StanNH

My mouth dropped open when I heard their settlement offer: a one year extension on the warranty. I'm still shaking my head in disbelief.

I'll try to work something out with my dealer but, if that doesn't go anywhere, I may have to just endure another year or so with this car. It could surprise me and turn out to be reliable ... and there may be peace in the Middle East.

PeterUbers

One year original factory warranty or an elw Benz warranty? Is mileage factored in here? I place the value of one year extension at $500 for a w205.... Totally arbitrary

richardamp

Have you also been offered service coupons by either your dealer or MBUSA?

While obviously less than you were hoping for, an extended warranty could end up being quite valuable if you needed to use it.

StanNH

One year on the original warranty only. Total mileage of 75k.

Sportstick

In all sincerity, I don't know if it's the mountain air or just your nature, but you are a remarkable guy. I've been mostly-quietly reading your story. The patience and loyalty you show is the stuff companies dream about having among their customers. There doesn't seem to be a shred of anger, even after how they are treating your request to get out of the car now. Just some disappointment, but you are willing to try with them again; most folks would wish a pox upon their house and never return. Again, sincerely, whatever you have, you should bottle it and sell it. You could put many therapists out of business!

Mr Enigma

Agreed.

Stan I wonder if, because of your mild mannered nature, they think they can get away with offering so little in compensation...

PeterUbers

To stan's credit... I have found that being patient garners more from Mbusa than getting hot and bothered and yelling at people

I'm not sure if Stan did this, but I included my attorney on all Mbusa correspondence while arbitrating for new vehicle then my money back and i made sure Benz was intimately aware of this

PeterUbers

Original warranty is more comprehensive than ELW. Yeah this extended warranty has the potential to be very valuable if keep the car that long... And of some value if it's transferable if you decide to really take a hit and sell it next year... These early models won't carry their value thanks to these issues

StanNH

I don't put a huge amount of miles on my cars annually, and I typically trade every three years, so the extended warranty is more of a resale advantage than anything else.

I am a very reasonable person and, after 40 years of owning my own retail business, have a pretty good idea of how things work. I rarely lose my temper, and am considerate of others and polite in all my dealings.

Having said that, I have reached the point where my patience has worn very thin. I am very displeased with the offer I got from MB-USA and made that clear to them. I have also been in touch with my dealer and am finding out how far they can go regarding a trade and ordering a new car for me. I know my dealer is going to bat for me with corporate.

It's not over yet.

PeterUbers

If it's not been entirely clear... I hope you get exactly what you want .. Rooting for you 100%

emmotto

I wish I could say "this is unbelievable!" but unfortunately it is very believable - even expected from MBUSA. I'm not surprised at the end result - just surprised at exactly how cheap they are being. This is a failure of corporate culture for them here in the US - not to mention a huge failure of quality control at their new multi-million dollar investment - the new assembly plant in Alabama. Despite "The Best or Nothing" and all the marketing and advertising hype, the MBUSA corporate culture is definitely NOT customer service or loyalty orientated. They don't give a sh*t about current customers as long as they can keep attracting new ones thru effective marketing.

Stan - I empathize with you and completely "get" the emotional roller-coaster that MB has subjected you to in the last few months - I have been there.

I have posted here before - I was a loyal MB customer who bought or leased 6 new vehicles in the last 14 years - the type of customer you would think MBUSA would want to keep. After my experiences with my last 2 cars I now drive a 2015 BMW 335xi - I only come back to this forum out of some kind of perverse Benzenfreude - it's like driving past a highway accident and craning your neck to see the blood.

I can't believe how many people make excuses for the poor customer service and shoddy product that Benz has been putting out in the last few years.

Driving a service loaner is better than not getting a loaner but basically sucks when compared to driving the car you have paid for.

My previous 2012 fully loaded C300 4matic (a $54k car) - had numerous problems - the most significant being the completely random operation of the KeylessGo system which the dealer and MBUSA were unable to fix. Why is it so hard to get this right? My wife has a Prius with KG that worked right first time everytime - so does my new BMW. At one point they had my car for almost a month total and 6 or seven visits to the service center. They actually had put more miles on my car than I had. Special tech rep from MBUSA didn't have any more of a clue than the "best of the best" service manager. End result - they refunded me the cost of the KG option along with about $1500 worth of lease payments for the inconvenience.

Even though I qualified for Lemon Law here in CT - I chose to accept the financial settlement - and later regretted it - because I am suspicious of the arbitration process being stacked in the manufacturer's favor. You have to qualify, then get on a waiting list for a hearing, present evidence, go thru the process and then the decision of the arbitrator is .. well .. arbitrary. There are no hard and fast metrics or rules that say once you've met this hurdle of inconvenience or lack of vehicle performing to the advertised specs you get compensated in such and such a way. In my case with a primary complaint being that KG was inop 50% of the time but the car was always driveable - no safety or driveability issue - my loss was inconvenience, failure to deliver promised functionality and loss of value (which are all part of the LL criteria). I wasn't confident that this would be counted highly enough in arbitration to get me a different car. So I ate my frustration.

Yet despite all this and because the first 4 cars were trouble free I gave them another try in the hopes that this was a one off and things would be better the next time (it's like an abusive relationship - he won't beat me anymore because he really loves me and besides he's so handsome...). In September I traded my 2012 C300 in and took delivery of a loaded 2015 C300 ($60k car) and within 24 hours had 6 distinct issues - 2 of them caused by the dealer, one of them a KeylessGo problem!. I was lucky - I was able to get out of the deal but then had to spend a month without a car while I waited for the Bimmer to arrive.

Bottom line is they offered me far more in compensation than they offered Stan for a problem that could be considered less serious - all I had to do was remove the KG thingy from the ignition and use the key - Stan can't do that to make his seats stop bleeding and they are basically offering him nothing for the inconvenience.

MBUSA does not care. It doesn't matter if you are nice to them or if you yell at them - I tried both approaches. At the end of the day all that matters is if you fall within the criteria of Lemon Law for your state and if they are convinced that you might invoke it. They spend a fortune on marketing trying to get the next new customer but won't spend a thousand or two to retain the ones they already have. They could have easily offered Stan a couple thou in trade-in allowance and kept his butt in a Benz now and into the future. Instead I'm sure he's considering (I HOPE he's considering) making this the last Benz he buys.

So I'm sorry to hear about all of this - at the same time I am breathing a huge sigh of relief that it's not me! If I had to live thru this MBTex issue I would be seriously thinking of driving the car thru the dealer's showroom window (oops! my foot slipped off the brake!) or attending anger management classes. Instead I walked away from Benz and am enjoying my trouble free 335xi - which kicks serious butt and was cheaper that the Merc to boot.

DerekACS

Good ! Pushing your dealer for a generous trade is your best potential resolution, given the parsimonious offer of an extended warranty by MBUSA. He will no doubt try to involve corporate participation behind the scenes.

Best of luck for a successful outcome !

StanNH

Absolutely! I've been on the phone with my salesman and we're working on a possible solution right now.

My dealer has really been an advocate for me through all this. At this point, if they sold Yugos I'd probably buy one from them.

BlackjackM

Saying that MB has put out a "shoddy product" in the last few years because you had an electronic glitch with no drivability issues is a gross generalization and rather laughable. It's great that you are enjoying your 335xi, but remember that when the first iteration of your car came out it had issue after issue that took years to sort.

Eilers

@Stan,

Forgive me for offering unsolicited advice, but reading how a lot of people are seemingly looking for, or urging others to profit on this misery, - realising that MB is aware that your story is followed by the Media. I suspect that for you personally, it would be wiser to show discretion by not discussing the details of the compensation in public.

The public is not privy to this part of your ordeal, and the last thing you want, is for your case to set the bar for everyone else that follows.

Glyn M Ruck

I agree with this comment. Sadly being on this forum & in the public "eye," so to speak, might have jeopardised you chances for a better offer. I would continue on your present path with the dealer. I believe they will resolve to your satisfaction. Your dealer's response has been pretty good thusfar for what some believe to be "stealers" & a thinly disguised bunch of hoodlums.

StanNH

I agree, and will not continue to discuss any of the terms of ongoing negotiations. What's going on now is all between my dealer and MB-USA, and I am no longer directly involved in it. I rejected the one year warranty extension, but that's the last comment I will make about any offers or settlements.

I know that MB does not want any settlements publicized, nor do they want any precedents set. I have been contacted by other owners who have already gotten settlements, and they were happy with the deals they got. Hopefully, at some point, I'll be able to feel the same way.

unprocessed

I've seen a lot of folks here have their cars at the dealer for weeks while their seat covers get replaced. Now that this is a bigger issue, how long is the replacement process taking? I think Mercedes said it should be only 1-2 days.

I'm about to buy a C300 that was built last year, and very worried it will develop the bleeding issues.

miketc

Why would you want to put yourself thru this bleeding problem and a number of early issues? Buy leather or at least one built this year. Getting MB-Tex from last year is looking for trouble.

richardamp

I don't think you should worry one bit. The annoyance thus far was the long wait to have replacement parts developed and available. Now that they are becoming available the long waits will hopefully not happen any more. My seats were fixed and they look brand new. Stan also said his were installed very well.

So don't let this be the deciding factor on if you get the car or not. Worst case is your seats do bleed and you get a loaner for a few days while you get new seat covers. Minor inconvenience in the grand scheme.

unprocessed

I did get an awesome deal on a C300, looking to take delivery today. Trying to see if they can find the same optioned car with a build date this year. Feel bad because they had the car delivered to them this week (for me) and I never brought up my hesitation with the bleeding seats until after.

miketc

Oh, if it's a C that you custom ordered then yes take it and deal with the bleeding later. If they have the correct seat parts, it does not appears to be an issue with their replacement.

Eilers

I feel positive that in the end they will offer you a reasonable deal. If someone like you, who has been so fair and balanced in your views and expectations, is not able to get a fair deal, - then I don't know what the world has come to..

unprocessed

It actually wasn't a custom order, it was simply a transfer from another dealer. There are no post 1/5/15 c300s in my area with my preferred options either. :/

miketc

I would wait till post 1/5 is available if there is no commitment.