MB supplied new battery for E211 320cdi - price

[Mavster]

Got a qoute for MB to replace my battery ..£254 fitted

..Lucky the garage I bought the car from is picking up the tab :bannana:

 

[renault12ts]

So, about £154 labour for a 5 min job!!!

 

[LTD]

... and they wonder why we drift away ......

 

[Charles Morgan]

That's mad!

 

[Mavster]

So, about £154 labour for a 5 min job!!!

Don't forget the coffee and the read of the newspaper...

 

[Paul Dawkins]

Why go to a Merc dealer for a battery ?

 

[jaymanek]

Actually they can be quite competitive on batteries... I would go direct to the parts department and haggle.

 

[jon browne]

How long is the warranty out of interest? Had one put on by Halfords last year about £110 I think 3 year warranty swung it for me!

 

[jaymanek]

All batteries are sold with 3 years minimum.

 

[jon browne]

Ok! First one I have had to buy for years so what do I know! Had to get SRS light Star cleared if I recall after though.

 

[cplnoonoo]

Why are they so expensive even from non dealer sources?

 

[grober]

If its the big AGM type boot mounted battery of a 2 battery system car they can run up to £180 no problem. I imagine this is why it costs so much. They are probably still charging £50-70 to put it in. However if there's the possibility of a few systems requiring reset on powerdown/up the MB job sheet may allow for a little Star diagnostic time to be on the safe side?

 

[Dryce]

If its the big AGM type boot mounted battery of a 2 battery system car they can run up to £180 no problem. I imagine this is why it costs so much. They are probably still charging £50-70 to put it in. However if there's the possibility of a few systems requiring reset on powerdown/up the MB job sheet may allow for a little Star diagnostic time to be on the safe side?

Yes.

Out of curiosity I looked up how much a main battery would cost for my W211 a few months ago.

Big hulking 95Ah thing.

About £90 to £100 for a basic Varta battery - as low as £70 for a brand I'd never heard of.

Or as you say - about £180 to £200 for the AGM type of Varta battery.

ESP & steering wheel, A/C, and seats may all have to be 'normalised' after.

Dealer will also have to pay to dispose of the old battery.

So £254 all in doesn't sound too bad for fitting the proper AGM unit - I'd guess they've stuck in half an hour's labour on top of their charge for the battery.

 

[jaymanek]

Those big ones I can get from the dealer for around £100...

 

[davidjpowell]

I paid about £80 from somewhere online. It was not one of the best available, with a 2 year guarentee only from what I recall though.

Must have decided the car was going by that point...