Servicing

[kurtcobain]

Hi
I have recently bought a merc c180K coupe, approaching 90k miles and just under 4 years old. Till now it has got all services done at MB (6 in total). Now it is showing Service A in 800 miles. MB dealer said its essentially oil and filter change and quoted £240 for it.

As am new to MB, m not sure whether to carry on with MB servicing or look for a specialist. I intend to keep the car for atleast 2-3 years unless anything major goes wrong. M also not sure about what mobilo means and if its worth considering mileage and age of my car.

Also can someone suggest a reliable specialist in bridgend/cardiff area.
Any help will be very much appreciated.
thanks

 

[lynall]

I think £240 is a lot of money. but in your case and its only an A service i would get it done by mb then you have got approx 10k to look around for a indie and learn all about the mercs scene etc.

On the other hand if you can diy you can buy a lot of oil and filters and tools for £240.

Plus at 6 to 7 years old its still not an old car, and as its a merc, history is still worth something, but most buyers would be happy with indie servicing.

Me i am just tight and do everything myself.



Lynall

 

[kusanku]

I would go for an indie. I'm not sure if there is any way of reliably estimating the difference in used retail value of a car with main dealer vrs indie servicing, but I suspect the amount you would save over a 3 year period by using an indie specialist would be more than the difference it would make to the price you could sell it for when the car is 9 years old.

In my experience, a good indie does a better job as well, as they want your repeat business and word of mouth recommendations.

 

[crockers]

Mercedes should offer you a fixed price see below

Quote this to them

 

[smiddyboy1]

Defo get it done at the dealers and keep the Mobilo alive

 

[w124coupe]

Keep it simple while you find an indie - buy your own oil and save £40-60 off the quoted price (Merc charge about £16 per litre and then £100 per hour to pour it in).

 

[ddentrec]

£240 is just for the basic work. My 4 year, 50K miles B service was quoted at around £250, but the total cost was over £1250 - all wear and tear items including ye olde worn wishbones/bushes, new wheel bearings, brakes, etc. Then I told them I had MB Service Plus..and MB footed the bill. Phew.

 

[kurtcobain]

Thanks for all your replies. Really helpful. A few more queries from a new merc owner:

I am not sure what mobilo will actually offer me. I already have personal breakdown cover with RAC. Will it offer anything extra??

Also can someone please give an idea how much an A service on C class will cost with indie.

My car is showing servicing at 800 miles but am quite busy these days. Will it matter if i get the service done if it exceeds it by say 100 miles or so. i mean can there be problem with the engine etc because of the delay?

Still waiting if anyone knows about a good indie near bridgend/cardiif

Thanks again guys.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I can't tell you how much an A-service costs at an indie, but I can tell you that the last A-service on my C-Class - including additional items - was about £135 at the local main dealer. I supplied my own oil which cost £46 from Costco.

Also Mobilo won't give you anything more than AA/RAC assuming you have anything other than the most basic packages. I believe you can only be recovered to a main dealer too.

I have used Mobilo a few times though and found the service to be excellent. At that time recovery to the dealer was ideal as the cars were under warranty.

 

[Dodge]

I kept up the MB service history on my W209 CLK320.

I recently had an A service carried out for £250.00, all they do is inspect the car, change the oil and oil filter, didnt even change the air filters. Very expensive for what it is but if you want to keep the service stamps in the book you have to pay.

I have a very good Independent specialist I use if i want anything else done and these guys are more helpful and seem to know more about these cars than the main dealer.

 

[kurtcobain]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your help. I got my servicing done by a good independent specialist in London. He gave appointment at short notice, and charged me £311 for service A with mobil 1, brake fluid change and air filter change. I think that was reasonable.