1st Time MB owner takes used car to dealer for check up--am i getting bamboozled?

[C230nyc]

1st Time MB owner takes used car to dealer for check up--am i getting bamboozled?
Hi,

i bought my first Mercedes (my first car actually) in Feb 07 from the original owner. It's a 2003 C230 coupe with 31k miles. I got a flat tire the other day and said, what the heck, i'll bring it to the dealer (Mercedes Benz of Manhattan) since i never had before, and also to run the service B on it (it was almost time for it anyway). my brakes are also squeaking a little and my transmission is a bit jumpy when upshifting from 1st to 2nd.

anyway,
this is what they're chargin
Service B -$450
Diagnostic on Trans - $125
New Tire - $199
Brakes and Roters - $1400

they also told me i should change the rest of the tires (175 each) and haven't heard anything about transmission yet.

am i totally being taken for a ride?

from reading these forums, it seems like taking the car to the dealership is always the wrong thing to do. but how can i find out if there is honestly something wrong with my car? at what point should i get the brakes and rotors replaced? what's a fair price?

does anyone know anything about Rheinland Motors? is it better for me to go there?

any help would be GREATLY appreciated. Again, this is my 1st car ever and i know very little about them, so please forgive my rookie questions.

thanks!

Gabe

[TheDon]

probably not..

my dealership charges 80$ an hour for labour plus parts(which is like 150% markup)

I would learn how do to do the brakes and rotors...

I have saved at least 5-6000 by doing my own work on my ole w123

[brewtoo]

$1400 for brakes? Come on.

Perhaps your car is different, but you can do brakes yourself on a 124 for less than $300 in parts, all new pads, sensors and rotors.

And on a 124 the brakes are EASY. Especially the back.

I doubt yours is THAT different.

[C230nyc]

thanks for replying. unfortunately, i live in manhattan and don't have a garage (park it on the street), so doing it myself is not really an option.

i don't even know if the work needs to be done--that's my biggest problem. at how many miles shoudl one replace the brakes and rotors? and shoudl i take it to an independent guy or to the dealer?

Originally Posted by TheDon

probably not..

my dealership charges 80$ an hour for labour plus parts(which is like 150% markup)

I would learn how do to do the brakes and rotors...

I have saved at least 5-6000 by doing my own work on my ole w123

[brewtoo]

At 31,000 miles the front pads may need to be replaced. The rear brakes are almost certainly just fine.

[TheDon]

Originally Posted by C230nyc

thanks for replying. unfortunately, i live in manhattan and don't have a garage (park it on the street), so doing it myself is not really an option.

i don't even know if the work needs to be done--that's my biggest problem. at how many miles shoudl one replace the brakes and rotors? and shoudl i take it to an independent guy or to the dealer?

I was told rotors are to be changed every third brake job.. or if wearing is extreme.

on the W123 it requires a special tool to remove the rears but still an easy job...

rotors for my chasis are cheap as well (20$ at least)



I would find a friend outside the city..

[C230nyc]

thanks for the info guys.

i'll just decline the work from the dealer (maybe just change front pads)

[nhdoc]

Yeah, $1400 for the brake job is excessive...even at list price the OE parts for all 4 wheels are around $400 so they are charging $1000 in labor for maybe 3 hours work...that's what I would call excessive - that's how they get the name stealership.

Why not look at the "good shops" board and find an honest indy to bring it to?

[CamelotShadow]

Take the car into queens
They take you for a ride in Manhattan

Also at 31K its a new car
why are breaks sqeaking & tranny shifting hard?

Maybe mileage is not accurate?

Lots of shops over the queens border
LIC not that far.

Manhattan RE isvery $$$
they have to sell a bolt for $10 to pay the rent
costs are cheaper in queens

Go west young benz...

..

[ozawa]

keep in mind that prices are dependent on what the market will bear. i live and work in the heart of Silicon Valley, (the land of the $500k fixer upper starter home.) around here, indies get $140 an hour for labor; i can only imagine what the dealers must get.

dealership prices in Manhattan may seem extreme but somebody's paying those prices or else they wouldn't be so high.

BTW, any part that has the three pointed star on the box is going to be more expensive than the same part, even if it's made by the OE manufacturer. example: Textar/Pagid/Jurid brake pads in a MBZ box=high dollar. same thing in said Textar/Pagid/Jurid box, much less.

[sd300td]

Originally Posted by C230nyc

thanks for replying. unfortunately, i live in manhattan and don't have a garage (park it on the street), so doing it myself is not really an option.

i don't even know if the work needs to be done--that's my biggest problem. at how many miles shoudl one replace the brakes and rotors? and shoudl i take it to an independent guy or to the dealer?

I own an 05 c230k. The brakes are probably a bit more spendy that the other poster's w124, but $1400 is steep.

I would suggest finding a good indy MB mechanic, one who doesn't serve the manhattan crowd/money.

[fpharryc]

I'll move out of NYC dump once and for all.

[brewtoo]

New rotors and pads, all four wheels, $332 total on this very site.

As if it needs rotors. Or rear brakes. Or sensors.

$1400!

[Ethan]

Gabe, C230 Coupe is a very cool car

Use the Buy Parts tab at the top of the pages at mercedesshop.com to get an idea on prices. Brake disc are about $110 for a pair of front and $100 for a pair of rear discs. Pads are about $70 / $50 f/r.

Where I am in Baltimore dealers charge around $500 per axle for discs and pads. I'm curious if a brake fluid replacement is included in that price?

check out tirerack.com ( they also have a list of recommended shops in areas around the country - though some shop recommended in my area I think are shoddy ) for the price of tires, $199 sounds high for a tire plus mounting and balancing, but in line with what many dealers charge.

$125 for a trans diagnostic it seems is fair to me, you probably need Mercedes Star diagnostic computer to do the work right.

Anytime you have A & B services where they check items chances are it's a very cursory look used to make easy money. Best to check you MB maintenance manual and see what items they recommend for change-out and have those items replaced.

chk forums like this one and benzworld.org and mbworld.org plus mbca.org
for their sections on recommended shop to get and idea of which places ti investigate.

I would have the tire taken care of, then wait till the dash display brake pad sensor light illuminates then have that done.

For the B service an oil change and cabin filter change are important to do at this time.

I'm curious why they say change all four tires and what the brake pad and disc thickness are. The upshift from first to second is a mystery, if you do a google search for STAR TECH MAGAZINE you can browse the archive and readif they discuss such an issue.

[yal]

I would do the tranny diagnostic. Do the rest somewhere else. What the heck is service B? Replace all four tires using www.Tirerack.com delivered to your door and use one of their local installers listed on their website to install and balance them. Find an indy for the brakes in Queens if you can, $1400 is a lot. Unless maybe they are doing a brake fluid change and replacing a caliper too?