I just dropped off my 2005 E500 at the dealer to have the passenger seatbelt alarm problem fixed. I was surprised when my loaner was a Camry! Needless to say, the Camry doesn't drive quite like my E class. I expected a Mercedes loaner. Am I being unreasonable? Is this typical?

 

MY MB dealer loans out C classes.. Some I hear loan out E's and ML's..

The United Auto Group Dealer across the street from them (Were I got my $50K Volvo) lends me a $29/day Hertz Chevy Malibu! .. they do the same for their $90K BMW customers.. go figure.

 

No you're not being unreasonable but it beats the Ford Taurus you get from dealers that offer free rentals. You get Enterprise rentals from one of Phoenix dealers and new C230's from another. The first one has fantastic amentities in his waiting room and the other one has next to nothing. Maybe that's why the second one offers nice loaners

 

I would ask the neighbors if they need any stumps pulled out or if they want to borrow it to go get a couple of 50lb bags of grass seed.

 

"Not for nothin'", but its a FREE loaner car... an extra service provided by the dealer fo you. As long as its clean, less than 2 years old, and relatively comfortable, why should it matter what it is? You're only gonna have it for a day or two. And it will make you love your own car more when you get back into it.

 

Schumacher? They used to offer Enterprise or maybe only for people who didn't buy there.

 

The Porsche dealer gave me a Cavalier one time. I gave them hell and now they usually upgrade me.

I just took my E55 to MB of Chandler (one time, first service since I purchased it there) and they gave me a C240. It lacks about 300 hp. But it is better than anything Porsche has ever given me.

 

I can understand your angst with the cavalier. I took my E500 in for service, the dealer had an onsite enterprise that usually gives out c240's for their mercedes benz service customers. Even though I made an appointment with the service dept, the only car they had left that morning was a beat up cavalier. This thing had like 23000 miles on it and drove like crap. the ride was so rough and it was loud inside the cabin. Mentioned this to the advisor upon my return and he was able to hook me up with some freebies.

 

It's like this Barry... I paid better than $110,000 for two cars for my family based 80% on their reputation for safety so that I or my family have a lesser chance (and let's not kid ourselves, it's just a lesser chance) of getting killed in an auto accident. I didn't but them for their name, nor any kind of status (though that's a free benefit as far as I'm concerned) so when I take my car in for service, I expect a comprable loaner when I'm paying $110/hr labor and full retail on parts.

The C class that I get from Schumacher was not clean, but it was a Benz.. in the case of the Volvo dealer in North Scottsdale, the Chevy Cavalier and Chevy Malibu they "rent me" are down right unacceptable.

My Volvo dealer in the SF Bay Area used to give me a 960 when I serviced my 960.. that's the service I expect when I pay $600 for a 3 hour tune up.

 

I didn't buy from them, and told them that.. I think the C's and ML's are standard for 3 hours or more wait.

 

When my E55 was delayed a week, I got a new E500 to drive. Now that money has changed hands, I got an old Intrepid once and a ML320 the other time. The ML was OK. All I can say about the Intrepid is it sure made me appreciate the E!

 

You STILL have to remember that they gave you 2 cars in exchange for the 110 grand. All things require service. The loaner is still a free acconmodation. When was the last time a jeweler gave you a watch to wear (even a Timex) when you had to leave your Rolex/Tag/Breitling there for a day or 2 for a battery/cleaning/resealing... same thing expecially when you think about how much we're paying for a watch these days.

You shouldn't get a Chevy Cavalere... thats not comfortable or refined at all. Not much more than a toy really, but free is free, and a Camry is truely acceptable for a day.

I'm an Optician & we dont lend anyone loaner glasses when we have to get a part for a frame, no matter how much they paid for THEIR pair, or how many they buy here.

AS MB owners, I suppose we allow ourselves to get a little spoiled. You paid them money, they gave you cars, an accomodation is still an accomodation. Its not an opportunity for a free road test & traffic light showdown because people tend to beat on the loaner cars like they would NEVER drive their own car OR a friends. You also should not be surprised about the cost of parts or labor to service these cars. These fees should be in line with what the cars cost to buy. You'd really feel ripped off if it cost $600 bucks for a tune up on a Malibu. It costs less because they sell more of them & therefore service more of them so its easier to make a living at the lower price by working on fewer cars. Lower volume always means more expensive to own & service.

These guys are authorized sellers of cars that are made in Europe by strangers. They are not all connected together in 1 big money making machine. MB dealers have huge expenses keeping up the image for MB, and staying in business after paying all the expenses, and I bet more than a few of the MB Dealership owners would rather be selling hot Nissans or Infinitis right now at lower markups but higher numbers. The car business is just a retail store. The fact that these cars and we become very emotionally bonded, doesn't change the fact that if theres not enough profit to justify ALL the Bull****, the dealership's owners don't need it, so they do the best they can to satisfy the customer & still make a living comensurate with the work load. Some customers are nice, and some customers are demanding, and some customers want more than they are entitled to in a fair deal. They are not out to screw you or lose your business, just watch expenses. If you take in 8 Million dollars a year & you owe 8 Million and One dollars, You are Broke and out of Biz.

 

You got a Camry?!
I was stuck with a fricken C-Class!

 

Barry,

Take it easy.

We expect more, both from the the Manufacturer as well as the Dealer, because THAT is how THEY market THEIR product. THEY tell us to expect more, THEY sell us by showing that their product offers more than their competitors. THEY have ingrained in our minds that we DESERVE more - therefore, we DEMAND it... from them!

I expect a loaner comparable in quality to what the dealer is selling. Period.


My .02 cents.

 

This has been a spirited and interesting discussion. I am in general agreement with Barry45 RPM. I would add that the expense of maintaining a fleet of even C Class cars for loaners is quite high. If I remember correctly, MB used to partially compensate dealers for putting clients in MB as loaners. That has been eliminated over the last few years.

Most important is to remember that nothing is ever free. If the dealer provides a loaner or a rental, you pay in the form of higher prices. In that case, I will endure a Chevrolet for a day or two. As it was said earlier, that is a excellent reminder of the quality of what we all drive 98% (hopefully) of the time.

Sunny in San Francisco

 

i'd much rather have a camry then the c240 which i usually get.

 

I find that if dealers give you a loaner, they are in no hurry to get your car repaired. My Porsches were in for a week for minor issues. My Benz has been in the shop since Monday at 7 AM for service D, a few nits, and a new headliner. They just finished it today.

It drives me crazy. With 3 cars that periodically go to the shop, it feels like I am always in a rental!

 

Barry, I don't know about the MB dealers you deal with, but my family trust looked into getting into auto dealerships a short while back, the main reason we didn't was the cost of getting in... but once you get in, it's a license to print money. We did due diligence on three dealerships that were for sale (Data is confidential) but all three were priced at around 35 million and returned an NOI of around 7... not bad if you can afford to get in.. at that time, we couldn't.

Out here, Schumacher built a $40M facility and incurred the cost of moving from their last facility in a 3-way deal with United Auto and Lincoln.. and still made an operating profit their last quarter according to my sources inside the car sales world.

Finally, traditionally in the Watch or Glass/eyeware world, tradition wasn't to lend out items during service.. in the Auto business this is a part of the business model, especially since the Service Dept is the (yes, folks this is true) biggest profit center at the dealer (in some cases the sales dept can be a loss leader).

 

First off, I would agree if the cost of servicing a car has gone down, but I have not noticed this ($109 for my last Oil Change) at my local dealer.

Secondly, you don't mind being in the Cavalier sure.... until you're wife is T-boned by an Escalade and her and your kid are killed while she's picking them up from pre-school ( or pick some similar horrific accident scenario).

The sad truth is that there are many people who can only afford a Chevy Cav, are (like it or not) riding in a car that's a lot less safe than your MB. You paid the premium to get an MB, you deserve to ride in one while it's in the shop for a 1/2 days' work costing the better part of a grand.

 

I agree with the poster who claims stopping to buy cars from such dealers. My dealer never gives Benzes as loaner, so I won't buy or get service from them anymore.

 

How do you get Chrysler and Chevy cars in Georgia? That's got to be expensive there.. cool.

 

My dealer uses enterprize but I don't really care. For a lot of my service visits I usually wait for the car. Could take several hours but I got my Blackberry, cell phone, hang out in the nice facility talk to all the people I know, and lots of hot chicks!! It's like a day off LOL. Personally I don't care what they give me. I have a Ford Taurus company car at home so I'm used to driving crap when not in my E55. It's also kind of silly for me to take a loaner car when I have another car at home. Usually someone from the dealer will drive me home and then come get me at home when the car is ready. sometimes if my sales guy is in, he'll just give me the keys to his own ML.

 

My wife got a used 2005 E55 as a loaner for her ML500. Go figure?

 

Cool, I wish to live in San Diego.

 

I get a Camry loaner as well from my dealer and find that very ironic. For some reason, I can't imagine Lexus dealers giving you a C-Class (or other Daimler/Chrysler product) when you go in to service your Lexus. I asked one of my dealer's salespeople if they choose the Camry because it is very reliable... -- I got a wry smile but no answer.