seattlecarfreak

only $92. my stealer charges $160 an hour.

LovinMercedes

They got off real easy.

You are a nice guy. I wouldn't have been.

GOODENUF

If the dealer did do something wrong and tried to cover it up by pulling this excuse out of his "Book of Excuses", it will probably be hard to use that one again.
Definitely sounded pretty far fetched in the odds of happening.

johnny5

Damn the state you live in and the state I live in must do alot of talking regarding hourly labor charges because were pretty damn close to it!! I hate dealers thats said and done but have to use them periodically only when I need to or if I need something ASAP.

Kind of suck they only gave you 10% off on parts and there cost on labor which is a laugh....there is no such thing as there cost!! **** if thats the case they should have just gave it to you for free!

Chuckstar

Write a letter to the state attorney general. They should have an address on the state's website. Many allow you to file consumer complaints on-line.

You'd be surprised how quickly businesses respond to the attorney general. The AG can basically shut them down if they find fraud.

Also, copy MB USA Customer service on that letter. They don't like to hear about dealers screwing their customers either.

There is absolutely no way you should be paying for that repair. The only reason you would end up paying for it is if you roll over (which is what they are counting on).

And if that doesn't work, I would sue. I won $1,000 from the dealer that sold me my used 2004 SL500 a couple months ago. They hadn't mentioned that the Tele-Aid system needed to be upgraded. The guy literally sat in the car with me and explained all about how the Tele-Aid system works. Imagine my surprise when I found out (after taking delivery, of course) that I would need to invest another $1,000 if I wanted to actually use Tele-Aid.

They were extremely cocky about how they had no liability and essentially said 'too bad for you'. When I asked the manager if he "thought a guy in a black robe would agree with him" he said "yes I do". Needless to say, that sales manager was not quite up to speed on his state's consumer protection laws.

(In his defense, though, the judge was a woman, so technically we still don't know what a guy in a black robe thinks.)

BTW, MBUSA Customer Service tried to jump in on my side, but I had been so mad that I didn't wait to hear from them before I filed suit. Once they found out it was in the courts, they had to back off.

Musikmann

Wow, talk about daytime robbery! Yes, the last work I had done was at the $92/hour rate. I would expect some differences between West Virginia and mid-town Manhattan, but I didn't think the Seattle cost of living index would be that much higher than here. That dealer must think you are working for Bill Gates.

Musikmann

Good point here. I had a problem with a Kentucky dealer and was advised by a lawyer to contact the KY state AG. When I did, I found a guy whose only job was to investigate complaints filed against car dealers.

spnslc

In the year-plus-time I have been on this forum, this has got to be one of the most amazing stories I have ever read. It is a shame this dealership is getting away with this, but I can understand that there isn't a lot of evidence to present in this case. It is just too weird, though, that they didn't cause this problem.