It is sad to see what you said for a shop who has worked on your car, I mean 2 hours seems like what I would charge. I was reading and following your post and posters have said that you needed a fuel pump relay or OVP relay, but you still elected to tow the car to a shop, probably for the inconvenience of not having it towed away from your complex or no time or place to work on it. Anyway, I am sure they have done some checking and testing so that is a reason for having 2 hours in to a repair We are techs who know our stuff. So we can't just go around and throw parts in client's cars and stop when the car finally starts or is repaired. I understand you are a DIY kind of person, from your post, so you should have told the shop that. I have several clients of mine who are DIY people from this site and a BMW site, so I know that they seem to understand and read up. But there are things they can't do and need them done. So we get to work on their cars here and there. Usually give them a labour charge discount. We tell them to bring their parts because they seem to think it's cheaper. So maybe you should let them know that. $75.00 per hour seems fair, the dealer gets $100.00 per hour.


Oil change, change filter, check and top all fluids, lubricate throttle cable and hinges, check and correct tire pressure, rotate when appicable, check and correct tire pressure for spare, add mercedes benz washer solvent and fluid, remove and inspect brake pads and inspect rotor thickness, inspect hoses and belts. (82,000 miles service) all that for $140.00. The dealer here in Jaxsonville charges $169.00. I get $140.00 for it also.

It just seems that customers think that some of these guys at these shops should just give **** away. We just can't do that. We run a business. We charge what should be charged. We charge a certain amount of labor per hour. It's posted somewhere in the shop. So why do they bring their cars into these Mercedes Benz specialty shops and then make them look like jerks. Why not tow the car to your complex, then rent a car for 2 days so you can commute to work and back, and then on Sat. morning you can take your 6 yr old son outside with you and replace all the parts that you want. In your case you would have installed a relay and still had trouble with your connector. So technically you would still have the probem. That is why when the car breaks down the shop fixes them. When my grass needs cutting my lawn guy cuts it, and when the the computer breaks, it goes to the computer store. WE don't fix everything just cars. That is why we charge and get our labour charges.

Maybe you should do this: Sell the benz, get a Honda, they dont break down, and when they do you can go to PEP BOYS and work on it with your 6 year old son outside your home.

I respect everybody and for whatever they do, but to talk crap about a fellow brother in the business, I have to step in. Other shop owners and I always post and help on tech posts, just dont trash us.


Jerry