As best as I can tell, the only essential parts for A and B service are, respectively, oil change and oil+filter change. My local dealer wants $500+ for A service, and $1200+ for B service. That seems rather extravagant, feels I should be able to get an indy tech to do it for half that (had one that worked on my wife's BMW that is very good and honest).

Is there anything else in A and B service that I am missing? By law I am allowed to do oil changes wherever I please with no impact on warranty.

 

YEs A is basically an oil change with a a supposedly good inspection of car like fluid levels and under side - what you would expect from a good indy shop.

B adds a few things depending on year and model but pretty much what I list below which is out of my service manual:
Cabin Air filter
BRake FLuid Change
Wper blades

My dealer prices are;
A Service= $200
B Service = $350 I think it has been a while.

Now for A, I go to local oil change place and give him something like $110-125 I forget.
Which is a deal I think as I bought stuff to change oil and it added up to roughy $85 at the time for the 7 liters oil, filter, drain plug seal (FCPEURO)
Brought it to my indy guy and he changed oil for something like $30 after tax using the stuff I brought.
Still did his inspection and vacuum; only thing he does not do like dealer is run car thru the automated scratch machine (car wash)

For B I go to dealer s their price is OK basedon adding brake flid flush and new cabin filter and wiper blades as those parts if memory serves me right are about $60 or so plus labor and discarding old brake fluid properly.

 

I found a local shop that will do everything on the B service, including a reset of the computer, for $400. I have made a reservation with them. The second Mercedes dealership I called still hasn't returned my call. My regular Mercedes dealership has doubled the charge of B service in the past three years, they encourage people to wait, and they discontinued snacks in the waiting area.