CLK 320 convertible service 'B' costs

[sattie_c]

Hi,

I'm currenlty owning the above on a 2001 plate and in need of the 'B' service. Having done 45,000 i've been told that I don't need to change my spark plugs yet

I rang a few mb specialists as recommended on various threads i also main dealers. I live near heathrow so these are quite a few within a short distance. Here are my findings:

George Fraser £411 including VAT

Merc's Only £280 including VAT

AMC £312 including VAT

MB Brentford £450 including VAT

MB Heathrow £359 including VAT

MB Park Royal £409 including VAT


Merc's only have had some slack with poor service on the forums. I've dealt with them in Jan '06 as the missus has A Class 170 CDI and had 'A' service done. My experience was good and no compliants at all.....

Alot of praise for George Fraser but for that price I could go to the MB dealers. AMC are dealing with BMW and Merc's......not to fond on garages that do both....how can you specialise in both??

bit stuck on what 2 do????

Any advise would be appreciated especially if you've dealt with the above

TIA

Satty

 

[Blobcat]

The thing to be carefull with the main dealers is the price quoted is always the minimum you will pay. You will usually be given a list of essentials and advisories that can more than double the cost.

 

[DAVECLK]

B Service Cost

I had my B Service for my CLK230 at my local MB "stealership".
The cost was £380 including VAT!
Here comes the catch, this did not include spark plugs, air filter and fuel filter, all extra cost!
They quoted me £95 to supply and fit the plugs!
Needless to say I did that and the air filter myself , from memory the plugs cost me £14 from eurocar parts.
The first I knew that the above items were not included in the service cost was when they rang me while the car was in for the service!
My advice would be that the independants probably quote for everything and the "stealers" don't.
Good luck
Dave

 

[jberks]

Been here.
Looked at it this way. What do all the others do for you or the car that Mercs Only don't and is that worth £120?
If you are happy with the workmanship from the indie (as you say you are) then why pay the extra?
Mine goes to the indie despite having 2 1/2 years warranty to run. It should save me at least £400 per year.

 

[Alfie]

Been here.
Looked at it this way. What do all the others do for you or the car that Mercs Only don't and is that worth £120?
If you are happy with the workmanship from the indie (as you say you are) then why pay the extra?
Mine goes to the indie despite having 2 1/2 years warranty to run. It should save me at least £400 per year.

And what happens if you want to make a warranty claim? Will MB still cover you?

 

[AMGMAL]

Hi,

I'm currenlty owning the above on a 2001 plate and in need of the 'B' service. Having done 45,000 i've been told that I don't need to change my spark plugs yet

I rang a few mb specialists as recommended on various threads i also main dealers. I live near heathrow so these are quite a few within a short distance. Here are my findings:

George Fraser £411 including VAT

Merc's Only £280 including VAT

AMC £312 including VAT

MB Brentford £450 including VAT

MB Heathrow £359 including VAT

MB Park Royal £409 including VAT


Merc's only have had some slack with poor service on the forums. I've dealt with them in Jan '06 as the missus has A Class 170 CDI and had 'A' service done. My experience was good and no compliants at all.....

Alot of praise for George Fraser but for that price I could go to the MB dealers. AMC are dealing with BMW and Merc's......not to fond on garages that do both....how can you specialise in both??

bit stuck on what 2 do????

Any advise would be appreciated especially if you've dealt with the above

TIA

Satty

went to Mercs only and they arrogant, went to gsf and one of counter staff gave a card for Custom Werks, (www.customwerks.co.uk), top work from them, no fancy frills of car wash or valet, just honest work

 

[sattie_c]

what did u have done by them???? their website looks like they cover mercs, bmw and audi??? is it not better going to a specialist that deal's with one manufacturer????

 

[television]

I am so pleased with this thread, it answers my where to go problems, no un constructive comments.

Malcolm

 

[jberks]

And what happens if you want to make a warranty claim? Will MB still cover you?

In a word, Yes. They have to by law. (EU Block exemption regulations). The warranty simply states that the car must have been maintained to manufacturers specifications. They are not allowed to insist that it is done by them. You can theoretically maintain it yourself and provided you follow their schedule, the warranty stands. This is why I use a proper MB specialist and the invoice clearly states "Carry out service to manufacturers specifications". I guess the dealer could claim that it hadn't, but then I suspect the indie would have something to say on the matter. To be honest, I get the impression that there is a good relationship and some respect between the local indie and the dealer so I don't expect any trouble.

That said, I haven't had a warranty claim as yet so whilst I am confident legally, I haven't tested it. However, this is an EU ruling and MB would be in serious trouble if they got stroppy. I don't think they need that sort of publicity.

The only problem is that for warranty work, the car still has to go to the dealer, so I have 1 or 2 minute glitches that I would have had looked at if it had gone in to the dealer, but they are so minor they are not worth a specific visit.

If I were to go back to 8k per year and a service every 18-24 months rather than my current 25k and 5-6months, I may go back to the dealer for the convenience but then again, I'd still look at the cost difference and find it hard to justify, given the excellent service that the indie provides.