blazinginder

I'm taking in the car for "Service B" tomorrow, the car has around 8k miles and had the reminder in the menu under the speedo come up saying its due for "Service B"....just wondering how much you guys have been charged for this...thanks in advance

uk1

By one of those amazing coincidences I recently had my SL500 service B with 8k miles!

I asked the UK garage "how much will my B service cost me - everything included please". The said it would cost £350 approx. After I recovered I booked the service. The final invoice was for over £1200 with nothing on the invoice that couldn't have been predicted beforehand. I asked the service manager why he hadn't said £1200 rather than £350. In summary he said it was because if they told people that it was going to be £1200 they wouldn't have the service.

This is generally the quality of Merc dealers in the UK and is why I won't have a Merc in the future. The car is great and from my own experience and experience of others I know the general consensus is that the UK dealers are fat and lazy and incompetent. Rant over.

Vik888

1200 GBP .. hah .. ask someone in the U.S. to pay nearly $2400 for Service "B" and they'll sue the dealer.

blueSL

My SL55 is over 4 years old and it has not yet asked for a Service B. What extra items did they have to replace to account for the difference?

Sgooter

Back in July, the dealer in Maitland (metro Orlando) quoted me $229 for A service and $399 for B service.

blazinginder

thanks for the info sgooter....im actually at the dealership right now...we'll see how much they charge

bltserv

FYI:
My last B service was on the CL500 this spring.
$ 345.00

A Service is Basic.
B Service is Extended.

A is Oil, Fluids, Lamps, Rotate Tires.
Check Brakes, Dust Filter, Tire Pressure, Spare Pressure.
Engine Hood Lube, Head light washer check,

B is same as A
Add
Check Battery, Roadster check top lock lugs, Seat belts,
Check Lines, hoses, Axle Ball Joints, Steering Play.

This is out of my CL500 2000 Sevice Booklet

Vik888

How the hell does a $400 Service "B" run nearly $2500 in the UK?!?

Do they lick the tires clean or what?!?

uk1

This is the itemised list in £sterling:

Labour
Courtesy Car £10:00
Carry out service B £285:20
Replace fuel filter £82:80
Replace spark plugs £220:80
Replace brake fluid £110:40

Total Labour £709:20

Parts
Oil Filter £11:18
Seal Ring £0.42
Washer £2.74
Oil £75.92
Battery £3.92
Fuel Filter £67.75
Spark Plug £116.64
Brake fluid £21.87

Total Parts £300.44

Total £1009.64
VAT £176.69
Total £1186.33

blazinginder

just took the car in today, they're estimating around $450 which is reasonable...they finished servicing the car and they realized my trunk doesnt lock and tried figuring out what the issue, turns out the latch needs to be replaced...so they're overnighting the part...the car's spending a night or two there...i'll be picking it up friday most likely since i'll be in the area...hope all goes well

mikeblah

aren't those services covered within the manu. warranty?

i didn't pay for mine until my original warranty expired... (4 years)

PA55AMG

I don't understand how you are due for a B service on an 05 with 8k mi. Your first A service on a 500 is due at 13k or one year.

blazinginder

...the car told me that service b in ___ days...so i scheduled it...anyone else take their SL500 for service B much later than I have ?

Also i had service A done around 1-2k miles i believe

Mad TKD

I am sorry UK1 you got ripped. Why the hell does a car with 8000miles need the Fuel filter, spark plugs, brake fluid replaced? Is that in the Manual on the SL for a B service at that milage?

meegle

UK1, Mad TDK is correct in his assumption of you getting ripped off. The fuel filter isn't due to be replaced till 5 year/65k while the spark plugs are due at 7 year/91k.
The brake fluid change is due at 2 year/26k and should have been the only required service.

I'm sorry but I smell a rat.

uk1

I think I was ripped off.

Can you point me to any Mercedes sources for what you say please? To clarify it is a November 02 SL500 purchased new by me and was therefore a 4 yr old with less than 9k miles - used as a second car.

If i was ripped off and can prove it - I'll go the whole distance - firstly I will then take it up with them - and report back here.

Any documentary help appreciated

meegle

uk1,

The information I gave you was taken directly from my MB maintenance booklet. I didn't realize that you have a 2003 model in which case the brake fluid replacement was done as part of the B-Service. The Fuel filter and spark plugs replacement aren't due till 5-7years from the start of service(Initial purchase).

If you can't find your manual, I can scan it and email it to you.

uk1

Interestingly - just called another two Merc dealers blind to query what should and shouldn't be done. I focussed a little on the plugs as it's such a large part of the costs.

One said that a low mileage (Nov 02) SL500 is recommended to have the plugs replaced at 4 years as they gum up. Higher usage cars can wait until the 45k miles. I was told that the low mileage is the cause of the problem. The other said he wouldn't change the plugs. The quote for the full service an all in charge of £1262.50 for the B service for my car with my mileage against the £1186 I paid. Two different authorised dealers with two different views.

Anyone any observations or views on this as it is beginning to look like my first garge may have got it right.

meegle

I haven't seen any plugs "gum up". I have seen plugs getting excess carbon buildup due to low speed/heavy traffic driving.

Even though you vehicle has low mileage, if the miles were accumulated during extended road trips and not short errands around town I see no issues with your plugs.

Chris-W

Ive been quoted £387 to replace my plugs.. LABOUR charge!

I think that insane right!?

blueSL

I've now had my B Service:

Labour: 249.63
Replace Brake Fluid: 137.79
Parts: £136.81 (mostly oil)
Tax: £92.09

Total: £618.32

This is reasonable for an SL55 but it's clear that replacing the spark plugs is a big job. It's the same with my Porsche 996 TT where the back of the car has to come to bits (rear bumper, exhaust, lots of plumbing) to get at them.

Not sure what the trigger to replace the spark plugs or fuel filter is; the brake fluid should be changed every 2 years because it absorbs water which makes the braking less efficient when the fluid gets hot.

Murtaza

I just had my Service A at 12000 miles, Service B at 8000 seems very wrong

spnslc

This Service A, B stuff is very confusing with these cars. I just went through this with our two MBs.

I had my SLs Service A performed @ 5,400 miles BUT the car was one year old. Then, my husband just went through this with his six-month-old GL450. His Service A came on at (only) 4,000 miles. I called the dealership. I was told that the Service A reminders are set to come on when the car is one year old (from date of production!) My car was produced at the end of January 2006 and the Service A light came on January 2007. My husband's GLs Service A light just came on, and his production date is July 2006.

I called the dealership (service receptionist) about my husband's car and she said Service A should be really completed around 10,000 miles, but she said to drop by and they would reset the reminder, since it was driving my husband crazy. So, I dropped by with his car to have them reset it and the service writer guy said he didn't want to do that because it would throw his service B schedule off. He said wait until the car gets closer to 10,000 miles, bring it in for Service A and then they will reset for Service B. So, Service A should be done about 10,000 miles. If you take it in early and they reset the light, then it throws everything off, so he told me. So, maybe that is what happened with blazinginder.

So, I took my SL in and had Service A done at 5,400 miles in January. That must now mean that it was really too early and now my Service B will be off, right? I will be in the same situation as blazinginder with my SL. I should have really taken my car in at 10,000 miles.

These things must be nightmares for the service guys. They are for the customers. They should be tied to miles, not time.

blueSL

There's a world of difference between 10000 miles around the city and 10000 miles on the freeway. The purpose of the Assyst system is to adjust service intervals to actual use of the car, not average use.

For example, the number of cold starts has an impact on lubricant life - a single 500 mile round trip has much less impact than a month commuting the same total distance, so scheduling maintenance on mileage alone makes less sense than it used to.

There's an upper mileage limit but also a variable time limit; I do not do many miles in my SL; it's nearly 5 years old and it has only had one A and one B service, both "time expired".

JackStraw

My B service was conducted at 6,300 miles and cost $510.