Cativo

Hi all,

So we picked up a 2009 E350; pretty loaded with all the bells and whistles. This car has the panoramic style sun roof, which is really nice. I have to admit, I was pretty skeptical about buying a Mercedes, as I have always liked to work on cars myself and heard that Mercedes are not mechanic friendly.

Anything I should be aware of? The car only has 15K miles on it, so I assume at the 20k mark it will trigger me for an oil change and inspections. Any reason why I can't do the oil changes on my own? One of the local MB dealers said they charge $300 for an oil change because they perform full on inspections during this routine job. Then, another dealer said they charge $49 and do all the factory called out inspections. What's the deal with the drastic price swings. Is it the typical situation, one dealer trying to make more $$ than the others?

Anyways, just looking for advice on keeping the car running in tip top shape.

Thanks for reading and replying...

220S

Find a good dealer to cover warranty issues and find a good Indy with SDS to do the rest. Although there are good dealers out there, it's just a question of you doing your research.

It's like finding a doctor, dentist, or plumber and electrician. There will always be various levels of competency and honesty.

Barry45RPM

I don't know how anybody can do a Mobil 1 Synth Oil Change with the good filter for 49 bucks! I'd stay away from them. They're full of crap. There's a lot of quarts of oil in these cars too.

You will love the car though!

edusyl

Austin MBZ in TX charges $110.00 for an oil change and do the inspection for free!!

Clinton Horn

I think the dealers use it as a loss leader. The oil retails for over $7 qt and it takes 8-8.5 qts. The filters are $12-14 via mail order and there is a copper gasket that is about $.10 If you decide to do it yourself, aside from assembling the components, it takes about 1 hour if you drop the aero panels on the underbody. Lots of people use a vacuum pump and pull it out from the top. That cuts the time down considerably. I am old school and do it the hard way. No dealer would risk non approved parts on your car. I agree that $49 is not realistic but you could expect pressure for other things that might be more lucrative for them. The filters are described as "fleece" and the most common are Mann "Evotop". The oil is Mobil Eurospec 0-40 and meets M-B 229.5. If they agree for $49, saddle up.

Cativo

That all makes a lot of sense to; what you all said. The dealer I bought the car from said they offered the $49 deal for oil changes, but they are too far away for me to drive 1.5 hours for a change. I will check the two dealers in my area and see which one has a good rep, and probably go with them. I guess its not too much to spend a $100 or on an oil change once a year, versus $30 tp $40 three times a year with conventional oil changes.

Great posts guys. Appreciate it!

anjy834u

well have to say $110 is too much for oil change.

Benz-O-Rama

Too much? Really? What do you think is reasonable?

8.5 quarts, at $7.00 per quartt is $63.00, since you have to buy 9 full quarts. Filter is $12.00, so you're talking $75.00 just in parts. Throw in 1/2 hour labor and you're at $110.00. Perfectly reasonable price for an oil change on these cars.


That said, I have a topside extractor and do all of mine myself. But it's still $75.00 in parts, if you do it in your driveway.

Cativo

What's a topside extractor go for $$?

I need to see where the filter is on this car, as its my first.

Paying a 1/2 hour labor is not such a bad thing. Let someone else clean up the mess and dispose of the old oil and filter. Also, less chance of oil dripping on my driveway. lol

Also, does everyone use Mobil 1 Synthetic and OEM filter, or are there better alternatives?

220S

Having an Indy or dealer do it, or you doing it yourself is simply a matter of what your own time is worth to you. And that's always personal.

No reason to skimp on maintenance costs. These cars can last a long time if properly taken care of; the ones that have troubles are usually ones that have been neglected (or picked up off lease where the previous user didn't care about the car.)

Just use the oil that's on MB's 229.5 or 229.51 list (depending on your model.) And use the OEM fleece filters. And be sure to replace proper OEM crush washer on the plug if you drain from the pan.

It's not like you need to do 3k mile OCIs anymore, so cost savings on an oil change with cheaper materials is pretty negligible in the long run.

Cativo

Actually 220S,

You bring up some great points. Since this is my first MB, I guess I have to learn what works and what doesn't. That is why I joined this forum. Experience pays for itself hand over fist. I agree that skimping on maintenance is where people go wrong. Considering that is what field I'm in, I guess I could have answered some of those questions on my own. Buying cheaper, substandard parts always bites you in the ****.

Thanks for the input. I'll price dealers and Independent shops around. I hear there is a real good one not too far from my house that everyone says does excellent work and uses authentic MB parts. We'll see.

Thanks again....

SPNJHockey

Using a "Topsider," you'll remove the oil out of the top of the dipstick tube, and the fleece oil filter is located on top of the engine, right behind the radiator. You may change the oil and filter wearing a tuxedo, and not get dirty.

wampa

I agree, a topsider makes changing oil in these cars so much easier.

If you plan on doing oil changes yourself, I would definitely invest in one.

lsbrodsky

Getting the filter element off the stem is much more of a mess than changing a conventional filter, but the advantage is that you can do everything from the top. My topsider does not hold a full charge of oil so I have to dump it into a container part way through the extraction. Just giving you some details. However, after being raped by the nearest MB dealer for routine service I am doing all preventative maintenance myself. Some would argue that dealer cost is the price you pay for owning these cars. I think not. I ran into this when I owned a BMW, too. These guys charge more because they can. If you can do anything yourself, you will save a bundle. If not, find a reliable indy.
Larry

GT-ER

I changed my own oil. It's not rocket science or anything, but my car has two oil plugs ( don't know if the 350 or other models do as well ) and it was kinda uncomfortable to get the front plug off.

220S

Top extraction is acceptable by MB for all non-AMG cars. With the AMGs it has to be done from the pan. There are two plugs (in the AMGs.)

Just be sure to never reuse the plugs. They're micro encapsulated and aren't designed to be reused. They'll eventually leak if you do reuse them.

Besides the parts, it's pretty straightforward to do your own changes. Also you can grab a sample of oil during mid-stream and send it out for a UOA. Always good to monitor your oil and determine your own specific OCIs.