3.5L

Recently, the A1 Service message started appearing at every start up on our 2012 GLK350. The car just turned 25,000 miles, but it has been 12 months since I had the B Service performed. At B Service, the car had 19,300 miles on the odometer. The MB shop did quite a lot of service stuff during the B Service.

So, am I correct in thinking that the A1 alert was triggered by the calender rather than mileage? Since we've only put 6000 mile on it since last service, I'm thinking that there's no reason to take it back until it hits 30,000 miles.

3.5L

168 views with no response. Interesting.

I called my local MB service rep yesterday and he confirmed that the A1 alert can come up due to calendar time. In my case, 12 months since last service (B).

Cancelling this alert with the "OK" button every time we start the car is annoying, so I looked up the procedure to cancel it. It was quite easy to do. And no, I'm not worried about missing the 30,000 mile service 4500 miles down the road. I imagine the 30,000 mile point will trip the alert again, but even if not, I'll get the car in for service.

ble2716

So you decided to continue to drive your car with the oil older a year in the engine.
Interesting.
For me, I would at least change out the oil.
You don't have to bring to the dealer if you don't want to, local Indy shop maybe?
Even better if you can do it by yourself.
It's your car, you can do whatever you want with it. I guess.
Happy motoring.

volkvin

http://www.mbusa.com/vcm/MB/DigitalA...ce-Booklet.pdf

Why would anyone respond to a question, answer to witch is in your glovebox. Your ignorance shows in the question you ask and in the decion you have posted in the second reply. Lol. Why bother replying.

3.5L

My, my, what a hostile forum. Try to get a little help and all I see is criticism and insults.



But back to the manual.

Page 19:

"Service at 30,000 mile or 3 years."

I want to emphasize the word "or". My GLK350 has reached neither mile stone. Even my MB service rep agreed with me.

volkvin

No hostility. Just explaining views with no answer.
Also, service reminders are set by people. So error may be made there. Or if the battery was pulled, the times might have reset. Which I am not so sure about.
Regardless. 10k miles is too much between oil changes. 1 year is too much between oil changes. Dont ask you service rep about that, ask the mechanics

3.5L

So you're suggesting that the manual is wrong - the official manual from Mercedes Benz. Interesting.

And what about the manufacturer of the oil, Mobil 1? Their engineers claim 10,000 miles is just fine, not to mention that MB agrees. Mobil themselves state that if you should slip past the magic 10k mile moment by a thousand miles, no big deal. The only folks that are pushing 3000 mile or so oil changes these days are businesses such as Jiffy Lube. The thinking behind their mantra is all-too obvious.

Having said that, I grew up with the 3k mile oil change mentality. Considering the metallurgy and oil quality of those days, it was a good idea. But times have changed. I'll admit that it was a little difficult for me to adapt to the new oil technology and recommendations by the actual car manufacturer. But, I'm not prone to sticking my head in the sand, either - I do try to keep an open mind.

But as I previously mentioned, I only have about 5500 miles on the last Mobile 1 synthetic oil change. We do not drive the car hard or in harsh conditions or extreme weather. Also, the car sits in a fully enclosed garage when not in use (stable temperature).

And BTW bub, calling someone ignorant does indeed set a hostile environment.

Rascally Wabbit

Problem with lack of replies is during the work week, the MB owners or at least a majority of them are out there with their noses to the grind stone to make enough to cover the car payment. Kidding aside, 10K does seem a long time. Our loaner which was certified MB did not have its first oil change until 18K miles (not only item incorrectly handled by the dealership)! Stick with the 10K service but perhaps change the oil filter at 5K intervals. Oil does not wear out, it does get dirty, the additive package declines with age but Mobil says the OEM oil will go the distance. If it was a GLK250, then that would be a different story imo. At least that is my plan as the extended warranty expires later this year on ours. Do make use of the search function here & it will help (no guarantees) to make the grumpy old men happy!

Mort

You can always send a sample of the oil to Blackstone or some other oil analysis company and see for yourself what condition your oil is in and indicated engine wear factors. Good idea to get the TBN (Total Base Number) and TAN (Total Acid Number) tests completed as these will give a good indication of the oil's ability to protect internal aluminum parts.

bugelrex

I'm in a similar situation, 1 year coming up and only have 4,000 miles on the GLK250. To keep warranty, I'm assuming I would have to do the full A service and not 'just' an oil change.. even though the A is just an oil change+checks

NYCGLK

And this is based on what exactly?

NYCGLK

Correct, 1 year or 10k miles, whichever is sooner. Actually if you check how much left until service it will tell you in either days or miles depending which limit you are expected to hit. If you are not planning to keep the car for long, just do the A service to have good service history (it's only 250 bux anyways) or just do your own oil change.

3.5L

JIFFY LUBE!

NYCGLK

Well Mobil 1 also says that you should do annual oil change regardless of miles. Actually because you don't drive often I would change it more often (i.e. stick to annual change).

fabbrisd1

Well... a little insight here...

1) Actual mileage range to maintain warranty spec is 10K + 2.5K "hidden cushion" = 12.5K miles

2) Actual spec oil is 0W-40 Mobil One - and not to cause consternation but almost all MB dealers use 5W-40 - since 0W-40 is not available "usally" in bulk and it is cheaper for dealers to use 5W-40 under several "shop approved" brands

3) Annual service warranty "requirement" also allows MB (and other car manufacturers as well) to label most software updates (like ECU, TCU, climate control) as non-critical/non-campaign so they don't have to notify owners but will catch your MB for update when brought in for annual service where their will be a update alert in Netstar for that re-programming in the NetStar system under the VMI screen for your vehicle.

4) When speaking to a MB Service Adviser about whether or not to bring your low mileage MB in for a "annual" - it is 1000% appropriate to ask them to pull up the VMI for your vehcile to see if there are any outstanding updates for your MB

5) It is ALWAYS advisable when picking up your MB from service to see if the Service Interval has been reset at time of service - to confirm you are driving away with fresh 10K and 1 yr. It is not that uncommon for service techs to miss reset - they do mark the internal notes as reset to complete the correct service - but forget/miss to reset the vehicle - sorry, but that can happen - more times than you might think even with good dealers.

volkvin

Based on my opinion. Which is based on opinion of my mechanic. Who actually recommends 7-8k km between changes. I still do it every 5k.

NYCGLK

That's a giant waste of money, but hey if it makes you feel better. What does your mechanic know about new diesel engines that just came out? Has he rebuilt many of them to tell you to change oil so often?

Anyways, worn out engine will be least of your concerns in 10-15 years if you keep your GLK that long.

3.5L

Old myths die hard.

volkvin

Even modern turbo engines are on shorter leash. I like to take care of things.
And yes, everything is a waste of money. I paid 64k for the car that you guys buy for 50 lol
damn borders...

bop11

One problem with time when concerned about oil is condensation. Depending upon the humidity of where you live, every time the temperature goes up and down, you can get condensation on the walls of tanks. Before things like carbon canisters and 'almost ' sealed oil systems it was more prevalent. However tanks need to breath so when the oil and air above it heat up, the pressure needs to be released. When it cools down it needs a vent or the vacuum can get quite large. In the early days of carbon canister fuel systems, a blocked breather would totally collapse a gas tank flat. Moisture collects in the oil from this breathing, combining with carbon deposits from combustion and makes a very corrosive mix, some of which is boiled off to the internals next time the engine runs. Stabilizer in the oil also break down with time. Siloxane additives in some oils, can grow long chains developing gummy white strings as they continue to polymerize over time.
So as others here have said millage is a key factor for oil break-down, but aging also has its affect. An annual oil change seems like a good use of your money.

3.5L

I just got off the phone with my service rep at my local MB dealership. I informed him that my GLK350 is showing the A1 alert at only ~6000 miles since last oil change, but at exactly 12 months since the oil change.

Different response this time (different rep than last time). He said, yes, bring it in for the A1 service. So, it seems that 12 months or 10K miles is about it, which ever comes first.

If you read my earlier posts, you'll see where I mentioned the official MB manual and its confusing statement, "3 years or 30,000 miles."

In any case, I scheduled the A1 service for early next week. Probably a bit overkill, but what the heck.

thenew3

It's always been an OR whichever occurs first. Just like the warranty, 4 year or 50k miles whichever occurs first. Service is the same way, 1 year or 10k miles whichever occurs first.

NYCGLK

turbo engine perhaps yes, because they run such high boost...but I'm not sure how much changing oil would really help.

GLK's engine will be your last worry. How many MB 350 engines do you hear about failing? It's the other small things that cost a fortune to fix unless you diy.

3.5L

I just checked in with my service rep at local BMW dealer and he confirmed that the my new Bimmer will be due for synthetic oil and filter at 9000 miles, just as my on board computer display indicates.

Leash doesn't seem so short.

cindyclk

If you want to change your oil more frequently, do it, but you're probably spending extra money for no extra protection...but you'll feel better.

My BMW 325 had 15K for oil change intervals/ manual and dealer free changes...no engine wear issues.
10K/1 yr interval with the GLK is just fine...if not, there would be a lot of engine issues going on with MB and BMW engines.