Car's value For Main Dealer Service History Vs Independent Specialist

[Tuercas viejas]

A full MB service history will be a good selling point, unfortunately it’ll be for the next vendor not for you

I would suggest that any service history showing regular competent maintenance is a good selling plus point, whether by a franchise dealer or Independent specialist when documentation is presented to a potential cash buyer to bolster a sale .

If on the other hand you are PX'ing it for a new ride with dealer, I don't think it adds up to much of a hill of beans , since in most cases it will get wholesaled at a dealer auction and you are getting "book" for it as a trade, in any case.

Always take into account that all these Euro luxury brands depreciate by about 50% to 60% of MSRP over 5 years.
Since a majority of original buyers trade up or "lease turn in" cars within that period they have absorbed the largest portion of the depreciation, and dealer lots are full of similar low mileage platforms for sale at competitive pricing . Add that to dealer incentives, teaser rates, sales on financing rates, even free servicing in some cases, and a warranty for a fixed period. Then its an uphill battle to sell a perceived overpriced private sale, "If " you try to compete head to head with dealers that is!--Unless that is you are prepared to negotiate a lower asking price, a much lower bottom book asking price with a savvy private buyer .
Tuercas viejas .

 

[Headhurts]

If I am buying a car then I would look for main dealer service history, servicing by an independent is great if you know the company otherwise it’s just another unfamiliar name plus it’s all digital now so no book to peruse.

It annoys me that there are people who believe main dealer technicians are idiots who can barely hold a spanner whereas independents are god like creatures to be revered.

The truth is somewhere in the middle, there are some decent technicians in main dealerships who just don’t want to start their own business.

I was thinking of going independent this year but decided to stay main dealership with a service contract, my car is an E350 so the V6 Diesel engine, the service contract for 3 years is £35 a month which is awesome value to my mind.

My next service is an A service but with a gearbox service included and covered by the service agreement.

Using a main dealership is also very convenient particularly when you live in a rural area with poor bus service.

The main dealership will supply a loan car, or pre COVID I could wait and enjoy their free drinks, biscuits and look at the cars I cannot afford, or they will collect and deliver.

You need to go with what works for you.

If my car should develop any major issues at that point I may decide to use the services of an independet.

There are some great independent specialists and some give great advice on the forums and I greatly appreciate their input, sadly none are near me.

Robin

 

[W1ghty]

If I am buying a car then I would look for main dealer service history, servicing by an independent is great if you know the company otherwise it’s just another unfamiliar name plus it’s all digital now so no book to peruse.

It annoys me that there are people who believe main dealer technicians are idiots who can barely hold a spanner whereas independents are god like creatures to be revered.

The truth is somewhere in the middle, there are some decent technicians in main dealerships who just don’t want to start their own business.

I was thinking of going independent this year but decided to stay main dealership with a service contract, my car is an E350 so the V6 Diesel engine, the service contract for 3 years is £35 a month which is awesome value to my mind.

My next service is an A service but with a gearbox service included and covered by the service agreement.

Using a main dealership is also very convenient particularly when you live in a rural area with poor bus service.

The main dealership will supply a loan car, or pre COVID I could wait and enjoy their free drinks, biscuits and look at the cars I cannot afford, or they will collect and deliver.

You need to go with what works for you.

If my car should develop any major issues at that point I may decide to use the services of an independet.

There are some great independent specialists and some give great advice on the forums and I greatly appreciate their input, sadly none are near me.

Robin

If you ever need an Indy , you have Alex Cow in Stowmarket an hour away ?

 

[markjay]

I think that the term 'apprentice' is often used (incorrectly) in reference to fully-qualified but junior techs. Apprentices will not be allowed to work on a customer's car unsupervised.

When my car was serviced at MB Brooklands last December, the video they sent over was narrated by the tech who worked on the car, but you could hear in the background a second voice telling the tech what to look at. This was a classic case of a trainee tech working under the supervision of a senior tech.

A large garage (dealer or otherwise) is likely to have quite a few techs and some of them will be junior.

A small garage will typically have just one or two people working alongside the proprietor, and they are likely to be reasonably experienced techs with versatile skills or they won't be of much value in a small place.

So yes, it is likely servicing at the dealer will be done by either junior staff (though not apprentices), or by a trainee working under supervision.

 

[markjay]

When looking at service history, it is nigh-on impossible to assess the quality of care the car received, simply judging from the name of the garage (unless you had experience with that particular dealer on independent, obviously). A random stamp saying 'Mercedes and BMW specialists' etc tells you nothing about the skills of the staff that serviced the car.

However, a fully-stamped book with dealer serviced, tells you something about the previous owner. It means that they simply did what the book says. And I know of quite a few people who simply take their car to the dealer every year (be it MB, Audi, BMW, VW, etc), because 'that's what you do'. They are nor car enthusiasts.

Of course FSH from any of the specialist I know of (including all of this fgara's sponsors) is a good indicator regarding the previous owner's attitude, but realistically, unless buying from a fellow forum member, I am unlikely to find such a car by simply looking at Autotrader etc.

The worry when seeing inconsistent stamps, or stamps from unknown garages, is that the previous owner may have tried to run the car on a very tight budget, and it makes you wonder what other corners they may have cut.

To me, seeing a car with full dealer history and 4 identical premium brand tyres, tells me a lot about the previous owner. I wouldn't rule-out a car without full dealer history, and I have myself used specialists on my cars, but as said full dealer history gives the car an extra point when viewing.

Again, it is no guarantee that the car was properly serviced, but at least it gives me peace of mind that the previous owner wasn't looking to run it on a shoestring budget.

 

[Headhurts]

If you ever need an Indy , you have Alex Cow in Stowmarket an hour away ?

I have heard good things about Alex Crow, I’m happy with being serviced by main dealership and I’m hoping that I don’t need his services though for any other issues that could crop up