PaulE550

OK, that's all very good news. You're not tied to being strictly limited to another E300 sedan. You can use your original purchase price to shop around for any MB model you want for that price at any of the 5 Houston area MB dealerships. That is great. You can now take the time to carefully find the best replacement vehicle for you. Actually make that 4 dealerships, as I seriously doubt you want to deal with the MB dealership that sold you your current car. I wouldn't, but that's just me. They simply don't sound that reputable.

Let us know what you get.

ua549

It is a crying shame that bad dealers are allowed to continue no matter what they are selling. There should be (or perhaps there is) a defined mechanism to bring the wrong doings of a franchisee to the attention of the franchisor or manufacturer. I helped get rid of a fly-by-night and very shady MB dealership back in the '80's through correspondence and much personal contact with MBUSA. It was a very enlightening though traumatic experience.

HBguy

I'm with you. I had hell with mine with no miles on the clock and MB corporate did nothing but bounce me from one dealership to another...taking days and miles aside from shop time. I still like the German Ford that MB is but I'll never buy another nonclassic. Right now I'm in the market and I'm usually a brand loyalist to quality makes. Ive had more warranty visits with my MB than all the other cars Ive bought put together. My problem eventually went away but the illogical explanation of a solution, especially after so many dealers looked at it and condemned it as unfixable yet my fault cus i drove it off the lot...yeah....fool me once.
Glad you're doing better than me but I wpuld advise others to consider bramd loyalty to those that earn it. Ill gladly take any make for a new car over a MB today.

HBguy

i tried the same in 2013. Those dealers were making their sales numbers and are still around. Follow the money.

hyperion667

Loyalty means absolutely squat today in any market. I think a lot of guys that become fed up still drive MB because of the image and the way it makes us feel......

RickInHouston

Road block #58... I can only buy a car from the dealer that currently has my car. Why? Why the hell is that???

Quackledork

Get a CLS 550. Its the last of the V8s in mid-sized cars for MB outside the AMG models. Its a proven platform, lots of torque, and far more distinctive than an E-class. The tech is a bit dated, but it works - consistently.

PaulE550

Ha! When did they tell you this? Not the most unusual condition attached to a swap. MBUSA can set pretty much any set of conditions to their offer. At least your car is not at the dealership you originally bought it from. That's something.

As long as you are not limited to just whatever cars the dealership has on its lot, I don't see an issue with this condition. If they don't have the exact configuration of the car you want on the lot, then just custom order it. You can go on the MBUSA site and do a build configuration once you know what you want that fits in the price you have to stay at, use one of the on-line services to determine the actual price your configuration is selling for in your area. Then sit down with the dealership to work out their discount knowing what everyone else is actually paying for the same configuration up front before ordering it. Then if the dealership agrees, order it and you're done. Just inspect the hell out of the car when it arrives before you sign the final paperwork to make sure every little thing on the car works and there is no cosmetic damage to the clear coat.

mbchris

I've heard that BMW will usually allow a car that is more than the car bought back. Smooth things over. So if there is a car slightly more on the lot that you would take, then that could be a go. I would test drive it first though - no need to go through all that again! MSRP to MSRP comparison.

Take the driver's seat, and suggest a car. See what they say. If you make it open, start talking incentives, selling price in the market etc., they may feel it too complicated, and start stonewalling.

Is it an option to take your car back, let lemon law kick in, then get your money back?

Just my suggestion - but you should have the best knowledge since you are right there.

RickInHouston

I have thought of this - having them finish the repairs and taking the car back, but it seems to much a risk for me. I could be left with a working car with damage to the finish. I can't take that chance.

I've thought about flat-bedding it to Sewell. But, ultimately, I need to just stop. It's over. The rules are clearly in Mercedes favor. I'm simply going to do my best to just make it all end.

1. He's pushing a grey / grey E400 on me to test drive. It will be detailed and ready for you to drive home... I've decided not to give Mercedes any more of my money. It would have to be an even swap and they won't go for that and I'm okay with that.

2. A similar car with all my original options PLUS 2nd screen (I should find out what it is officially called) and NO BUILD DATE earlier than 2017 (Those are my two hopes for the new car). I don't think there's a chance they will be able to find it, though, with that second screen.

Fun Fact: I bought my first Mercedes - a 2004 E - from this dealership. They charged me $1000 to flat-bed it in from another state. My sticker off the car clearly states it was shipped to Greenway Plaza dealership. That was their way of always tacking on $1K at the last minute. He's already told me there is a charge to flat-bed one in from another dealership. I'm going to tell him, "Why don't you pay the fee this time, I paid it unnecessarily the last time. This way we can call it even." I stupidly just threw away the stick from that car since it was two cars ago...

mbchris

Is there a bottom line scenario that you would take? For example, if all else didn't work, they would order you a new car, to the same spec, choose a different color if you will, and that would wait for it to come in, and they would give you a loaner until it does?

My thought here being, strive for specific differences (say that E400, or a similar E300 on the lot), but for whatever reason if that or something else falls through, there is a bottom line acceptable option that both would agree to. And once you have that, work up to where you best like to be, and start striking out options until you reach the one that would work for them, and best suits your needs. So you have a base case say Option 5, that they would definitely agree to and you would take if you had to, and then 4 other options that are in order from best to worst for you. Then keep moving down the list until they say yes.

So you have 5 concrete options, that makes it much more manageable to work with on both sides.

RickInHouston

My head is completely at what you stated.

I'm reaching with an E400 but would like to see how far the bend may or may not be. Drive a car off the lot tomorrow (with MB USA taking a bit more of the hit for the dealership so it's all put to rest) or the exact car I had that just works like it should - but with a added option that will need to be hunted down and delivered...

mbchris

Let us know how things work out.

While I enjoy reading the drama as much as the next person, and palm planting my forehead at the silliness of Benz and the dealerships, I do sincerely hope that one day the posts will stop because you're made whole.

off

If you decide on getting a car trucked in from another dealer, don't pay for the flatbed again.

My current car (Lexus GS350 F-sport) had to be flatbedded from San Antonio. Westside Lexus tried to charge for the shipping. I told them no deal, going to Sterling McCall. Finally they caved and I told them give me more of a discount for dealing with this silliness!

PaulE550

So Rick, your options are basically what is on the local MB dealer's lot at your original price point or what they can find for you on other dealers' lots? No option for ordering a new car, whatever model you want that fits in the original price point and configured the way you want?

I would agree with others that if you pick a car from another dealer's lot, you shouldn't have to pay the flatbed fee. That is something that MB should be willing to eat under the circumstances. As for folks comparing what BMW or Lexus does, that really isn't relevant here. Every car company has its own set of policies, both good and bad.

RickInHouston

Tomorrow late morning I visit the dealership and make, what should be, the last of the decisions necessary to put this to rest. I'm certainly looking forward to it!

PaulE550 - This dealership has several dealerships across the country (AutoNation). No chance in ordering one, would take too long (their stance). That's a big part of the reason I threw in the E coupe as a possibiility. They have one on the lot and ready to go. I could sign and drive off - if they are feeling generous or just want to get me off the books! Then again, I doubt that will happen.

I did drive an #400 coupe at the other dealership. You gotta love that tight ride! It's as if every bolt and screw was tightened that extra 1/8th turn. I'll probably drive an E sedan just to see how it really compares to my problem child.

RickInHouston

I'm a bit nervous posting this. I'm re-editing it until a deal is in place.

THE FINAL CHAPTER -

Round 1 -

I received a very nice call from Kim Presby my MB USA rep last night. She stated, yes, in fact it is a trade assist (just to confirm). She said I am the customer they want to retain. Many buy MB cars but not all service them with MB. Those are the customers they work hard to retain. I asked if this was solely between me and the dealership and she said, "No, we have a say in the negotiation, as well." I asked if I could go to another dealership and she didn't think so. I told her I'm still quite disappointed with the original dealership. She said she could not go into detail, but the MB rep Marsalla did make it very, very clear to the dealership that MB USA (corporate) was very unhappy with the way I was handled and the product sold to me. I asked what Marsala thought about the car and she said he was very, very disappointed.

I'm going to wait on telling you how specific negotiations are going. I told them what I wanted. They said they can't do it. I asked if that included any help from MB USA and he said no, no help from them until he calls. He's calling and probably won't hear back until Monday.

I stopped by service and asked about my car. My service adviser said it is still being worked on (they'e had the car for 3 weeks, now). I asked what parts they are replacing and he said he didn't know. I asked about the paint and he said they are planning on repainting it and selling 'as is'.

If the negotiations don't go well, I wonder if I could ask for my car back and then go straight to lemon law. I'm sure a paint job is the nail in the coffin for that. Mercedes knows all along it was a lemon and are skirting the designation with this end around trade assist!

He'll get back with me later today but more likely on Monday.

mbchris

Well legally you still own the car, right? You didn't sign it over yet.

PeterUbers

This is all way more complicated than autonation naperville benz made the process for me. They simply had $80,000 in a cashiers check waiting for me the day I went to sign the final papers and went straight to the bank after... took 5 minutes

PaulE550

This is the most convoluted process I have ever heard of. Come on. This is MBUSA doing what should be a simple swap of a lemon vehicle for another MB vehicle of equal value to the original purchase price. So what that it is NOT the exact same model as the original lemon car. What difference does it make to MBUSA as long as the dollar value doesn't exceed the original purchase price of the lemon vehicle?

Seriously, I have to agree with Peter on this one. This should be a five minute process after Rick picks his new car that realistically meets the price point after a reasonable, normal discount off of MRSP, which no sane person pays anyway, and MBUSA agrees that it meets the dollar terms of the transaction. Done!

When the dealership guy said no to OP, I would have had him call the MBUSA rep handling your case on his cell phone right then and there. Put it on speaker and then all three of you can hash this out in real-time one way or another. This should take only a couple of minutes. Seriously! MBUSA is the one making the decisions here, not the dealership. MBUSA are the ones doing the swap. The dealership is just the delivery agent in this case. If OP's offer for the new car is reasonable and the MBUSA rep says MB will accept it, then that should be the end of it.

mjsbenz

Keep in mind that this is not a lemon law repurchase but rather a "trade assistance". Much less costly to MBUSA as the title is not branded, which if branded, would lower value by 20-25%. MBUSA can offer Rick more assistance (i.e., allowing him to get a car with a higher MSRP).

off

I don't know how they are going to hide a painted 2017 car with 1000 miles on it. There are all sort of red flags for anyone looking at it.

I still don't understand why the trade assist can't happen at another dealer. Star and Greenway already know the situation, and in Greenway's case they want to charge an already inconvenienced customer full MSRP! OP needs a fresh start at the remaining three MB dealers in Houston if the main goal is keeping him happy.

Seems that MBUSA is trying some sort of punitive measure on Star by making them take the car back, with Rick being the collateral damage. Agree with the others, don't sign any documentation without retaining counsel.

PaulE550

Exactly! As a trade assist, MBUSA should have enough leeway in the whole process to get Rick into his replacement vehicle as long as everyone is being reasonable. This whole process seems to be dragging on far too long. That is why I suggested the conference call between OP, the dealer rep and the MBUSA rep to expedite this process to a successful conclusion for everyone.

RickInHouston

Joke of they day:

MB USA just came back and said they are offering me $5K off a 2017 E400 coupe (outgoing body style).

Woohoo!

Is that a joke? And Mercedes Benz USA say I'm the customer they want to keep? This is their offer to keep me in the family?

I told the salesman what he could do with that offer. I've sent a letter to MB USA asking / begging me to let me out of their claws and walk away. I no longer want to drive a Mercedes Benz.

Flash Gordon

I am just amazed for the price of the car, MB is will to lose its reputation. Rick, tell MB to look into this forum just how bad MB reputation has been tarnished to other MB owners. It's bad for business if they only understand the meaning!