Ex Mercedes Management cars

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Run-in period? Where have you been for the last 20 years? :D
Reading the owner's handbook ....

Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observing
the following precautions is recommended:
●For the first 300 km (186 miles):
Avoid sudden stops.
●For the first 1000 km (621 miles):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for
extended periods.

Similar instructions in the various MB handbooks I've had
 
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Reading the owner's handbook ....

Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observing
the following precautions is recommended:
●For the first 300 km (186 miles):
Avoid sudden stops.
●For the first 1000 km (621 miles):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for
extended periods.
The manufacturer thereby gives you permission to drive at ‘extremely high speeds’ once you have practiced for 1000Km ?

There officer , it says so in the handbook !
 
Reading the owner's handbook ....

Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observing
the following precautions is recommended:
●For the first 300 km (186 miles):
Avoid sudden stops.
●For the first 1000 km (621 miles):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for
extended periods.

Similar instructions in the various MB handbooks I've had
That's crazy! If a child runs out in front of your new Lexus, just keep going!
 
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Reading the owner's handbook ....

Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observing
the following precautions is recommended:
●For the first 300 km (186 miles):
Avoid sudden stops.
●For the first 1000 km (621 miles):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for
extended periods.

Similar instructions in the various MB handbooks I've had

Is there any reason to think that an company executive getting a new company car every year (or two) will actually adhere to this? (Or even read the manual)?

With an estimated 50% of all new car registrations being business users, and 80% of all new cars bought on finance for a set number if years, how many used cars on the road had their first 300km and 1000km driven by the book?

If I were to buy a new car, I would certainly drive it just like the manual says. But when buying a used car... it's a very long shot trying to guess which car was driven in this way when new. So the practical implication is that this is something that can just be ignored when buying a second hand car from a dealer or a trader, because there's no way to know.
 
Is there any reason to think that an company executive getting a new company car every year (or two) will actually adhere to this? (Or even read the manual)?

With an estimated 50% of all new car registrations being business users, and 80% of all new cars bought on finance for a set number if years, how many used cars on the road had their first 300km and 1000km driven by the book?

If I were to buy a new car, I would certainly drive it just like the manual says. But when buying a used car... it's a very long shot trying to guess which car was driven in this way when new. So the practical implication is that this is something that can just be ignored when buying a second hand car from a dealer or a trader, because there's no way to know.
Well , up to recently , you could find out who the previous owner was and contact them to ask about the car . Alas the V5 no longer gives the name and address of the previous keeper , although you will sometimes find other documents ( service invoices etc ) in the car ; and of course if you are buying privately you can find this out first hand . When viewing , nice cars tend to come from nice people with nice homes etc .

On a couple of occasions I have known dealers to volunteer this information , particularly where the history was good / careful elderly owner ; the sort of stuff that would bump up the value or make an easier sale .
 
I like the idea of running in and easing a car into life, but in reality I guess most are no longer treated this way. Modern machining methods and the latest lubricants means that engines and other oily parts of new car are much more tolerant than in days gone by.
Just one of the 'torture' tests for all VW group cars is for a new engine to be started from cold and run instantly at full throttle, full load for 100 hours without mercy....and that's one of the kinder ones!
Almost all newly built race engines are given an 'install' lap to check there are no leaks, then entrusted to the loving care of a race driver.
 
I like the idea of running in and easing a car into life, but in reality I guess most are no longer treated this way. Modern machining methods and the latest lubricants means that engines and other oily parts of new car are much more tolerant than in days gone by.
Just one of the 'torture' tests for all VW group cars is for a new engine to be started from cold and run instantly at full throttle, full load for 100 hours without mercy....and that's one of the kinder ones!
Almost all newly built race engines are given an 'install' lap to check there are no leaks, then entrusted to the loving care of a race driver.
Exactly my point. If each engine has already been subjected to that test, there's absolutely no point in running them in, which is, presumably why most manufacturers don't suggest it.
 
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Exactly my point. If each engine has already been subjected to that test, there's absolutely no point in running them in, which is, presumably why most manufacturers don't suggest it.
I think they “torture” test samples rather than every engine.
 
Exactly my point. If each engine has already been subjected to that test, there's absolutely no point in running them in, which is, presumably why most manufacturers don't suggest it.
Apologies if I wasn't clear about every engine. All new types of engine are subjected to the torture tests using various sample engines built to full production methods. Not every single engine.
The engine on any new car has always been run, even if around the factory and through the transport systems prior to getting to the showroom.
Just depends if you view the development engine torture tests as being more or less aggressive than the shipping and delivery drivers....
Fortunately, as mentioned, modern lubricants and machine tolerances are much improved on days of old.
 
There is a theory that to baby an engine during the running in period is not necessarily a good thing to do.

The main components if any that need running are the piston ring to bore contact which has implications for future oil consumption. In order for the piston rings to wear in and seal against the cylinder bore, sufficient gas pressure behind them is needed (rings don't seal due to spring tension alone). That mean revs so a more aggressive approach is required at least intermittently.
 
I had the ownership of two "Mercedes Management cars" before they were sold on to private owners. You could only have them for a max of 6 months. Both I treated nice, but also had some track day fun with them. The other cars "looked after" by the Mercedes warehouse staff got some serious abuse back in the day.

All of the staff sales were cheap inoder boost sales figures. I "owned" a £55k car for under £200 per month. Pain in the **** to have a brand new car twice a year :wallbash:
 
I bought my wife a Metro once; very good price, only a year old. The first owner was the 'Educational Engineering Trust'. The dealer, honest fellow that he was, explained that it had been a Rover management car. I only found out later that Engineering Educational Trust was the holding company name for BSM - the British School of Motoring.

(The syncromesh went on second gear just before the warranty ran out, and I had a Gold Seal [manufacturer reconditioned] gearbox fitted FOC).

One of my bikes is an ex-police bike; the first registered keeper was the Chief Constable of the British Transport Police. It was sold as an ex-police bike, with of course no service history, bought at auction by the seller and sold on. I took a chance and contacted BTP HQ, and eventually ended up in touch with a very helpful staff member who let me have, unofficially and off the record, the full service history. The police service their bikes quite a lot, I was happy to see, and apart from a few holes in the fairing there was nothing at all wrong with it; even the tyres were almost new.
 
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I bought my wife a new MG Metro back in the early 80's. It stuck like glue to the road on it's A01 Yokohama tyres.
It was at work with me at Silverstone when my wife called to say that guests had already arrived for dinner and where was I? I jumped in the car raced home on a cold February evening only to hit some back ice and plant my wife's new car firmly in a ditch just south of Buckingham.
There was damage to just two parts, the LF wing....and the shell.
It was at that point I realised that when sticky tyres meet ice it's metrodental to the health of the car...... :dk:
 
I bought my wife a new MG Metro back in the early 80's. It stuck like glue to the road on it's A01 Yokohama tyres.
I had Yokohama tyres on my HSR they striped the paint off my garage floor, so sticky! They didn't last many miles though 😃
 
Whilst we are talking 'ex-management' cars, I must relate the story of my 07 C180k.
It has the 'KS' registration and the first owner was Hertz. I bought it as a 'stop gap' when I had to return both my Bentley company cars on retirement at the start of 2015. It had a 100k miles then, I kept it for two years whilst other cars came and went, and it cost less than £1k in deprecation over 2 years and 25k miles.....oh! and a pair of tyres.
Earlier this year I was staggered to find it has now done over 1/4 million miles, seemingly without issue.
I can only presume that if life as a hire car doesn't kill them, then relaxing into life with a careful private owner suits them very well. :dk:

Not sure about "relaxing into life with a careful private owner" - your old car has done ~50K/yr for the last couple of years! Bearing in mind the person who's doing that must have paid buttons for the car, its cost per mile must be only a shade higher than fuel cost. Although it does seem a bit odd to have done 50K/yr in a petrol.
 
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Not sure about "relaxing into life with a careful private owner" - your old car has done ~50K/yr for the last couple of years! Bearing in mind the person who's doing that must have paid buttons for the car, its cost per mile must be only a shade higher than fuel cost. Although it does seem a bit odd to have done 50K/yr in a petrol.
Well, the fuel bill was not huge. It never dropped below 40mpg while I had it, and could get closer to 50 on a run.
But yes, on a cost per mile and comfort basis, it proved to be extremely cost effective....for me as well as the next owner.IMG_0634.jpegIMG_0702.jpeg
 
So how do you get one of these cars? Do you have to be in the know with the dealership? I never seem to see these advertised on normal channels, but always hear about someone bagging a "nearly new" bargain!
 
So how do you get one of these cars? Do you have to be in the know with the dealership? I never seem to see these advertised on normal channels, but always hear about someone bagging a "nearly new" bargain!
Basically any approved used Mercedes with registration starting KM - KY, six months old, 8k miles.
Ours was KT
 
Basically any approved used Mercedes with registration starting KM - KY, six months old, 8k miles.
Ours was KT
Ok, so it's just on their normal approved used listing is it? I always got the sense that these were sold before they got on the list, maybe to those who had expressed an interest to the sales persons before
 
Ok, so it's just on their normal approved used listing is it? I always got the sense that these were sold before they got on the list, maybe to those who had expressed an interest to the sales persons before
There's nothing 'secret squirrel' going on as far as I know. Mercedes staff can lease Mercedes cars at a very reasonable rate from Mercedes Fleet Services (or whatever they are called) based in Milton Keynes. The staff have the cars for a few months, and must do no more than 8k miles. The cars are then put into the approved used network. Quite often the cars are well specified and seem to be about a third cheaper than an equivalent new one.

Not all Mercedes approved cars are sourced this way. Others might be ex demonstrators or ex customer cars etc. I've no idea about the proportion.
 

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