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  #1  
Old 03-04-2008, 01:15 AM
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"They're constantly repairing new Mercedes"

My nephew works at a Mercedes Benz dealership, and has gotten to know some of the mechanics. He says they're constantly having to repair these things, and they're brand new. People bring them back for this and that to be fixed. The mechanic said, "These cars are in for so many repairs, you couldn't give me one of these things". Sad to hear that about what is supposed to be a fine automobile.

I wonder how life is for an Acura or other competing luxury car mechanic. Be interesting to see how many repairs they have as compared to MB.

Jeff

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  #2  
Old 03-04-2008, 01:23 AM
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Appearantly MB moved up to only 5th place on the JD power initial quality list for 2007...thats way way up from where they used to be....and despite being 5th, they are very close to the other four above them. Its all the ones below them that is scary!

I had heard that the new ones are really reliable. Huh....
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  #3  
Old 03-04-2008, 01:38 AM
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Um, he works in a dealership. All he is going to see/repair is new cars, just like every other mechanic at any new car dealership.

If new cars didn't need repairs then dealerships wouldn't have service shops and mechanics. Work at a Bentley dealership and you will see lots of new Bentleys in for repairs, same with Ford/Lincoln, GMC/Chevy, Chrysler/Dodge, VW/AUDI, Honda, Toyota/Lexus/Scion, Volvo, Nissan, etc. Every Mechanic that works on the same lot of vehicles ends up believing they are junk. I've worked on lots of F-450 Powerjokes and GMC TopKicks and I see them as junk. I work on Volvo Semis right now and I'm starting to dislike them, hell I loathe the Kenworth T2000 already.

The only vehicles I've worked on and still like are W123's, pre-2001 Isuzu NPR's and Wabash Duraplate trailers.

Last edited by ForcedInduction; 03-04-2008 at 01:49 AM.
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  #4  
Old 03-04-2008, 07:03 AM
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Consumer Reports just came out with their annual auto issue with frequency of repair records and they in fact are more frequently repaired than other brands.
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  #5  
Old 03-04-2008, 08:24 AM
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I've seen the Consumer Reports, too. That is troubling even though many here say that CR is biased in their reporting. I don't know what the truth really is, but all the electronics in (all) new cars give me the willies. It seems like it is less reliable and a lot more expensive to fix than mechanical failures used to be. At least, that is my impression.
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  #6  
Old 03-04-2008, 08:51 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dee8go View Post
I've seen the Consumer Reports, too. That is troubling even though many here say that CR is biased in their reporting. I don't know what the truth really is, but all the electronics in (all) new cars give me the willies.
IMO, a lot of grief that car folks give CR is due to the fact that they're not considering that CR is not a car magazine. One has to realize that the "C" means "consumer," not "car enthusiast." Use CR for what CR is, not for what it isn't.

That having been said, the way they word the surveys can lead to erroneous results. For example, the BMW E28 (5-Series '82-'88) was rated fully-black for the electrical system. A major part of this was due to "problems" with the antenna, which was only a problem because folks would keep the radio on during car washes and the antenna would get bent and not retract.
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Old 03-04-2008, 08:54 AM
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Okay, that makes sense. Of course, you really don't know what the issues are in every case, so it IS disconcerting to hear about "electrical problems" when so much of the car's performance is dependent upon the proper functioning of the electronics that now control everything.
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  #8  
Old 03-04-2008, 09:00 AM
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This is why I will never buy a brand-new car, I prefer to wait and see which cars are the most reliable before making my selection. That way the previous (first) owner had to deal with all the recalls and repairs of faulty stuff first and then its all ready for the next owner.
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'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)
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  #9  
Old 03-04-2008, 09:18 AM
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Geez guys...look at the price of a new MB! If you pay that kinda of money and have the warranty...wouldn't you be taking it back in for even the most minor problem?? I know I would.

Kio Rio....naw, not so much.
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Old 03-04-2008, 10:35 AM
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Exactly!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mismost View Post
Geez guys...look at the price of a new MB! If you pay that kinda of money and have the warranty...wouldn't you be taking it back in for even the most minor problem?? I know I would.

Kio Rio....naw, not so much.
On the S-series, many would think about bringing it in for "softer" air in the tires. Think about the fact that Consumer Reports makes its money by subscriptions. They also base their reviews on manipulative questions in surveys. Anyone who has honestly looked at surveys, knows that you can get them to say just about anything you want.
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  #11  
Old 03-04-2008, 11:18 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ForcedInduction View Post
Um, he works in a dealership. All he is going to see/repair is new cars, just like every other mechanic at any new car dealership.

If new cars didn't need repairs then dealerships wouldn't have service shops and mechanics. Work at a Bentley dealership and you will see lots of new Bentleys in for repairs, same with Ford/Lincoln, GMC/Chevy, Chrysler/Dodge, VW/AUDI, Honda, Toyota/Lexus/Scion, Volvo, Nissan, etc. Every Mechanic that works on the same lot of vehicles ends up believing they are junk. I've worked on lots of F-450 Powerjokes and GMC TopKicks and I see them as junk. I work on Volvo Semis right now and I'm starting to dislike them, hell I loathe the Kenworth T2000 already.

The only vehicles I've worked on and still like are W123's, pre-2001 Isuzu NPR's and Wabash Duraplate trailers.

While I can partially agree with you, as a former Mercedes service advisor, I have to disagree slightly. I worked for a dealer back in Jersey from 2000 to 2004. With 50 techs and 2 buildings, we could barely keep up with the average of 350 appointments a week. I can list the problems - mostly electronic, for days on end. While I've heard that newer models are getting better, it's still inexcusable that their reliability isn't number 1. $60,000+ for an E500 wagon and it can't even get off the showroom floor without the air suspension collapsing is inexcusable.

Every time I see a new C-Class commercial - "We built it with door hinges that can support a 200lb man.... We built you a Mercedes....." I laugh. What I gert out of that is: They're building what they used to build (123,126,etc), what they built their reputation on and not a piece of ****... I just envision lots of 215,220 chassis,etc, winding up abandoned when the fiber optics take a crap. When the $7000 Command Center gives way. When the $7000 air suspension repairs crop up after warranty... We will see.
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Old 03-04-2008, 12:34 PM
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I've had 2 brand new C Class Wagons since 2000 and each one I would say was better than average in terms of reliability. In 3 years with each one there was one problem with each (the first one had an issue with the ignition lock and had to be flatbedded to the dealer for replacement of the key recognition system and the second one had a hard shifting issue that resulted in replacement of the TCM).

I think for 6 years and 70-80K miles that two issues is not out of line and I am very picky. Other than the two issues the cars only returned to the dealer for their annual service and I never had an issue with that either. So I just ordered a '08 C300 4Matic luxury sedan which will be in at the end of next month...we shall see if that one lives up to the same standards as my others have.
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  #13  
Old 03-04-2008, 12:53 PM
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I'm not saying there aren't reliable ones in the mix but I've always said that of those 350 appointments per week, less than 3 dozen of them were there for routine scheduled maintenance only. TCMs, O2 sensors, MAF sensors, ecu's,brake light switches, HVAC blend motors, tilt wheel motors, bulbs blowing continuously, ground harness updates to aleive front turn signal sockets melting, radios going out, cup holders snapping, sill plates cracking, seat motors, window regulators - usually the rears and of course, the ignition switch problem to which you speak...
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  #14  
Old 03-04-2008, 01:13 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AdvisorGuy View Post
I'm not saying there aren't reliable ones in the mix but I've always said that of those 350 appointments per week, less than 3 dozen of them were there for routine scheduled maintenance only. TCMs, O2 sensors, MAF sensors, ecu's,brake light switches, HVAC blend motors, tilt wheel motors, bulbs blowing continuously, ground harness updates to aleive front turn signal sockets melting, radios going out, cup holders snapping, sill plates cracking, seat motors, window regulators - usually the rears and of course, the ignition switch problem to which you speak...
Agreed. I think though that lots of people think the W123, W115, W126 and other models we prize so much here never had problems and that's just not true either. ACC, Cruise, Vacuum Systems all had issues even when the cars were newer. Cars are just complex machines and none are flawless. But I have had some lemons in my day and none were from Mercedes.
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  #15  
Old 03-04-2008, 04:32 PM
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Originally Posted by AdvisorGuy View Post
I'm not saying there aren't reliable ones in the mix but I've always said that of those 350 appointments per week, less than 3 dozen of them were there for routine scheduled maintenance only. TCMs, O2 sensors, MAF sensors, ecu's,brake light switches, HVAC blend motors, tilt wheel motors, bulbs blowing continuously, ground harness updates to aleive front turn signal sockets melting, radios going out, cup holders snapping, sill plates cracking, seat motors, window regulators - usually the rears and of course, the ignition switch problem to which you speak...
Do you think it is poor design, poor assembly or poor materials that is causing the bulk of the problems?
Or, is it that these parts like a light socket are being bought from outside suppliers (may be out of the country)?

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