El Cid

First car I have owned with this type feature. Not sure it is worth $285.00 per year for thge "basic" system though.
How does it compare to other systems?

pickens95

El Cid:

Interesting You bring this up. I am in the 2nd month of my free 6 month free trial and am probably not going to extend the service. Driving habits do not justify the price as this vehicle will be rarely driven out of a large metro area that has three dealerships within a 30 mile radius. Car is garaged at home other than daily trips. I have studied my habits pretty closely and just cannot justify the annual fee. Would be interested in hearing from some others regarding this service.

semper fi

sosh

I suscribe on both of my MB's for one reason and thats the accident auto call for help. I consider it to be an insurance policy. Have never used it for anything else except roadside assistance with a flat and had I not had it I could have used my cell. But the auto call with airbag deployment is a great thing.

LaicepsYdobon

I haven't used MBrace but rather it's predecesor TeleAid. It does give you a piece of mind if the need arises. My car got flooded and all I had to do was press a button to call for help. The TeleAid lady knew exactly where the car was, she called the cops for me and also a tow truck. Yes, I could have done the same thing with three separate phone calls but it was nice to know that I can get a human being to help me out with a push of a button. Like Sosh said if your airbag deploys you will hear a humans voice straight away to see if you need any medical attention. If you don't say anything they assume you are unconscious and help will be sent. That is a pretty cool feature that you can't put a price on. Let's hope that none of us have to use this feature. I haven't really used the concierge service or the turn-by-turn navigation help. I could see the benefit or going on a long trip across country and you suddenly get tired you could call the concierge service and have them book you a room and point you to the nearest non-sketchy hotel around.

bigben320e

I got a notice to bring my car in for a upgrade to mbrace. I already have AAA, so I may not pay for the service but I will get the upgrade done just in case.

petee1997

It is a total waste of money. With blue tooth and roadside assistance the service is redundant. As far as airbag deployment service and if you are unconscious and unable to call, every passerby has a cell phone today and they will call 911. Now everybody do the math on the odds and cancel this service immediately. We all spend too much on the if's of life.

220S

Each to their own in what gives them peace of mind. It's why we do lots of things that may not make complete economic sense, but they help us get through life nonetheless.

I've driven off without my phone on occasion, been in very remote places, needed instant information, etc.. So it's simply a judgment call that gives me peace of mind. A telematics service for my car works for me. We all spend money in various ways that works for us only as individuals.

Aside from all that, TeleAid is offering much better prices for the same services right now. If you're considering a telematics service, you might want to shop both MBrace and TeleAid.

ttoE550

I like the peace of mind too. What if you hit a deer late at night and no one is around?

Plus, it allows you to email GPS destinations to the car. I like that a lot.

El Cid

I'm in month 5, probably won't renew.
The mbrace plus freebie is only good for 3 months. They should send you something in the mail about renewing it, but in case they don't be forewarned.

sosh

I did receive a notice about the plus. At that point I renewed the basic. The renewal for the basic kicks in 6 mos after purchase. Thats on my E. On my ML550 which is on Teleaid and is also a 2010. I noted that Teleaid provides services that MBRACE charges for by way of their premium package. That too will be renewed in Oct as it came with a year free. There is not much of a difference between them except for cost. I just want the insurance of having the basics. I do like the I Phone APP for MBrace with its locator and its lock and un lock feature though. Both will track your car if stolen with the basics.

lyjw88

Have you guys not used the MBrace app on iPhone?
Lock/unlock/locate functions are very useful time to time.
I'm going to extend it for sure.

petee1997

I will continue to live life dangerously with only roadside assistance and blue tooth. The question is, can I handle the stress?

220S

You can measure the stress levels brought on by a life without MBrace by how many more empty bottles of Molson you find in your recycle bin each morning.

mg-E550

the concierge feature is actually useful, as are the downloads from google maps. Agree its overpriced. On the other hand I got over paying $73,000 for a car, im not going to nickel and dime on the services.

petee1997

Unfortunately for me, there have been no empty Molson for the past 22 years. If it takes 10 inklings to a clue, I'm sure you have an inkling why. All that's left is the goddam poutine. C'est la vie.

alexfreed

I used to drive a BMW 530 till last month and it had the same automatic call on collision feature that didn't require any subscription service. It would use your cell phone if available or its own if not to make the call.
Now if somebody gets into a bad crash if an MB car that does have all the hardware to initiate the call but it doesn't happen for lack of subscription and the person dies... just imagine how happy some lawyers will be. The other features like navigation assistance for those who can't use a GPS, map and cell phone is a luxury they might be willing to pay for, but an SOS call must be free.

JTReeves

Petee, I looked it up on the web. Eeww! as the kids say. Keep up the good work doing one day at a time.

I just followed up on the mbrace notice in got in the mail this week. The selling point was the lifetime subscription for $299 US. I've read about problems people have had with locks not working, etc. I have a good relationship with my service rep at the dealer$hip and will trust him to resolve any issues that arise.

God bless,

JR

El Cid

[quote=JTReeves;4050501]
Petee, I looked it up on the web. Eeww! as the kids say. Keep up the good work doing one day at a time.

I just followed up on the mbrace notice in got in the mail this week. The selling point was the lifetime subscription for $299 US. I've read about problems people have had with locks not working, etc. I have a good relationship with my service rep at the dealer$hip and will trust him to resolve any issues that arise.

$299 for life? I thought it was about $285 per year.


]

petee1997

299.00 for life would get my attention. Even a chea er... frugal guy like me would probably pay up.

icelandicmax

if $299 lifetime is transferrable to new car lease when I renew after 3 yrs, i would be all for it. having cell phone with good signal and AAA card seem to be good enough for me.

icelandicmax

apparently my 6mo complimentary sub hasn't yet started. dealer did not activate my system...

RogueAg

My tele aid never worked correctly. However, the kicker for me with MBRACE was the lifetime charge of $299 plus the free upgrade/install. The concierge service is extra but the first three months are free. I haven't used it yet but will give it a try the next time I go to Sante Fe.

El Cid

How did you get lifetime for $299? Both dealer and mbrace (MBUSA) have told me it is $285 per year for the basic plan.
When I called to cancle it and told them why, they did not make any offers re: lower cost or lifetime plan.
You sure it is for lifetime?

RogueAg

Both the mailing and my conversation with MBRACE customer service stated that this was a one time charge good for as long as I owned the car. I will have to see if this pans out in the next few years before I buy another Benz.

220S

The offer is officially over. Anyway, it's not transferable if you change cars. I'm guessing they are planning on not a lot of people going past 2-3 years with leases, etc..

You can call them and ask for a deal. It's worth a try. TeleAid is giving out deals if you just ask. You should bounce the prices offered off of each service until you can get a deal.