Disappointing service at MB Croydon

[Dave.tam]

I don't really know how they do it, but the guy said he needed to order the disc and then he can update them. But this is the same guy who told me the maps didn't need updating in the first place, as he had switched the setting from dynamic route to fastest route, and that will sort out my issue lol

 

[alzieboy]

Being as my car was outside the 3 year update scheme I paid to have the latest map updates done on the comand ntg 4.5 £105 . Was carried out during the service visit ( 4th Year )

 

[Dave.tam]

Being as my car was outside the 3 year update scheme I paid to have the latest map updates done on the comand ntg 4.5 £105 . Was carried out during the service visit ( 4th Year )

Did it make much difference?

Just wondering if I'll have more 3D buildings in the later updates. When I drive in Lambeth, or or any other inner London borough, all buildings are 3D, but when I drive out of Lambeth and into Bromley or Croydon, there are no 3D buildings! Little things, but I live in the borough of Bromley, so the sat nav looks boring, not much happening on the screen lol

 

[brucemillar]

I think that this entire map/update thing is a massive con foisted upon us by the dealer network. It should not be that in 2017 with the Internet of Things (IOT) all around us and people in space able to upload and download files in nano seconds, doctors able to share life saving data in the blink of an eye, but Mercedes Benz need your car off the road in a Garage for half a day using USB sticks, blank discs, wichcraft etc, jut to upgrade a map.

It's a map, it's software. Nothing more. nothing less. I can update my iphone in minutes including every app on it. Sat in my arm chair, coffee in hand, job done. This includes updating the MAPS and NAVIGATION.

Somebody is taking the proverbial here?

I wanted to upgrade the wife's BMW X5 Navigation.

1) Go onto Google. Turn on kettle.
2) Download firmware to disc = 3 minutes - kettle now boiling.
3) Insert Disc in Car nav unit. Start drinking tea, maybe have a biscuit.
4) Nav bongs and says update complete. = 6 minutes
5) Tell anybody who wants this doing "Ohhh this will be complex and take days and cost fortunes.


TomTom needs update.

1) Plug Tom Tom into USB port on PC
2) Press 'START"
3) Enjoy update on TomTom


MERCEDES NEEDS UPDATING.

1) Book day off work - maybe two days to allow for any **** ups.
2) Drive to Mercedes dealer, stopping at cash point on the way to drain my family fortune.
3) Wait hours on Mercedes listening to endless reasons why this is difficult to do.
4) Go home minus the update and return to (1) start again.

 

[Dave.tam]

It does seem very odd. Maybe Alfie or Richard can explain why it takes MB so long to perform such a seemingly simple task?

Maybe there's a logical answer out there somewhere.....

 

[brucemillar]

Maybe there's a logical answer out there somewhere.....

Cash!!!

Simple as. There is absolutely no reason (believe me) other than this being a deliberate act by Mercedes.

We would not tolerate it on our PC at home, or in our work place. MB do it, as they have the market, so can do it and they can make a shed load of money whilst doing so.

 

[Dave.tam]

Cash!!!

Simple as. There is absolutely no reason (believe me) other than this being a deliberate act by Mercedes.

We would not tolerate it on our PC at home, or in our work place. MB do it, as they have the market, so can do it and they can make a shed load of money whilst doing so.

The cynic in me agrees, but it doesn't actually add up if you think about it. The updates take up to 5hrs on a ramp, and they only charge around the £100 mark. I'm certain they could earn much more money in 5hrs using the ramp for regular work?

 

[brucemillar]

I have never, ever, ever known any software download that requires the use of a ramp ;^)

As for the 5 hours? That has to be dial up or parcelforce. BMW = 6 minutes. TomTom = 5 minutes. Garmin 5 minutes. Mercedes 5 hours!!!!

Hell you could build a car in less than that time.

Why on earth do they need the car up on a ramp for five hours to push a button, stick a disc or a stick in?

 

[bluestreak]

They use this map update to get customers into their workshop. When they finally do get a customer they overjoyed so much that they forget about the bait.

 

[whitenemesis]

Some models can take a couple of hours to update and during that time the car has to be placed on a maintenance charger to keep the battery level up. This can tie up a bay in the workshop..

 

[Dave.tam]

I have never, ever, ever known any software download that requires the use of a ramp ;^)

As for the 5 hours? That has to be dial up or parcelforce. BMW = 6 minutes. TomTom = 5 minutes. Garmin 5 minutes. Mercedes 5 hours!!!!

Hell you could build a car in less than that time.

Why on earth do they need the car up on a ramp for five hours to push a button, stick a disc or a stick in?

Yeah I'm not sure why they would need a ramp. Pretty sure it was someone on here that said they do.

Some models can take a couple of hours to update and during that time the car has to be placed on a maintenance charger to keep the battery level up. This can tie up a bay in the workshop..

maybe that was it, maybe I was told bay, and over time I've turned it into a ramp?

 

[brucemillar]

Some models can take a couple of hours to update and during that time the car has to be placed on a maintenance charger to keep the battery level up. This can tie up a bay in the workshop..

Wow. So no 13 amp plug sockets or extension leads here then. Nope, they smell money and I smell BS from MB. ;^)

"Okay Lewis, we need to flash the software. Lets the get the car in the garage. up on a ramp for five hours, connected to maintenance charger (they only work when the car is in the garage)."

Why have BMW, Toyota etc not caught on to this ultra modern way of updating software?

No, the physical file would have to be bigger than than the National Library Database to download in 5 hours. Somebody is having a laugh.

I lay inside a mahoosive imaging scanner for 3 hours (Harley street). By the time I was getting dressed, still didnt have my shoes on, my consultant was calling me from Sevenoaks, giving me my results. He looked at the files online as they were uploading. If I were a Merc, I would be dead ;^)

 

[Dave.tam]

Bruce, do you think they can actually do it a lot quicker, but just choose not to, or do you think that it does actually take that long for some strange reason, and that they've engineered the time delay in for financial gain?

Just curious to know your thoughts

 

[bluestreak]

very basic DVD drive can spend a while copying files at 1Mb/s. May be that's where bean counters got to?

 

[StephenSJason]

Honestly, I haven't read the whole thread but I use Lookers MB of Gatwick and they are always really good to me. They don't up-sell things that don't need replacing, they're just honest about the condition of the car and do what they're required to do.

They do of course charge MB prices, being an MB dealer and all but for a main dealer, I'm happy. For anything other than servicing I use Godstone Mercedes, in Godstone, Surrey. They are an independent MB specialist but they know everything about the cars and prices are very reasonable.

 

[brucemillar]

Bruce, do you think they can actually do it a lot quicker, but just choose not to, or do you think that it does actually take that long for some strange reason, and that they've engineered the time delay in for financial gain? Just curious to know your thoughts

Dave

I do not know why? But I can't accept it does or that it needs to?

I do this stuff for a living. We flash full production arrays in minutes with sizeable upgrades.

This week I did my wife's X5. The download was minutes. The disc burn less and the nav upgrade 6 minutes, including a reboot. That was full European maps with 7 digit postcode and speed cameras.

Sent from my iPhone using sausage fingers.

 

[Dave.tam]

It's not my area of expertise, but logically it makes no sense to me for it to take so long.

I was wondering if they quote up to 5hrs for other reasons. Maybe because they don't always start it straight away, or they try and get it done around other jobs? Maybe they've told people before they'd do it while they waited, and for whatever reason it took an hour or so. Maybe they then recieved complaints, and to prevent further issues around waiting for it, they tell people it's 5hrs and they'd have to leave it with them for half a day? I don't know, I feel I'm making excuses for them lol

 

[Headhurts]

My dealership normally requires the car for a half day to be on safe side, apparently the downloads are carried out from the servers in Germany.

I guess if a disc is put in then that would be quicker.

I can only go by the info from the reception guys/girls who seem to know what they are doing and no upsell is ever tried.

Both my last 2 cars were under warranty so updates were free.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[brucemillar]

My dealership normally requires the car for a half day to be on safe side, apparently the downloads are carried out from the servers in Germany.

I guess if a disc is put in then that would be quicker.

I can only go by the info from the reception guys/girls who seem to know what they are doing and no upsell is ever tried.

Both my last 2 cars were under warranty so updates were free.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Would the dealer not simply download a mater copy of Vxx to disc or stick then flash that for every request?

Surely they do not have to call home to Germany for every request, then upload it every time?

There would have to be a smarter way of doing things than this.

What I find strange is that they do not want piracy but yet they actively encourage it by providing a third world service.

 

[Deleted member 65149]

This is what Alfie (one of our forum sponsors) wrote back in 2015:

The firmware for the comand can only be done via a genuine Mercedes Xentry/STAR system online to Germany. The disks are not available to buy and the way it works is the car goes onto Xentry which interrogates the comand and then refers back to Germany which replies with the precise disk number to be loaded. This disk number doesnt always correspond to the chassis type either as ive seen A166 disks asked for on SLK's for instance. Once Xentry requests the disk it can be loaded and the firmware then updated. This can take 30 minutes or it can take an hour or more. All depends on what other components are on the MOST bus. For instance if you have Comand, DAB, HK, TV, Media interface then each one of these control units will be updated one after the other.

My understanding of this is that when you get the maps updated at the maindealer, they also do the COMAND firmware. So the whole process could easily take a very long time.