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Mercedes-Benz C-Class Sedans
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Comments
1. Would this effect the warranty in any way?
2. I was thinking about purchasing the wheels/tires at tirerack, which come mounted and balanced. If I go with the recommended tire size, is there any other work involved besides just replacing the wheels? I would like to go with the same wheel/tire combination provided in the sport package for this vehicle, yet I did not pursue that option because I disliked the interior.
Thanks
Let's put it this way: if it were me, I would not only fill out the form as it should be, but also tell the serivce manager in person that I don't like his loaner cars. If somehow that would poison the dealer's relationship with you as a customer, then the dealer should be stripped of his franchise forthwith.
Whether crap loaner cars "are the norm" or not is a secondary issue. The bar will never be raised if everyone looks only at averages or norms.
Good luck,
Mike
he also said that they used to give out slk's at their dealership but it came back trashed that they stopped that. so now they don't give MB's out anymore.
my dealer is in baltimore... i may start using american in arlington from now on because it's closer to my place.
Mike -- the dealer does get a copy of the satisfaction of purchase and delivery survey. Both my salesperson and the dealership owners put out a lot of effort to make sure that I filled out the survey, and I recd a follow-up letter and phone call to make sure I sent it back to MB. My salesperson gave me a sample survey with the ratings highlighted that I should use when the survey was recd and returned to MB. I did not mind, because I thought she deserved the best. I gave everything high ratings (for political reasons , but I did make note on the survey that there were some problems with the car yet to be resolved. My dealer clearly indicated how important this survey was to the dealership and how important it was to get a good "report card" from MB. My dealership is the top-selling one in the country and was established in the thirties, but still wanted those high marks. As a customer, our one last bastion of control is the knowledge of how important the survey is to the dealer and that MB think highly of them.
Methinks there is also a separate survey for service -- no one dared show me that one!
Re the loaners -- I have mentioned this before. I will not take their awful cars. I just tell them to shuttle me on home and I will make do without a car for the two days. Being without my car for a few days is something with which I can deal. This upsets them for some reason and they bring me a decent car on the second day. They tell me they are afraid there might be an emergency, and they would feel better knowing I had a car.
It appears poor quality loaners is a universal problem.
miki
John W.
I wish I had purchased A Lexus instead of my Benz from hell. You are indead a wise man. "Crappy attitude of service department" sums it up very nicely.
Bob
With one of the two dealers, I had a very irritating experience with the service department right before I received the service survey. I filled it out very honestly and was quite frank with my displeasure. A few week later, the service manager contacted me and pleaded that I revise my comments. I stood firm. Maybe that's the reason why the 1994 C280 I had then was nothing but problems.
On surveys: you don't get "blacklisted" for filling out surveys honestly. You do risk letting poor dealerships get away with it when you fail to tell MBUSA that things are not well with a particular dealership. Their ability to deal with these guys goes down exponentially when you know you're not being treated well, but the surveys keep coming back saying everything is wonderful. A good dealer doesn't have to lie about your experience to get good CSI scores.
My question is CAN I SERVICE MY CAR FROM OTHER DEALER? OR I HAVE TO STICK TO SAME SERVICE CENTRE FROM WHERE I PURCHASED MY CAR? SAME WAY CAN I COMPLAIN ANY CAR PROBLEMS TO OTHER DELAERS SERVICE DEPARTMENT
thanks
Now where you may find a difference comes to competition for loaner cars...if you use your selling dealer for service, it is not unusual for them to give preference to their sales customers in getting the cream of the loaner crop. Same with service appointments, if for some reason they are crowded routinely...but these issues notwithstanding, service should be shopped the same way you shop for the car: look for a place where you are treated well and the work is competent. If that is not the selling dealer, then cheerfully look elsewhere.
On another note, my front passenger side window does not "express up". I think all the rest of the windows do. Has anyone else experienced this?
>programmed
Just to clarify -- I have to press the button for exact position only if I change a position on the 1-2-3 from what it was the last time the car was driven. If I drove it last on position 2 and get in the car and put it in position 1, I need to use the button. As long as I keep it in position 1, I don't need to use the button.
Miki
Dat.
It's in the manual.
2001 Grand Prix: C-Class
The most significant new European car of 2001
By european car staff. Photos by Les Bidrawn - click on photos & graphs for larger image...
(167 HP X.746=125 KW; 215 HP X.746=160 KW)
Mercedes-Benz's C-Class sedan is the winner of european car's Grand Prix trophy for 2001, but we could very well have cited the German car maker's entire lineup as recipient of the award.....
http://www.europeancarweb.com/archives/features/0801_feature01.shtml
the back plate of my CAR hold the dealer name I can easily remove that any thoughts !!!!
thanks in advance guys
BTW I have been scheduled on next Tuesday to fix my TRUNK problem as they have got the new plates which they will put in my 4 months old CAR - I will update you guys on this when done
From the reliability standpoint, the C240 has been an electronic disaster. I purchased my first new car in 1960, and the C240 has produced more problems in the past five months than all other new cars I have owned over the past 40 years.
Then we got new keys, and now it does not work at all. It does not remember the last position at all. Even the memorized positions in the buttons are not key dependent. First the dealer and MB claimed that's the way it is, but now they admit that's not so. Unfortunately my service rep is ill at the moment, so I'm still waiting for the next step.
I also got my new key in October. Maybe there is a problem with keys made lately?
The GS wasn't bad but the BMW 3 series handled better but I didn't like the interior. I was surprised and disappointed that the 5 series was only really about 1.5 inchs larger inside and did not feel as nimble as the 3.
Then I thought I would give the MB E320 another shot since I hadn't tried it since '96. It handled better but the interior was dull, dull.
It was then I saw the C and thought I found the perfect car. It handled well, looked fantastic, had a great interior and was in my price range.
So I put $2000 down on a C320 with all options but sport. Then I waited, and waited and waited. I always had to call the dealer (Mark Motors in IL) to find out anything and I would have to leave multiple messages before I would get a response. Finally after waiting until August!! I was told it would probably be October.
This news came after following this board for months, learning about problems, fixes, Brazil, lousy service, new or crappy loaner cars, service denials, etc. , etc., etc.
I had had enough. Wrote a letter to the dealer and MB execs explaining my frustration with the whole situation. I got my full deposit back but no word at all expressing regret or explanation from MB. It appears they don't care about losing customers.
When the 2002 Lexus ES came out I went for another testdrive. Again Lexus has a hit. Maybe it does not feel quite as sporty as the C but, knowing Lexus, I know it will be be exceptionally well made.
But I didn't buy one. Because they had one last, new, 2001 LS430 on the lot that I bought for almost the same amount($49,900) as the C320 ($47,700) was going to cost me!!!
And this car is IMPRESSIVE. Again it ain't no sport car. But it is an 8 cyl 4.3L beast. The handling is surprizing tight. As quiet as all the ads claim. Perfectly engineered and finished. Plus the rear seat room is enormous, a concern I had with the C.
Now I admit the exterior styling is not as smooth as the C, but it does grow on one. A big plus is that I will continue to get the quality Lexus service that I have become accustomed to. Plus Lexus gives Lexus loaners (or they will pick up and drop off your car for service)
I fear this is starting to sound too much like a gloat but that is not what I intend. I learned many interesting things on this board and at the time I really felt the C was a perfect fit.
I will await the new E and if MB can get its act together re. quality control and customer service I will definitely give it a chance. In the meantime happy motoring.
Ed
I can't blame you for going for the Lexus, if you were seriously considering spending $47,700 for a C320 without a sport package. Just out of curiosity, did you consider a 540i 6-speed which you could get for about $50k through European Delivery and if so, what are your thoughts?
Sounds like your local MB dealer could use some competition.
Best of luck w/ your LS430. Some Lexus dealers don't give out loaners too. I was surprised at this (found out on the RX300 forum). Goes to show you that you should research dealers and satisfaction closely before purchase of any car...
In fact I suspect, for that time, it was a deal too good to be true. The dealership requested a high ($2000) deposit and I later learned that most were only putting $500 - $1000 down. While I cannot prove this, some posters have suggested that my car probably arrived much sooner and was sold to a customer who would not wait as long as I. The dealership had my money and me on the hook. Certainly sounds plausible. So either MB has a poor production system or a poor dealer - either way I lose. There was also the hoof & mouth delay on the leather and the salesman used this excuse. However I later learned of several others who had ordered then same type of configuration after me and received their car sooner.
So, in future, if I have to wait for a car on order I hope to build something in the contract that puts it more in the dealer's interest to deliver ASAP. (maybe an incentive (e.g., $500) if the car shows up by some date?? Anyone have any ideas?
By the way I got this big discount by first faxing all the dealers in the four bordering states. I negotiated fairly with all and never tried to play one off against the other. Just two go rounds asking for their best price on a specific car. I settled on Mark Motors because of the low price. My wife and I are systems consultants that move to the client so I had no strong expectation that I would still be in the same area half a year later - so no real affinity to the local dealer (who also sells Lexus and from whom I eventually bought). I think this may have also contributed to the lack of commitment from the dealer even though I was quite open about my tactics.
My wife talked me into trying the 330 series. I had just assumed that the 5 would be better all round. IMO I was wrong. The 3 was more nimble and the newer interior was an improvement but still did not do it for me. What really surprised me was the minimal difference in interior space between the 3 and the 5. I can't understand why anyone would get a 5 series unless they just had to have the 8 cyls of the 540. So by that point having the extra power of the 540 did not make enough of a difference.
I knew the new 7 was coming and did not want to buy the last model year. Plus I expected the new 7 to be more than I wanted to spend.
However while Acco20 contends it is not fair to compare I respectfully disagree, as I think jrct9454 does as well. Yes, one is the top of the line Lexus and the other is closer to the bottom of the MB Line (no offense - still has potential to be a great car) the actual price difference for me seemed minor compared to the quality and feature improvement. Granted I was buying a 2001 but it is really brand new with full warranty. If you are considering the C (or especially the current E) especially with a lot of options you really should check out the Lexus line. I suspect this is obvious but for the odd person who had ruled Lexus out because it does not (yet) have the prestige that MB has you could be making a big mistake.
Thanks to the other posters who wished me well in my Lexus I wish the same to all of you in your C's.
Regards.
OH! How can you be so cruel! My second 2001 C320 cost $50K out-the-door -- a cash purchase, not a lease. What to do now with my one-million dollar new home! I am happy with the house, but it is also closer to the bottom in a neighborhood where there are two-million dollar homes .
Enjoy your Lexus and drive safe. I went for the Lexus top-of-the line but found the seats too low for me in all but their entry level. Then I went to Mercedes for a CLK and found it and the E Class seats also not high enough for me. Gave it some thought and concluded it would be easier driving a car out of which I could see. The 320 was perfect for me. Whether it be near the bottom or not, I have not regretted my decision. I love looking at the car and driving it. It seems value cannot always be put into dollars -- value is what works for you.
Miki
Randy
Moreover, anyone have experience with negotiating a price on a trade a few months prior to delivery. I imagine this agreement would presume, e.g., no more than x additional miles and substantially the same condition.
Further, given the long lead time, any other possibilities/options to consider.
Thanks in advance for any insight.
Overall, I love the car - I just have a couple of annoying issues I'm hoping someone can help me with.
1. The car has never been in alignment - it pulls to the right, at first slightly, then severely. The dealership (Park Place - Dallas) supposedly aligned it last Saturday, although I cannot tell any difference in the way it drives. And yes, I am driving on flat, non-crowned surfaces. Any suggestions?
2. My driver seat has forgotten the easy entry/exit feature. The steering wheel still moves up, but the seat won't budge. I have tried both keys, turning the feature on and off via steering wheel controls, etc. Has anyone else had this problem, and if so, what was the solution?
Thanks in advance for your help!
"...MB has got to be more competative $ wise and more reliable if they want to continue to dominate the near lux and lux market."
MB does not come close to dominating the near-lux and lux market even now. They are simply a major player like Lexus and BMW. Lexus outsold MB last year as a whole. The LS consistently outsells the S-Class, cars like the Acura TL and 3-Series outsell the C-Class and the M-Class has been no match for the RX 300. Only the E-Class is at the top of its category. That is not domination by any stretch.
"And there is not another brand that compares in the "feel" that an MB gives you while driving ...well even when it is parked. There is something about that 3-point star."
Maybe this is true for you, and I'm glad if it is. By I'm in my early 30s, and not me nor any of my friends would care to have a Benz at this stage in our lives. I don't know how old you are, but for my age group Lexus and BMW seem to provide the feeling you're describing. The 3-pointed star means nothing to me.
Again, I'm not bashing MB, just separating your opinion from some facts and my own opinion.