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James:
Sure, go ahead and disagree with most of what I post, I don't give a rip.
NO, Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, and AUDI mechanics go to training right here in the US. The trainers at the factory schools will go to Germany on occasion. I know several trainers, and we handle the previously mentioned car lines, if anyone was going to Europe I would know about it.
I don't know how you can say MB isn't considered a rich persons car in one sentence, then say "everyone from a drug dealer to a dentist" own one. A drug dealer can make tons of money based on the expense of the toys they confiscate from them, and a dentist is usually in a high income bracket (not all, but most). New MB owners are usually at least in the upper-middle income bracket, even the youthful 20-30 year olds they are after aren't typically high school drop outs that sweep floors at night, they usually have good jobs and are "upwardly mobile" as the terminology reads.
The reason I compared MB to Chevy and Ford is that MB is built in Europe and is seen as run-of-the-mill, instead of the US where they are marketed as a luxury car. They do have some neat options available in Europe that you don't see here in the US, but most of the Mercedes over in Europe aren't as fancy, percentage-wise, as they are in the US. When was the last time MB brought a car to the US without power windows and A/C for example?
I didn't give any reason for MB's to be used as taxi's in Europe, just stating the fact. You rarely see an MB taxi in the US as you can only get fancy Mercedes here, that mostly was my point. In Europe you can get a stripped down car suitable for taxi use. A taxi driver here in the US doesn't really want leather seats, sunroof, power windows (in the back anyways), etc. If you know anyone who drives a cab, you ask him why leather seats may be a BAD idea in a cab.
I also don't understand why you say MB is not an ordinary car in Europe (even though they are built there, they sell stripped down versions as taxi's, they are used as cop cars and they also sell the little cheap A class and delivery vans) but then you contradict yourself and say that you've "seen more S class sedans on a daily basis in the USA than I've ever seen in Europe". This supports my opinion that the MB is marketed as an upscale car only in certain markets, like the US, but in the home market they offer many different levels of luxury. Either way they are still a very safe car.
Gilly
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