rory breaker

Its the principal. You buy a honda, you get a loaner. You buy a nissan you get a loaner. This is a 1yr old benz, they can take care of me just like someone in a 3 yr old Kia would get taken care of.

No way no how will I pay a dime for a loaner car while my car is being fixed under warranty. The day a manufacturer tells me thats the rules, thats the way it is is the day I sell that car and never go back.

Call me crazy...I'll pay for service, I'll pay for extras, I'll tip the dude who washes my car, but there is no chance I pay for a loaner car under warranty. No way.

sosh

In some ways I see your point, however its up to the dealers, not the Mfg in all cases to decide who and when a loaner car is provided.In MB and I believe BMW's cases the mfg only insists that "alternate transportation" is provided and that could be a ride home,to the office the bus or train station Or, a loaner. West Chester used to provide everyone with a loaner purchase customer or not. Until you told me you were refused I did not know the policy had changer. Perhaps if you explained that you recently moved here from FL they would make an exception. But you must speak directly to an SA or the svc manager not the routine scheduling desk. As for the other makes you mentioned I know that not all provide loaners. The BMW dealer in our area provides loaners but only has 2 or 3 and all others get to rent an Enterprise car at their expense. Remember also that your the one that is actually suffering due to your feelings, not the dealers. If you feel that the Honda dealer will do that buy a Honda if you don't care if you drive around in an econobox.

rory breaker

Any and every BMW dealership I have encountered has provided a loaner car, typically whatever you want, free of charge. I need an SUV, ok, here's a loaner X5. Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Lexus...its not a problem.

I understand it is up to the dealers, my point is, if a dealer is too dumb to realize hey, this guy spent $60k on this car, maybe he'll spend another $60k, or $90k, or $150k, maybe I should give him a damn c230 to drive around for 2 days while I fix his 1 year old car, then they are too dumb. If I then go to a manufacturer and say hey, are you aware your dealers are this dumb, and they say yes, its up to them, sorry, I will walk away from that brand and never look back.

If you dont see how it doesnt make sense for a dealer to provide a customer with a loaner car, especially a customer with a propensity to overspend on cars (lets face it at the end of the day thats what we're doing)...I dont know what to tell you. I want an E63, who am I going to go to to buy one? You better believe its the dealer who took the time to give me a loaner car. I think we should just agree to disagree here man, I dont think you get it, and thats OK. The smug comment about the honda "econobox" tells me off the bat, we don't relate.

Thanks for the advice.

sosh

I had the opportunity to question my dealer West Chester MB re your query. Their policy changed 6 mos ago due to severe problems they were having with their loaner fleet. These problems ranged from parts stolen from cars to bad parts such as radiators swapped for good ones also tire and wheel swaps and even stolen cars. In each and every case it was a borrower that did not purchase the car from them. All were prosecuted. They will give a loaner to a non purchaser but will charge for it. Many dealers in this region have had the same issues and adopted the same policy. You seem to be a victim of a situation that is not of your doing. My comment re the "econobox" was misinterpreted by you.My thoughts were that I do not think that after driving an MB you would be happy with such a vehicle even with a free loaner.

rory breaker

got it. thanks!

OnlyMercedes

My MB dealer (for my moms 07' C230) has 120 service loaners which are all FREE no matter what your going in for (even an oil change or if you hear a rattle...no our Benz doesn't rattle!!)

Sure, they will give most customers an 07' C230/07' C280, but everytime it goes in, we ask for other models..

So far I've driven:
R350 4Matic (07)
ML350 4Matic (07)
E350 Wagon RWD (06)
C280 4Matic (07)

And plenty of other ones. My next loaner will be either an S-Class or AMG.

ruey220

it's funny you brought up loaner cars because i wanted to ask someone a question about loaners. how many people raped or driven loaner cars to the limit, or rental cars that aren't theirs?

Have you ever done stuff with loaners or rentals that you wouldn't do to your own car? I have to admit I've tried several things from power braking, neutral banging, and just about anything you can imagine with them, just to learn how a car reacts. I've even played with the torque converter jumping on the pedal letting it ride between shift points testing if the tranny can hold up. I know it's a bad thing but I can tell i'm not the only one as I've driven a loaner C230 that looked like the tranny was slipping at 5k miles. The rental agent acknowledge people do this because it's not their car but they already factor that in the car and write it off early which is why they sell them at 20k miles.

OnlyMercedes

I've done several brakestands in the E350 RWD Wagon loaner.

Usually I'll floor all loaners to do acceleration tests, do a few braking tests and do handling tests. Then, I'll drive them regularly and usually never beat/rape them because I respect MB.

ruey220

back to the main topic about loaners needing to be paid for, there's also a reason for that which relates to my previous post. by having you pay it helps relieve liability from the dealer for folks like you who rape the loaners don't take care of them and even pose a risk for the dealership's car to be wrecked. if they give you a free loaner, there's more exposure for people that take joy rides, hurt someone in an accident, and then the dealer is liable for giving that free loaner, vs charging a small fee for you to pay for it.

yes you sign waivers and disclaimers but in the lawsuit it will give more detachment if they charge you as they gave you a service you paid for and they're off the hook, vs you getting it for free and then they are part of the blame because you can turn around and say it was them who offered you the car and you simply took it on their enticement. sure you are responsible but that dealer wants every way out of being on the hook.

ruey220

yep you're right i also don't take chance with dealership cars because they can always find a way to collect it back from me through repair work, and it's a game of what goes around comes around.

but i had been upset with the other times i get outsourced loaners like a geo metro years ago that can't even accelerate 0-60 under 11 secs, that's when i drive it like my go cart.

ruey220

have you ever put the cheapest gas possible in your loaner even though you know it should be taking 89 octane or more?

OnlyMercedes

I put 89+ in all my Mercedes loaners.

rory breaker

what kind of questions are these, do you work at a dealer or something?

you'll always find people who abuse loaners or rentals, or who dont put the right gas in, just like you'll find people who drive with no license or people who drink and drive. but the majority of us here follow the rules and are respectful to those who are respectful to us...IE, give us a loaner, we are appreciative, and will treat it right.

sosh

Agree with you whle heartedly. The dealer I use now gives loaners only to those that purchased cars from them and charges for the non purchase loaners. They also require the borrower to show his license and insurance info and require that you replace the gas that you used or $15 per 1/4 tank will be charged. You ought to see some of the loaner stories posted here and elsewhere... A guy doing donuts in a parking lot who argued that there was nothing wrong with it, another who "tried to break the car" My dealer also refuses to loan cars to anyone under the age of 25. Oh and there was another post from a guy who said his was not a no charge because he had to replace the gas he used. What happened to respect of other people's property and they feel a loaner was their right... its Not It is an excellent program and a great convience. And no I do not use the incorrect fuel and never have.

SL2003driver

How could you use the wrong gas? All the loaners are C class and they use regular.

GGM

All the C Classes I have ever driven (as loaners) or owned (the car before this one) have required premium. How do you figure a C Class uses regular?