RealCasually

What's the verdict? I was offered for $1,900 and declined.

e92miami

It would depend on how many miles you plan on keeping the car. I just leased 36k and the oil change, filter change and wipers for that period will not come to $1900 at a reputable MB mechanic. Not surprised the dealer overcharges for this.

RealCasually

I plan to keep it for at least 4 years. I thought in order to maintain warranty I had to get the service done at the dealer?

If not, does anyone have recommendations in the SF Bay Area?

Thank you!

Jinzen

Yes it is, if you get it at dealer cost.

4 maintenances will cost about $2k at a dealer. You can pay around $1k for it up front during the deal.

RealCasually

How do you get it at $1k? I was offered $1,888 and they said they could "maybe" go to $1,800. Now that I am home with the car do I have any options?

MJ50

if u plan to taking to stealer for services, then yes, it's good deal...
if u plan to DIY, then no, it's not a good deal...

Jinzen

Not sure, maybe you can return it?

$1800 is almost retail price for 2x Service As and 2x Service Bs

Leslielp

I would give MB USA a call and find out if you can get into a prepaid package.
The USA MB website had the price listed if I recall., good luck. Here in Canada it was only $899.00

divots

Pre-paid Maintenance 3-Pack can be purchased just prior to the 20K Service B at which time it can be purchased at a significantly lower rate that includes a much more comprehensive coverage and the service sequence is B-A-B rather than A-B-A thereby maximizing value. You can also purchase pre-paid packages right up to the 80K service. I recommend that you research this topic on other MB threads and, if still interested, purchase the plan at any MB dealership once you find the most competitive price.

RealCasually

Thank you! This is great information. I will plan on waiting until the Service B and then deal with it.

richardamp

4 years of service on the MBUSA site is $1,275 MSRP. Seems like your dealer was trying to rip you off unless he was including something extra. What did he say he would charge for that same 4 years of service if you didn't prepay?

RealCasually

I was pretty quick to decline everything so we didn't go into much detail. He said it covered oil changes and service for the first 4 years, and that I would save a bunch because he could sell it without charging tax. In passing I recall he mentioned it would "save me around $1,000".

Is that the same package likely as on the MB site?

e92miami

You can go to any authorized MB mechanic (i.e. anyone with the correct PC to reset the OB computer after the oil change) and you will be fine with the warranty. It would be illegal for them to force you to use their dealers although my dealership tried that scare tactic on me before I called them out.

c21bill

Do you know of anyone who has purchased one at near the 20,000 mile point or has a dealer confirmed that you can do so? Seems like a pretty big loophole that Mercedes wouldn't normally allow. Just saying!

divots

You can purchase a prepaid maintenance package right up to the time that you bring your car in for a service. I last did it on my 2011 E550 convertible when I paid for Service A ($233) and then bought a 3-pack for Services B-A-B ($769) when I scheduled the 20K appointment. I sold the car at 48,700 miles otherwise I would have paid again for the 50K Service A and then purchased another 3-pack to cover the B-A-B 60K-80K services at which point all prepaid maintenance package options end. Any honest Sales or Service Assistant could provide you this information should you ask and make sure that you find out about how much more comprehensive the coverage gets when purchased in this manner. It should be noted that my experience is limited to the only MB dealership that I have used, minus one exception, since 1980. Perhaps other dealerships don't offer this opportunity.

c21bill

Thanks for the explanation Divots. My dealer is covering my first two services so I would then need to pay for the 3rd service ("A") then purchase a 3-pack (B-A-B) to cover the 4th thru 6th services. Sounds like a very inexpensive proposition. Hope it works for me as well as it worked for you.
Bill

dav1hei2

Pre-pay worth it for my 2011 GL 450. The extended warranty will not lapse with scheduled maintenance. Also a cost savings with pre-paid.

DerekACS

Yes, it sounds like a good deal in Canada for C300. The pre-payment plan must be purchased before the 1st service. The downsides are there would be no refund if the car was traded, stolen or written-off.

However, for E250BT, the price is $1199 for 3 years of annual maintenance.

alsyli

The poster to whom you're responding wrote that you can purchase it before the 20,000 KILOMETER service. That means that you, in the US, would need to purchase it before your first service, which is around 12,500 MILES.

And, yes, it can be done. I was about to do it, but the dealer was quoting me a price that seemed a bit on the high side (but that, in retrospect, likely would've saved me $).

To the OP, what was the terms of the pre-paid maintenance? It usually comes as 2 yr/24,000 mi, 3 yr/36,000 mi, etc.

Glyn M Ruck

In SA the Mobilodrive plan is built into the price of the car for 6 years or 120,000 Km. No choices. For vehicles considered "exotics" you can then extend to 8 years for a minor payment.

Then the aftermarket deals kick in if required.

c21bill

[QUOTE=alsyli;6248454]The poster to whom you're responding wrote that you can purchase it before the 20,000 KILOMETER service. That means that you, in the US, would need to purchase it before your first service, which is around 12,500 MILES.

Now I am confused as I am seeing two different opinions on this issue. The poster does seem to be from the US (Connecticut) though and here we do use the letter K as an abbreviation for 1,000 and not Kilometers. Still hope he is correct.

divots

This is not my thread as I was merely responding from my perspective and with my experience which was given in miles and not kilometers. For my needs the 3-pack worked well went when I purchased it at the same time I made my 20K Service B appointment. The letter "K" is an informal abbreviation for one-thousand often used in expressions when the unit is understood. For example, a runner who runs a 5K race is running 5000m or someone who drops $60K on a car is spending $60,000.00. Sorry for any confusion that my use of pseudo-metrics might have caused.

alsyli

Yikes! That's what I get for posting so late at night. No, you're correct (as divots mentions, as well).

I think my confusion was b/c I was told by multiple dealerships that the maintenance package needs to be purchased b/f the first service (which I think normally does occur around 12,500 mi). The only way that works w/ what divots wrote is if it were 20,000 km. However, since divots was able to purchase the package later, perhaps the "rules" have changed?

Glyn, AFAIK, we don't have any such plan in the US (vs. South Africa).

hoonspeaks

I recently purchased a 2-year prepaid maintenance while getting 3-year lease for 2015 C300. While reading all posts in this thread, I realized that I should've waited to purchase it.. I have a simple question: Does this maintenance period (2-year) start on my first service date? Or, from the first date I get this car? Thanks!

cheerful

If I skip the prepaid package at the time of purchase, could I buy it at the time of the first service? If so, what's the advantage of buy it at the time of purchase?

Thanks