Wont ever complain about Ford servicing costs again

[Tokyo Geoff]

Here's one the reasons I bought a Ford and will miss the local product when they are gone. I would have loved an older C63 but could perhaps only afford an E55 or C55 but so glad I didnt. A very close member in the family has a nearly new E350 (coupe) and put...petrol into the diesel! The car stopped nearly immediately and they called the MB dealer they use for service. No worries folks we will send a flat top. A few days later ring ring it's the dealer. Guess how much for the repair?
1. Your first born
2. $5,000 (my guess)
3. $29,000
4. $,1200

Drum roll.... 3! Wtf? $29,000!!! Dealer tells them "Don't worry we have several here for the same thing ranging up to $43,000!"

Family member is a fairly cool person and called another parent from his daughters selective circle of friends who works on MB and fixed it for $1,200. Sell it now I say.

As much as I love MB are they worth that much? My dads MB needed a new battery $1,000 and $7,000 the Abs sensor.

Now I look at my Aussie Ford and think power, comfort but no cache and I don't care. I love my Aussie car and will miss them in future and the relative costs of owning one.
Geoff

[Binny]

Sounds like the problem is the dealer rather than the manufacturer.
Trying to gouge the owner by replacing things that didn't need to be (like the whole engine and fuel system going on that price!). If it ended up being fixed for $1200 it obviously didn't need those things replaced at all.

[JC]

A few years ago my father in law was quoted $6k to fix the lurching auto trans on his C180 (2001 model) - he told them that was too much, and they eventually came down to just over $2k and it is still going strong (sadly, he is not - but mother in law still has the car and drives it daily).

[zipping]

Drove the family Merc around while they were OS. Some bastard smashed the drivers side window. 3.5k just for the window they quoted me. lol

[05_ENFORCER]

That is one of the main reasons why I get rid of my euros prior to the warranty expiring............



.

[Franco Cozzo]

Dealership inflation.

When I was working at Honda I quoted a customer $11,000 for a new Recaro driver seat for their 1999 DC2 Integra Type R, even had one in stock in Japan.

Funnily enough they didn't go for it.

I bet its still there sitting in stock.

[99AUXR]

Mmm Our spare parts pricing for toyotas has just got sooo cheap recently.

[partzkid]

From what i hear, 9k for pads n rotors all round on a ML63 amg is pretty norm, and yes, people do pay to have it done!

[new2ford]

The inside running on BMW ownership is that you use one of the many independent BMW specialising mechanics and their sourcing network for spares through the original suppliers. Genuine parts but not BMW sourced. Makes it much more affordable. I would think there is similar in the MB world. My daughter has an old Merc and has a good private mechanic. I think it's a case of the usual caution when dealing with dealers. Not much different across the whole trade. I'm lucky to have an excellent Ford dealer.

[2011G6E]

I think we all know where the problem lies...
In Europe, a C class is a Commodore/Falcon class ordinary old family car and they're everywhere, from family cars to taxis. Do you think they face the sort of ludicrous costs we do here for the same cars? Of course not. It's just being predatory and preying on people who, through ridiculous protectionist tariffs and taxes, have had to pay "luxury car" prices for what is, anywhere else, an ordinary lower end model.

Petrol in a diesel? Bloody expensive whatever you have...one of the work Prados had a fill up with petrol, but luckily not started up, and it cost thousands apparently in labour to get fixed.

[Tokyo Geoff]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

Dealership inflation.

When I was working at Honda I quoted a customer $11,000 for a new Recaro driver seat for their 1999 DC2 Integra Type R, even had one in stock in Japan.

Funnily enough they didn't go for it.

I bet its still there sitting in stock.

My sisters Integra was stolen years ago and found the next day in great shape except...both seats stolen!

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by Tokyo Geoff

My sisters Integra was stolen years ago and found the next day in great shape except...both seats stolen!

They still generally go for over $1000 pair second hand on Ebay.

I reckon if someones DC2R got knocked off and someone stole both front seats, insurance company would write off the car.

[FERG_51]

Petrol in a diesel? Bloody expensive whatever you have...one of the work Prados had a fill up with petrol, but luckily not started up, and it cost thousands apparently in labour to get fixed.[/QUOTE]

Geez I charged my bother inlaw a box of cans and a fuel filter to do his prado. Too bloody cheap.

[steve.zissou]

it is not just european cars. My jeep side mirror cost over 3000 dollars and thanks to a stupid kangaroo i now need a new radiator for the same jeep and it is 1500 dollars i also need one for my fg falcon and it is 130 dollars

[Sorted]

If your insured with CGU it is claimable

Client did it to his 3 month old Audi, repair costs where $7,800 and CGU paid for the lot

Bet you it's an exclusion in the pds for Youi, Budget, Coles, Aami, Racv, Gio etc etc

[jstanovic]

Originally Posted by Sorted

If your insured with CGU it is claimable

Client did it to his 3 month old Audi, repair costs where $7,800 and CGU paid for the lot

Bet you it's an exclusion in the pds for Youi, Budget, Coles, Aami, Racv, Gio etc etc

Was just reading my QBE PDS over breakfast (great reading), they also exclude incorrect fuel usage.

[MDS69]

Originally Posted by steve.zissou

it is not just european cars. My jeep side mirror cost over 3000 dollars and thanks to a stupid kangaroo i now need a new radiator for the same jeep and it is 1500 dollars i also need one for my fg falcon and it is 130 dollars

Current model Jeep Grand Cherokee... over $2k for a windscreen.
6 year old VW Polo... $2.5k for a L/H mirror (electric control, blinker and heated)
Above prices are for genuine parts and can be obtained cheaper via other means

[last fairlane]

About ten years back I had a Merc 2228 tandem tipper
and mistakenly filled my half full tank with unleaded instead of diesel
so I parked it at the back of the servo
and milked out 200 litres of mixed fuel (racing fuel) into drums
and topped it up with diesel and all was well
except for the $300 I wasted
thanks John

[1TUFFUTE]

Originally Posted by Binny

Sounds like the problem is the dealer rather than the manufacturer.
Trying to gouge the owner by replacing things that didn't need to be (like the whole engine and fuel system going on that price!). If it ended up being fixed for $1200 it obviously didn't need those things replaced at all.

Yep....same as nearly every time someone complains about their ford dealership/car issues..... It's more often then not the DEALER, more then the brand itself that gives people grief.

[1TUFFUTE]

My friend just had their newish Hyundai serviced as it had issues.

480$ for the filters in the aircon. Apparently they need changing every 6-12 months if your in town.
Other things they fixed were the usual dealer rip offs but he refuses to look at an independent dealer because he thinks he's getting a great road side assist deal saving him 100$ a year

[SumoDog68]

I never heard of E350 diesel coupe , maybe E250 diesel ? Regardless , it is not a servicing cost we are talking about here , it is the cost of repairs to a prestige euro make which is never going to be cheap if you use a dealer . 29k probably included a new engine:-)

[Elks]

We had a 2010 C250 which we bought new. It was a nice car but expensive to run. Even a normal service was $1,200 to $1,800, front brakes were $1,400. In the few years we kept the amazing thing was the cost of servicing I saw other pay. $3,000+ not unusual, I saw $4,600 for a GL500 including 2 tyres, but the winner was a C63 Including a transmission service and front pads & rotors ($5,500 for them alone) at $8,900 for an $80,000 km service makes you wonder how many people cant pick there cars up from service. As Benz volumes approach those of Honda this will be an increasing issue.

PS I also know someone who filled a diesel C class with petrol and drove it. Same money $28,K Insurance job.

[Tokyo Geoff]

Originally Posted by SumoDog68

I never heard of E350 diesel coupe , maybe E250 diesel ? Regardless , it is not a servicing cost we are talking about here , it is the cost of repairs to a prestige euro make which is never going to be cheap if you use a dealer . 29k probably included a new engine:-)

I could be wrong on the model as he changes quite a lot and no that wasn't for a new engine as that was the first thing I asked after I stopped laughing.
Geoff

[Smoke Pursuit]

Like most things it pays to get a quote and ring around.

A B service on my Mercedes is about $1,000. Tyres aren't that bad either only about $450 a corner.

I feel sorry for people who buy older Mercs and Beemas, they just dont know what they are getting themselves into.

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Smoke Pursuit

I feel sorry for people who buy older Mercs and Beemas, they just dont know what they are getting themselves into.

I have a 20 year old BMW E36 and it costs very little, but I have the right bloke and contacts for service and parts. Same with my daughter's Merc which is 25 years old! Both continue to run beautifully and reliably, they're absolute bricks.

Same with any brand - move away from dealers and network independently as soon as you can (after warranty usually). My one exception is Kinghorn Ford Nowra which is a fantastic, honest, knowledgable and inexpensive dealer.

[Stefan]

What does a repair from a MB dealer have to do with servicing costs?

Thread fail.

[Express]

I just had the B Service done on my C63 at Mercedes-Benz Marshalls Motors, Parramatta.

Total cost $886.45 which included a loan car for the entire day plus food, a few coffees and a smile and a hello from every employee that passed by.

After a leisurely meal I had a wander around the showroom and sat in a few nice new AMG’s before I drove off for the day in a brand new C Class.

Pricey but nowhere near what some believe.

There are also much cheaper alternatives to genuine MB spares and servicing than that supplied by some of the overpriced dealerships.

It’s not hard to get on the MB Forums and find out where to go.

The truth is most people who buy these cars know what they are in for and still choice to purchase them, it part of the having to pay to play ethos.

Some people prefer to minimise their costs at all points from purchase, service and spares and gravitate towards a Kia or something instead.

It’s horses for courses.

Now let me talk about the quote I got for new brakes on my HSV

[new2ford]

The Territory still comes in at about $300 for a service at the dealer, if there's nothing additional.

Service costs are only one element of WOL costs anyway. People should do comparisons on this:

https://www.mynrma.com.au/mynrma/ope...alculator.aspx

It's ballpark but it gives a broad average picture.

[Wretched]

Mercedes itself or car dealer based servicing and prices?
Ford dealer services are just as bad.

• I had my Focus serviced in Dec, $800 for a standard service with some additional items, no parts. I couldn't be bothered arguing so my fault on that.
• Ford dealer wanted $90 for wiper blades, did it myself for a fraction of the price.
• Dealer wants $900 for OEM brakes on the front of the Focus
• Dealer wanted $350 for faulty solenoid in rear driver's side door on BA, argued that it was still in warranty. Two more failed just as I sold the car.

I am sure I can dig up more. These are from various dealers, I change dealers every so often because of the poor service experienced.

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Wretched

Mercedes itself or car dealer based servicing and prices?
Ford dealer services are just as bad.

• I had my Focus serviced in Dec, $800 for a standard service with some additional items, no parts. I couldn't be bothered arguing so my fault on that.
• Ford dealer wanted $90 for wiper blades, did it myself for a fraction of the price.
• Dealer wants $900 for OEM brakes on the front of the Focus
• Dealer wanted $350 for faulty solenoid in rear driver's side door on BA, argued that it was still in warranty. Two more failed just as I sold the car.

I am sure I can dig up more. These are from various dealers, I change dealers every so often because of the poor service experienced.

Don't know where you are but it might be worth a drive to Nowra!