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Mechanic lost my key! How much to replace? 560SEC owner.

5K views 22 replies 12 participants last post by  liviu165 
#1 · (Edited)
EDIT/UPDATE: See response below as the guy treated me right. I really cannot ask for better customer service in a crazy situation.
 
#3 ·
I paid @ 33 for one at the dealer in 2014. You will have to show them registration/title in your name, that's not a problem. Your problem is that is not something you pay the money and immediately get it. You'll have to drive to the dealer, hopefully they can do it while you wait (not really sure if that is possible, for me took 1-2 days, I think the key came from some other place): the 2.5 hours of driving one way and your time are your biggest problem.

I would start with some auto locksmith in your area, they may have their ways. Good luck, and maybe you should keep on looking for another mechanic, if they were so sloppy now, who knows what may happen next time.
 
#4 · (Edited)
yep, about $30. need registration/title and your driver's license. Takes about 3 days to get. Think they are made in Dallas.
 
#6 ·
Yeah 30 bucks sounds about right and all that the others said (I don't know where they come from, was assuming Stuttgart) Because of this I carry two keys (on separate rings) and have a spare spare in my safe at home (this one is the key that came with the car)
 
#7 ·
Rather than go to the dealer, is it possible to have a spare key cut by a conventional locksmith? Since these keys don't require coding, couldn't they just be duplicated normally? I ask because years ago I owned a 93 Honda Civic and was able to have new keys cut by a mobile guy and though they were a little "sticky", maybe because they were duplicated from a worn original key, they worked fine.
 
#8 ·
Well the key did not turn up, but he is going to get me another one. He contacted Mercedes and is taking care of everything. I will admit, I was FREAKING out, but he is being very very good about it. It won't cost me a penny. So there is a God. :)

It's a shame this happened because it's the first time I have brought a car to him and it's not the way one wants to start a relationship. However I do feel I am a good judge of character and this guy doesn't strike me as crooked. Not at all. He comes highly recommended so we are going to try and laugh about it. Blame it on the little blue men from the other dimension.

So long story short, I had my pops drive me down there (my spare key in my pocket) and the guy changed the oil and gave the car a thorough inspection. He pointed out the fuel lines in the rear do not look so good and so that is the first thing I will address when I return from overseas. He also pointed out some transmission fluid above the pan, but in his mind it doesn't look like much of anything. He liked the condition of the belts, brakes, suspension. The exhaust is old, but not in dire need. All in all everything is fine.

Now excuse me while I have a drink.
 
#9 ·
Well the key did not turn up, but he is going to get me another one. He contacted Mercedes and is taking care of everything.
It may not be a bad idea to ask him to order two keys made, so you can have an additional one and you split the cost of the two keys with him. Having a third key for $30 or so is not a bad idea, especially that he will place the order anyway. Just saying.
 
#11 ·
A master or valet key for a W126 is the same price, under $30 from a dealer and should be there within a day or two.

Since your mechanic is ordering it he's going to have to show ownership, as there are some forms that Mercedes requires to be filled out and signed before they'll sell or deliver anything that's related to safety or security.

Dan
 
#15 ·
I'm just curious why you were FREAKING out if you had a spare key? OTOH, having worked for more than one shop, I can't see how the key could up and disappear. It should be in the car, on the key rack, or in someone's pocket...
 
#16 ·
...or in someone's pocket...
And, that's where it will be.

I was the parts manager at a dealership for over 10 years. Every single time a critical key came up missing, some jackass ended up having it in his pocket.

One guy was so bad (he'd take the keys of nice trades, and even some new cars, and hide them) he actually got caught stashing a key under a rock on the side lawn of the store. Can you imagine?

In about 94, we had a long, wet fall. I came to work one morning at about 7 a.m., as was my habit, in a pouring rain. I opened up the parts dept. and went about my morning routine until the service manager came in and said something about water rising in the back parking lot of the store. The water table had had just about all it was going to take.

The store itself was built on higher ground, but a creek ran about 100 yards or better behind the rr parking area. That area was not raised and had a dozen brand new Acuras parked in it. They'd just rolled off the truck the previous evening...not even PDI'ed yet (pre delivery inspection).

When I walked out the back of the shop, I saw the water was indeed rising in that area.

We went to the accounting offices and grabbed the keys to the new cars and moved them...except for two.

Brand new cars. We knew they had keys the night before because they had to be started and driven off the carrier truck.

The keys were not to be found.

By this time, it was about 8 a.m. The sales staff began trickling in and as they entered, we asked for keys.

"Nope. No keys," was the reply from everyone.

Then, at about 8:45 a.m., two sets of keys magically appeared on the desk of our office manager which is, coincidentally, where the rest of the keys had come from an hour earlier.

By this time, there was a river (not a creek) running through the lowest part of that back parking area. That running water separated us from those two stranded cars, but there was a ridge of higher ground remaining behind the cars. But, the water was rising very quickly.

Given how long it was going to take to run all the way around that ridge, get to a car, and back it along the ridge to higher ground, the decision was made to go though the river rather than try to go around.

Would you believe neither the service manager nor the sales manager, who were the other two guys working with me, could swim? I still believe one of them was BSing me, but I swam out, got one car and pulled it around, returning for the other. I drove the second car out with a foot of water up over the ridge.

Scary day, but it had a silver lining. I was soaked to the skin when the owner arrived. He sent me home and told me to take the rest of the day off. :grin
 
#18 ·
Excuse me (to two gentlemen who snarlky have replied), but a few people had told me that these keys would cost $250. That's what I was told. No joke. Thankfully that was wrong. And if you read my initial post you would see it wasn't just the cost that bothering me. There was far more to it than that. Hence my freaking out. It was terribly upsetting, especially as I am trying desperately to get ready for my overseas trip. Everything is happening at once and none of it good. This was the kick in the balls after having my hands and feet chopped off. I should mention that when this happened I called my father to ask him to drive me the 45 minutes to bring the spare key. He is retired, easily flustered and went completely bonkers on me. That didn't help.

But as I already stated, the situation is resolved and the gentlemen has been terrific to me after realizing that he did, in fact, lose the key. He feels bad about the situation and was apologetic and accommodating.

Best to close this thread since the situation IS resolved.
 
#23 ·
a few people had told me that these keys would cost $250. That's what I was told. No joke.
For more modern cars with keys with incorporated transponders, yes I could see that. However, when you talked to those people you probably forgot to mention that your car is not a newer model, is 30 years old, or maybe the people you talked to know very little about cars.

Anyway, great you sorted it out.
 
#19 ·
Have a good trip, 1783....

dadrab, I had the same thing happen to my '05 e55 at the MB dealership where it was taken in a trade. The key was "misplaced."

Salesman told me they got hammered with a ton of calls - it was a 63k mile car. They couldn't sell the car for a few days, but they could take a deposit.

Short story, key came, I got the car. But why do employees intentionally "lose" keys? Is it a scheme to prevent the car being sold or something?

In auctions, it isn't uncommon to see cars intentionally damaged and/or keys stolen in an effort to lower the price or delay a sale?
 
#20 · (Edited)
But why do employees intentionally "lose" keys? Is it a scheme to prevent the car being sold or something?
Yes, it is. Normally, they don't lose them: they hide them.

Some of the stuff I've seen (not just heard about) is criminal.

1. Coil wires pulled and taken so a car couldn't be started.

2. One guy even took a tire and wheel off a car so it couldn't be moved. Found the tire in the trunk of his personal car where the jack kit was still laying loose from where he stole the tire.

Many more examples available...

I don't think any of that was going on with 1783's key because accidents do indeed happen, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn his key ended up in someone's pocket. It still might turn up.
 
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