Drew888

So this C250 was purchased for my 16 & 18 yr olds to share. They recently got in an accident (they are just fine) and it's in the body shop.


The shop is replacing all parts with OEM except for the headlights, radiator, condenser, hood and fenders.


Should I be concerned? Should I insist on OEM, maybe at least for the headlights?


Thanks!


Drew

DapperStyle

Always insist on OEM, ALWAYS.

Did I mention always?

MASSC450

Why settle for potentially inferior aftermarket replacement parts?

...unless your insurance policy doesn't allot for OEM replacement parts.

Most insurance companies around my parts allow OEM replacement parts for newer cars with mileage under 30,000 miles.

BF3PDZ

Well that sounds like a fair bit of damage..so which parts are going to be OEM? Because it sounds like everything is going to be replaced with non OEM parts.

Mr. J

If the headlights are LED or adaptive LED then you need OEM replacements. If they are OEM halogen, you can upgrade them to aftermarket LED or HID and get better lights for less than the cost of the crappy OEM halogens.

Your cooling system and AC components should be OEM.


If you let your 16 yo kid drive a 2yo Mercedes, you are either very wealthy or very foolish. I expect that the insurance alone is probably north of $5000 USD/yr. It will be even higher after the wreck. Kids are crappy drivers. It's better to let them trash something safe but inexpensive (think high-mileage and low-hp Volvo or Subaru) then let them upgrade later once they have proven they are responsible drivers.

Drew888

The list for OEM parts is too long to list out. All parts are OEM Except for the headlights, radiator, condenser, hood and fenders.


I'm not aware of the quality of today's non-OEM parts and sometimes certain non-OEM parts don't matter. Headlights are the obvious ones that should be OEM. I'm just not familiar with the others.

Drew888

My wife past away seven months ago. This was her daily. I'm upside down on it just a bit and it's really not expensive to insure. I'm keeping in the family for now and they might as well use it. It's just us three and I can't, in good conscience, put them in a less safe automobile.

DapperStyle

Put it this way: go OEM every single time when it comes to repairs. It will work out better in the long run.

Mike5215

It depends on the insurer. The mark up on OEM crash parts is so absurd, I think if you had to reconstruct a car strictly using the parts in the catalog it would cost several hundred thousand dollars to piece together a 205.

Just as the car as a whole depreciates with time, so do its parts. As a general rule, a car in the current model year with less than 15k miles gets all OEM parts, no questions asked.

Beyond that, LKQ (salvage) or aftermarket. My preference would be LKQ, since they are OEM parts with some use (just like the damaged parts on your used car were OEM with some use.)

Aftermarket stuff tends to have fitment issues, especially sheet metal. Sometimes a shop will have to spend so much extra time massaging an aftermarket hood or fender it would have been cheaper to just buy OEM.

Insurers could certainly offer a policy that stipulates OEM parts regardless, but most people wouldn't want to pay the extra premium. Buyers of insurance are almost entirely price sensitive, because they don't believe they'll actually ever need to use it.

You can always pay the difference between OEM and aftermarket if you're dead set on new parts.

BF3PDZ

Sorry for your loss, I know someone who is in a very similar situation as you. It sounds like the car was damaged pretty substantially, I am surprised it isn't a write off?

Do you have any photos of the accident?

Drew888

Thanks Mike, I'll be calling my Ins in just a few.

Drew888

Thanks,


It looked much worse that it was. It still drove well and no leaks. Nose was pushed in to the radiator and the hood buckled. I didn't dare take a closer look then I wouldn't get the hood closed again. Don't really care either. I will just pay the deductible and move on I suppose.