Hi Guys,
since I bought my car used, I was wondering do I still get the lifetime roadside assistance? How do I call them or do I have to sub the Tele-Aid service in order to use the roadside assistance feature? I kind of want to subscribe to the Tele-Aid service but that last time I remember it was quite expensive per year almost $300 per year and that was back in 2002. How much do they run now days per year? I haven't called MBUSA to transfer my vehicle ownership, do I need to do that to sub the Tele-Aid service or roadside assistance? Any help is greatly appreciated.

You don't say what year your car is but before a certain year the cell phones used inside the TeleAid unit was analog, not digital. If that is the case with your car you can't have TeleAid without an expensive retrofit.

Otherwise, the cost for TeleAid is less than a buck a day, which seems reasonable untill you break it down to "cost per use" in which case a personal butler is cheaper for that day.

Oops my was a 07 E550. Do I need to change owner ship to reactivate the Tele-Aid? or do I have to have tele-aid in order to get my free lifetime roadside assistance?

You do not need teleaid in order to receive lifetime roadside assistance. This is a free service to all MB owners.
Just call the 800 number from any cell or home phone when needed.
T.

05 and up on the E-class is digital, so your good.

So is the Tele-Aid any good? How often do you guys use it when you have the service? I kinda like it because it's a safty thing, but if it's $250-$350 then I really have to reconsider.. How do I find out how much it's going to cost?

From MBUSA

To subscribe to Tele Aid or to find out more, please contact your Preferred Mercedes-Benz Dealer or call us at 1-800-FOR-MERCEDES (1-800-367-6372).

1) Service operates only where cellular and Global Positioning System coverage are available and functioning properly. Subject to terms and conditions of subscriber agreement. Airtime charges in excess of included 30 minutes will apply. Additional per-use charge applies for customers who do not subscribe to optional Tele Trek
2) Owner must authorize vehicle recovery and provide password with a valid stolen vehicle police report number
3) Password required to activate Remote Door Unlock
4) Anti-Theft Alarm Notification is an opt-in feature available at no additional cost. If you choose to receive this service, you will be contacted each time your vehicle's alarm is activated for longer than 20 seconds

I suppose Good is different based on the user to answer? So my answer is just that,, "my answer" and I am sure others will disagree and this is ok.

I dropped Tel-Aid.

Why?

During Katrina I evacuated driving our E500. 80 miles away I was rearended by (well that's another story). I activated the Telaid and got an answer. The first comment was that we were in Chicago. Da.. didn't know Katrina went up there. (you must also consider the lines of traffic at the time of the accident. ) They hung up when I told them La and needed help due to accident. So I called back. I let the phone ring for 20 minutes beforeTelaid answered our call. I asked why did it take so long to answer when in an accident. "Well your airbags didn't deploy". Remember rearended not frontended.

Then they promptly began to smart mouth me as my fault for not calling earlier and they answered it on the first ring. (remember I waited 20 minutes with their ph line ringing).

Finally they called the police. So I figured for the $300/yr I could just use my cell phone and not get the incorrect location and mouthing I got from the Telaid service. About 2 weeks after Katrina I got a note from Telaid stating they would immediately begin giving Katrina disaster area priority in calls. Too late, I cancelled and will never use them again. But if this accident had serious injuries I would have had almost a 30 min delay in Telaid answering.

Remember your results may vary and I am sure many others have had good results.

I've also heard some other bad stories with Tele-Aid.

Well... mine is useless since it's analog, so I have a shiny, glowing red button with a safety cover over it that I can push and scare friends with

[QUOTE=amdeutsch;3578796]3) Password required to activate Remote Door Unlock

I can get in myself without the key

Thanks guys, I didn't realize once you paid $300 you can only use 30minutes per year, on top of 20minutes wait. I only remember when my mom first got our MB and we used the tele-aid for the first time it was pretty fast and friendly, but that was back in 2002. I think you all have saved me $300 that I could have use for some upgrades for my car.. Thanks a bunch!