I just picked up some new spark plugs for my 1989 300E. I got them from my mercedes mechanic who I have known for several years and who has thus far proved trustworthy and professional.

I have always used Bosch Super plugs, but he sold me Beru Ultra plugs this time.

Does anyone have any experience with this brand? I have never heard of them and am reluctant to use them. (I'm also wondering if my mechanic got a good deal on a bulk shipment of these...;)). They are made in France. He also mentioned that many of the Bosch plugs are now made in India and lack their original quality.

Opinions?

I don't know about bosch losing their quality or not, but I have heard of Beru. Some people on this forum have said that the Beru wires are better than the bosch wires. I don't think there should be a problem with beru. Often if you go to two different Mercedes dealers you will get oil filters made by two different companies. As long as you trust your mechanic, and feel he is an MB enthusiast he probably won't be selling you junk. My bet is there won't be any difference in quality or longevity.

Beru spark plugs were a joke 25-30 years ago. But now almost all new MB's use Beru plugs. I use Beru ultra-x in my racecar instead of Bosch. Like your technician said the regular Bosch plugs(ie; H9DC) are made in India OR China. The better Bosch plugs(ie; H9DC0) are still made in Germany.

M.B. Doc:

I just changed all 6 of my spark plugs on my 300E, with Bosch H9DC. The previous plugs were the Bosch H9DCO that I put in last summer. The H9DC's say their made in Germany--not India. So whats the difference anyway between H9DC and H9DCO?? Will the H9DC plugs that I put in harm my engine in anyway??? I've heard that these H9DC were made in India, but mine had the words engraved on the plug "Made in Germany".

If you really want good Bosch plugs and dont mind spending the extra money try the Bosch Platinum +4. Read all about them at the link below where you can also look them up by year,make,and model and then come back to fast lane and buy them here and help support the site.
http://www.boschusa.com/Consumer/Automotive/SparkPlugs/PlatinumPlus4/

Use the Berus. They are a quality part and will last as well as the Bosch. The Bosch plugs that I've seen that are made in India are W7DC's. I always hold the set of plugs up to the light with the electrodes facing in the same direction and compare the gaps and just generally inspect them for differences. The first time I did this with a set of the Indian plugs, I was shocked. I hadn't even heard of such an item. Every plug looked different. Different gap, insulator length, center electrode exposure, overlap of the ground electrode, angles of the welded parts. Real dung! I hope that the word gets out to Bosch and they keep those parts in India. I'll bet that the boys back in the "Fatherland" won't put that junk in an expensive German engine without considering the consequences.

Thanks for all the input. It's nice to confirm that my mechanic knows what he is talking about. ;)

I did some surfing also since posting. The Beru website http://www.beru.com is pretty slick, and as you said, M.B. DOC, they are now being used in new MBs as well.

P.S. I just changed the oil and put the Beru Ultra (not the Ultra-X, which have the 4 electrode design, similar to the Bosch Platinum +4) plugs in my 300E. Drove it 40 KM and it's running as smooth as silk...

Sorry, but I just had to post this. This is the address of the Beru rep in "Canada" taken from their website...

Canada

Country Representative

BERU Corporation
Frau Sue Vail
770 Pasquinelli Drive
Suite 426
Westmont, Illinois 60559-1200
Canada
Phone: (630)455-99 63
Fax: (630)455-99 65
svberu@aol.com

Hmmm...maybe I should be worried about their plugs after all...;)

Everything your mechanic said was true. Beru plugs are somewhat hard to get compared to Bosch which, sells almost everywhere. The Bosch plugs are made in India now. The Beru should equal or even be better than the Bosch. He probably switched due to the change from where it is made. You did not get taken advantage of. BTW, how much did you pay for the plugs? Were they expensive?

I paid $3 CDN each. About the same as I used to pay for my Bosch plugs.

Beru ultra-x aren't like Bosch Platinum +4 at all other than look. The Beru's are copper core & use 4 electrodes. The 230Kompressor & 230SLK come only with this style of plug from Beru.
If you got a set of Bosch that end in DC not DC0 from Germany then they are OLD stock & still good ones!
The (0) at the end means a WIDER heat range! & therefore costs more!