If you didn't sign up for the maintenance plan, then expect to pay for it.

As for the loaner...I get them for free from my dealership. Did you return it with the same level of gas as when you received the loaner? Maybe the $30 is for gas.

 

Yes, it was my confusion with my experience with bmw since they offer no cost on wear and tear items in addition to scheduled maintenance.

MB gives you 1 year on wear and tear items only if they are defective. Not worn from normal use.

 

The car came with 1/4 tank of gas. The $30 entitles me to return it with no gas and I plan on returning it with none in the tank.

The $30 would definitely had made more sense if the car came full or even half tank...

 

The plan covers REQUIRED maintenance as set forth in your owners manuals. an oil change at 2200 mi. is not standard maintenance and you are responsible for that. The cost, assuming only an oil change was performed, is crazy. Please scan and post the detail of your bill. I would have to see this with my own eyes to believe it.

 

I would not have brought it in for servicing but the car kept saying it wanted to go in for service and was doing a daily countdown. The advisor told me it will keep doing that regardless of mileage.

The description of the maintenance performed on the bill is

"A FLEXIBLE SERVICE PER MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE
EST: MISC 239.00 TOTAL 239.00"

Advisor said it involved oil change, topping off fluids and charging the battery. Charging the battery... I almost laughed out loud when he said that.

 

That would be a violation of federal law. A seller can not require that you must have them do the maintenance in order to maintain a warranty.

 

Yes and no. Yes in the USA and probably elsewhere. But in some countries that's not true (sadly.) But to the OP's original comment, if you are in the USA then you do not need the dealer to perform service.

As far as your expectations of service/cost. I'm neither a BMW owner nor an MB one (yet), but from what I've read over the past year, BMWs cost more up front (slightly?), but that's because they "pre-bill" you for service (ie it's "free" after the purchase).

 

I'm sure he said checking the battery, not charging the battery. Service A is an oil change plus some silly things that any nitwit could do. What you do is take it in for an oil change and then when you get home, reset the Service Indicator. The Info is on this forum.

As for the so called free BMW service, don't be naive. Can't you understand that it's included in the price of the vehicle.

 

First of all Forget about BMW. This is a Mercedes not a BMW. Why would you assume maintenance was included? I think BMW is the only one currently doing this. No one else. And as someone else has started make no mistake. You're paying for the maintenance in the purchase price so you were not getting anything for free, anyhow.

Secondly, it is NOT required to be serviced at the dealer but it IS required to be serviced at either one year or 10,000 miles whichever comes first. Either way you went a little early.

I have never been charged for a loaner while under warentee but it does sound like you were charged for gas. If you used over a quater tank. $30 sounds about right. The gas like the service is not free.

My advice to you is to learn from your experience here. Wait till next July unless you hit 20k before then and take it in for your B service or go to an indy with the list of what is required which you will find in the service manual that came with the car, And yes be prepared to spend even more for the B service.

It's a $60,000 car; spending $300 a year to get it serviced shouldn't be a problem. Or you could have paid up front for services which should have been bought to your attention as an option when you purchased the car. I was lucky enough to have them comp me the first 3 sevices as part of my deal but that's another story.

In any case, welcome to the world of Mercedes. Don't sweat the small stuff and just enjoy one of the world's finest automobiles. Life is too short.

 

My dealership says...if you get the loaner at 1/2 tank, bring it back at 1/2 tank.....if you get it at full tank, bring it back at full tank, otherwise, you'll be charged for gas.

In your case, if you bring it back near empty, and you got the loaner at 1/4 tank...they must have charged you for the gas. I don't know of any dealership willing to give away free gas...and only charge $30 for a loaner.

Btw, if it was truly $30 for an MB loaner...then thats a great deal.

 

So it was the first Service A. The first service is essentially an oil change and a lot of inspections. from a billing perspective, your bill for the A service is not out of line with what others here have reported. Your initial post alludes that you simply went in, requested an oil change and got screwed. LOL Welcome to the expensive world of Luxury car service. The only thing that is strange to me is that they charged you for a loaner. I would complain to them about that. Sorry you got screwed, but, there is obviously more to this story than has been revealed. At least you have admitted that this was not just an "oil change" visit but the Service A visit.

 

Very similar recent experience. I bought a 2010 W212 E250 CDI Sport here in not so sunny Ireland. I got a very good deal on the car but I did not buy from a Mercedes dealership. The car only had 8,000 miles on it, and had never had a genuine Mercedes service. As you can imagine I wanted that peace of mind so I took it in for it's "A service". Cost me 280 euro. But it was the best 280e I ever spent, 3 recalls needed doing including the injector change etc and I get the peace of mind that everything is running as it should be.

It's a lot of money for a basic service, but these cars are highly engineered machines with bags of electronics, it's going to be expensive to service. Get used to it

 

I tried comparing the loaner I received with the price of its BMW counter part and this is what I found.

2012 C250 loaner 201 HP
Options:
P1
lighting pack
amg wheels
burl walnut trim
deck spoiler
keyless go
iridium silver

$42500

2012 BMW 328i 240 HP
options:
glacier silver
premium pack
split seats
heated seats
premium sound pack
xenon lamps

$42770


Now the key diffs are the AMG wheels (1040), burl trim (325) and rear spoiler (300).

The BMW has premium pack 1 which comes with leather seating so the above cost is a wash with the seats.

Another difference is the headlight washers which the BMW doesn't have unless you get the cold weather pack but the premium audio does come with 1 yr of sirius so MB has a slight feature edge there.


Saying that its obvious BMW cost more because of the free service isn't so obvious. As of right now you can get an almost identical BMW with more HP for roughly the same price.

 

I did not know what I was going in for because I was following the prompt on the onboard computer. I didn't know what was entailed.

 

Well, I am glad that you finally have it figured out. Why don't you complain that the car does not have a 10 year 100K mile powertrain warranty like other vehicles? Or that "even happy meal comes with a toy" and my Benz did not. What exactly are you complaining about? That you accidently bought an MB when you meant BMW? Sometimes when I read these posts I feel like I am taking crazy pills.

 

I know what I bought. I was just venting my frustration of likely overpaying for service because I made an incorrect assumption about the 1 year wear and tear warranty offered with the car. And at the same time wishing MB would up their game on that front. Hell, even Ferrari has 7 years worth of maintenance now.

 

I don't think that's correct.All you have to do is prove that certain maintenence tasks were properly performed as required.

 

Not sure why people mention BMW's "free maintenance" like it is something positive... We have leased/owned plenty of BMW vehicles, and their supposedly "free 4 year maintenance" is really worthless, the only thing it is good for is for brake pads replacement (if you keep your car long enough). Yea, they will change, for example, your cabin air filter or wiper blades for free once a year, BUT they will refuse to change them between those strict "scheduled maintenance" periods even if, for example, your wiper blades start to leave streaks on the windshield. Not to mention their traditionally awful "customer service" from ALL of their dealers, where very often you have to BEG for loaner car, or where you might receive your "serviced" car with a lot of dirt spots inside because their ****ing mechanics didn't bother to wash their hands or put a disposable plastic cover on a seat when "test driving" your car, or you'll get all kind of warning lights lit up after you drive a few miles away from dealership because their dumb-*** mechanics "forgot" to re-initialize some electrical subsystem after the "service", resulting in A LOT of wasted time, and for some people time = money.
Not to mention stuff like yearly navigation system map database updates, which (if you want to do it legally) must be performed by dealership (for new cars with HDD-based navigation), for a very significant fee - usually around $350 or more, since it takes several hours and dealer will charge labor fee for that time, which is not covered by any "free scheduled maintenance".

 

I've had the opposite experience. Loaner cars are scarce but if you book an appt they will tell you when to come in for a loaner. Also, they are lenient on how long you have the loaner. The MB dealer dealer said I have to return the loaner the following day after they call the service is complete, additional days are $60 a day. I remember at BMW they finished my car on a friday and said go ahead and keep the loaner car for the entire weekend if I wanted.

As for servicing, I never went in much but my dealer would send out notices in between the scheduled times saying to come in for a checkup (oil change, etc). I would never get charged for these services. In the 4 years of warranty for my Z4 I spent $0 on upkeep.

 

The Mercedes dealer here in North Alabama has Enterprise Rental Car loaners. The standard is C class sedans. You make your service appointment, drop off your car and pick up the loaner. The Enterprise Office is at the dealer. The C classes are all new and clean. Car's done...drop the loaner off and pick up your car. Perfectly seamless...no inconvenience. There is absouletly no charge. You are required to return the car with the same amount of gas. Enterprise is contracted to provide the loaner service.

Just why would you want to keep a loaner when your car is serviced and ready for pickup.

I will never understand when someone like yourself has had such a wonderful experience with BMW you would buy anything else.

Also, if you would have taken a look a your owners materials it describes exactely what services are performed during each required service. The A service includes a lot of visual checks and inspections that i'm sure you could do without. But, it's your responsibility to know that.

 

steelgrey
1+

 

i would like to add something here... Being that ive been in and out of the Service Advisor game for the last 10 years at MB.....

I'll tell you from the prespective of the other side of the desk.....

Dealer vs Indy......

My major gripe is this.. and it happens so many times.... Customer gets the oil changed on the outside (either indy or diy)... Then comes in a few weeks later complaining of a oil leak.... Ends up they either didnt change the rubber O rings on the filter housing, or pinched them.. and theres oil leaking all down the front of the engine, on the belt and its just a mess... (Side note: when i do mine i usually poke my finger in the oil housing and wipe some oil on the new ring so it dosent snag.) But now whos responsability is that? Puts me in a bad position... MB isint going to pay to clean the engine and replace the rings... Then i tell them that its not covered and then theres usually a disagreement....

Also if your not a "Hands On, Do it yourself person"... There is more then just a oil change involved... Ive done it, Ive seen all the techs do it... Checking and cleaning the water drains in the car, Lubing all the door/trunk/hood latches and locks. Rotating the tires, checking the brakes, correcting the tire pressures, checking the engine filters, topping off coolent, checking brake fluid... and theres a few more things....

You end up paying the labor which ive seen be 1.0 to 1.5 hours plus parts... and thats what makes it expensive... With labor rates where they are today, its a pretty penny.....

But for me.. i work there.. i have access to the lifts.. But i still put my car thru the shop and generate a repair order for its yearly service and also for the 39K mile REQUIRED Trans service (which is for all models)... I play it safe.. Its still a $70,000 car...

Also... many brands these days have alot shorter service intervals.. So the price across the year really isint that out of line... My Tahoe wants oil every 3-4k miles... i drove 15k miles in 8 months.. Thats 5!! Services/oil changes in 8 months.. lol...my Benz would of only been coming up on its 2nd.. lol

Anyway i see both sides of the desk... It sucks on both sides..... lol...

 

O/T, but anyone notice how M-B used to require Oil Changes every 13K miles, and now lowered it to 10K last year. Obviously the same cars and same powertrains.

A way to get more money out of us by prematurely changing oil sooner, or a correction by the engineering side? One has to wonder.

 

Na... I want to believe how laxy-daisy the common MB driver is on getting there car serviced... 10k turns into 12k..... 13k turns into 15k miles.... then sludge engine....

Everyone feels that its a "They are out to screw me" thing.... Again i dunno.. I just provide the "flip-side"......

 

Na... I want to believe how laxy-daisy the common MB driver is on getting there car serviced... 10k turns into 12k..... 13k turns into 15k miles.... then sludge engine....

Everyone feels that its a "They are out to screw me" thing.... Again i dunno.. I just provide the "flip-side"......