docpaul

Mine is a '91 300E with 67K, I only picked it up in Jan of this year.

Noticed my tie rod ends had decaying rubber so bought new inner and outer Lemforder OEM replacement. Decided to try a new Indie Foreign place with a big Mercedes emblem in front window. Owner is good on the phone and a nice guy... I was told they do good work

They replaced inner and outer tie rods on both sides for $89 / his hourly rate.

Asked him to check my r rear speaker as it was not working, same with r front door speaker. (I knew that the speakers were functional and told him that)

He charges me for 4.2 hours of labor, $373, and I later discover that both rear speakers and the front door speaker are on the same channel (Blaupunkt aftermarket head unit) and sometimes I have to turn on my lights for a sec to get the signal to the headunit...

Have called this guy a three times and he promised to "look into it" with his master Mercedes certified mechanic who did the work and told me it was fixed properly before I paid.

I ask him why he did not just run new speaker wire from each rear up to the headunit if it was so confusing... as $373 hours to hook up a couple of speaker wires is pretty pricey...

In any case I told him that charge was unreasonable and he needs to make it right. He was supposed to return my call but has ignored a couple of followup calls...

I hate to play hard ball but...

Any ideas?

Bigpete123

call your credit card company and have them do a chargeback... that is of course if you paid with a credit card.

That will get his attention.

myfirstbenz

what is the guy's name?

appatula

Yeah, whats the shop name, where, who? I have also dealt with dishonest or just crappy indies and I'm always sure to post here so others can avoid.

YNVDIZW124

$373 to connect speakers? Why did you even pay? It doesn't take 4.2 hours to test the channels and wiring on a 300e. Just get a test light and you could probably fix it yourself. BTW, you can always call the BAR or any similar agency in hawaii to file a complaint.

Bigpete123

next message you leave, tell them you are filing a complaint with the better business bureau.

But yeah, I'm not sure why you paid the guy in the first place.

docpaul

You guys are right, I should have just refused to pay. It's on my CC and I just did a charge back as advised. I am in Maui Hawaii and the shop is Lahaina Foreign Car... Unlikely that anyone on the list is from here but who knows...


It's a pity as the owner is a nice guy and made a very good initial impression but obviously did not know how to handle this situation...

Here we have few choices and poor expensive work is more the rule than the exception...

Getting this car sorted out has been a real chore, but I must admit I really like the way it drives and how solid it feels, not to mention the great looks and build quality. 17 years old and still looks superb!

myfirstbenz

Is the guy who runs this place kinda big with a Goatee? John Beattie?

190E 16V

Doc - go to www.500ecstasy.com

Brodie and UberW124 are on there, from Honalulu. Different island, but I'm sure they know people.

Good Luck.