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Ordering to Delivery Experience: What is/was Your Experience Like?
I took delivery of my GLS 450 yesterday, and I have to say that the overall experience of ordering my vehicle to having it delivered was a tortured one, not at all like I'd expected from MB. I ordered our car from the Dealer's Order Guide since nothing was yet available online. Unfortunately, the dealership nearest to me turned out to be a really terrible one I think. I was more familiar with the DOG than the salesperson or the sales manager. Our order was on 8/19/19; we took delivery on 1/24/20. This was our first Mercedes and we knew nothing about special ordering or timing on that. After we placed our order, our sales rep said in the first week of September, the car would ship in 3 weeks. We didn't know then that was totally unrealistic. But the sales manager told us production would start in the 1st week of Oct. and that we should have the vehicle in the 1st or 2nd week of Nov. Long story short, production dates they promised us were delayed time and again, but each time they delivered dates, they were wrong but our expectations ran rampant. I contacted MB headquarters and the factory to try to get some straight answers. Next thing I know our sales rep is fired. When the car finally reached the dealer, they tried the usual upsell of add-ons that were even more expensive than the website said, and their explanation was that there was a price increase as of 1/1/20 but the website hadn't been updated yet. We ordered the Executive Rear Seat package, but the car arrived without the MBUX tablet and the comfort headrests. It didn't have the all-weather mats we'd ordered either, and it didn't have a manufacturer's window sticker either, which the dealer claims it lost. We demanded one and the dealer groused that it's going to cost $50 to get another one, but that's not my problem. It's illegal to sell a new car in NY without it attached. Dealer ordered the missing items but doesn't know how long it will take. It's become very clear that this dealer has virtually no experience with special orders and just sells whatever allotments it gets from its lot, and even at that didn't know much detail about the features contained in the cars. Overall, I found the sales staff, parts people and sales managers under-informed and lacking incentive to oversee the delivery, not what I was expecting from MB. Bought a lot of cars over the years, and this was the worst one. I'm curious to know if mine is totally out of the normal MB experience or more common than I think?
Interesting experience. I’m also from NY and special ordered an S63. Had zero problems, the sales manger is great and I have an awesome sales lady. That’s tough that you had to go though that. The missing window sticker and parts is not acceptable. Regarding the delays, the factory it’s self had several delays with the GLE and gls. My wife’s gls was supposed to come late November but it’s coming February now. Unfortunately it’s like this everywhere with the gle/gls. Just curious what dealership? Feel free to DM me if you don’t want to post it here.
This is not necessarily unusual or unique to MB. I had overall a pretty good experience, but it was probably to no small part for me staying on top of things and verifying that what's in the system is actually what I ordered. I did European Delivery, so it was very important to me that the order was correct. Last thing I wanted is flying 5000 miles to Germany and find out my car wasn't built to my spec. It all went pretty well, but there was a lot of hand holding from my end as virtually no sales rep knows how to do European Delivery. The reality is that custom orders are a very small percentage of what a dealership sells, and ED is a drop in the bucket for that matter. Most customers buy off the lot, so most sales reps just know how to sell their inventory. There's one person in charge of ordering the vehicles, so the sales rep really don't have to deal with the options etc., other than searching the inventory for something matching what the customer is looking for. The sales rep can't actually place the order themselves. They hand it to the person who places the orders, so there is room for error at every stage. It can also happen that the order gets screwed up at the factory when it goes into the system, so it's always a good idea to not trust anybody at the dealership unless they give you a printout of the build sheet from Netstar. That will show what the order actually looks like in the system. For example in my case they forgot to add the digital instrument cluster, even though I handed them a printout of the spec I wanted. Netstar will also issue an order number and shows the production decade once the order has been accepted by the factory. Until it's accepted by the factory and has a production decade, anything the sales rep tells you is just hot air. They have no control over when the car is being produced and shipped. Also, delays can happen. All the dates are really just estimates.
In all honesty, the sales rep and dealership add virtually no value to the process and if I could cut out the sales reps etc. I would. That's the one thing I like about Tesla. Just go to their website and order the car. Dealerships are an ancient concept and need to go a way frankly.
Last edited by superswiss; 01-25-2020 at 06:23 PM.
I took delivery of my GLS 450 yesterday, and I have to say that the overall experience of ordering my vehicle to having it delivered was a tortured one, not at all like I'd expected from MB. I ordered our car from the Dealer's Order Guide since nothing was yet available online. Unfortunately, the dealership nearest to me turned out to be a really terrible one I think. I was more familiar with the DOG than the salesperson or the sales manager. Our order was on 8/19/19; we took delivery on 1/24/20. This was our first Mercedes and we knew nothing about special ordering or timing on that. After we placed our order, our sales rep said in the first week of September, the car would ship in 3 weeks. We didn't know then that was totally unrealistic. But the sales manager told us production would start in the 1st week of Oct. and that we should have the vehicle in the 1st or 2nd week of Nov. Long story short, production dates they promised us were delayed time and again, but each time they delivered dates, they were wrong but our expectations ran rampant. I contacted MB headquarters and the factory to try to get some straight answers. Next thing I know our sales rep is fired. When the car finally reached the dealer, they tried the usual upsell of add-ons that were even more expensive than the website said, and their explanation was that there was a price increase as of 1/1/20 but the website hadn't been updated yet. We ordered the Executive Rear Seat package, but the car arrived without the MBUX tablet and the comfort headrests. It didn't have the all-weather mats we'd ordered either, and it didn't have a manufacturer's window sticker either, which the dealer claims it lost. We demanded one and the dealer groused that it's going to cost $50 to get another one, but that's not my problem. It's illegal to sell a new car in NY without it attached. Dealer ordered the missing items but doesn't know how long it will take. It's become very clear that this dealer has virtually no experience with special orders and just sells whatever allotments it gets from its lot, and even at that didn't know much detail about the features contained in the cars. Overall, I found the sales staff, parts people and sales managers under-informed and lacking incentive to oversee the delivery, not what I was expecting from MB. Bought a lot of cars over the years, and this was the worst one. I'm curious to know if mine is totally out of the normal MB experience or more common than I think?
A good sales associate is mandatory. Mine was an E63S, but the process went perfectly. He had an allotment, knew everything about every option and was a real enthusiast. My wife and did the build together with him at his computer. When my wife wanted to see the wheels in person to decide between two, he took us to two cars in stock with the different wheels. He waived the deposit. He told us the build date (actually a 10-day "decade") and it turned out to be correct. He told us when the car would ship, be prepped at the VPC and arrive at the dealership. It all turned out to be accurate to within a week. Using a larger dealership with more generous allotments and lots of cars in stock to compare features also turned out to be important.
This is not necessarily unusual or unique to MB. I had overall a pretty good experience, but it was probably to no small part for me staying on top of things and verifying that what's in the system is actually what I ordered. I did European Delivery, so it was very important to me that the order was correct. Last thing I wanted is flying 5000 miles to Germany and find out my car wasn't built to my spec. It all went pretty well, but there was a lot of hand holding from my end as virtually no sales rep knows how to do European Delivery. The reality is that custom orders are a very small percentage of what a dealership sells, and ED is a drop in the bucket for that matter. Most customers buy off the lot, so most sales reps just know how to sell their inventory. There's one person in charge of ordering the vehicles, so the sales rep really don't have to deal with the options etc., other than searching the inventory for something matching what the customer is looking for. The sales rep can't actually place the order themselves. They hand it to the person who places the orders, so there is room for error at every stage. It can also happen that the order gets screwed up at the factory when it goes into the system, so it's always a good idea to not trust anybody at the dealership unless they give you a printout of the build sheet from Netstar. That will show what the order actually looks like in the system. For example in my case they forgot to add the digital instrument cluster, even though I handed them a printout of the spec I wanted. Netstar will also issue an order number and shows the production decade once the order has been accepted by the factory. Until it's accepted by the factory and has a production decade, anything the sales rep tells you is just hot air. They have no control over when the car is being produced and shipped. Also, delays can happen. All the dates are really just estimates.
In all honesty, the sales rep and dealership add virtually no value to the process and if I could cut out the sales reps etc. I would. That's the one thing I like about Tesla. Just go to their website and order the car. Dealerships are an ancient concept and need to go a way frankly.
I think your assessment of things is spot on. I also did a lot of hand holding, but with a person who knew less than I did, so it was more my teaching her what had to happen, and then overseeing her responses. The sales manager was totally useless. My thought is that other dealers who place custom orders more frequently might have more clout at the factory level. There is one dealership in Manhattan that is the only factory-owned dealership in the States. They claim to have more control of production flow. Maybe the next one will come from them.
Thanks for this explanation, superswiss! I am ordering a GLS and it helped a lot to know the exact words to ask for the "NetStar" confirmation WITH the order number and description and the "production decade". The sales rep did not understand the question, but the sales manager sent me exactly what I asked, including screen shots from the NetStar system!
Thanks for this explanation, superswiss! I am ordering a GLS and it helped a lot to know the exact words to ask for the "NetStar" confirmation WITH the order number and description and the "production decade". The sales rep did not understand the question, but the sales manager sent me exactly what I asked, including screen shots from the NetStar system!
Glad I could help. Good luck with the process and enjoy the new car.
My salesman and dealer were A+ as usual. Ordered my car, came in as it was ordered, ready for pick up the next day. They set up my Mercedes Me app, etc.
My salesman and dealer were A+ as usual. Ordered my car, came in as it was ordered, ready for pick up the next day. They set up my Mercedes Me app, etc.
How long did it take from order to delivery? Did you order yours custom or from yours or another dealers allotments? Just curious.
How long did it take from order to delivery? Did you order yours custom or from yours or another dealers allotments? Just curious.
I ordered mine. I wanted to be sure I got a heated steering wheel and other things. I put the order in as soon as they would take it (will have to check date) and it was here in October.
That's about as fast a delivery as I've heard of. Glad it worked out so well for you.
Checked my dates. I ordered it on April 25. Took delivery September 30. Dealer was given 10 slots or whatever they are to order in April. I had been waiting on the new dash design to trade.
Salesman texted me this morning. Production is complete, VPC options (spoiler, wheel locks) have been installed and the GLS-450 has been released to the carrier.
Salesman texted me this morning. Production is complete, VPC options (spoiler, wheel locks) have been installed and the GLS-450 has been released to the carrier.
should be able to pick it up Saturday!
Congratulations. You'll love it. One word of caution: if you have ordered the rear seat executive package, make sure they have included the MBUX tablet and rear seat headrest cushions, which are supposed to be done at VPC. Mine came without them. It took 3 weeks to get the tablet and the headrest cushions are still MIA.
Congratulations. You'll love it. One word of caution: if you have ordered the rear seat executive package, make sure they have included the MBUX tablet and rear seat headrest cushions, which are supposed to be done at VPC. Mine came without them. It took 3 weeks to get the tablet and the headrest cushions are still MIA.
When I saw your post a couple days ago, I alerted my salesman. He will keep an eye but said he has had a few with exec package and all the stuff was there.
Salesman texted me this morning. Production is complete, VPC options (spoiler, wheel locks) have been installed and the GLS-450 has been released to the carrier.
should be able to pick it up Saturday!
Congratz! Where are you located? They can get it from factory to dealer in a week, that's fast.
Salesman texted me this morning. Production is complete, VPC options (spoiler, wheel locks) have been installed and the GLS-450 has been released to the carrier.
should be able to pick it up Saturday!
Can you just remind me...when did you order your vehicle? I'm living vicariously thru all of you til it's my turn and my car is tangible!
He ordered October 21st with original 2D January production which was pushed back to 2/10/2020 which then moved up to 2/9/2020 and it looks like it actually got built a few days early.
Mine still shows 2/12/2020 as est production date. no VIN# assigned yet and has been stuck in B3 since 12/20/2019. Originally had a 2D November then got pushed to 2D December, then to 2D January and now 2D February. No end in sight yet...
Mine still shows 2/12/2020 as est production date. no VIN# assigned yet and has been stuck in B3 since 12/20/2019. Originally had a 2D November then got pushed to 2D December, then to 2D January and now 2D February. No end in sight yet... [/QUOTE]
oof. Can you speculate on why you think its been delayed?
Mine still shows 2/12/2020 as est production date. no VIN# assigned yet and has been stuck in B3 since 12/20/2019. Originally had a 2D November then got pushed to 2D December, then to 2D January and now 2D February. No end in sight yet...
oof. Can you speculate on why you think its been delayed?[/QUOTE]
No idea, Dealer doesn't know either. I've been trying to get a GLE/GLS since January 2019. After seeing the GLE in person and finding it too small for my needs, changed my order to a GLS. and been waiting ever since. Many in the GLE forum have been waiting 6-9 Months or even longer for their orders.
I worked with several dealers. My current order slot was secured by the dealer on 9/18/2019 and as of today, car still hasn't been built. Price has gone up by $750 and MBUSA response to that when I contacted them is tough S#@t!.
I've ordered several cars over the last 30 years and never had one take so long with such little status provided (and this one is built in the USA not over seas). My wife's BMW took 6 weeks from the day we submitted the order to the day we picked up the car, and we were able to track status on bmwusa site, didn't have to keep bugging dealer for status update. The last MB I ordered that was built in Germany only took 10 weeks from order date to delivery, and it had to go on a boat ride to get here. So not sure why the factory in Alabama is having such issues pumping out the GLE/GLS.
That's really tough. I ordered in October and got 2D of December. I ended up getting a VIN on Dec 13th and was given 2D of January for actual production. It finally arrived at the dealer 23rd at night and took delivery on the 27th. I wonder why yours is taking so long considering that you ordered earlier than mine...
That's really tough. I ordered in October and got 2D of December. I ended up getting a VIN on Dec 13th and was given 2D of January for actual production. It finally arrived at the dealer 23rd at night and took delivery on the 27th. I wonder why yours is taking so long considering that you ordered earlier than mine...
No idea. Dealer doesn't know either. I have orders at two dealers, both have been similarly delayed.
Congratz! Where are you located? They can get it from factory to dealer in a week, that's fast.
Richmond. Dealer says it’s only a 2 day drive from Alabama once they get on the road.
this guy is great! He looked up previous orders of recent GLS deliveries to see how long it took from “release to carrier” and arrival at the dealership
Can you just remind me...when did you order your vehicle? I'm living vicariously thru all of you til it's my turn and my car is tangible!
Congrats!! Post pics!
ordered October 22. It was supposed to be a 2nd decade Jan 20 build but got pushed to Feb 10, then updates to Feb 9 ... which was right on schedule.
I was worried because I’d heard spoilers were causing delays because of shotragaes. My wife wanted a spoiler (her car after all) but was very pleased that no delay happened.
01-25-2020, 04:43 PM
