I have a 300 e diesel 1995. First the MB dealer told me $350 to replace them. After I drop it off this a.m. , the service manager calls to tell me it's $500, then calls me back 45 minutes later to say that Glo Plug #4 is frozen and won't come off. Went on to say that they need my permission to brake it off but 50/50 chance that by doing so they could brake a coil, which would ruin the engine, which would amount to huge money. I told them not to touch glo plug #4. Manager said it will be a big improvement but not perfect.

Why do I get the feeling that they just don't know what they're doing, that perhaps they don't have a good diesel mechanic there? Maybe it's because he told me they were the original glo plugs when I have in my possession the records from the previous owner who, did, in fact, change the glo plugs 50,000 miles ago. Glo plug #4 was not a problem then.

This car runs beautifully once it is started. Plus after it is started once for the day, it starts right up. Manager at MB Dealer tells me I need new belts and bolts - $1,500 (which really means $2,500 coming from his mouth).

130,000 miles on my car.

I would greatly appreciate your opinions. Will get written suggestions from this Manager when I pick the car up next week.

I'm not a suspicious person but the way this place handled giving me a price quote of $350 (which was confirmed twice over the phone and once in person when I dropped the car off this a.m.) and then $500 on the phone in the middle of the job 4 hours later does not get my trust off to a good start.

Yes, he said my "belts were old" - plural - belts. He said $750 to fix it. When I pick it up I will have a detailed description of these supposed extra belts and problems. This car runs so well, it is a dream.

It is very difficult to find a good mechanic that can be trusted. Any thoughts on how to find a good diesel mechanic?

As always, I thank you for your words of wisdom.

Sincerely,
Diane

Hello,

I just changed my glow plugs on my 87 w124, I think that it is just like yours just one more cylinder and I had no trouble with the plugs. They were not stuck. I used liquid wrench. Anyway I am glad that they did not break because that would suck bad.

350 to change them out sounds reasonable. It can be alot of work to remove the intake ect.... 500 sounds higher.

750 to change the belt (If that is what he would charge you to only change the belt) he is full of crap. IT is an easy job and alone should not be more than one hour book. If it is 750 total well it cost money to have all that nice showroom.

I would suggest finding a local mechanic. Your 1995 diesel is not built by NASA. Other people can work on it with out screwing it up. I work on mine all the time and she still runs and I am a hack. I have found that German mechanics tend to be honest and knowelgabe. Find a local mechanic whom specializes in forgein cars and answers to Helmut or Otto. From what I know about german folk, they may not be the most fun at the party but they dont screw around either. They can be a little harsh or lets say authoritarian. They do however enjoy telling you how it is. I have had luck with my german mechanics and knowing what I know about these cars they were always on the mark.

You live in NJ do a search on local mechanics and use us as a referrence.

Better yet get those hands dirty and try some of this stuff yourself. I do believe that the sertpentine belt could be done by a 4 year old.

Who knows, I am sure that there is some local folks out there who would do it for you for about the cost of a case of beer. If you lived in my town I would put that belt in for ya for a cup of coffee. If you decide not to let those guys at MB fix your precious (lord of the rings) spray liquid wrench weekly on that glow plug until you get it to someone who will get it out.

Good luck.

Like with any surgery get a second opinion.

And get one from someone with alot less overhead


bob

Your gender explains it all. This place is taking advantage of you because they assume you know nothing about automobiles and that you have big dollars to throw around. Tell them to button it up without touching glow plug #4, and don't do anything else. Also tell them that you want the 5 old glow plugs they took out. (My bet is they haven't done anything and can't produce the old parts.)

Then search through the "Good Shops" section on this board to see if you can find an independent shop in NJ. If you come up empty, post back here and we'll try to help.

Unless you want to spend thousands of dollars needlessly, get that car out of there NOW!

__________________
Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
Chain Elongation References

diane,

we play for the same gender team. i was fortunate/unfortunate enough to know a guy who worked as a tech at bmw. he would tell me stories that seemed unreal.

basically, you are their favorite type of customer. the assumption is that you are clueless about anything automotive and that you will go with whatever they say. he said the line that worked the best was "lady, it is unsafe to drive this car and i would not put my kids in it....."

notice how he used 'kids' and 'unsafe' in the same sentence?

btw, their most hated customer is the older car owner who knows how to work on cars. that person often questions and argues about what is necessary and what is not.

one example that comes to mind is when you bring it to them for a new waterpump, they have a set price on it say $100. however, in order to get to the waterpump, the fan belts have to be removed. if they see that the belts need to changed, they will charge you say $50 to change the belts as a separate item. this is a scam because the removal of the belt is already part of the waterpump job. get it?

what they are doing to you is classic. get out of there quickly.

jen

__________________
Jennifer
90 350sdl

Id avoid those folks liek the plague...

If you live in south jersey near AC, Id take it to Ditmire motorworks, in Absecon. If in SW NJ, Id take it to R&K motors in Newark, DE. Both do great work at reasonable prices, and are very honest and straightforward.

JMH

__________________
Current Diesels:
1981 240D (73K)
1982 300CD (169k)
1985 190D (169k)
1991 350SD (116k)
1991 350SD (206k)
1991 300D (228k)
2008 ML320 CDI (199k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (442k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (267k)

Past Diesels:
1983 300D (228K), 1985 300D (233K), 1993 300D 2.5T (338k), 1993 300SD (291k)

After reading all of your replies which contain a wealth of knowledge, I contacted this Manager's Manager, the head of the service dept. He was as nice as could be and very upset that I was lied to. He dropped the price of the glo plug change (5 of them) to $180. He also explained that it is the belt and belt tenisoners that are cracked and that the price quote of $750 on that was not true - it is $540. Also, he confirmed that there are cracks in the front flex disc which, he said, if cracked completely, the car would lose its transmission. Again, not $750 as quoted, but $260 for the job.

The salesman for my 2000 e that I just bought at this dealership was by far the most honest salesman and I let the shop manager know that in the same breath that I warned him that, if his assistant managers lkeep ie lying to people re: repair costs, their business will be doomed.

I wish I knew as much about my own diesel as you all do, but I have learned so much already in the few short months I have been a member.

As always, thank you for your concerns and great advice.

Sincerely,
Diane

Get him to show you the cracks in the flex disc Diane. It is easy enough to put it on the rack and look at. I'm wondering what they are doing seeing the cracks on the flex disc when they are supposed to be changing glow plugs.

This is kinda funny - I had an alignment shop guy tell me one time "I don't want to scare you but your steering damper needs to be replaced". He had disconnected it and showed me how easy it was to compress. I asked him to button it up and I would take care of it. I was not scared.

__________________
Jim

Pay the $180 and run like hell. Seriously, I would not have them touch another thing on that car.

If the belt tensioner was bad, you'd be complaining about noise or a non-operating air conditioner or the battery going dead because the alternator isn't charging. They don't just go bad without any symptoms.

As for the flex disk, I'm with Jim - there's no reason they should be looking under there. Yes, it can take out a bunch of stuff if it goes, but get a second opinion before you spend any money on it.

__________________
Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
Chain Elongation References

Where in New Jersey? There is a indy MB/BMW mechanic in Oldwick. Good reputation and is always busy. I had minor dealings with them and thought that they were honest.

Oldwick is in Hunterdon County, Route 78 to exit 24. Go north and they are on the right side. I think it is Oldwick Village Garage (I left the business card at home)

Good luck!

__________________
Paul

1991 300TE (280,000)
1985 300TD (432,000 miles - retired)
1976 300D (225,000 - retired)
1975 300D (165,000 - retired)

The website dealerrater.com shows has one very unhappy customer on it for this mercedes benz dealership. Thanks dieseldiehard.

Rick, now that I'm thinking, they told me when they lifted the hood, there was a noise. They said it was the first time they had this car so they wanted to go over it. Could it be these belt tensiors were starting to go bad, together with the flex disc? Early stages? I had a bad feeling about junior manager #1 with his outright lies but senior manager #2 seemed to be disturbed at the way I was treated and I want to believe that he, unlike his associate, is being honest. The car has 130,000 miles on it. I've had it for 4 yrs and haven't put one cent into it so far, with the exception of brakes, oil changes. Maybe it is due for some maintenance.

Sincerely,
Diane

My partner used to work as a ballroom dance instructor. They had something in that business called a "shock quote." That was an initial price quote for a package of lessons that was so ridiculous that you would think any lower price was a bargain. After the customer was sufficiently shocked, they would offer a lower price or some sort of a "special" deal. Even though the special was still horribly inflated, the customer would jump at it. But there were some who had plenty of money and would agree to the initial quote. When that happened the instructor knew they were about to make some serious money. Then there were additional lessons, and costumes, and trips to competitions, and on and on and on.

Consider yourself shock quoted.

__________________
Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
Chain Elongation References

I am not familiar with that engine, but again, do a search. I did and found this:
350 sdl 150,000 miles with engine noise

mr. Goodwrench describes the noise a faulty belt tensioner makes. Same engine as yours I think. I have heard of these getting noisy in earlier diesels (different engine) too, so I would not be surprised to find yours had noisy bushings at the mileage you have.
Didn't someone previously suggest that you keep spraying yours with WD40 (actually there are much better lubricants than that stuff!) if yours is getting noisy, and have it changed by a reputable independant shop? I'd change mine myself if I had a squeaker.

Oh yes, I looked around on that dealerrater web site, there are but a few dealers rated yet but its obviously a fairly new website. There was a BMW dealer that had lots of bad stuff rated on it (also located in NJ, BTW) worth reading for grins! see the start page.
DDH

Diana,
Call me cynical if you want, but I think you've been treated to a performance sometimes known as " good cop/ bad cop".
It is true that when a flex disc fails, it can be catastrophic, but there are flex discs that have run three times ( or more) the mileage on yours. Some minor surface cracking may be used to sell you a job that is not yet necesary. At least get a second opinion.

I must agree that you need to take the car to another mechanic for evaluation. Someone who will value your loyalty as a customer. Any and every car will have problems which need attention. Dealers are famous for finding stuff that does not need to be fixed.. The service department has alot of obligation to the entire dealership to provide income.

Find a mechanic whom you can trust. It may not be easy as you are targeted as a easy mark (being a woman) I am sorry to say but you are. My sister in law was told by a mechanic that she needed new brakes all around New rotors and everything. I checked the car out and she only need front pads, not alot of work. All she kept saying was that the mechanic told me I need new rotors, I need new rotors....So I put in new rotors and everything that goes with it and she still was not satisfied because of a little brake squeal I think she took it in for another brake job (agian needlessly because a mechanic told her she needed new rotors)

I am a chiropractor and have to deal with even more public scrutiny than the average mechanic. I do my best to provide quality service without selling people stuff they dont need. I want their trust and loyalty. I am sure that there are mechanics that have the same level of integrity and long term business outlook as I have. GO find someone who will not look at you as a easy mark but as an opportunity to establish a relationship based on service and trust. Again do a search on the forum for mechanics that are near you and us this forum as a referrence. Say stuff like "I heard great things about you on the forum" because he will want to also to say great things about him. A good reputation means alot more to a small operation than a big dealership (Usually) There is another concept of paying a professional for not what he/she does but what they dont do. I have had many a mechanic as a patient and they all have told me to leave stuff alone when I ask them about my cars. Find a mechanic who will tell you to leave some stuff alone. Not fix everything and anything that is possible. Get a mechanic that demonstrates some honest respect for your money and in the long run they will get more of it.

I second the theory on the flex dics. THey are not a common wear item at your milage.

THe fact that you are a women does not exclude you from the delerous process of dealing with mechanics. I remember talking to a mechanic about my transmission W123 and the fact that it shifited a bit hard. In under 60 seconds he is telling me that it sounds like a probable rebuild. WHich is crap because it sounds more like a vacuum leak.

I also recommend that you continue on your quest to learn as much as you can from this forum about your car. Mercedes cost alot of money to maintain. It can be staggaring if you have to pay for stuff that you dont need. It would be cheaper to drive a honda but they are not as nice of a car.

Basically be suspicous of a mechanic who sells you services based on fear as a motivation. I want one who will respect my safety but my money as well.

best of luck


bob