stark.1

finally went to mb to get my tail lights fixed and they say its costing 2000 dollars to actually get the lights working again. They also said the tail lights i used were after market ones with different voltage which caused the wiring and SAM unit to fry. Not only that the guy said i can uses "LED" tail lights on my car since the car was design for the non LED tail light system. Is there really any way to get LED tail lights and not have these kinds of problems ?

RLE

This sort of question has been answered so many times here that I'm not doing it again.

And this sentence is so confusing,

"Not only that the guy said i can uses "LED" tail lights on my car since the car was design for the non LED tail light system"

that it cannot be answered.

What I think is, like it or not, is that the "dealer" is taking advantage of you because they see you as gullible.

What taillights did you install and what are they doing? Or NOT doing?

-Marlin-

Hey pot! Called to tell ya you're black (is Kettle)

stark.1

i installed theses tail lights if you scroll down, you'll find the tail lights i bought
http://123mercedes.com/W204/W204ALLPARTS.html

sorry i have a tendency to type things incorrectly, but the guy said i cant use the LED tail lights because my car was not design for them. ya ive been getting the feeling every time i go in the dealership they try and take advantage because i look young. And due to the Virginia Law you need to pass the safety inspection by a certain time and that i dont have.

i mean yeah the point of this thread was asking if i was being lied to or ripped off. Sorry if i didnt make that clear i was just really bothered at the time when they told me this information.

RLE

OK. I looked at those lights and they appear to be MB original (NOT aftermarket from Ebay or some dirt floor Chinese factory for example) so they are a direct interchange with no programming required. Plug and play, in other words.

Many people here have done this with no problems and in fact I sold the original lamps (P2 Package) from my own car to someone in LA with standard lights and he had no problems. What you cannot do is plug in the new style 2012 lamps without reprogramming the rear SAM.

I do think the dealer is being dishonest and I think you should go elsewhere if there is some problem you can't resolve. Remember, service writers are on commission and when they can squeeze a few more bucks out of a customer, they get a piece of it.

stark.1

thank you so much RLE that was a lot of help. I actually discussed this with my brother and he said the same thing. In the heat of the moment when the service man told me they couldn't put back the tail lights cause it wouldnt work, i figured i had to leave it there. i told them to go on with the work. They said they couldnt get it worked on until the parts come in which is monday. i plan to get the car back tomorrow and again thank you for your advice