RoundTheBenz

I took my S550 in to the dealer for some warranty work this past week and of course, they have a loaner for me. Problem is it's a Hyundai. I'm happy to have a loaner but it seems a bit cheesy to give me a Hyundai Elantra as a loaner.

Is it part of MB's requirement to give a loaner vehicle to someone having warranty work done or is it a courtesy offered by the dealer? Either way, do you guys think it’s cool to do this? I was not the only one this happened to either.

What do you think guys? Should I be grateful for the loaner (which I really am) or pissed that they would give me such a low ender?

epasc

I think the loaner is a courtesy. Often in SoCal, it's a perk only given to service customers who also bought their car at the dealer.

This logic of course is flawed - dealers make much more money on service than on sales, so they should be rewarding their service customers as well.

So I made a deal with my SA. I would continue to take my car to him ("loyally") for service if he promised me a (Mercedes) loaner every time, without my having to ask. So far he has been very good about it. He even gives me a loaner for non-warranty issues and maintenance services. Occasionally there are no more Mercs and I get some other thing, but that is rare.

You should try the same.

carsnob

Our local dealer in Thornhill, Ontario provides a B class or C class and occasionally an R class loaner.
Why should you have to drive a car that feels dangerous and like a piece of crap?
All MB dealers across North America should provide like vehicles for their customers. Granted a 2 week appointment window allows for a certain number of vehicles. If your appt. is pressed for time, then yes a rental from a local agency may have to do.
For the longest time, our Porsche dealer was providing rental cars. Buicks, and other horrible cars. Finally they came up with Cayennes for loaners. The local BMW dealer provides 3 series loaners, so if your MB dealer is holding out, whip them into shape!!

Jan AMG

It would be cool if they equipped you with a helmet, t-shirt, shorts and gave you a bike as a loaner
It is common to have the like car as a loaner (C-Class for C-Class) or one-step lower class the same brand car (E-Class for S-Class). However, depending of the size of the dealership, loaners are usually a courtesy unless you have a brand new car.

jprescott

Bad business. Even though you are in a bigger, higher money market we have a new dealer in town who blew everyone's sox off about 4 years ago. Part of the strategy that worked was to put MB owners in a new loaners equal to of better than their own car. If you believe in capitalism go find another dealer in Atlanta.

Fraser

Back in the UK the local MB dealer gave my father one of the first W220s in the UK as a loaner when his W210 was in for a service. So new it was the first one we'd seen in the flesh. We had a family day out in it and when he returned the car he negotiated a deal on a new S500L. It works

jprescott

We did the same. Had an R500 and got a GL for a day. Sold. Amazing how the old establishment is fat, lazy and don't get it. New and young dealers who can control this and avoid cutting corners win. Some times the system works.

cjf_moraga

If your car is in for warranty work (ie: A problem not of your own making or responsibility) then the least they can do after having spent so much money on an S-Class is to give you another MB.

My own S600 is in for a warranty repair at the moment. I asked for an S or SL loaner... I got a C300. It's still an MB...

Chris

IDriveAnM5

My local dealer gives out C's, GLK's, and E's. I think they have an R-Class too, though I'd try to stay away from that one.

All local M-B dealers give out M-B cars. If they can't accomodate you in an M-B loaner, they'll delay your service appointment until they're sure they have one of their own cars for you.

My local BMW dealer has always given me a BMW. My M5 goes in tomorrow, and I'm hoping to get a new 5-Series for the loaner, as I know they have these. Never had a non-BMW loaner there.

The local Lexus dealer (wife's car) gives out Lexus ES, IS, and RX models (gas and hybrid). Never had a non-Lexus loaner there. The Lexus people don't even care about gas. Leave full and come back empty, they won't complain. That's pretty cool.

I remember when my Dad used to buy Cadillacs (now he drives M-B). They used to pull that "Enterprise Rental Car" loaner crap on him. He was never in a Cadillac, and that stupid car was in the shop all the time!!!

KA8

I've been to two dealerships, one in Downtown LA and one in Anaheim Hills. At downtown benz you get an MB loaner but you need to pay for it. There's Enterprise rental company inside the dealership for your convenience lol. I had warranty work for my c-class and they 'paid' for our loaner but we had to pay insurance.

At Anaheim Hills benz we got courtesy loaner free of charge but it was a camry. I didn't complain. It all depends on where you go.

In2MB's

I wish more dealers did this. This is a very smart thing to do. I've been put in C300's from Enterprise or the R350 that my dealership owns. This started about a year or 2 ago. Before then, we were getting Nissan Altima's, Mazda 3's, and you better not count on them being clean. But my dealer is getting better but still has some improving to do. It was just crazy to take a V12 in for something minor like a oil change and have to leave for work in a dirty Mazda 3. Luckily they've changed their fleet of loaners.

famous550

You should be happy you get a loaner, I never got a loaner before from mercedes but i did with my RR,Infiniti,Lexus and the list goes on.. My service advisor gives me a b.s excuse that since the car wasn't purchased from them they have no right to give me a loaner so whenever i get my car serviced they drop me home and pick me back up when my car is ready.

K-A

That's so messed up it's hilarious.

I usually get a C-Class where I go. In fact, I got so spoiled off of getting W204's (when my old W211 would regularly see the Dealer) I started resenting those cars because my extensive time in them forced me to get all too acquainted with the crappy interior (that I was shocked to find in a Mercedes).