Kaloteck

MB should learn from the best...

"We don't call people clients, or even customers. At our company we refer to them as guests, for they are our guests, and we are their host.
We are always happy to see them and strive to make their time with each of us a great experience." - Rolls Royce

hyperion667

places

A friend of mine purchased a lightly used RR car a couple years ago. Evidently there was an issue with the paint, can't recall the details but the car was purchased through their "Provenance" (CPO) program. RR flew a customer relations person to Florida to meet with him and resolve the issue, I think they offered him another car. I don't expect MB to act this way with the millions of customers but it's a great standard of service to aspire to.

chassis

This is a great example. It's hard to see how MB is striving to improve, in the sense they don't seem hungry to become more like a company like RR.

They are taking actions, which are to proliferate their model range and invest in EVs. I don't think it can be said they are doing nothing. But it doesn't feel like they are the best.

Suggestion for their new slogan, "Not the best, but better than nothing".

hyperion667

Suggestion for their new slogan, "Not the best, but better than nothing".

as.thompson

LOL

E55Greasemonkey

Mercedes-Benz presents the SMART CAR:
"It's better than walking."

DaveW68

This thread is a snooty sob-fest. But it's also like a car accident I can't look away from.

mobster600

I will speak for myself. My dealer is fantastic. My service service writers are very knowledgeable and honest. They are easy to talk to and fully staffed all the time. Loaners are always discussed in advance. I’ve even waited at the dealer because I had free time, they got me out the door within a hour or so. My purchase experience was great too. They got back to my calls and emails right away. Had a little demo of the features on pick up day. Car was waxed and shiny as well. I couldn’t ask for a better experienced. Btw I just own a base model E class, nothing crazy. They treated me just right. It’s not a brand thing, it’s your dealer. It’s like all franchises, some owners care and some don’t. Best of luck.

2012 merc amg

Ya some of these big chains really suck big time. Trying to get my leaking fuel pump fixed is kinda a nightmare. They keep telling me everything was fine, I've complained about it three times now. Then when I get home and open the trunk or a door it smells like somebody poured a gallon of gas on the garage floor and I can hear the fuel pump making funny noises and a dripping sound and thats when the gasoline smell starts. The soonest appt I can get is the Sat after next. I'll even tell them I'll pay cash for the fuel pump even though the car still has four years of warranty left on it and then I'll try and get the money back from Mercedes. I just need to get the damm car fixed, I don't feel safe driving it. I've instructed my family that if I get blown up to sue the dealer. I emailed the Service Manager twice at the dealership and he wont get back to me. I called the service writer also today as I had his number in my phone and he never got back to me either. The only person I could talk too is the secretary to make the appointment.

kafklatsch

Usually threads with repeated long comments lose steam quickly.... this thread is impressive....

my gripe is seeing a C300 or an E look like my S's ... why not have each class as it's own style class .... but I digress.. impressive thread....

DaveW68

Yeah....you'd think that the whining would have died down by now. But some of these fellas are in a lot of pain driving around in their $100k+ cars not getting their ***** kissed every time they go in for service. Imagine if they opted for a BMW instead. Just the thought of what they might go through in that instance is painful.

The small, medium, large theme seems to be a euro car staple of the last 20 years. I'm sure it's done to cut down on production costs as many of the same parts can be used in multiple models. Plus, they only have to pay one designer instead of 3 or more.

Jsmuve7

Hello all, I am new to Mercedes ( CPO 2018 S450 4matic). I purchased my vehicle online & had it shipped to me (local dealership barely had pre-owned S class inventory & would only pick up/deliver from one of their own stores).
Now, I'm thinking, "I have a Mercedes Benz, so surely I can make an appointment with the local dealer & have them spend some time with me getting to learn some of the nuances of this car" ... well my first interaction with my local dealership after getting my car has me rethinking my decision to purchase Mercedes. When I tried to make an appointment to just have someone go through some things with me, the response was "you didn't buy it from here, so we can't help you". ???WHAT??? Didn't I just buy a Mercedes Benz....a Certified Pre-Owned Mercedes? The Best or nothing??? Surely this can't be right, maybe I just got someone on the phone that didn't feel like being bothered. So I call the MBUSA 800 number and explain what just happened. They concurred with the person at the dealership!! Explanation was that dealerships are individually owned so they can set their own standards. What about some minimum standards set by Mercedes Benz? So, I am quite disappointed in Mercedes. To the point that I don't even want to drive the car, I'm going to let my wife drive this one, I will drive her Lexus LS...where by the way, the dealership there goes out of their way to make sure we have everything we need.

DaveW68

Unfortunately this is the world of commissioned sales people. They don't make a dime showing you around a car that you already purchased at another dealer, so many won't take the time. You probably just spoke with a selfish pr*ck that day and I agree that this is poor service. You may want to call the dealership back, ask for the general manager, and ask if he can have the sales manager assign one of his sales people to spend 30 minutes with you to show you around the car. Tell him you purchased it elsewhere, but you will be having it serviced at his dealership. That will probably get you a lot further.

Or you can just go on YouBoob and watch any of hundreds of videos that will show you how the features work in your car. I know COMAND, the plethora of steering wheel buttons, and the controllers can be confusing until you build a comfort level with their use.

places

Sorry to hear of your bad dealer experience but congrats on a great car. Hopefully you will get to enjoy it.

Personally I have had a great dealer experience and overall have had a very good ownership experience with the brand, but after 25 years and multiple purchases from the same dealer I expect to. I am however taken back by so many stories on this forum that reflect poor dealer AND MBUSA customer service. So many customer experiences shared here are just unacceptable. I really feel the brand has slipped and is continuing to decline in luxury, quality, and service. However due to strong history and heritage, MB is cashing in on this and so many people are so hell bent on owning a three pointed star they will put up with anything. Especially in the lower and mid level offerings which have without doubt contributed to the dilution of a great brand.

Looking ahead I see the cars becoming more complicated and thus quality vulnerable. Service may in fact decline even more as more MB cars are on the road and complicated cars will require service. Frankly I think MB should provide better support and mandate stiffer standards on the dealer network. Perhaps a MB corporate relations person in each dealer to help mitigate escalated cases would be a good start.

hyperion667

Another North Carolinian! Welcome to the forums That is a LAME way to begin a service relationship, which is where you are now in your ownership journey, and I'd agree they failed on that one! Are there any other 'dealers' in Charlotte besides that one?! I have several kind of near me in Cary and Durham as well as Raleigh.....Durham being the closest, however I always use an indy shop that only services MB's and have been for over 10 years. Maybe consider finding a shop similar to this. As Dave mentioned, try Youtube as well. At the delivery of all the cars I have gotten from MB the salesman basically held me captive as he explained ALL the functions of each car.....it was sort of daunting and all I wanted to do was drive away in my new car but I sat through it as to not be rude LOL!
If you do plan on servicing your car at said stealership do try Dave's other recommendation and hold it over their damn heads as that is where they generate a lot of money to help support themselves!
GL to you!!

Kaloteck

No, he will not.
He's driving his wife's Lexus.
Haven't you heard?

places

Hopefully he comes around to it.

SW20S

I think this is a little dramatic. If I just stopped driving every car I had when I had a bad service experience with a dealer of that brand I wouldnt drive any car Ive ever had...including my Lexus LSs and my S Class lol. Any dealer can service the car, but you can't expect a dealer who didnt sell you the car to sit down with you and go over features and all. That something the selling dealer should have done for you. Its like if you bought a house with one realtor and called some random realtor affiliated with the same brokerage and asked them to come over and help you with some teething issues you're having. No, thats the realtor's job who got paid for you buying the house.

A Lexus dealer would have had the same response.

And the other point, you bought a used car, so MBUSA didn't even sell you a car, the dealership you bought from sold you a car they owned. Your expectations are out of whack here.

Streamliner

On something like this, I would immediately open a case with MBUSA. Leaking gasoline? The possibility of a fire or explosion? I believe they will jump all over this, immediately. They really don’t care about you, but they REALLY care about law suits, of which something like this could generate a huge one. Just play dumb and tell them you are scared. And, PLEASE let us know how this works out. Good luck!

TNS550

Did you purchase the LS at the Lexus dealer that provides such good service?

I had a different MB dealer experience. I did not buy my car from the dealer, but it had been sold and serviced there. I bought my S550 with 6,200 miles in a private transaction in 2019 from a friend/client. I contacted the finance manager at the dealer where he bought and had the car serviced. Bought a Fidelity extended warranty (cheaper than the two dealerships often mentioned here quoted) and tire/wheel coverage. I also had the finance manager introduce me to the service advisor that my friend had been using. Service has not been an issue. I have had two tire replacement claims and an extended warranty claim, all handled by the service advisor without issue.

Being my first modern day MB (first MB was a 74 SL450), at my initial visit I also asked about a contact if I should have technical questions. I was given two contacts and told to reach out to them anytime.

I have never been in the waiting area as they always have a loaner waiting. Loaner is typically a smaller SUV, which is fine with me as I like to drive different vehicles.

Jsmuve7

I have gone the YouTube route & I'm getting around pretty well with the features now (I think). Learned quite a bit there. Plus, just sitting with the car running in the driveway & scrolling through the command system.

Jsmuve7

No, the Lexus was not purchased at this dealership.

places

There are features in my S that I will probably never discover or use. It's too much, just enjoy the car!

SW20S

This is totally the truth!