I have been wondering this for years but lately even more so.
Is Mercedes the place to spend $150,000 plus? I know all cars have their problems but my question is, should we expect more from Mercedes when there is a problem? I say yes.
When I went to see the DB9 that I ordered but decided not to take for the SL600, I was amazed at the service area.
Let me give you some quick examples and differences. I do consider my Mercedes dealer a good place to take a car but here is what I have found.
1. At Mercedes, when they remove parts they pile them on the floor. I have seen cars taken apart with all the parts in stacks around the cars. At Aston Martin there are padded racks for the parts to be stored.
2. At Mercedes, they try to cover your car with whatever they can find and I can tell you, most of the things they find are filthy. At Aston Martin there are pre-made panels that cover the cars with hard plastic on the outside and felt on the inside.
3. At Mercedes they couldn't care less about how they touch your car. At Aston Martin they put on gloves before they touch your car.
4. At Mercedes if they go out of their way, they think they are doing you a favor. At Aston Martin they go out of their way to make you happy as part of their normal course of business. I remember the day when I was thinking about buying either a Mercedes or an Aston this last time and I called both dealers when I landed at the airport from a trip. I called the Mercedes general manager to talk to him and was told he was on the phone. Within an hour, I tried to get in touch with him and after 3 calls, I gave up. When I called the Aston Martin manager, he immediately answered even though he was in a meeting and the first thing he asked me was how my day was going. When I told him I had just arrived at the airport he asked me if I wanted someone to pick me up and take me home and he was genuine.
5. When I complain to someone about anything at Mercedes they do the best they can to help me at the dealership but are at the mercy of the manufacturer and that renders them useless. At Aston Martin when I had questions, I was put on the phone with the Executive Vice President of Sales for the US market and he spent 30 minutes with me.
I don't know? Tell me I am crazy. Tell me this is all a bunch of bull but my gut tells me that Mercedes is no longer the place to buy a $150,000 plus car.
They make their money off of mass producing cars and they just do not have the time or desire to spend extra energy with the $150,000 plus buyer. It just isn't enough of their market.
Today, I took my daughters new Mustang to the Ford dealer for service. He went out of his way to take care of me and did some things that were above the ordinary. When I tipped him $20, I found the $20 on the seat when I got into the car. I went back to give it to him and he told me he can't take extra money for doing his job.
These are my thoughts. I would love to hear from others what they think.
__________________ 2006 Aston Martin Vanquish S on order
I know how you feel LovinSL600. I think this will be the last two Mercedes I purchase. The president of MBCA tried to address the quality issue with Mercedes and just got lip service. I have purchased over 150K of Mercedes cars in the last 2 years and every time I take my car in I get some damage on my trim.
I am so piss off when the dealer replaced my windshield. The assistant manager try to tell my that the shinny stuff all over my car is shinny makeup. Like hell, it was glass shards all over my car.
they had to install a new shifter in my CL, wouldn't come out of park after touching brake, takeing out the whole center console to install new shifter unit they put a small gash in the passenger side trim with a tool, the work report you sign when you pick the car up says it was like that when car entered shop.I guess their covering their ass.Im going to heavely weigh the facts between buying a new Sl55 or an aston martin. what do you think? please help me decide hearing to many horror stories plus a few of my own.
They make their money off of mass producing cars and they just do not have the time or desire to spend extra energy with the $150,000 plus buyer. It just isn't enough of their market.
utterly true. and aston martin don't - they have and will always be, unlike mb, only a premium class brand.
Quote:
LovinSL600 - 2/9/2005 12:56 AM
Today, I took my daughters new Mustang to the Ford dealer for service. He went out of his way to take care of me and did some things that were above the ordinary. When I tipped him $20, I found the $20 on the seat when I got into the car. I went back to give it to him and he told me he can't take extra money for doing his job.
that is the sweetest thing i've heard.
let's face it, some companies know how to give service, and some don't. same with resturants.
and if that's the kind of service to expect from mb, i'll take my cash some place else.
I think the biggest problem is with the dealer that you are dealing with. I live in Hong Kong, the dealer there is pretty good, they will do anything to satisfy their customers. But one thing that i notice about mb these few years are their dropping quality in their production. The last S500 we had was full of electronic problems. If you want to buy a S-class like car, then I would tell you to buy a 7-series or a A8. If you are looking for a exotic, SL wouldn't be one of my choice, it looks good, but the car have to go back to the shop all the time due to bad quality. One of the reason I think MB's quality is dropping is because they merged with Chrysler. When they first annouced they are merging with Chysler, I already have a very bad feeling.
Ok, Ok, my turn. Did any one else see the Robb Report this month? What do you think car of the year was? The Aston Martin DB9!! Find the review, read it and weep, since the SL didn't come close to first place. Now, as far as the MB service at the dealer level, my dealer is fantastic. The mechanics wear long coats ands gloves like doctors. Abloutely nothing hits the floor, in fact I could eat my lunch off the floor of the shop!! No ungloved hand ever touches a car and customers are always welcome to inspect the shop facility at any time. Most dealerships would never allow a customer into the shop area, but this dealer is proud to offer such a comforting service. And I must say, it is nice to be able to visit your car in various stages of repair or adjustment. I am a curious sort and somewhat of an enthusiast when it comes to this stuff so I really enjoy this kind of customer service. Also, my dealer regularly fights with MB on behalf of their customers. Even if they are unsucessful at getting MB to cover a repair, they often pay for it themselves because they want to keep you happy. Now, hearing Lovin, I almost feel guilty that my dealer is so accomodating and I cetainly will be more greatfull from this day forward. As for MB quality...well, you have all seen my posts regarding the 2005 command so I won't go on any further about that. I do however like just about everything else. So, MR. MB, corporate dude...why are you ruining my ownership experience by not supporting the dealer and making me feel like a moron everytime I call? I totally agree with Lovin that on this level, they fail miserabley!! I do appologize to anyone out there that may in fact be a moron, no offense intended. Unless of course you are the MB engineer that designed the 2005 command. In that case I retract my appology just for you.
I have to admit, I am somewhat surprised after reading these comments. I have 4 Mercedes currently, and have owned 3 others previously. The reason why I always go back to Mercedes is simple: quality reliability and service. I always research alternative cars, but nothing competes with Mercedes.
My local dealer is outstanding. With a beautiful showroom and service area they are ALWAYS going out of their way to make sure everything goes smoothly. They always pick up my cars for service on time and deliver them back promptly. I have never experienced a problem. Lovin, I understand your frustration completely, but I feel that they problem lies with your dealer rather than Mercedes. And as far as waiting for the part, I guess that's the problem with living in the USA and buying a German car, and I doubt that it would be much different with Aston. (How many Aston Martin dealers are in the USA?)
As for quality, my C230K has the 2005 COMMAND with the standard speakers (not Bose). Apart from the minor split view map problem, I can't complain about anything else. It has a beautiful sound and many people have complimented it, so it's not just me.
I test drove a Ferrari 355, Porsche 911 Turbo, Bentley Continental GT and an Aston Martin before deciding on the SL. In my opinion it put all the others to shame. Either the cars were too sporty and to quote Jeremy Clarkson, 'it was as relaxing as being tickled', or they were too much a cruiser and not enough fun. The SL can do both, amazingly well.
And then there's Mercedes 'best kept secret', MobiloLife, which incidently I have never needed to use. Can Aston or any other make compete with that?
Ok, so you've had a couple of problems with your car. Unlucky? I think so. Would it be any different if you had another car? I don't think so.
Besides, and I don't think I'm alone here when I say you probably have the coolest car here!
Well, I always like mercedes. But these few years, the quality of the cars had really went downhill. We own a S500 previously, but that car just has problems all the time, and it has to go back to the shop all the time. I am not saying I don't like mercedes anymore. But once we traded the S500(W220) in for a 745Li, in comparison, the 745Li is a better car. The styling outside on the outside i have to admit its ugly, but the interior, is much better than the S500. Up to now, there still haven't have any electronic problems yet. But the S500 we had before had problem since we bought it. The first day out of the dealer, it was a rainy day, we turned on the wiper, but after 5 minutes, the wiper stop working, it was standing like ( 1 1 ) wouldn't work. I don't think this is the way how a Mercedes be.
Im going to see how the 06 looks and probably stick with Mercedes, the SL 55 still has got more horse power and torque than the aston martins 12 cylinder also the SL55 gets 13mpg city opposed to the aston martins 11mpg.anyway now have to check out why my automatic door looks are not working over 9mph, just another item on my upcoming A service.
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