FMBSH on a car outside the 'goodwill' rust fix, keep up or not.....

[jpbp200]

Keep FMBSH on an older car?

MB tell me that the price for a B service is fixed and that it is £293.61 with cheap oil and £313.18 with Mobil 1. My car, that cost me £1800 has done 100,000 miles, is faultless except for drivers door mirror heating not working and some rusty bits (you can't see that when you are driving and it drives like new so who cares). It also has to date a FMBSH.

So

A: Is the service negotiable? (MB say no but they will negotiate the labour charge on any extras) they also say they will give it a free healthcheck (erm with all due respect how can they know any more about my car than I do as I'm the one who drives it every day and I'm not stupid!!!!!!!)

and

B: Is it worth going to MB. btw I also need new pads and discs all round and new ball joints. Any ideas on what the damage will be.........?

thanks

 

[harp1963]

Health Check!!! No I ended up with a large bill than excpected due to having a health check. Health check is fine but get the resulting work done by a independent, but get the book stamped for the service.!!!

 

[crammy69]

I saw I ad for Mercedes Kent saying that for cars over 7 years they were doing 40% off labour and 12.5% off parts, I think this was in the **** magazine.

 

[television]

I saw I ad for Mercedes Kent saying that for cars over 7 years they were doing 40% off labour and 12.5% off parts, I think this was in the **** magazine.

Most dealer are giving this discount now on car at 6 years old.

I think that you need to work out how long you are going to keep the car,, you can get very good work done by an indie for ½ the cost and a fully stamped book will not alter the value at this age,, just a few services could cost more than the value of the car

 

[roofless]

i still have a service book fully stamped for a audi i scraped. not a lot of good now

 

[jberks]

is it worth it? No not really.
If the car is worth £1800 and has 100k I'd suggest using a good indie. Bottom line is, when you drive in, count how many 202s there are in the car park. Factor in staff turnover and you'll quickly realise that the chap servicing your car quite possibly has never worked on a 202 before. At that age and mileage, any goodwill warranty work is a non starter so I really can't see the point.
Now for an indie, a car like yours is bread and butter. Any issues or potential issues will be things that he will have seen and sorted dozens of times before. His labour charge is a fraction of the dealer and his experience vastly greater, so even if he charged more than the dealerI'd still say he was a better bet. The lower prices are just a bonus really.
Now yes, most dealerships are offering deals for older cars (I didn't pay list for mine) but an indie will still be cheaper.
I have a similar quandry right now on my Freelander. It's coming up to it's 2nd annual service (mileage is minimal). The prices I was quoted were
£383 (dealer I bought it from), £330 (another dealer), £290, £215 and £165 - all indies with LR trained techs, proper LR parts and proper LR diagnostics. So, prices do vary wildly and MB is no different. At the moment, based on speaking to them, I'm tempted to go for the £165 bloke.

 

[Alex M Grieve]

His labour charge is a fraction of the dealer and his experience vastly greater, so even if he charged more than the dealerI'd still say he was a better bet

Yet again I find myself in complete agreement with jberks (strangely, we have never been seen together).

For me the real bonus with an Indy is that you can speak to the engineer who will do the job. Not a fragrant lady at reception who does not understand the fault that you are describing. Not a middle manager who is so stretched that he/she can't listen properly, but the engineer who will turn your account into a proper diagnosis and will fix it correctly.

As the man said, the fact that an Indys charge less is also a bonus.

 

[television]

Yet again I find myself in complete agreement with jberks (strangely, we have never been seen together).

.

Every post by that man is very well worded, and after you have read any post of his " you know that it make sense"

Thank you Jberks

 

[jberks]

Coming from you guys - its praise indeed!
Better be careful or I won't get my woolly hat back on ;-)

 

[Alex M Grieve]

Coming from you guys - its praise indeed!
Better be careful or I won't get my woolly hat back on ;-)

You will just have to get used to it. What size is your universal fitting wooly hat? A larger one might be a wise investment?