This is my first and last mercedes. I am on my 3rd major problem at 8000 miles. I do not feel comfortable keeping this car let alone modding it out. Hopefully in the next 4000 miles I can do the lemon law thing to minimize my loses. I dont want to bore all of you with the whole story, but all day i was on the phone with two dealers service depts. , my salesman, and 2 regional reps. i must have wasted a total of 4 hrs trying to get someone to give my car immediate attention. I was nice to everyone I spoke with and they were all very rude and said there was nothing they can do-including regional reps. This car is one piece of **** and mercedes hires even bigger pieces of **** to work for them. Im done.

looks like i will have a m coupe shortly.

For sale: Eibach pro-kit and sway bars and custom subwoofer enclosure for 10" sub that allows easy access to spare tire and has built in amp rack

 

man, sorry to hear about all your troubles.

 

I said that with my first MB lemon and look at me now 18 years later and I bought another one. Time heals all wounds and someday, MB will make a reliable product and maybe not in our lifetime but someday for our great grandchildren to enjoy, a trouble-free MB.

Give it to them!

 

Just a word of warning: if you're looking at an E46 M3, be aware that they have their own problems, with an abnormally high rate of engine failures.

http://members.roadfly.org/jason/m3engines.htm

So don't jump from the frying pan into the fire! If total reliability is an absolute necessity to you, do not buy another German car. Japanese cars are far closer to that ideal.

 

man ive had my coupe for like 1 year now, got 10,000... the only problem ive had to this day, is that the emisssion system stopped working one day, but service fixed it.. i neva had anyproblems after, that, it juss matters how you keep your car.. i keep it safe and protected.. if ur gonna buy a mercedes, TAKE CARE OF IT!

 

I'm guessing he probably did take care of t...Its just a fact of life that there will always be cars that are lemons. No matter how much you care for it a lemon is gonna give you trouble!

Sorry to hear about your troubles TNAT, hope your next car gives you joy!

 

Its really not the reliability factor that is making me change my mind. Its the fact that the dealers and service sucks and I wont put up with it. the salesman i bought the car from was a complete ******* to me today and completely blew me off, as well as the other people i spoke to. Not to mention that I sent this salesman six referals, five of which bought a car from him for a grand total of $300,000 worth of sales which is probably more than a months work for him. I am in sales also and when I get referal business, i make sure to go out of my way whenever there is a problem or concern from one of my better customers.

I still have yet to get a comparable loaner yet. Out of three visits i have gotten 1)nothing 2)a ride to work and 3)dodge stratus.

And everyone i talk to is just a complete jerk-off and i dont apreciate getting the cold shoulder anymore. Screw mercedes, im getting a bmw. I dont really need to worry about mods on the m coupe, its alredy got 315 hp and is a few hundred pounds less than the merc. 0-60 in 4.5 secs.

My family always drove bmw and switched to mercedes thinking the service was better, and it is far worse. I am done

 

yeah there's the other fact of life with a MB: rude salespeople. There are usually two kinds of employees at MB: 1)people, who don't just sell cars but actual care to keep your business and go out fo their way to make sure everything is ok; and 2)salespeople/monkeys/doo-hickeys who just want their comission and that's it. Unfortuantely there are far more of the second than the first. My parents got one with their first MB, bought a car from one of the guys, and came back in about 1 year later to chat with him and possibly buy another. He told them, and I quote "What do I need you for? I already sold you a car. I don't need you anymore." It happens. You just have to goto another dealership. Or worst case, get another brand. I have to say though, we've had the best service with MB, the best sales experiences with Nissans, and the most reliable car being an 1985 Volvo Turbo, only major prob was a tranny leak at 150k miles and tubo replaced at 200k miles, and it ran until my dad got hit. So in the end it's upto you, but that's just my two cents. Oh and out of my experience, i woiuldn't recommend a toyota simply because the only one we ever had was a 96 camry, which a girl rolled into (like at a stop sign and just let foot off the brake) at less than 5mph, destroyed the bumper, was $500 damges.

 

Was that the 850 R turbo in Canary yellow? Those cars rock! My dad still has an 850GLT. Still in perfect nick. The only thing I don't like about it is the interior is so huge, you feel like a dwarf in it!

 

Good luck if you take the plunge.... and I'm sure you won't be disappointed. By the way, hang out at Bimmerforums instead of the Roadfly site. A much better group of people IMHO.

 

Tom, what exactly is the problem? Could you say what happened to the car? I'm curious.

And, not to be a vulture picking from the carcass, but if you're serious about getting rid of the car, I'd be interested in the swaybars. Let me know when you're 100% sure that you're getting rid of the ccoupe.

Good luck, whatever you do.

 

Why is Benz dealers are so bad !!!

My experience with them was so bitter and unesscessarily harsh.

Why???

There is only so much cache in the MB logo and they know it. Do I have to go back to Lexus??? I sold my trusty 7 years old ES300 for the Coupe. No real regret with the new car but plenty with the dealer.

I loath the day I have to take in mine for services.

Sighhhhh... and to think we are well of enough to buy a Benz.

Peace

 

As always, your results may vary on everything, from the car to the service dept. to the salespeople.

I used to b1tch up and down about my car when the sunroof blinds didn't work, but the dealership fixed them twice, and the car's been great since. The service dept. worked well with me, and I had no issues.

That's why it's really important to be comfortable with your salesperson and dealership in general before you buy (if you have a choice in your area).

Not making light of what Tom's going through or saying that it's not MB's fault, but not everyone has had an absolutely awful time with MB.

Finally, the ccoupe's $25k; I wouldn't say that being able to afford it would make one "well-off". Same with the c240, of course.

 

I don't understand, service by me is perfect, MB loaners all the time (all 16 times), prompt, nice people, do whatever you ask, free car washes, refreshments, salemen are friendly. It's the cars that are bad, not the people that work there.

 

Jeez Tom - who's your dealer?

I've been very happy so far with Contemporary Motorcars in Little Silver, NJ. But then again, I haven't had any problems with my car, either.

Good luck with whatever you'll be getting. And bring it to the next Benz meet! We already have a Subie pilot as honorary member.

 

my car has been very reliable (7600 miles on it) and service has been excellent. i've received great MB loaner cars, great attention time and great service results.

unfortunately, i think my dealer is a diamond in the rough. my mom also has a coupe, and her dealer is exactly like yours is. it took her 7 days to get the tires rotated and balanced, and they promised but did not deliver ANY loaner car, let alone a MB one.

looks like there's a few dealers out there that don't have much business sense.

 

how do you take care of the shade for the panoroof? so far, i've been looking at it every once in a while.

i wish i could take full responsibility for the car and be able to control it enough that nothing will break... but i don't think that is possible.

 

My local dealer here in the Midwest is beyond exceptional. I have never been so pleased with another dealer in my life. My advice is if you are not satisfied with your dealer, take it to another one or call MBUSA.

CP

 

Why do people blame "Mercedes" when the problems are usually with the independent dealer?
My story : We wanted a german sedan (Passat, A4, 325 or c240). We called a local BMW dealer who said they were open until 7pm. We told them we were on the way there. We arrived at 6:30pm and the place was CLOSED! We walked across the street and got our first up-close look at a c240. Saleslady was very nice! We drove up to Atlanta the next day to give the BMW another shot. The salesman had NO personality (walked around like a zombie). They had no cars on the lot like we wanted. We test drove a year old 325. He kept trying to talk us into a used car, which we didn't want. We were upset about having to spend an additional $1000 to get a friggin armrest! We went up the road to another MB dealer. Salesman was SUPER nice! They had two or three cars that were exactly what we wanted (minus the fold-flat rear seats). We were happy with the look and feel of the c240. We went back about two days later. We made an offer $1500 below sticker and drove away in the car! Within a week the dealer sent us a tin of cookies and a potted plant. This was all several months ago. Yesterday we received a wool glove (for washing the car), stuffed with a few sampler sized washing liquids, from the dealer. The dealer we bought it from does give loaners (various makes, but not MB's) to people who buy from them (same with our local dealer, but they loan out MB's), and washes the car before they return it to you! We have had a few small issues with our '02 C240, but everyone we have dealt with at both dealers has been very nice. We're happy Should I rag on BMW because of my poor experience with two of their dealers and the fact that problems will inevitably occur with their car? NO!

 

I hated the cold shoulder, just cause we aren't buying a E or S-class doesn't mean you should turn your nose up and ignore us, but its the typical MB dealer complaint, just find a different dealer.

I went to both dealerships in Ottawa before buying, and was glad I did. The first dealer treated me like a "punk kid", while the second dealer treated me like a young professional, which I appreciated being a recent grad with a good career.

Overall great experience, hope it continues to be. Maybe its just NJ, heard everyone there are a bunch of jerks anyways just kiddin! Hope things work out for ya.

I made sure to ask my dealer and look around the loaner lot, my dealer offers quite a few MB loaners, otherwise its a Mazda Protoge , gotta book the loaner well ahead, maybe I'll get the M-class loaner!

 

Like I have said many times before a good dealer can make or break your experience. Unfortunately you seem to have run into a dealer that does not valule you as a customer. But be forwarned that the bimmer dealer may be just as bad sometime expecially if you have problems.

 

I hope that whatever the problems are with your car can be resolved. I however, have a great dealership (Jackie Cooper in Tulsa), all of the staff are nice and they take care of my wife and I. I have had the Benz serviced on two separate occasions and they fixed the vehicle within a couple of hours. We did call in advance and they treated my us with the utmost care.


This is what I found out:
The Service and Warranty Information booklet page 13 states; Damage due to alterations: Alterations by changing or adding to the car can adversely affect it's performance, reliability and longevity and are not covered by this warranty.

I hope the modifications you made to your Benz would not interfere with the warranty.

 

Sad to hear of your troubles. There are good and bad salespeople everywhere. I'm in sales and I bust my butt to keep customers happy. In the end it's always helped me...such as referrals and repeat customers.
I purchased my car from what I'm told is the largest MB dealer in the country if not the world. Fletcher Jones Motorcars in Newport Beach, CA.
The salesman and FI manager were just great and when I returned to pick up some touch up paint. The salesman saw me and came right over and asked what I was doing there and if he could help me. They worry bigtime about customer surveys and he told me anything less then an excellent is NOT acceptable. I received a followup letter thanking me for my purchase. A few days later I received a nice car blanket. I can't say enough about them and their service thus far.
Now about switching to a bimmer. First let me say I luv bimmers but I wouldn't buy one. I live in a condo in the middle. That is to say there is one above and below me. This is NOT BS. The guy above me has a white M3 and the guy below me has a blue M3. I've driven both and they go like hell. Both of them have had engine problems. The doors rattle on both and the cars really feel loosened up and do not have that solid BMW feel when you sit in them on the showroom floor. One has had shift linkage problems from the get go.
The bottom line here is that I don't care what you buy anymore be glad you have a warranty cuz your going to need it.
Lastly though there is NO EXCUSE for any dealer to be less than courteous to their customers. But to blame the whole car company on one dealer I think is a little unfair.
Just my take on this I could be wrong

 

Hey TNat

Welcome to the first and last pissed off ex MB owners. Like you, I experienced major safety related problems with my car, but the final straw was the group of ******* at the dealership. I wasn't prepared to go through the lemon law - my lawyer said my case was weak, and I'd devoted enough time to idiots and poor product. I cut my losses, ate $4k, and got a Volvo.

Good luck

Raymond