CynCarvin32

VMI has previous owner info on it and they are never legally permitted to disclose that information.

As for them fixing things they find its something that goes without saying. Yes they should fix things but giving a tech the ability to just start replacing every little thing thats a tad bit worn means serious $$$ for them. I can understand that mess. I dont really care about that but I do get annoyed when things i say are broken dont get fixed.

MB will fix anything that fails in the course of the warranty (with out fraud) that you complain about. If you want to pay a tech to inspect your car and THEN go in and have the car written up fine you can but having an agent of MB who is paid by mb have the ability to just bill away is not a wise move. Its basically one and the same but its a needed preventative measure I think given the crooked state of the world.

They have definitions in what constitutes worn or broken too! Say your car has a tendency to wander on the freeway. You could have a worn tie rod end. Now WIS says a tie rod end is NOT BROKEN until is has more than 5mm of play in it (i forget the exact figure but its more than a new part). So you could have a worn part on the car but they wont fix it until its really worn. If the wheels wobble fine you get a new tie rod end but if its a bit sloppy you might be told have a nice day.

Warranties are a big mess for car makers. If people were all honest there would be no issue but sadly thats not going to happen.

EXECMALIBU

"VMI has previous owner info on it and they are never legally permitted to disclose that information."

You are absolutely incorrect about the reason that MB refuses to give a VMI to a customer is because of previous owners personal info is shown!


I have a VMI for both of my cars and there is absolutely no information about any owner of the car anywhere on any of the documents.

The VMI only tells about the cars history!

The in service date, the color, the options, the engine/trans numbers etc. Plus all of the repairs that have been done under warranty to date.

There is absolutely no logical reason that MB would refuse to give a verified owner or even a perspective buyer a copy of the VMI.

Unless they were trying to hide a vehicles history that has serious or continued problems.

Would you buy a car that had numerous and serious repair issues in the VMI?

CynCarvin32

I have VMI's from years ago that had the owners info on them and that is why it was restricted. If it were so top secret why is it something that any service writter can print you a copy of in 10 seconds? Clearly they have chagned since maybe 2002 when I last ran one on a used car I was looking at.

I could walk into my local dealership and get a VMI in 10 seconds. MB might say dont just give them out to everyone but they are not that hard to get. If it were really something they wanted kept secret you would not have 20+ people at every dealership with the ability to get those all day long. Every tech and all service writers have access to this stuff. Then there would be managers, warranty claims people, paper work filers, bookers etc. Its basically public info if its at the fingers of so many people.

Vadim @ FD

When I was in sales I could print VMI as well.

Jeff, it is legal time.

Find some one you can trust and let them handle it.

Good Luck!

calabasas owner

I had a bizarre and somewhat similar problem- and probably law breaking on their part. In 2006 I leased an allegedly new 350 E wagon. 6 months later noticing some problem I took the car into dealer; they informed me that my brake pads and rotors needed to be replaced. Moreover, they said it wasn't covered by warranty because the pads were aftermarket, Bosch pads. They thought that for some reason replaced the brake pads within 6 months at my expense. I pointed out the absurdity of that claim. Moreover, I told them I was outraged to buy a new car that wasn't- I told them they were probably breaking many consumer protection laws, but all I wanted was real mercedes brakes on the car because that is what I paid for, and regarding the wear and tear, no brakes should fail in 5000 miles or 6 months. They refused. I gave them a day to think it over and left the car with them. I returned and they still refused. I then went to the sales floor and started telling strangers my experience. They quickly offered to fix it. I then had the car inspected by another mechanic to look for signs of damage, but they found none...life is too short so I let the issue die.

calabasas owner

My experience with BMW and I think the same generally applies to MBZ , is that the Dealer goes out of its way to fix every minute thing because they are reimbursed for the work at profitable margins. Dealerships are not owned by Mercedes USA and it's Mercedes USA that reimburses for warranty work. In my case, the Dealer said they wouldn't be reimbursed by Mercedes USA, because Mercedes USA will inspect the damaged parts and see that they were Bosch. I then said, I am entitled to keep the damaged parts by California State Law to prevent Simonson from being denied reimbursement; they then said, that's only true if I pay for the repair. So the question for ExecMalibu is why would they fear not being reimbursed? Is it possible that you have non-mercedes parts on the car?

EXECMALIBU

My SL65 is stock!

The problems are with the transmission and the IC pump and Keyless Go etc.

I have been told repeatedly that it is totally different for MB Mechanics now!

In the old days if a MERCEDES MECHANIC.. (not a newbie trade school tech) saw a problem they were encourged by MB-USA to fix it and all of the other defects they found while they were inspecting your Mercedes while under warranty..

They would bill MB-USA and be promptly paid...

NOT any more!

Now unless it is complained about by the customer they will not fix or even alert you that for example your air conditioning hose is bulging and could rupture. MB-USA is betting that the part will last until the warranty expires.

I have had them deny that there is a problem even when I hand them a copy of a DTB from MB-USA describing the exact same condition. They once told me my SBC brakes were fine "they all do that... "

Then I received a Recall letter three days later about an SBC recall for exactly the same symtoms I complained about!

The dealers I am told are now in a constant battle with MB-USA for reimbursement for warranty parts and labor..

I have been told that they send all warranty parts back for disassembly and inspection and if MB-USA determines the part is good then the dealers get stiffed on the cost of new parts that put in your car and the labor!

That is why many dealers will not spend diagnosis time or install parts freely like in the old days. They know they may not get paid...

How many times have you seen

"could not verify customer complaint" on you repair order.

oknish

Wow......this has been an eye opener thread. All the best to you guys and hope your MBs get fixed and stay that way.

Broker

I completely agree.

I really hope I can own an SL55 or SL600 without too much trouble.

I'm currently in a 99 Lexus LS400 bought with 110k miles, now with 145k miles and never needing a single repair, just oil changes and recently new tires.

Although I'm sure it won't be as trouble free as my Lexus experience, I hope it'll be worth it.

Any MB dealers in the Atlanta area that anyone can recommend for good service? Or any particular ones to stay away from?

speed doc

In Atlanta. they are all about the same. RBM has an express service bay, with no appt necessary. They also have a great shop forman named Bob Goulding who Really knows his stuff with the 55's.

WhiskyMike

WOW! thats insane! My S Class stalled twice at only 300 miles and Keyes European said the same thing to me. "no fault" when they plug it up! Im scared they are going to tell me they cant fix the problem until the warranty expires and I will be stuck paying for it when the warranty should have!

bigben320e

+1, RBM is awesome. If you happen to stop in ask for Jerry Sumpter or the guy that has the American flag on his window in express service. I can't remember his name right off. Bob is pretty awesome I am sure. Edit: His name is Brentwell. Also, RBM sends surveys out via email after your service to ensure everything is done. If you have any complaints, you will be contacted in less than two days for a resolve. RBM is about 29 miles from my house as opposed to South Mercedes which is 10mi, but I like the prices, professionalism, service, and the way I am treated there better. You notice a noise, they will try to find it, and not make you think you are crazy.

DO NOT go to Buckhead Mercedes, even though they are mod friendly, their prices are much higher than RBM. I tried three times, blatantly higher. I suppose it is due to the multi-million dollar facility, cappuccino's, etc. Keep the fancy coffee, keep your overhead down.

South Mercedes is under new ownership, I hope that it is better now, goodness they sucked with customer service.

bigben320e

I would take it to another dealer. Obviously, something is wrong. Damn, I hate to hear stuff like this.

F1Bobby

Well when I purchased my C55 it was in need of front pads. I initially went to TO MB because they are 5 minutes away. When they quoted me $800.00 I hauled *** to Calabasas. They did the pad installation for a more resaonable $250.00 (approx). Now I hear this about them. Holy Crap! I thought about taking it to Keys but based on what has been said here that is no longer an option either.
I haven't had any issues with the C55 and it appears to be pretty bullet proof.
I would not take any of my cars to anything related to Silver Star Auto Group. I also have a Lexus IS 300 and I took it to Lexus TO. I had a bit of an issue with what they were doing but it wasn't that big of a deal. When I went to pay the cashier she asked if everything was done to my satisfaction. I said no but it wasn't that big of a deal. She said that I should talk to their Service Manager. So I did.
The initial conversation was ok but he attempted to tell me how good their service was at Lexus and I said that I get treated like an adult at Rusnak BMW. He then said this" If you think BMW treats you better than Lexus does you must be smoking pot!". Needless to say I went insane. I wrote a letter to Lexus USA and got a response a couple days later. Your experience with Silver Star Lexus has been addressed, Silver Star is an independant dealership and they we're made aware of your complaint. That's it... Nothing... Not a Sorry! Nothing.
Now I guess I have to search around for someone that can service the C55.

JonMBZ

Even without hearing both sides of the story it seems like you simply threatened them verbally and or legally. This is a one quick easy way to get black listed by a dealer. I have seen it happen a few times in the past. They will get paid by MB for doing warranty work they can and usually do have factory reps get involved with troublesome cars especially high end cars like yours. I doubt they even went that far before you went off on them I don't see why you are even having this issue call MBUSA if you feel you have been wronged and take it to another dealership and have the factory reps get involved with your concerns. Why would you keep wasting your time with a dealer that does not want your business?

amdeutsch

warranty pays for the actual repair work. Spending a lot of time on diagnosis, finding the issue, etc is usually on the tech's own nickel.

$0.02

The Godfather

That's typical of Mercedes! My father had a 2003 E320 and 2006 ML350. Due to the Mercedes HORRIBLE customer service, he sold them both and got an LS430. lol. ok so that car is now gone and he's in an Audi. But the thing is this: The E320 was covered under warranty at the time, and Mercedes kept ignoring the issues that were brought up and just did the old "no codes" or "can't replicate" BS.

When I had my Lexus GS, I would get it in service, tell them what was wrong and they would go ABOVE and BEYOND to get done. I never had any issues. Lexus is cleary superior when it comes to customer service and warranty handling.

The only thing you can do if you own a benz is a) know your SA VERY well (ie. it doesn't hurt to "tip" him ) and you'll be sure you won't encounter bull****, or b) have an aftermarket warranty, and all of the sudden everything with your car is wrong and you get like it brand new. Funny how the incentive of getting money from a 3rd party warranty gets them to work and fix **** they would normally not fix.