Car Superstore Service 2 months early or wait and get MDS?

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DanRom62

New Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2021
Messages
29
Location
Liverpool
Car
E220d SE Premium Estate
First ever post...I'm hoping to pick up a March 2017 E Class 220d Premium with 17k miles this Friday and the next service is due in March. The car superstore dealer is offering a full service for £229 prior to collection. In the past 12 months the car has done less than 1000 miles and it has had 3 MD services in line with the 12 month requirement as the mileage is so low.

For what is now a 4 year old car and something which if all goes well I aim to keep for probably the next 6 years, is it worth getting the lower priced service from a non-specialist (service after all is mainly oil and filter and 'checking' stuff); waiting until March and then get it serviced and then should I use MBMD or local MB specialist which will probably be cheaper and easier to develop a relationship with. Car will be based near Liverpool so will be looking for a NW based specialist.

Thanks
 
Is it Service A or B due?

A 4 year old car would also qualify for a discount if serving at MB dealership and you would get 1 year free MB Road Side Assistance.

I personally would take it to MB for service but shop around for best price.
 
The year 4 service is usually a big one and includes:

Service B (inc Engine oil and filter change, and Pollen filter change)
Brake fluid change
Air filter change
Fuel filter change

So if the dealer is going to do all that, and update the Digital Service Book online, for £229.00, then this is a very good deal.

However, if all they will do is an engine oil and filter change, then it's not a good offer.
 
Is it Service A or B due?

A 4 year old car would also qualify for a discount if serving at MB dealership and you would get 1 year free MB Road Side Assistance.

I personally would take it to MB for service but shop around for best price.
Not sure. It's had 3 no. services at c. 5,000, 10,000 and 16,000 miles (last service 06.03.2020). Each service was at the 12 month annual service timing.

Will probably find a decent specialist in north side of Liverpool, from this list unless anybody can recommend anybody else? mercedes Specialist in Liverpool | Approved Garages
 
I would worry they won’t use any of the correct spec fluids . I’ll add my vote to specialist or MB
 
Have a read here:

This will tell you what your car is due:

Here you can get an online quote (note that the cost will depend on the dealer you choose - not all MB dealers charge the same):

This will tell you how much the service will cost if done under the MB Service Care Plan:
(Looks like under the plan you will be paying a flat rate of £420.00 per service)

As said, year 4 service is a big one, your best bet is either MB Service Care Plan, or a good specialist.
 
I would consider a MB service contract for two years if it's a B service plus the extra bits ,then the service contract for year 5 will include the gearbox service which will be an extra cost at an Indi £250 ish, service contract includes everything.
 
I would consider a MB service contract for two years if it's a B service plus the extra bits ,then the service contract for year 5 will include the gearbox service which will be an extra cost at an Indi £250 ish, service contract includes everything.
Thanks, worth knowing. I'm waiting for a reply from the dealer to confirm what is in the service
 
You will need a Service B + dust filter + brake fluid. The air and fuel filters should have been replaced at the last service A (46.5k miles or 3 years).

An ATF on a 213 E-Class with a 725 gearbox (9-Speed) is due every 77.5k miles (no time restrictions) so won't be required for a while.
 
I'd be stunned if it's anything other than an oil & filter change, and so on that basis I would say it's likely to be very expensive for what you get. I would go so far as to say that you'd be better off skipping a year than letting the superstore do it!

To be clear, I'm not suggested that they would do a bad job, or that they wouldn't lift the bonnet, it's just very very unlikely that they would actually perform the service actions required according to the manufacturer's service schedule.

As suggested, a 2-year service contract is likely to be the best value considering that year 4 & 5 services are likely to be the most expensive.
 
As above, there is no way the car will get the B service plus additional jobs due for £229.
The dealer is only going to change the oil and filter and certainly won't be done at any Mercedes dealer.
Also, the digital service book wouldn't be updated either if its outside the dealership or indy.
 
You will need a Service B + dust filter + brake fluid. The air and fuel filters should have been replaced at the last service A (46.5k miles or 3 years).

An ATF on a 213 E-Class with a 725 gearbox (9-Speed) is due every 77.5k miles (no time restrictions) so won't be required for a while.

You are correct:

Every 15,500 miles / 2 years - Replace dust filter

Every 2 years - Replace brake fluid

Every 46,500 miles / 3 years - Replace air filter element

Every 46,500 miles / 3 years - Replace fuel filter

Every 77,500 miles - Automatic transmission: Change oil and oil filter

Every 77,500 miles/ 5 years - Evacuate and refill A/C refrigerant
 
I bought my E350 from a well known superstore when it was 2 years old. They serviced it before I bought the car, but didn't charge me for the service (other than presumably being factored in to the price of the car). It became apparent later that it was a limited service however, probably not much more than an oil and filter and a quick look over. For example, the Adblue warning came up within a few months, so that hadn't been topped up. Never had to top it up since, as this always seems to be done by the Mercedes dealer. I don't have any great complaint, I got a good deal on the car, it had a low mileage and I didn't have any real concern, but it wasn't a full manufacturer service. They did however update the MB database, so the warranty was maintained.
 
I bought my E350 from a well known superstore when it was 2 years old. They serviced it before I bought the car, but didn't charge me for the service (other than presumably being factored in to the price of the car). It became apparent later that it was a limited service however, probably not much more than an oil and filter and a quick look over. For example, the Adblue warning came up within a few months, so that hadn't been topped up. Never had to top it up since, as this always seems to be done by the Mercedes dealer. I don't have any great complaint, I got a good deal on the car, it had a low mileage and I didn't have any real concern, but it wasn't a full manufacturer service. They did however update the MB database, so the warranty was maintained.

They are not supposed to update the MB Digital Service Book unless they carried-out the full proper service as indicated by the Electronic Service Sheet for your car...
 
You will need a Service B + dust filter + brake fluid. The air and fuel filters should have been replaced at the last service A (46.5k miles or 3 years).

An ATF on a 213 E-Class with a 725 gearbox (9-Speed) is due every 77.5k miles (no time restrictions) so won't be required for a while.
So if it's only done 1,000 miles since last year and only 17,000 in total, will it need a service ?
Shouldn't the brake fluid have been changed at 2 years, the pollen filter filter etc will be like new and the gearbox will not need doing.
If you are going to keep it till its around 10 years old I would save the £229 and arrange to get an indie to start servicing it next year.
 
If you are going to keep it till its around 10 years old I would save the £229 and arrange to get an indie to start servicing it next year.

The dealer I bought mine from at 5 years old insisted MB's were still on 2 year service intervals which I later found to be wrong. They still wouldn't do the service so I did it myself and have continued to do so every 4-5000 miles. It's over 11 years old now and the lack of a dealer service history is diminishing in importance as it gets older. I'm likely to keep it at least until it's 15 years old providing there are no major cost failures. If there are any failures it won't be due to lack of being serviced with quality MB approved oil.

Like many I now have to decide whether to do the annual service after less than 2000 miles in the last year. For £20 I probably will as I already have the MB oil bought in bulk and the filter. My bike has only done 1000 miles in the last year but that will get serviced too at a cost of less than £10 for the oil and filter.
 
I agree, mine is now 6 years old and it has full service history from new up to 5 years, I also do all my own servicing, quality Fuchs Flex oil and decent filters, I only do 4000 miles if I’m lucky. I will keep this car for the next 5 years as it is immaculate and as new with 43000 miles. Once it’s gets this old MB service history is less important, just look after it and keep all receipts in a wallet when you come to sell.
My bike is serviced every 2 years and does about 1500 miles a year, only when it’s dry and warm.
Both vehicles are pampered and well warmed up before used with spirit.
 
My bike is serviced every 2 years and does about 1500 miles a year, only when it’s dry and warm.

I would do exactly the same if my bike wasn't used in the winter. There is nothing wrong at all with pushing out a service interval to 2 years if mileage is low and the oil gets properly warmed up at every use.
 
So if it's only done 1,000 miles since last year and only 17,000 in total, will it need a service ?
Shouldn't the brake fluid have been changed at 2 years, the pollen filter filter etc will be like new and the gearbox will not need doing.
If you are going to keep it till its around 10 years old I would save the £229 and arrange to get an indie to start servicing it next year.

If you want to follow manufacturers service schedule then yes, it needs to be serviced every year even if the car doesn't turn the wheel and is dry stored in an air conditioned garage.
 

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