lsbrodsky

OK, I bought an expensive German car but why does service have to be such a ripoff? I paid $55 for wiper blade inserts! The dealer told me I have 2mm left before tire time and quoted me a price 50% more than the same tires from Tirerack, shipped and installed locally. Of course the plain vanilla B service charge was overpriced as well and some MB required items were extra charge. I guess I have some buyers remorse about all of this, but my wife does love her car.
Larry

220S

Why does your local camera store sells Nikons for 50% more than B+H Photo in NYC? And why does Saks Fifth Avenue sell the same perfume for 50% more than JC Penneys? And why is a Coke at a movie theater 150% more than at a grocery store?

Tire Rack sells tires. Your dealer is not a tire dealer. Does anyone shop for tires at a car dealership? Why not get your wiper blades from a MB parts supply place that has way less overhead than your dealer? Why not get your service done at a good MB Indy who has way less overhead than your dealer?

Isn't this just the way all commerce functions?

NorseWagon

Yup, depends on your own economy.
Some, perhaps most new MB buyers have no problem using the MB dealer for service and for tires.

Been in the same boat the last couple of days:

The local MB dealer quoted me $433.00 for a "D" service.
The indy shop $299.00.

What needed to be done was oil and oil filter plus engine air and cabin air filters. Got the oil at Costco for $47, filters from an auto parts store for $116.
My cost is a few hours "hobby labor" and $163 in materials.
Can't blame the MB dealer for wanting to make a buck, I am sure they have a mortgage to pay, so does the mechanics and S.A.s. then there is the free loaner car and unlimited use of the Capuchino Machine.

tashakes

People are bound to charge what the market can bear. I sure as hell do that in my business. Competition and lack of sales will dictate if my prices must go down, and they do, sometimes even close to cost. But when I have a product that people want and are willing to pay for it, I will price accordingly, and my cost has absolutely no relevance.

If dealers are sitting with their service bays empty, believe me, they will lower their prices. But as long as there are owners out there that are willing to pay $250 for an oil change, why not?

So you see, it is not the dealers fault that prices are so high, it is the consumers. And when the consumer votes with their wallet, that is when vendors will adjust their prices. Up OR down.

My .02.

Cheers

lsbrodsky

All good points, but I suppose it is the magnitude of the margin that upsets me. My car is in warranty and I want to have a dealer do the service. I pull into a major construction project and find out that they are rebuilding the whole sales and service intake buildings; I never saw anything wrong with the old facilities. This is, in part what I am paying for. But, some things just do not make sense. The brake fluid replacement costs the same as on my Chevrolet, at a dealer, but an oil change costs 4 times as much...and they don't even put it on a lift for the oil change. In the past, I owned a BMW and encountered the same situation. I guess it is just part of the cost of owning a MB. I'm not going to go to an indy because I don't want any disputes about whether maintenance was done to preserve my warranty. Maybe when the warranty expires. Thanks for allowing me to vent.
Larry

Barry45RPM

MBUSA makes Franchised dealers remodel facilities from time to time to the newest corporate look Corporate has developed. Your local dealer MUST renovate to these new designs to maintain Corporate's "new look" or face the wrath of MBUSA who can overlook the dealership on allocations, promotions, and other "support".

A 30 year old building can service a car as well as a brand new one, but you expect that from a Volkswagon Dealer, not a premium priced Luxury store.

I buy my tires at tire rack or the dealer depending on who's cheaper that day. Wiper blades I get on line or at the dealer depending on price. Some dealer's parts counters sell parts to vehicle owners at list, some sell at a 20% discount. Ask what your guy is selling to you for. Some things you have to go to the franchised dealer for, sometimes a competing dealer or the net is cheaper.

We do have choices. I find that if I look for a "Family Owned" dealership where the guy owns 1 or 2 stores, he will have better prices and be more competitive than the Store that is part of a large dealer Group who feels like they have the whole area "tied up" & if you don't get it at store one, they'll get you at store # 3.

Shop around, but remember, the Whole Car is expensive because the individual parts are expensive.

SZMB

The dealer's service dept has receptionists, cashiers, service advisers, service managers, janitors, car washers, and boys moving cars in and out, and they even offer free donuts and coffee. Have you noticed that the waiting area and bath rooms are super clean? They even wash your cars after they're serviced. Who's paying for all these extras? You are! In contrast, indy shops don't have any of these extra services and it's almost impossible to find an indy shop with clean bath rooms.

bigben320e

This.

At the end of the day, you must do some research, just a little to save a lot of money. I have seen price differences at two dealers of anywhere from $75-$600 for the same job. Not Indy's but dealers. You as a customer have the right to go elsewhere, exercise it.

vettdvr

I use one of two places for service on our E500 2003 bought in 2003 from the MB dealer 50 miles away.

1) The MB dealer where purchased
2) My shop and I do it myself.

#2 saves me time much more than $$ but it does save $$ also. For me the dealer is two round trips @ 50 miles each way for 200 miles of driving and two days in the shop. The same service at home is usually done before lunch and I save 200 miles @ $.40 / mile or $80 in just driving wear/tear on the car and ME.

I do use #1 when any other service or work is done exclusive of tires.

lsbrodsky

My MB dealer is 120 miles away and my car, as I said, is in warranty. I do have the capability to do oil changes and such myself. But I won't mess with the brake fluid, required every two years. My dealer has a fixed price B service that includes cabin filter and oil change, plus a diagnostic. I wonder if dealers will do a B service without the oil and various filter changes? Or if the cost difference would even justify doing part of it myself?
Larry

skiahh

Why in God's name would you buy wiper blades from any dealer, let alone a MB dealer??? Those $55 blades are probably $18 at Pep Boys or the like. And that's for a whole blade assembly, not just an insert!

Same for tires... get 'em at the local discount tire place.

There is absolutely no need to do this stuff at an MB dealer!! If they give try to tell you your warranty requires that you buy parts and service ONLY from them, ask for that in writing. If they provide it... you can then make them do it for free (read the Magnuson-Moss Act)!

I'm about to go change the oil on my E320 Bluetec. They want somewhere around $250 for the first service which is an oil change and inspections. Granted the oil and filter are about $100 (9 quarts of M spec Mobile 1 and the filter), but I can do the work myself and save the extra $150.

K-A

You're being a worry wart here.

There should be no disputes. Have all your receipts, etc. saved, not to mention everything probably goes into a Computer anyway. Go to a Certified Mechanic.

If you want to make excuses for going to the Dealer, than so be it. No offense, but seems like you're asking for it by stating that, and by buying wiper blades at a Dealer (I've done the same I admit, but it was a laziness thing, which I fully admit).

I've been HOSED at the M-B Dealer before, and I learned my lesson. I now know, if I want to pay the Premium price for Dealer Service, then I'm doing it for piece of mind regarding how they handle my car (I've seen some M-B Indie Shops look like ZOO's with cars literally crammed in the Shop with each other), and for the little perks/luxuries like a nice clean room, and cleaner all around atmosphere. That's the decision to make: Whether that is all worth it to you.

220S

Your dealer is 120 miles away. You obviously don't live in a big metro area. You're paying more for goods and services compared to those who live in urban areas where there is strong competition for providing those goods and services.

A big metro area can have a dozen MB dealers, all competing for customers. Pricing can get fierce. But you don't have the luxury to pick and choose. On the other hand, you've chosen a quality of life that suits you better by living in a less dense place. But you pay for it (lack of competition, less choice in goods and services, medical care, entertainment, etc..) Just like people pay for living in metro areas (traffic, crime, pollution, stress, etc..)

You pay no matter what. That's life, get used to it.

lsbrodsky

I like where I live and the decision to buy a car with the nearest dealer 120 miles away was a difficult one. We really wanted the E350 after looking at it, along with all of the other competitive cars. I knew it was going to be more expensive than locally but I did not know the magnitude. I had already concluded that I would do the A services myself so I did not know the dealer prices until I went in for the B service. I do take good care of my cars and feel better with MB qualified service for anything that might come up. As such, I think and hope that a B service should give me warning about potential problems. My wallet has now been calibrated and I will stop venting, even though I still feel soiled.
Larry

Barry45RPM

OK... NOW you're officially in the club.

petee1997

These cars need maintenance once a year. If over a period of five years you spend 2,000.00 on maintenance excluding tires and you paid 50% too much, that's 1000.00. Over the five years it's only 200.00 per year. It becomes irrelevant taking into consideration the premium you paid for the car in the first place. However if it does matter, buy a Ford. It's more reliable and can be maintained anywhere for a fraction of the price.

K-A

You guys wanna talk about hosed. I bought my W211 CPO'd, put 4K on it, and took it to the Dealer for what was the "G" Service (i.e I got stuck with the most expensive one). They wrote up a $990 tab, telling me these are what the car needs, EVEN THOUGH I ONLY PUT 4K ON IT!!!!

My being naive and not doing any research, I thought you had to do what they told you, or your Warranty is void. So I forked it out. I put another 5K on the car before I sold it (meaning I only put what should be the 1 years 10K Service interval, in two years of ownership).

Needless to say I learned from my mistake.