francars

I purchased my E55 last year. According to records last service was done 3/10 and PPI performed with no issues. Have some aftermarket extended warranty so decided to take her to the dealer as a check engine light came on plus decided while there to do B Service that was due in March. To my surprise (and pretty annoying) besides B Service and the $160 diagnosis they tried to sell me new battery, alignment, wheel balancing (all these items were not needed as I did the latter ones 6 months ago)
I know that dealers need the revenue, but the service rep sounded like he was trying to sell me a brand new car! Pretty annoying. I guess next time I am taking my car to an independent MB guy. Thoughts?

emoving

I take mine to the dealer. But then again I have a really good relationship with the service guy and my tech.

ohlord

go to the dealer for warranty work.
Fool you once shame on them,fool you twice shame on you.
Learn to diy or find an indie shop. Like http://www.theworkshopmb.com/
or ask other members in your area.
Get your own OBD2 scanner for 50 bucks at harborfreight tools. It will pay for itself 3 times over the first time you use it.

francars

Yeah, I went with the recommendation of a "friend" who used to work for the dealer. He said they will hook me up... and they DID!!!

Lesson learned I guess

francars

I hear you on that

220S

That's the way to do it if you want to use the dealer. And both my SA and tech enjoy my holiday gifties, too

If it's under warranty you can still go anywhere. Only thing is that you need to be sure paperwork is in order and the job or the service was done right by the Indy. MB can void warranty service if they determine you didn't follow protocol and it had an affect on the parts or issue in question.

You don't have to do what the dealer says. Yeah, they're sometimes just trying to be aggressive. But Indys will do that too. All just depends on the individuals. Some dealers are bad but not all. Same with Indys.

It's like going to a doctor or dentist. Like a doctor, the dealer will be sure that he spots everything and prefers that you fix everything even if it's only preventive, and to be in tip top health. And like seeing a doctor it never hurts to have a second opinion.

Rust bucket

Yup

Just had mine in for an oil change alignment two door sensors pulley and a Quaife LSD install.

Jon2007E63P30

I have done everything except the tranny oil change. The 7spd is filled through the drain plug and the oil must be at 30C.

rondocap

Here's my view on it: If you have a good warranty, just make use of it and go to the dealer.

If you are out of warranty, I'd generally avoid the dealer. I have an S55 with 157,000 miles, well out of warranty, so I have a lot of experience in this field.

I have found a very good and honest independent mechanic in my area that specializes in Mercedes, and generally the price is sometimes half that of the dealer. Not only can I sometimes get parts a little cheaper, but the labor rate is usually much less and not charged full book hours.

I've gotten quotes by the dealer on certain things before I was involved with the indy, and compared them to the price I paid with the indy - saved literally hundreds and thousands over time.

cal1

I go to the dealer as well. The local dealer has a very good service department and my SA is very helpful and knowledgeable. I slip him $50 or $100 when I drop off the car. I tell him it is for the great job I know he is going to do for me as usual.

The dealer really earned my business when they fixed my car after a local performance shop Fd it up bad. They even reinstalled my RT pulley properly after the performance shop cut the crank seal when installing it wrong and the dealer generally will not do any mods whatsoever.

220S

That's what I do. I thought at first maybe it's weird to do, so I'm glad to hear that somebody else does the same. What's good too is that I always get the same experienced tech. No newbs working on my car.

tbal

Canadian dealerships are nothing but theives... they wanted $257.xx for an oil change. Paid close to $4xx for the ml320s oil change/adblue service...

THEIVES I tell ya haha.

cal1

You and me buddy. I think it is a minor investment that pays back in spades.

I think we have a bunch of those too down here, but luckily some are pretty damn good.

tbal

I guess eh, crooks are worldwide lol

400RWHP

Truer words were never spoken...I slip my SA a C-note every now and then and he takes good care of me. I always seem to get the '$99 oil change special' and he makes sure the tech uses new plugs and crush washers every time as well as ensuring the parts department always has them in stock for me. It may sound expensive, but the mileage you get out of it in the long run is priceless. Also, I'm very tight on time and whenever I call him with a window where the oil change makes sense, he always seems to find a slot to fit my car in. Great guy and fair.

tgoss

I go to the dealer. the car has been sold and maintained at the same dealer so I'll keep it that way. They love that car and have always treated me well. Plus I like to drive away in a friggin sweet GLK and go golfing when I drop her off

Apox

Total newbie question here but: Do any random mechanic have the same possibilities as dealerships when it comes to diagnosing problems, (same diagnostic tools?) and to reset service messages etc. ?

If so I'll rather do my services anywhere but the dealership, seing as the warranty is up anyway.

EmE247

Sorry, but I can't stand MB Service.

Please please please post/pm me a good service/service advisor in the Southern California area preferably around Los Angeles and my car and I will love you forever...

X2Board

I take mine to the dealer for all warranty work. My mod friendly SA just left and my new SA seems kinda cool, but I don't know how mod friendly she is. Time and $ will tell.

GT-ER

My dealer wanted $738 for my SC idler pully...lol.

Rust bucket

Buy a Lexus problem solved

Yuille36

Unless its a warranty issue, general maintenance is perfromed by myself. If their is something out of my skill level, then I will take it to Benz Elite Automotive.

Yacht Master

Funny to read the posts here, in the past I took my car to the dealer, and here is why.
1. I was doing contract work directly for the owner of the dealership.
2. My car was still under MB free service (04 MBs had for 4 years).
3. MB warranty still in effect.
4. Aftermarket warranty in effect, covered more than the MB warranty.
5. Service manager would let me in the service area and allow me to watch over the tech.
Now here is the reality of having you car serviced at a MB dealer.
1. The service department is the profit center of the dealership.
2. The SA is coached on how to extract the most money from you.
3. High turnover among new techs, 80% have less than 2 yrs exp on MBs.
4. You will pay full retail for parts at MB dealers
5. At most dealers they take your car and hide, They don't want anyone to see.

Did you ever drop off your car for service, and get a call later that day to tell you your car is ready. Then when you arrive at the dealer they have a work order 4 pages long of things they found wrong and repaired all of them under warranty for free! When you look at the work order you see there is a small charge of $300 for fluids and materials not covered under warranty? LOL When you ask, they say "you are so lucky we caught this problem" and "look at all the work you got for free" BS.
Basically all you want is a trustworthy, knowledgeable, tech that can be dealt with face to face. I don't need a receptionist, service manager, car runner, newbie tech, old tech to teach newbie tech, and helpless car washer that can wash my car dirtier than it was when I brought it in.
The order of things, a person attends community collage and gets a general automotive certificate. Goes to work at the MB dealer in town, really sticks to it and over the next 4 years is skilled enough to beat factory flat rate. He then realizes that he can more money as an independent and leaves MB. He opens a small shop and starts to earn 4X more than he made at the dealership and only has to charge half of what the dealer charges. At the end of the day, it is like any thing else, you only get out what you put in.

At this point I only go to the dealer for hard to find or dealer only parts.

There is a word that describes people that think they get a good deal from a dealership.

06E55

I perform general maintenance myself. Warranty work goes to the dealer and for the rest that I can't do myself I take it to an independent dealer. The SAs at my dealership suck and I would never dream of even slipping them $10.00 let alone $100.00. My freaking SA tried making me pay for a part and labor that was covered under my NEW car warranty. I called MB USA about this and next thing you know I got a call from my SA offering an apology... Go figure...

emoving

My AMG tech has been there for 14 years. I never pay full retail on parts because I shop around first and then then usually match or get very close. Our service bay at Crown MB has a huge glass wall if you choose to sit there and watch your car being worked on. Sounds like you have a prehistoric crap hole dealer! I would suggest you find a new one.