Cars (and buying them!) are not my forte but I am pushing through with lots of help from you all so thank you.

I hope to be buying a 2026 GLE450W4 vey shortly. This is most likely my last car that I will be buying as I am just shy of 70 and I tend to keep cars a long time. I want to be as smart about this purchase as possible and I want to take very good care of the car.



Some of the posts I am reading are confusing me a bit so I would like to confirm the correct way to go. SO here are my questions:

1) The idea of an extended warranty appeals to me. Do you agree I should buy this? If so can I buy it at any time while the car is under the original new car warranty or do I have to buy it when I buy the car? Is this one of those dealer add ons that I am meant to negotiate the price?

2) The idea of prepaid maintenance appeals to me. Do you agree I should buy this? If so I have to buy it when I buy the car - right? Is this one of those dealer add ons that I am meant to negotiate the price?


3) Is there anything else that you think I should look into and possibly purchase now that I have settled on the car model - or is extended warranty and pre-paid maintenance the last things that I need to think about?

4) Is there anything that you should warn me about that might be put on the invoice by the dealer that I most likely do not want - that I should research before meeting to talk with the dealer - so that I am educated and can explain why I do not want that line item? What should I look out to remove?

5) Is there anything that you should warn me about that might be put on the invoice by the dealer that I might want - that I should research before meeting to talk with the dealer - so that I am educated and can explain why I want that line item? What should I look out for to make sure that I get the dealer to include it? Are these the dealer add ons that I am meant to negotiate on?

6) What oil change schedule should I follow - the one put out by MB or one that changes the oil more frequently? Do I have to use MB for oil changes while the car is under warranty or under the extended warranty - otherwise the warranties are invalidated?? I would not like to do something that invalidates the warranties. Do you suggest I only use MB for oil changes? The guy who works on my BMW says he can do MB oil changes and I like him. Seems to be a good guy - so I have some place to go if you say I do not have to use MB for oil changes. Are there other things I can take to my guy and not invalidate the warranty - and if so what things should I be having done?

Thank you to one and all who answer. I really appreciate your kindness and help.

 

Everyone will have different outlooks on what you should or not purchase in the finance office. For myself, I don't buy extended warranties. You won't need them until the factory warranty runs out. Put the money in a high yield savings account. These warranties are all made to make money for the manufacturer or seller. If it will make you sleep better at night, then buy it but you will most likely be ahead with just banking the extended warranty cost

If you have a trusted mechanic, skip the prepaid maintenance. You will not invalidate the warranty, just keep all your receipts.

Avoid the paint protection if offered. Most dealers do not use a real ceramic coating and what they offer is extremely overpriced.

 

Thank you!

 

Spend your money as you like. Financially there are lower cost of ownership alternatives besides extended warranties and maintenance plans. If you want an extended warranty and a service/maintenance plan, go for it.

Don’t sell yourself short on longevity/lifespan. If you don’t presently have a specific serious medical condition, there is a good chance you will be well and functioning, and driving, into your mid-80s.

The Mercedes will be gone by then, or it will have declared total war on your wallet. They don’t make them like they used to. The message is you may have another new car in your future.

 

...... He says with remorse, having not experienced the 167, but bases his opinion on his car from 10 years ago and being a loyal Consumer Reports aficionado.....😀

 

Buckminster,

1. I don't usually buy extended warranties, but did with my 2020 450, primarily because I got E-ABC which seems like one of the more complicated systems. 6 1/2 years and almost no warranty work. If it gives you peace of mind get it, but get the Mercedes one and not some 3rd party one the finance manager wants to sell you (because they make more on them). You can get it through any dealer and I know a source that will discount it if you like.
2. I never have gotten prepaid maintenance; don't think it's good value.
3. Some people get wheel/tire or glass insurance, but I never have.
4/5. Often they try to foist body or interior protection on you. You can almost always get better/cheaper elsewhere.
6. Oil change schedule depends partly on how much you drive. We do >10k/year and keep our cars one model cycle (7 years) and factory schedule has worked fine for us. I always use the dealer for scheduled maintenance. The reason is you develop a relationship that can possibly help you at some point. One of my MLs had a major issue with the transfer case right after warranty expired and the dealer covered half, I believe because I had a service record with them. Having all you records in one place is an advantage, as well. That being said you can save $ doing it yourself or at a non-dealer shop.

 

Thank you!

 

I would love the contact info. I keep reading about Jeff Jackson who was the go to person for years but now he has taken a different life path and is no longer a good contact. I have taken out insurance on my run flat tires in the past but it was tire insurance and did not include wheels. I liked that but have been told that was a waste of money as well. I do not drive much - my current 10 1/2 year old BMW has approx 77,000 and is still on its first set of brakes!! Just had it serviced and they said I still have brakes. I do intend to take some road trips though so that will put on some miles. But I mainly drive to the supermarket, restaurants, friends houses etc. I would not be selling it if it had apple car play and if the navigation software could be updated (it is 3 g system and a number of years ago BMW stopped supporting it and went 5G). The car is a dream besides that. But I desperately want apple car play and so I am going to buy the GLE 450W4. Thank you for your opinions which are well reasoned and I took notes and put them on my pile. Thx!

 

Jeff Jackson is who I was going to recommend; I had not kept up with him. Definitely skip prepaid maintenance and extended warranty is a maybe in your case. Yeah I sold my old M4 after 3G went away.

 

It seems that the loss of Jeff Jackson has had a far reaching impact to this community. Thanks for trying though and for answering.

 

Shop and compare, as they often say.
I bought a Service Contract at my local F&I, because Jeff didn't match their deal on the same product.

Jeff seemed to lack knowledge of Mercedes Models and was frustrating to deal with. I had to clarify my model several times, even after I provided the VIN. Even if he had been cheaper than my F&I department (who I admittedly have a good relationship with), I doubt that I would have bought from him.

If you include an ELW of Service Contract in the Out the Door Price, the dealership can probably beat any deal.

 

I will respectfully disagree that prepaid maintenance is not good value.

1. It can be redeemed at any dealership since it’s purchased from MB

2. Inflation protection. Prices may go up in the next 4 years but you have already paid.

3. Discourages “add on” costs.

4. The cost of the package is less than the sum of the cost of each service (bulk discount). In my experience Audi does more discounting.

5. Purchase price is NEGOTIABLE.

What’s there not to like? Unless you sell your vehicle early or get is written off.

 

Thank you

 

To add to this, if you are leasing MB will residualize the pre paid maintenance plan. So you only pay for 50% of it during the term of the lease if the car has a 50% residual. Something to think about.

Only reason not to get it is if you use an independent mechanic (I do, so I do not have it)

 

It sounds like someone named Brandon took over for Jeff after he left and is continuing the excellent prices for ELWs. You can read about it here:
https://mbworld.org/forums/extended-...ml#post9247576

Here's his info:
Brandon Strong
Finance Manager @ Mercedes Benz of Louisville
502.896.4411
Brandon.strong@jeffwyler.com

 

This is my first MB and I've now owned it for about a week; so I have zero experience with MB, but very recent experience with purchasing. With that in mind:

1. I've purchased the extended warranty on the last six of our cars, including two BMW M cars, an Infiniti, and a Jeep Grand Cherokee: In almost all cases the warranty has paid for itself (the Infiniti being the exception - gotta love Nissan). I purchased the extended warranty from my dealer for the GLE, after finding that Jeff Jackson is gone. We negotiated to $200 above their cost, which was a solid deal. CAVEAT: This was for a 2022 CPO.
2. I wouldn't have purchased the extended service, but my car was already priced below comparable cars so I didn't have much room to negotiate on the price. Instead, negotiated on this and they put in two years of service at no additional cost.

Can't answer the other questions, although I will say the acoustic comfort package is both great (seriously quiet inside) and a PITA; can't find a good place for the common sensors (e.g. community gate), and limited efficacy of radar detectors without custom external setups. Eh...no big.

Good luck!

 

The pre-paid maintenance is apparently cheaper than having the maintenace work done a la carte. But the extended warranty is a lost gamble in my opinion.

 

@Buckminster I'd recommend you don't visit this thread for at least a day before going in to buy your car.

Avoid Analysis Paralysis.