I have a 2012 C250 with only 38,000 miles. For the last 2 years I have put on only 800 miles each year. Last year I did have an "A"service done. Now service light shows I need a "B"service.

Should I get the "B" service done? I drove only short trips all last year. I know that is hard on the car. I need advice whether to perform this service. The car is in excellent condition with no current problems.

Cheers
mrjazz

 

I have a similar situation with my CLK55, CLK320 Cabriolet and a Ferrari. I usually drive them sub 2,000 a year. The car should be serviced at least once a year. More service is required if you are driving it alot. As long as you get the car up to correct operating temperature there should be no issues. Short jaunts are not good. Even if it is only 2 or 3 miles as long as the engine reaches the right temps its fine. Also, you do not want flat spots on the tires. Fluids can go bad from sitting so I would recommend changing them if the manual says so.

 

Engine oil and filter needs to be changed at least once a year even if the car was not driven at all.

 

I couldn't agree more! The same context is mentioned in the owner's handbook.
So far, our '13 C250 bought new in '12 have only 22k miles on it. The service minder would pop up about the same time every year, regardless of miles driven. At least in my case!
Here's my DIY >

 

My '12 C300 has 22k miles on it too. I bought it in October of 2018 with 5,920 miles on it and it had one oil change done at the dealership only. I changed it right away when I got the car.

 

Got C250 coupe Summer 2014. 23100 miles. Odometer now at 37555. August the 6 year 100,000 warranty will end. Decisions await (my wife loves the car).

No issues since purchase.

Ah, the agency of choice.................



ez

 

Car manufacturers tell you that 1 year thing to make sure they come to them in large. The oil in our cars won’t go bad in a year, if I hardly drove it or didn’t drive it then I wouldn’t Change the oil. But I would do the brake fluid service, change the coolant when it is needed, if the tires were over 8 years I’d replace them, expirable things like that. But it’s up to the person. I put quite a bit of miles on my car, so I always hit the interval before the time runs out, actually I change the oil every 5k and do all the other services required for either the A or B services. I want to get my use out of it! I’m around 73k now, bought It with 16k.

 

Best I can tell, the case for annual oil change on a low-miles car is that when it is driven short distances, then moisture and combustion by-products get into the oil and the engine does not get hot enough to burn them off. Thus, harmful junk accumulates that must be removed by changing the oil.

If that's correct, my theoretical is, suppose you drive once a month for 100 miles. You only have 1,200 miles of driving for the year but surely the contaminants are as thoroughly eliminated as they can be. In that case is the time interval for new oil really applicable?

Incidentally, short trips must be a very good argument for BEVs. They don't need any cold-start enrichment and probably wear much less in the first five miles of driving than ICE. If I get a BEV some day, that's what I'll use it for and keep the Mercedes for longer drives.