I tell you this, after many experiences at my dealer in Las Vegas, I'm terrified to take my car in for anything. I bought this car because I wanted "Hans" in Germany handcrafting and paying attention to the details regarding the car's assembly. What do I get here?, "Juan" rushing to get the car out quickly so he can keep his job. After spending 135k on a car, and having some minor problems that need to be addressed, I'm finding myself finding excuses on why not to bring the car in for service rather than taking it in. Crazy isn't it?

 

Not crazy at all, I feel the same way. I am more worried about door dings than anything else. Also worried about the after service "courtesy wash" leaving swirl marks in my black paint. I always ask them not to wash my car, but this does not always get communicated.

 

The LESS you take your car in for SERVICE the better. Mercedes publishes all this nonsense about highly trained service professionals, it's all bull****. They service departments hire any idiot that can fit into the uniform.

I recently had my S-Class in for some service and the grease on the inside was unbelievable. I was wondering why it was in the locations it was in. I never even thought of touching some of these places. Foot drag marks over the door sills, scuffed seat bottoms, Mirror, window frames, etc...

It pissed me off, I called them and told them how I felt, and I didn't appreciate the tech treating my car like he treats his mobile home. Since I cleaned it already they said they couldn't think of anything they could do for me. I said what would make me happy was to introduce me to the tech and let me have a few one on one minutes with him.

 

Try Valet service in Las Vegas....you've never seen so many black foot marks on the sill, on the carpet...everywhere! Arghh! It convinced me never to buy a car with light colored carpet again....the down side? I live in a dry, dusty area in the summer, and now I see dusty footprints. The good news is, that it vacuums up EASILY. People are pigs.

 

MB Dealer quality is all over the map. My local dealer has an excellent reputation. In fact their reputation, and my spotty experiences with the local BMW and Porsche dealer (one dealer with both lines), were an important factor in my last two purschase decisions, both of which went to MB. The dealer's performance has since fully lived up to my expectations.

MBUSA does extensive dealer surveys. They have to know who is good and who is bad. I wonder if they don't have the will to enforce changes. Surely the last few years of relibility problems have diminished their moral, and perhaps practical, leverage.

Jim

 

I am scared to take my car to the dealer too...
Here is a good tip to keep scuffs off the door sills. Get some clear wide packing tape, place a long a couple of long strips on the sill. I have been doing this since my dealer got grease over my E classes door sills. Since putting the tape on the sills I havent had any marks or scuffs.

StephenK is right about the people the dealer hires for techs. The only real requirement you need to be a tech is the ability to read a computer that tells you in detail how to do the job.

 

You think that's bad, try taking a Corvette into a Chevy dealer for service

 

Kiss it Goodbye.

 

What we all seem to fear... S.I.C.D. service induced collateral damage.

I had the protective cardboard floor covers that came from the factory saved and they are kept for service visits. The drivers seat is wrapped in my own triple thick plastic and the kick panels and door jams are covered with 2" masking tape prior to every service visit. I wasn't quite this bad until I got stone interior.

The dealer is not allowed to wash any of our cars and they know not to wipe off their greasy finger marks with a shop cloth and to just leave them there for me to wash when I get the car back home.

When I drop the car off I go over it with the service advisor when she does the check-in report for damage etc. and when I pick the car up I check it from stem to stern.

 

If the actually give a damn about your car, they can take care of it and give it back to you fixed and as clean as you brought it in to them. I took my 06 SL600 in to have some things done to it and told them how I felt. I said I just got it and don't want some as*hole to screw it up on me, the representative told their dispatch man to talk to their shop foreman and to only let one of two mechanics work on it. A few hours later I came back and was waiting in the waiting room where the have a glass wall that you can look through. While seated I noticed the first two mechanics were more meticulous and even would put plastic gloves on their hands before they got in the car. Repairs were made and car was delivered back to me as clean as I gave it to them.

This dealership typically services 70-100 cars a day, which sounds like a lot to me. I think since Mercedes has introduced so many lower priced cars, the service departments get flooded and rushed and thus more problems. They need more and more mechanics and soon they hire anyone and quality control falls apart. Most of the disappointments owners face if repaired properly would be no big deal, but the techs in so many dealerships are so unqualified most people battle the same problems over and over and get disgusted.

My local dealer has a small service department, but the GENIUS mechanics they have service Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Volkswagon and god knows what else. The local dealership never has any parts in stock, prices are higher, and they normally can't fix anything right. I called them once about a bad battery, they said it would be about a week for an appointment, but if I dropped it off, they would try to sneak it in in a few days, but no promises. I was offering to jump it, drive it over and just have them pop a battery in. Instead on a Friday afternoon, after I called roadside assistance, they had to take a mechanic out of the service department have him drive across town, probably 30+ minutes to my home, replace the battery, and drive 30+ minutes back. Cost me exactly the same thing as if I went to the dealership, how stupid can they be.

 

That is a BS reply from the dealer. They need to take responsibility. My dealer makes mistakes but the try to take care of it even after a week of having the car home. Now I wish my dealer learns how to fix my car. My dealer has great customer service but lousy techs. For any serious work, I drive 440 miles round trip to Nashville to get my car fix.

 

I thought I was the only one that did that, It does work though, then you pull it off when you get home. I also have the clear exact mats that go over the mats. Some people DONT care if its NOT theirs or even if it is.

 

Just picked up the SL after going in for the recall. It was washed but not very well and had dirty marks, fingerprints, scuffs on both door pockets, glove box and seats. I saw them as soon as I opened the door so they must just have ignored them. Getting them cleaned up and profuse apologies didn't make me any happier - treating property as their own should be a way of life for dealers. Their training must be badly lacking.

 

They are probably treated it like it is their own, that is more than likely the problem.

 

When my SL goes in the first thing my service agent does is to put the cardboard floor mat in, and wrap the seat in plastic. If a runner comes to me to get my cars thay have this stuff with them. Protection stays with the car until it gets picked up by me, or returned by them. I don't know how other dealers have their service drop off areas set up. At Viti all of the service agents have glass windows facing the drop off bay. They know when you are expected and they are there to greet you and give you a POS Camry as a loaner. I certainly look forward to getting my car back after driving a Camry.