The latest: I placed call #6 to MB, and this time got a friendly woman who gave me a fairly thorough explanation of the current badge situation. The badges are in, and they are no going through the long process of sorting through all the backorders and orders that fell through earlier. Apparantly they did have major shipping problems, with many people never getting their products. She confirmed that they will now be using FedEx. She said they hope to be on top of the whole mess, with badges shipped out, within the next month. Light at the end of the tunnel?

I still want an old-style badge.

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1987 300D, arctic white/palomino--314,000 miles
1978 240D 4-speed, Euro Delivery, light ivory/bamboo--370,000 miles
2005 Jeep Liberty CRD Limited, light khaki/slate--140,000 miles
2018 Chevy Cruze diesel, 6-speed manual, satin steel metallic/kalahari--19,000 miles
1982 Peugeot 505 diesel, 4-speed manual, blue/blue, 130,000 miles
1995 S320, black/parchment--34,000 miles (Dad's car)