Running a Merc on the CHEAP! (Read+Reply!)

[adam2116]

i believe it is entirely possible the run a mercedes on the cheap and here is why!
1) DONT buy a new merc ! buy it second hand just past its 3rd birthday and get 50% off!
2) buy a DIESEL prefrebly a CDi as they are more frugal and a lot cheaper!
3) NEVER service your car with a MB Dealer! (£100/hour for Labor!) far far too pricey! and a cup of tea which costs £500+ !!!
instead go to a independent merc dealer (save 50%!) or better still do it yourself! it aint that hard! trust me!
4) Mercedes Warranties are underwritten by other warranty companies, so the dealers and mercedes the organisation are acting like middlemen and conning you! www.warrantydirect.co.uk www.warrantydirect.co.uk are charging just £260/annum (take the 4 year option in one go and its £650!). For my 2001-X plate E220CDi this includes abssolutely everything! some warranty comapanies include exhaust systems too! and the plus side is to keep your warranty valid with these warranty orgs,all you have to do is get the car serviced according to the manufacturers suggested service intervals, at ANY garage you want to! as long as they are VAT registerd! (GREAT TIP !!!) u dont even need to go to get it serviced by a mercedes benz dealer! keep those reciepts just in case!
5) above all i wish that mercedes would introduced a simillar deal to bmw (concourse package!) in which every single service is included for the first 5years of the car for a upfront fee of £750! so simple! and hassle free motoring! (blackburn/lancs!)

 

[Kinky]

1. I don't believe in buying ANY car new - waste of money as soon as you drive it off the forecourt - not an MB issue - IS a Govermnet taxation/rip-off issue

2. I don't care about fuel costs as I only pay 40% of my fuel costs

3. I disagree with you 100% on that - I get 40% discount on all my MB servicing with MB dealers - standard practice for 8+ year old cars (same programme that BMW run).

4. IMHO - generally speaking warranties are not worth the paper they are printed on. I've got a warranty with mine - knowing full well that should something go wrong I won't be covered - because it did not fail on the 1st Tuesday of the month when it was the 3rd of the month and the full moon was visible at mid-day precisely - not an MB problem - IS a general industry rip-off/scam problem. As for your 'servicer' being VAT-regd - this is standard and is pretty normal across most warranties (except Renault from vague memory).

5. I have no opinion on servicing costs - suffice to say - if you own a quality vehicle you would expect to pay a proportionate amount towards servicing.

 

[GrahamC230K]

I dont buy new, I always use a trusted independant garage for my purchase and servicing, they use warranties that work, fuel costs are just part of life.

Agree on the most part.

However - if I had the money I would buy new and service at MB everytime. A sign of my finances I think that is all.

 

[mayoga]

Rather than buying new buy a ex-demo with low millege. I did and saved 12Kof the list price :bannana: :bannana: :bannana:

Gav.

 

[simonl]

Originally posted by adam2116
4) Mercedes Warranties are underwritten by other warranty companies, so the dealers and mercedes the organisation are acting like middlemen and conning you! www.warrantydirect.co.uk are charging just £260/annum (take the 4 year option in one go and its £650!). For my 2001-X plate E220CDi this includes abssolutely everything! some warranty comapanies include exhaust systems too! and the plus side is to keep your warranty valid with these warranty orgs,all you have to do is get the car serviced according to the manufacturers suggested service intervals, at ANY garage you want to! as long as they are VAT registerd! (GREAT TIP !!!) u dont even need to go to get it serviced by a mercedes benz dealer! keep those reciepts just in case!

warrantydirect do not cover everything on my car. they do not cover the roof hydraulics which failed shortly after i got an MB warranty. The warranty was twice the price but i was covered. cost to repair the roof was more than the warranty so i got my money's worth.


agree with point 5. bmw do seem to have much better after sales service.

 

[adam1]

And I thought buying a car was a piece of cake....u got me thinking.... sometimes buying used is not an option when the price is closer to list anyway like in the E class. Ex-demo may be an option in this case. If a car has been out a few years it makes sense to buy used since it will hve lost around 50% in 3 years.

manufacturers warranties are expensive but are comprehensive unlike thrid party ones. U pay for what u get. MB servicing can be a rip off i hear but negotiation is the key. even with my car now i get price match from the dealers.

 

[fuzzer]

Originally posted by Kinky
1. I don't believe in buying ANY car new - waste of money as soon as you drive it off the forecourt - not an MB issue - IS a Govermnet taxation/rip-off issue

4. IMHO - generally speaking warranties are not worth the paper they are printed on. I've got a warranty with mine - knowing full well that should something go wrong I won't be covered - because it did not fail on the 1st Tuesday of the month when it was the 3rd of the month and the full moon was visible at mid-day precisely - not an MB problem - IS a general industry rip-off/scam problem. As for your 'servicer' being VAT-regd - this is standard and is pretty normal across most warranties (except Renault from vague memory).

Buying the car new gives you a warranty worth the paper its written on .