So far, no one has messed up my car, one morning I went downstairs and the star on the hood was lop sidded so I think somebody might have tried to yank it but failed. I would go seriously berserk if somebody really messed up my car. I do take care where I drive and where I park. Fortunately the first two years I owned my Benz I lived in Nova Scotia where people don't really vandalize cars adn if you drive a nice one people go "wow" rather than get upset. One time I had my 87 DeVille parked at a mall in Hamilton, Ontario and as I was getting in I heard some ugly middle aged woman sneer, "wow, posh Cadillac". I don't know what is wrong with some people. People don't realize that if you own an older Benz (difficult for 99% of people to tell the age of a Benz within 15 years I find) that you are not some snotty rich punk trying to show off, and if you are well do to and own a brand new Benz that you can afford it because you earned it. All I know is that if I ever caught someone in the act of messing with my car....

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Jason Priest
1986 420SEL

A lot of it is misperception by people who can't do math. There is not a lot of price difference between a new BMW, Legend, Infinity, Lincoln, or Cadillac. In fact, the more expensive models of the competitors may cost more than the less expensive MB models. Certainly with the increasing popularity of leases, the price points become meaningless.
18 months ago I developed an urgent need for a reliable car, so I bought my father's MB from his estate. I was reluctant to do this, because I didn't know anything about MBs except their snob appeal. My enthusiasm was developed over time after I dealt with the stereotype. (When in high school, my son and his friend were picked up after school by the friends mother in there newest MB. My son's friend asked if he was impressed by their 'expensive new MB' - the mother told me that my son replied "why should I be impressed by a car that much of the world uses as a taxi!" The mother told me she laughed so hard it was tough to control the car).
I suspect that education of the rest of this country will be very difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish by talk. It is rather like the issue of radiation. You can quote facts (The largest occupationally exposed group in the world is not N plant workers or X-ray techs, it is airline flight crews. Cigarettes have more radioactive material in them per gram than any other consumer product. Coal power plants produce more long lived rad waste than n plants, but unlike n-plants, the coal rad waste is exempted by the EPA and released to the atmosphere. Most rad waste in the country is from medical treatments and cancer research. etc. etc. etc.) It doesn't make any difference, people know what they know and are difficult to re-educate.
It will be a big waste of time to tell your friends "My MB cost less than yours because you will replace yours 3 times in the 20 years I am keeping mine." "My MB cost less than yours because it came with all the suspension and brakes I need, and you had to upgrade yours to get my level of handling." etc. etc. etc. They won't listen.
Just smile, enjoy the car, and let one of the critics drive it over a twisty road or for an 8-10 hour trip . End of argument.

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JCE
87 300E, 65k miles
Smoke Silver

ditto.

Have not had anything targeted at my car (yet?), but then again I live in this country's german car capital and I doubt that my lowly 1993 is worthy of some hood's attention.

Some of the comments I get are funny though. Short story:

Pulling into the local shopping center I turned wide and my neighbor (of all people) had to stop short on her way out to let me through. She trite-ly said something to the effect of "What?! All you mercedes drivers think you've bought the road too?!"

A couple of weeks later I was talking with her in the front yard and having a look at her brand-new loaded Accord 4-cyl. She proudly told me that she "only" paid $24k for it and that it came with a "great" 3yr/36k warranty. She further went on to say that although my car is beautiful, she could personally NEVER see spending THAT kind of money on a CAR.

I didn't have the heart to tell her I bought my car for almost $10k less, in MINT condition with only 53k miles on the clock.

What that has to do with this thread I've lost all idea, but I tend to think that people who are knee-jerk MB haters are pretty stupid and definately ignorant, seeing as how just about anyone can afford a good, reliable MB.

Then again, I'm a pretty arrogant guy and get the hell out of my way...

Aftr buying my '87 260E, I let my wife drive it rather than drive it to work because of all the stuff one has to put up with. I finally got over it after I had owned it a couple of years. I had the hood star stolen in my driveway and did not replace it for a year and a half until I moved to the country. I figured that if "they" were that intent on my not having the star then why bother.

Boy. In view of the comments listed here, I'm sure glad I live in the San Francisco Bay Area ––*at least as far as cars are concerned. German (and other european) cars are as common here as rabbit droppings in a lettuce patch. I can't afford to buy a house within 100 miles of my job, but at least no body beats up my car.

John

Call me naive, but I'm confused by this thread. I've been driving Benz products for so many years I shudder to even stop and think about it. I've driven them in the Plano, Texas area where a Benz is as common as a Suburban, and that's pretty common here. I've also driven them in the boondocks of East Texas and absolutely all over the surrounding states, small towns as well as big cities.

I must be naive, because I've never noticed any treatment or comment that is different from the way I'm treated in my 22 year old 4X4 pickup, or my wife's 4Runner, or my Corvette.

Just call me naive,

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Larry Bible
'84 Euro 240D, 523K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

I must agree with you all, I can remember a few stories with a benz.

- Back in '88 when I was about 10, mi dad decided to drive from Guatemala to LA in our 230TE wagon he had bought the year before and so we went. On our way back we stayed in Mexico City for 2 days and some thiefs broke all the left side windows on the car and stole our jackets and other stuff in the car. And so we looked for the MB dealer to see if we could have it fixed. Since we didn't know the city, as we were driving we saw a group of soldiers on the side of the road, which were blocking some sort of drive way. To our amaze the soldiers all got out of the way and opened the barricades for us to go through. At the end of the road we got to this nice big building and a security person asked us the reason for our visit. So my dad told the guy we were just lookin for the MB dealer. THe security guy almost flipped, and said to please leave the Presidents house imediatly.

-I also find it true that people cannot see that my car is 15yrs old. I am actually shy to tell people the car I drive, because most think I drive it to show off or something; while actually it is the just the only reliable car I can afford while still in college. Besides if I get runover by a an ever popular SUV, I will still be alive.

- And yes, my car has had the egg thrown at it while it was parked at the movies.

my $0.02

My experiences are the same as LarryBible. Although, personally, I feel safer in my German tank (1985 300D), I haven't been treated any different. A few colleagues have remarked "wow, I get to ride in a Benz" when I've given them rides, but other than that nothing. Actually I'm surprised since I'm in the Detroit area, but now that Daimler and Chrysler are synonymous (not really) I bet I'll be seeing more and more MB's on the streets of SE Michigan.

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FrankieZ
84 500SEL EURO 87K
85 300D 267K (and still goin' strong)

[This message has been edited by fz500sel (edited 08-16-2000).]

I don't know why people haven't brought this topic up before! I totally feel awkward when people ask me what car I drive. I usually say "An Old Mercedes" but by the time they see it, they think it's pretty new (which it's not.... 13 years+) Anyway, I do think people have stereotypes, and I live in Saratoga where the average house costs 1.4 million and there are benz's everywhere. I actually didn't realize how many there were until the new '00 e class came out and i noticed that almost EVERYONE upgraded. I don't even see the old ones anymore, which have had like a 5 year lifespan. My friend has a bmw m3 and people don't have a problem with that. It cost just as much as my car when it was new! I haven't had my car vandalized though (knock on wood) and my friends who have Japanese cars have been. My friends "riced up" Civic gets its emblems stolen ALL the time and the other week, people bashed in his body kit and his windshield. Also, my other friends with a new accord got keyed. I would CRY if my car got keyed.... but actually, a new paint job would be nice.. hehe. I think it's worse in other places but yes, I do feel like people have some kind of automatic reaction to people who drives benz's. It's a shame really.

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Phil Ly

1987 300E Midnight Blue
Remus Sport Exhaust
European headlights
Clear corners
AMG 17in Monoblock IIs (hopefully soon)
Eibach Lowering Springs

See, this is why I drive a beat-up, rusty old diesel everyday. I see where all of you are coming from, and how people tend to stereotype MB owners but anymore I don't give a damn what anybody thinks. Let them look at the odometer in my 300SD and see how many miles are on it! I gurarantee more than they'll ever see in any other car! I used to work at a Cadillac dealer as a mechanic (while ago) and I'd laugh to myself when all the customers driving their Devilles and Eldorados would see me pulling by in my Turbodiesel. Funny how people driving expensive Chevys expect you to kiss their feet. By the way, after I left Cadillac I went to the MB dealer and found the overall "qualiity" of the customers to be greatly better--which I expected. But it was funny to see those big Eldorados come in for service with steer horns on the hood!

Getting back to Mercedes people, I have never had a negative comment when I take the 250 Cabrio out, and most people--even the muscle car boys recognize it as a well-built, classic car. When I drive the Interceptor, the most common words to come out of a person's mouth are "nice Aston Martin" or "what the hell is that?" And of course, the DeLorean is recognized immediately by the '80s generation for it's incredible time travel capabilities, but the flux capacitor question gets old real quick. Out of all the cars I own, I am most careful (and paranoid) about driving the DeLorean, as body panels are no longer available since the British government sunk the original body dies in the Atlantic ocean. And nobody is making replacements and nobody is even going to think about re-working a stainless fender---even to remove a tiny door ding! Can't be done! So the only source for body panels for this car is DMC in Houston, Texas who owns the remaining parts supply from the factory and they want $2,700 for a front fender. OUCH!!

But to conclude fellas, don't be worried about what people think of you or your car. Most importantly, YOU know why you own it and you shouldn't be the least bit embarrassed to show everyone you have sense when it comes to choosing safe and reliable cars! 'Nuff said.


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Rgds,
Aaron Greenberg
MB technician
Precision Motorcars, Cincinnati, Ohio
'67 250SE Cabriolet
'77 450SL
'80 300SD
'85 380SE
'86 420SEL
'89 420SEL
'93 300E 2.8
'74 Jensen Interceptor Mk.III
'81 DeLorean DMC12
'84 BMW 745i Turbo

Aaron,

Here, Here!!

Larry

I live in the Land of MB in Montvale NJ (MB headquarters) so everyone drives a MB and I mean everyone. The chances that you get a MB hater is rare or none. I'm real sorry to hear your story though. I'll definitely keep that in mind if and when I drive through your neck of the woods.

HI,
THis is a very interesting topic and id love to share my rather limited experiences driving my 1983 300D-T in the last 3 months. I decided to buy a benz after i had visited France in Febuary and drove one as a rented car and rode in a few as taxi cabs. I loved the cars understated beauty, class, and it seemed as they aged the more beautiful they became.
M-B are pricey cars, and they are imported.Which makes them a sort of rarity here. They are manufactured in a county which has a rather dark history and the M-B brand has a lot of snob-appeal in this country. But so what!!! Cadillac dosen't? BMW dosen't? Every single M-B that has ever been built is a work of art. Not everyone can appreciate that. As for keying a benz or stealing a hood orniment, this is jeliousy. Thieves assume that a benz owner is rich, so they break into them. As for senceless defacing a benz, i cant even explain, only that its a damn shame a person cant enjoy a fine automoblie without fearing that it would be trashed in their own driveway!!! Sick!!!
My benz is 17 yrs old, yet my co-workers love to take a ride in it, for most it was their first time in one! I paid $1500 for it. Yet, i get more looks and respect on the road than anyother car i have ever owned. Yeah, it is a major babe magnet! he he! My friends get in and love those circular air vents ( i have to smack their hands because they start playing with em), the power sunfoof,and they never touch the climate control because they can't figure it out anyways.
I have had nothing but positive from friends and co-workers about the car so far. Except for maybe my neighbors, when I wake them up in the mornings starting it and the people that ride my tail when i floor it.:O)

Thats my 0.02.

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I just bought my first MB, a '87 300TD. I've been somewhat suprised at the reaction that people have made to hearing about it. The perception is that I am now wealthy and self indulgent in luxury.

Friends who take the time to ask me about my decision come to understand some of the utility I get from my choice in vehicles:

1) I've reycled a whole automobile rather than had a new one manufactured. The value of that on the environment is tremedous.

2) It's a diesel which matches my long distance driving needs, providing economy, reliabilty, and longevity.

3) The combination of features I have in this wagon can not be purchased new today (in the usa for any price), 6cyl turbo diesel, third seat, all the options like leather, sun roof, built in phone.

4) Enjoying discovering the beauty of design and engineering as I maintain this car. As in the "Art of Motorcycle Maintenance".

5) Safety for myself and family.

It took me nearly two years of research and waiting to find this car. And I think that it will be well worth the wait.

I have teased some friends that visit by pulling out the 1987 prestige MB catalog for the 300 series and saying this is the car I just bought. "Oh wow, how can you take the depreciation on a new MB!" I can answer that question.


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-Mike
'87 300TD Turbo

quote:

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Originally posted by spinedoc:
Dont feel bad, my Benz has a big Swastika keyed onto its hood! I dont know what this was supposed to mean, but it is funny that I am actually of Latin descent.

Go figure.

---

Well, I don't think it's because you are latin, but during WWII, Mercedes was a big backer of the Nazi movement. And they contributed alot of their technology in to the war effort.