CaliGal

1st time poster here! I am purchasing a 2012 E350 and have a few quick questions.

My dealer is offering an extended service contract for $3,095 that gives additional two years, unlimited warrenty. Is this the going rate? Is it less through a third party (such as Geico my car insurer). Any recommendations?

Also, he recommends buying the easy care maintenance policy for $1,295 (this is the pre-paid 30,000 mile/3 year service). How much is the service if I do it at the time needed?

The car has 19,000 miles on it and I keep my cars for 5 years on average.

Thanks for your help!

El Cid

Both sound high to me. I purchased three year service in 2010 for about $750. However, this did not include the transmission flush which is done at 4 years/40,000 miles.
Purchased three year extended warranty for about $3,000.
Both of these were through the dealer and M-B products, so good at all M-B dealerships.

chairman

I got my 2010 E350 used. The selling dealer clearly either did not know that the prepaid maintenance on the car was transferable. Since I moved, I took the car to another dealer for some noises and other issues. I was told that the car had prepaid maintenance and they would do a 40k service including a transmission flush, all covered.

The dealer was honest, since I did not know about the service contract, they could have done the service and charged me for it. I am back at the dealer for service again, the car still has issues that are covered under warranty. Since the warranty expires in a few days, I needed to get these items looked at. I would recommend this dealer and its stellar service department to anyone.

So why the story? Service contracts from the manufacturer are a good bet if they cover everything, like the one I have did. These cars are covered with an iron clad 4 year 50k warranty, but service can be expensive. Do a comparison (the car you are looking at should be covered by the manufacturers warranty) of the service contracts to see what is covered. If you are buying the car as a CPO, do not get coverage that overlaps the factory warranty (as extended by the CPO coverage) that is wasting money. Get a service contract that will cover all maintenance items. I got a quote to extend my service contract (from MB) for one year and it was quite expensive, but I am considering it because it is transferrable.

Also, be certain that the car you are looking at has the proper tires for the car. My car has second rate tires (check Tire Rack for OEM type tires) and I have to go through the expense of replacing them.

rrayll

I recently purchased a 2011 CPO E350 which included as part of the CPO package an extension of the original warranty from 2015 to 2016 with unlimited mileage. Since my E350 has a greater number of electronic options than typically found (P2 and Driver Assistance package), I felt it was prudent to buy an additional 2 year extension bringing my total factory warranty to 2018. The price I paid was $2,500 for the 2 years and was told (hopefully honestly) that it was a price set by Mercedes and not the dealership. $2,500 seemed reasonable for my situation. Seems like $3,095 is a little high, but I am in NJ and maybe prices differ where you live.

As far as warranty from third parties, I am not sure that is a good idea. In my experience, Mercedes would be more reliable and dependable than a third party and is worth a premium for equivalent coverage.

Good luck with your purchase and hope you love your new car as much as I do mine.

cbeck44

I do not believe the price is set by anyone except the dealer who can charge what he wants, unlike things like lease residuals which are fixed by the manufacturer. Lease fees and money factors are also marked up and not fixed to the buyer.

SLpat

I bought a 2011 CPO that had the standard 1 year addition from MB included. The MSRP on the 2 year unlimited mileage additional CPO warranty was $2,295 for an E Class. The amount varies by vehicle type. It is in a printed pamphlet from MB. As with everything, the price you pay is negotiable.

CaliGal

Good point! This car's factory service will expire November 2016, unlimited miles. The salesman suggests that because the car is pre-certified, I can extend the service contract for two years to 2018 at a "nominal fee" of $3095.

As far as the tires go, here is the car. Can you tell what the tires are?

http://www.calabasas.mercedesdealer....HF5KB3CA521862

Any other suggestions before I buy this car? I live in a very hilly area and was going to ask for new brake pads - even tho the current ones are at 8ml. Thoughts?

thenew3

It shows clearly in one of the pictures at your link that the tires are Pirelli Pzero Nero.

As far as warranty, $3095 for 2 year extension seems high. You should contact one of the dealers mentioned on this forum for a quote.

Dan Boone from MB of Austin is one of those guys.

kash2014

You can't get the geico warranty car has to be less than 15 months old and a certain mileage limit I think 10000

CaliGal

Thank you! The Pirelli Pzero Nero are authorized tires. I agree on checking out other warranty dealers. Since I am paying cash for the car, it seems like the dealer is trying to jack up the price through all these add-ons.

Is the pre-paid 30,000/3 year mile service at $1295 over-priced or less than what I will pay when it is needed?

CaliGal

I just spoke to Dan and he was very helpful! His extended warranty from Mercedes is about $1000 less than my dealer. Thank you for the referral

drsaab

Yes the extended CPO should be 1940 from Erin in mb Santa Rosa or dan in Texas. Msrp is 2500 range

The 3 pk service should be 999 for gas and 1279 for diesel. That's straight msrp.

2 pk is 699 gas and 779 diesel.

Airmousam

Well said...

CaliGal

Thank you so much! When I was negotiating with the dealer, I told him about Dan's pricing in Austin - and guess what? He actually met the EXACT costs!

So happy - love my new car - I think I will sleep in it tonight!!

El Cid

Read the threads (sticky) on service and bulletins, usually 1st and 3rd on this site. konigstiger provides a super amount of excellent information. Don't be afraid to take to dealer if any concerns. Even if no problem found, at least it is on the car's history that you brought it up.
BTW, while sleeping in your car, read the COMAND and Operator's Manuals carefully.
PS: Great looking flowers and shrubs.
Happy Motoring!

MBNUT1

Congratulations on your 2012 E350.

I spent this weekend driving my sisters 2013 E350 4matic with the sport package and it will come as no surprise to the owners on this board what a fine automobile it is. I loved everything about the car. The things that didn't feel right about my 06 W211 were corrected. It has the old school durable feel to it. It was a perfect mix of refinement and engagement. Those that own one are truly fortunate.

RSIKR

Extended Warranty and CPO Extended Warranty is always negotiable and is a high profit item for the dealer.

Service contracts for maintenance are usually not discounted. $999.00 Is the going rate for three services. The 4 year 40K service for an E350 gasser is $1100 ala carte at the dealer as it includes the brake fluid flush and replace, trans fluid change, air filters, cabin filter, engine oil (8.45Quarts/8.0L of Mobil 1 + filter and a bunch of checks and minor lubes. $999.00 gets you 3 services including the 6 year which includes another brake fluid flush and replace and cabin filter with your oil and filter service. The $699/$999 maintenance packages are bargains.

Good luck and congratulations. As suggested by another forum member read the Konigstiger material on Service and Bulletins for your car.

CaliGal

UPDATE: I returned the car! The sports package was not right for me - too stiff, the suspension was very rigid & too firm/uncomfortable to drive on the bumpy streets around town.

Took the car back last night & traded it for 2012 E350 Luxury package - an even swap! The mileage on new car is lower but the remaining warranty is less. The acceleration is the same but the ride is 100% smoother & the car is quieter.

Overall, the switch was a good choice for me - luxury package much better ride than sports imo.

thefisch

glad to hear they accommodated your request. is the remaining warranty on the luxury model just a few months left? Did you extend the CPO and get any prepaid maintenance?

And don't forget to post pics!

SLpat

Good luck with the new new car! It comes down to individual preference between the Luxury and Sport versions. I have a E550 luxury because I prefer the way the interior looked on the Luxury version. I don't know about where you live, but in Houston in appears that 75% of the E350/550 come in the sport version.

I wonder if anyone knows what the actual split between the two models is?

El Cid

Glad the dealer accomodated you. When I was looking, the dealer had to get a customer to bring his 2010 E350 Luxury version in so I could test drive it. I had told sales rep and sales manager that no way would I get the Sports version after driving three of them. I then had to order a Luxury version from Germany as there were none at the five dealerships within 200 miles of me.
Fortunately an old M-B hand told me about the Sports vs. Luxury versions, since M-B doesn't really say much about the difference. Otherwise, I would be in another make of car now.
Personal decisions, but I found the Sport too uncomfortable for me. Guess that is why M-B makes both versions.
I also like the appearance of the Luxury version better.
It appears that most dealers order the Sports version because it sells better. IMO, a lot of people buy it because it's called Sports and some of the trim is different.
BTW, with the Luxury version, you probably got 17" instead of 18" wheels with larger side walls on the tires. This contributes to a better ride. Also, the tires are probably the same size, so you should be able to rotate them.
I think you will be happier in the long run with the Luxury version.

Tjdehya

For the E550 with Airmatic the difference is Appearance only
For E550 without Airmatic the difference is Appearance and softer suspension for the Lux, firmer suspension for the Sport.
For the E350 the difference is Appearance, Softer suspension with 17" wheels for the Lux, and Firmer suspension with 18" wheels for the Sport.

CaliGal

I dont know the actual split, but my dealer (located in Santa Monica) had 6 Sports E350 and 1 Luxury E350. He said the Sports are much higher demand in our area.

CaliGal

Definitely much happier! I actually took the E350 Sports package car into the service dept to see if they could change out the tires and loosen the suspension so it ran more like the Luxury package.

Guess what? They said that wouldn't work!! LOL

thefisch

My parents are Lexus fans and the first time they rode in my car (11 E550 Luxury with 17" wheels and Airmatic) they complained about the rough ride. So I switched the Airmatic from Sport to Comfort (~.5 inch higher) and raised it up to the high setting (~1 inch more) and they were blown away by how it floated like a Lexus. That's the first time I made the adjustment since first driving the car. I tend to leave it in sport suspension so I don't feel as old.