chump to use the dealer? Open to opinions from owners and professionals alike. BTW I found a $100 off that quote to it comes down to $519 plus tax. |
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Quoted: OK, I got a 2013 MC350 that needs a service. 20K miles on it. No issues I'm aware of. So I called the dealership to get an idea what this "B" service would cost. $619 Yeah they check a whole bunch of stuff but I mean really? Your mechanic spends an extra 1.5 hours looking at stuff to tell me I don't need it or hey - maybe we can sell a new air filter? Am I being cynical? Or a chump to use the dealer? Open to opinions from owners and professionals alike. BTW I found a $100 off that quote to it comes down to $519 plus tax. |
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my advice: if you don't want high maintenance costs, don't buy a Mercedes.
ETA; my mom has one and the service is exceptional. The dealer had a salesman come pick hers up for her yearly maintenance since she is elderly and lives far away. They also pulled two dents for free because she was joking about having to get a new one since her old (2013 w/ 11,000 miles) one was dented. |
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What is an MC350? I have my ML350 serviced by an independent Mercedes tech who is great. He will actually come to the house and pick up and deliver the car when it's done. He's cheaper than the competition, and by a lot.
Save your receipts. You may have to prove you've had the work done, but I don't think MB requires any particular place. Of course it's easier if the dealership has your records and goes to bat for you. But MB is funny. They are complete bitches about some warranty work. I had an AC compressor go intermittent well before the warranty was up, and my complaints were on the record. But the dealership couldn't get the compressor to throw a code, and they couldn't replace it. It finally failed after the warranty expired, and I wanted the compressor replaced under warranty. MB steadfastly refused. I wrote a 3 page letter to them explaining the situation, and they agreed to knock a few hundred bucks off what was still an expensive job. I bought the Denso compressor on line for $450 and had a local shop drop it in and recharge the system for $150 and saved a bundle over what the dealership/MB wanted to charge, even with their discount. Well, I guess they think they won that battle. But that pushed me to find other techs. Before this, ALL of my work for the last 20 years was done at the MB dealership. Since this incident, I've been back only to buy a key, which my tech can't do. |
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Quoted:
OK, I got a 2013 MC350 that needs a service. 20K miles on it. No issues I'm aware of. So I called the dealership to get an idea what this "B" service would cost. $619 Yeah they check a whole bunch of stuff but I mean really? Your mechanic spends an extra 1.5 hours looking at stuff to tell me I don't need it or hey - maybe we can sell a new air filter? Am I being cynical? Or a chump to use the dealer? Open to opinions from owners and professionals alike. BTW I found a $100 off that quote to it comes down to $519 plus tax. Look at the manual. If its stuff you can do yourself. Buy the parts and do it yourself however I undderstand that sometimes you have to take half the car apart to reach something. |
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As was pointed out before - wait till your 40k service. Between $1000-$1100.
Personally, while under warranty (first 50k miles), I'd recommend having the dealership do all maintenance just to CYA. FWIW, if you're using the Chandler dealership, my personal experience is that I've always been treated well, and they always have a loaner ready when you drop off your car for service or repair. Don't have any experience with any of the other MB dealerships in the valley, though. |
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Quoted:
I worked with a lady that owned a Mercedes...some of her bills were ridiculous..but then dealerships are high in general European cars are high maintenance bitches. They're not a car for the person who wants to hop in and drive until it needs fixed. Scheduled maintenance cannot be ignored, and it's expensive. |
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Quoted:
European cars are high maintenance bitches. They're not a car for the person who wants to hop in and drive until it needs fixed. Scheduled maintenance cannot be ignored, and it's expensive. Quoted:
Quoted:
I worked with a lady that owned a Mercedes...some of her bills were ridiculous..but then dealerships are high in general European cars are high maintenance bitches. They're not a car for the person who wants to hop in and drive until it needs fixed. Scheduled maintenance cannot be ignored, and it's expensive. Only if you go to the dealer. I've driven nothing but Audis for a decade and it's not that bad if you manage it correctly. Anything that doesn't require a lift (like oil changes, engine and cabin air filters, spark plugs) I do myself with OEM parts and correct fluids. Anything that does require a lift goes to a qualifed shop - in my case, one that used to be owned by an ARFCOM mod. |
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Quoted:
What is an MC350? I have my ML350 serviced by an independent Mercedes tech who is great. He will actually come to the house and pick up and deliver the car when it's done. He's cheaper than the competition, and by a lot. Save your receipts. You may have to prove you've had the work done, but I don't think MB requires any particular place. Of course it's easier if the dealership has your records and goes to bat for you. But MB is funny. They are complete bitches about some warranty work. I had an AC compressor go intermittent well before the warranty was up, and my complaints were on the record. But the dealership couldn't get the compressor to throw a code, and they couldn't replace it. It finally failed after the warranty expired, and I wanted the compressor replaced under warranty. MB steadfastly refused. I wrote a 3 page letter to them explaining the situation, and they agreed to knock a few hundred bucks off what was still an expensive job. I bought the Denso compressor on line for $450 and had a local shop drop it in and recharge the system for $150 and saved a bundle over what the dealership/MB wanted to charge, even with their discount. Well, I guess they think they won that battle. But that pushed me to find other techs. Before this, ALL of my work for the last 20 years was done at the MB dealership. Since this incident, I've been back only to buy a key, which my tech can't do. I would have sent all that paperwork to the MB office with a nice "Fuck you, you've lost my service. See what its cost you?" just to make me feel better. |
. I had these things done by a former Ferrari certified mechanic for less than $100.
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Quoted:
Only if you go to the dealer. I've driven nothing but Audis for a decade and it's not that bad if you manage it correctly. Anything that doesn't require a lift (like oil changes, engine and cabin air filters, spark plugs) I do myself with OEM parts and correct fluids. Anything that does require a lift goes to a qualifed shop - in my case, one that used to be owned by an ARFCOM mod. Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
I worked with a lady that owned a Mercedes...some of her bills were ridiculous..but then dealerships are high in general European cars are high maintenance bitches. They're not a car for the person who wants to hop in and drive until it needs fixed. Scheduled maintenance cannot be ignored, and it's expensive. Only if you go to the dealer. I've driven nothing but Audis for a decade and it's not that bad if you manage it correctly. Anything that doesn't require a lift (like oil changes, engine and cabin air filters, spark plugs) I do myself with OEM parts and correct fluids. Anything that does require a lift goes to a qualifed shop - in my case, one that used to be owned by an ARFCOM mod. I've changed oil on a couple Audis. It's not an experience I care to repeat.Don't remember the model but they used oil filters almost 2/3 the size of what you'd put on a diesel F350, on an engine a bit bigger than a GM 3800, and there was half as much room as what was needed to do it easily. Audi and most Volkswagens I have worked on are among the very few that I'd pay someone to do my oil changes. They're that much of a pain in the ass. Hummer H3 too. Two skidplates to remove just to get to the oil filter. |
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Other than fluids, brakes and tires, what else would it need in the first 100,000 miles? If it needs anything else, it was poorly designed. One(well, two) examples were both sub-100,000 mile cars. Both Jaguars. The absolute worst alignment of any cars I've worked on. Both conservatively driven, but something in the front end parts were bad and the owners couldn't keep them properly aligned. One of them, the owner had just spent $2600 on front end work, and with a documented 1500 miles since the tires were replaced(I saw his paperwork) his fronts were worn through the cords on the inside edges. |
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Quoted:
I've changed oil on a couple Audis. It's not an experience I care to repeat.Don't remember the model but they used oil filters almost 2/3 the size of what you'd put on a diesel F350, on an engine a bit bigger than a GM 3800, and there was half as much room as what was needed to do it easily. Audi and most Volkswagens I have worked on are among the very few that I'd pay someone to do my oil changes. They're that much of a pain in the ass. Hummer H3 too. Two skidplates to remove just to get to the oil filter. I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. |
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I believe there is a law that specifically forbids such a practice unless the third-party maintenance is shown to be faulty and the direct cause of the problem. Quoted:
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If you decide not to go to the stealership, make sure it doesn't void any of your warranty. I believe there is a law that specifically forbids such a practice unless the third-party maintenance is shown to be faulty and the direct cause of the problem. Magnusson-Moss warranty act. |
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I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. I've always done my own oil and general maintenance, but I can't really not justify the $150 MB charges for the yearly oil change. For the amount of oil you'd have to purchase anyways, plus the start-up cost of an extractor, filter, etc., the MB cost just doesn't seem to be so bad. |
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Quoted:
OK, I got a 2013 MC350 that needs a service. 20K miles on it. No issues I'm aware of. So I called the dealership to get an idea what this "B" service would cost. $619 Yeah they check a whole bunch of stuff but I mean really? Your mechanic spends an extra 1.5 hours looking at stuff to tell me I don't need it or hey - maybe we can sell a new air filter? Am I being cynical? Or a chump to use the dealer? Open to opinions from owners and professionals alike. BTW I found a $100 off that quote to it comes down to $519 plus tax. You drive a Mercedes and think $619 is high?  
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Quoted:
I've always done my own oil and general maintenance, but I can't really not justify the $150 MB charges for the yearly oil change. For the amount of oil you'd have to purchase anyways, plus the start-up cost of an extractor, filter, etc., the MB cost just doesn't seem to be so bad. Quoted:
Quoted:
I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. I've always done my own oil and general maintenance, but I can't really not justify the $150 MB charges for the yearly oil change. For the amount of oil you'd have to purchase anyways, plus the start-up cost of an extractor, filter, etc., the MB cost just doesn't seem to be so bad. Uhhh. You can get an extractor for $40. Mobil 1 is $27 for 5 quart jugs at Walmart. Even the fancy low SAPS oil for newer diesels is $5.87/quart on Amazon with free shipping. |
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Well since its newer, id go just to keep the warrant ppl happy. But once warrant is out, do it yourself or find some place other than dealship.
I just changed the Clutch Slave Cylinder on my G/F Isuzu Rodeo, part and fluid cost me $95 bux. Had she had it Towed to a dealership or shop. probaby wouldve been in excess of 300bux. Learn to do it yourself. |
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Quoted:
I've always done my own oil and general maintenance, but I can't really not justify the $150 MB charges for the yearly oil change. For the amount of oil you'd have to purchase anyways, plus the start-up cost of an extractor, filter, etc., the MB cost just doesn't seem to be so bad. Quoted:
Quoted:
I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. I've always done my own oil and general maintenance, but I can't really not justify the $150 MB charges for the yearly oil change. For the amount of oil you'd have to purchase anyways, plus the start-up cost of an extractor, filter, etc., the MB cost just doesn't seem to be so bad. sounds like you have paid for it after one-two oils changes |
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Quoted:
I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. Quoted:
Quoted:
I've changed oil on a couple Audis. It's not an experience I care to repeat.Don't remember the model but they used oil filters almost 2/3 the size of what you'd put on a diesel F350, on an engine a bit bigger than a GM 3800, and there was half as much room as what was needed to do it easily. Audi and most Volkswagens I have worked on are among the very few that I'd pay someone to do my oil changes. They're that much of a pain in the ass. Hummer H3 too. Two skidplates to remove just to get to the oil filter. I've owned 7 different VW/Audi vehicles and never had any issue using an oil extractor on any of them. No need to remove any crap from the undercarriage. Some filters are more accessible than others but almost all could be done from above. You need a Ross Tech VAG COM tool as well. It's the best $200 I've ever spent on a tool. The extractor doesn't get the filter off. This was done from above. Driver side of engine, had to squeeze the radiator hose out of the way and a few other things(don't remember what else was in the way, but it was a bitch), filter was still a tight fit. The skidplate comment was when I mentioned the H3. One plate blocking drain plug, one blocking filter. Every one I have worked on has had the plate blocking the plug on top of the one blocking the filter, so both had to be removed. At that point you might as well remove the plug and not mess with the extractor. |