NYT has a good article on crummy MB workmanship and other issues sinking the star...

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/10/automobiles/autospecial/10mercedes.html

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71 220D 169K wrecked
83 240D 118K sweet 4 speed
91 350SDL (one of the 60% good engines) 156K
84 300d (loaner to my sister) 189K
79 300SD (partswagen)
86 420SEL partswagen
70 220d (partswagen)
68 280s GASSER!!! under construction now
85 300sd 310K miles winter beater car retired
93 300d 2.5 turbo 168K wife's car
83 280SL euro 5 speed 155K
69 250S newest project 54K

The article is available in a few other places. The goal is to surpass Lexus in the "quality" department, but without a specific timetable for that. The pressure of being the head of Mercedes and the heir apparent to chair Daimler-Chrysler is going to be intense with the rise in the euro versus the dollar and downturn in German car sales, not just Mercedes, in the US.

Electronic bell & whistles,who is asking for them????

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Can someone post the article here so we don't have to sign up to the NYT? TIA

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

The consumer?

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01 Ford Excursion Powerstroke
99 E300 Turbodiesel
91 Vette with 383 motor
05 Polaris Sportsman 800 EFI
06 Polaris Sportsman 500 EFI
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Red
03 SeaDoo GTX SC Yellow
04 Tailgator 21 ft Toy Hauler
11 Harley Davidson 883 SuperLow

Yeah, unfortunately...Lexus offered the bells and whistles in their luxury cars, and M-B needed to compete with that. The result, IMHO, is the lowering of quality that we're seeing today.

Enough people are asking for the bells and whistles that I don't think that M-B will abandon them...M-B will likely "just" make an effort to improve the quality of the bells and whistles they've got now.

I sure hope they turn things around...I got a look at a W211 last week at an auto show, and I wasn't so much disappointed as depressed.

As they say, they don't build 'em like they used to...

Signon with userid of 'userid' and password of 'password'

I don't believe anything I read in the NY Times or the Washington Post.

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Regards

Warren

Currently 1965 220Sb, 2002 FORD Crown Vic Police Interceptor

Had 1965 220SEb, 1967 230S, 280SE 4.5, 300SE (W126), 420SEL

ENTER > = (HP RPN)

Not part of the in-crowd since 1952.

Mercedes-Benz (most North Americans nowadays forget the - and the B word which follows the first) did much better for itself when engineers made the crucial decisions on development. That was over a decade ago and the squarehead (Schrempp) currently at the helm isn't worth his bank balance.

Today we have Mercedes-Benz the brand turned into a whore only a young tart who hates her father could better. We have a billion models trying to fill every damn hole which may or may not exist in a model lineup. Now we have the useless and resource-draining marketing department calling some sedans and hatchbacks (CLS & C230K) coupes!? How dumb are people these days (very), when these vehicles actually find driveways?????

Listening to consumers who don't know what they want from one day to the next is a recipe for disaster. The single-mindedness of over-engineered excellence attracted people to these cars. It also built up a much deserved reputation for durability and reliability. Today many old consumers feel ignored, and an earned reputation is hanging in shambles.

-Mike McKinney

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1989 300CE - 269,000 km
1994 SL600 - 59,000 km

Mercedes keeps having record sales practices! That is the bottom line. I do believe quality has slipped but it is already being addressed. My '04 SL500 is the most dependable mercedes I have owned yet. It is also my 6th.

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The only thing we have to fear is fear itself!

On a Mission for Mercedes: Burnishing a Faded Star


Published: January 10, 2005


STUTTGART, Germany - When DaimlerChrysler asked Eckhard Cordes to take the helm of Mercedes-Benz last summer, he knew it was less a promotion than an anointment. Not only is Mercedes the flagship of this trans-Atlantic company, but it also has long been the crown jewel of German industry.

Still, these days Mercedes stands for something else. Deteriorating profits and mounting quality problems have made Mercedes a metaphor for Germany's struggle to maintain its place in the global economy.

"I was surprised that the outside world obviously sees this job to be in a different league," Mr. Cordes said in a recent interview at Mercedes's utilitarian headquarters here. "I was totally astonished."

Once the reliable profit engine of DaimlerChrysler, Mercedes has become the company's problem child - standing in the corner normally occupied by the resurgent Chrysler.

The problems start with the weak dollar, which makes all German luxury cars less competitive in the United States. But Mercedes is battling its own demons, chief among them a recognition that its once-matchless reputation for quality has slipped in recent years.

Now, as the world's gearheads and car fans gather for the annual Detroit auto show, Mr. Cordes has broken his silence to talk about what ails Mercedes, and how it can be cured. Mr. Cordes, a brisk, blunt-speaking 54-year-old, has done turnarounds before. He took DaimlerChrysler's truck division from $360 million in operating losses in 2002 to a profit of more than $1 billion the next year. But his tool of choice - deep cost-cutting - may be less effective at Mercedes, where the workers just signed a new contract.

Analysts say production costs at Mercedes are still too high, especially in this unforgiving economic climate. The company has too many white-collar employees. Its assembly lines are too complex, and it makes too many of its own components.

Given the status of Mercedes in Germany, Mr. Cordes must tread carefully. The man first chosen for his job, Wolfgang Bernhard, was abruptly discarded last April after his blustery statements about the need for a drastic overhaul provoked an outcry on the factory floor. Mr. Cordes, who is viewed as a prime candidate to replace DaimlerChrysler's chief executive, Jürgen Schrempp, cannot afford a misstep.

As he prepared to present a redesigned sport utility vehicle, as well as other new models, in Detroit, however, Mr. Cordes insisted he would do whatever was necessary to restore Mercedes-Benz to its pole position among the world's luxury cars.

"Once you detect a problem, tackle it, and get it out of the way," he said. "From time to time, if you need to be brutal, be brutal."

There is little Mercedes can do about exchange rates, of course. But unlike other German manufacturers like Porsche or BMW, which have insulated themselves from exchange-rate swings through aggressive currency hedging, Mercedes is dangerously exposed, analysts say, because most of its hedges are expiring.

Mr. Cordes would not discuss DaimlerChrysler's exposure, but he acknowledged that the stronger euro was a heavy burden for Mercedes in North America, where it generates a quarter of its sales.

"Coming from a world where one euro is 0.9 dollars to a world where one euro is 1.35 dollars, that is obviously quite something," he said. "That is a huge challenge for us, which we do have to tackle."

The weak dollar has already taken a toll on Mercedes's margins, which have eroded from an average of 6.4 percent between 1999 and 2003, to 2.5 percent in the third quarter of 2004. Sales of Mercedes in the United States have fallen steadily in euro terms since 2002, when they peaked at 11.2 billion euros. This year, American sales may drop to 8.2 billion euros, according to a recent projection by Goldman Sachs.

One thing Mercedes can do is expand production at its single American assembly plant, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Because the plant's fixed costs are in dollars, it acts as a natural hedge against the effects of a rising euro and a falling dollar.

username: asspants0
password: streetmeat

It is about time. I knew the older MB's were made better than the new ones. Now confirmed. Let's hope he holds true to his word.

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The internet is over-rated.

I couldn't agree more with this post. It is not rumor, it is truth. Just ask around.

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1987 300SDL (324000)

1986 Porsche 951 (944 Turbo) (166000)

1978 Porsche 924 (99000)

1996 Nissan Pathfinder R50 (201000)

it's not hard for a car to be dependable, when it's less than a year old. I think this judgement should be reserved for the 3-5 year ownership mark....

Cheers,
Gerry

Seems Chrysler definitely got the longer end of the stick in the merger, my Dakota pickup has been 100% reliable despite plenty of truck-haulin' abuse....whereas my SL of the same age is breeding electrical gremlins like rabbits...of couse I still do much better with the ladies in the SL

At the LA auto show this week the Dodge booth (right next to MB) had much more buzz and excitement - although I think I'd still take a McLaren over a Viper...now if MB just dropped a HEMI into some of their sedans the marketing buzz behind that would be incredible

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1999 SL500