'Loose' foglights

[2slow2calm]

Stealer wants £53 to tighten allegedly loose foglights? Is it that labour intensive? I said forget that!

 

[television]

Stealer wants £53 to tighten allegedly loose foglights? Is it that labour intensive? I said forget that!

You may have to remove the wheel arch liners to get to the bolts

 

[2slow2calm]

ahh ha, true, but my B service is magically up to £530 already somehow though (there is nothing wrong with the car whatsoever, tyres are fine brakes are fine etc), on principle I'm not going to ask them to do it, I'm going indie after this I swear!

 

[television]

ahh ha, true, but my B service is magically up to £530 already somehow though (there is nothing wrong with the car whatsoever, tyres are fine brakes are fine etc), on principle I'm not going to ask them to do it, I'm going indie after this I swear!

I know how you feel, peeded off with it all

 

[JEZ.S320L]

I know how you feel, peeded off with it all

A friend of mine is a Service Manager for a MB Main Dealer. The staff haven't had a bonus for the past 3 months - they are being hit hard on the servicing side.

That doesn't of course mean that they have to maximise their profits on a diminishing customer base..!

 

[2slow2calm]

I know how you feel, peeded off with it all

EXACTLY Malcom!

It's like what do they take me for! Surely relatively minor things like this should be included in the more comprehensive service, and like Jez said do they want to diminish their customer base? It seems like you pay a premium to have your car serviced by them only for them to turn around and try and squeeze more out of you!

Oh well still looking forward to getting my car back at least!

 

[jberks]

true.
It's yes to anything that affects the service history - so oil changes basically. Everything else, no and off to the indie. Mobilio and FMBSH stay in place and you get to keep your limbs!

Its this stupid idea of charging whatever the book says all the time. So the customer gets no benefit from combining jobs and splitting the 'get it on the ramp' and strip down costs. They also lose any benefit of goodwill by doing the odd tweak for nothing. Sadly, thats the world of corporate accountancy for you!

I agree they are feeling it. MB Harrogate gave me a discount on the last service (after I mentioned that it had been serviced by the local indie) and the Leeds dealer was chasing me to do the MOT. Not so subtly booking me in before I'd actually said yes!

 

[2slow2calm]

Ok got my car back, yay! They charged me £500 in the end (apparantly he added some 4 point discount scheme or something) for B + one n/s/r speaker cover and S&S(Spruce and Shine!). They did nothing but change the oil and used shell helix ultra, sprayed some smelly stuff inside and gave the exterior a once over. Maybe I should have just taken it in for an A - no plugs or filters were even changed, but this was my first service experience and ASSYST showed overdue B by 286 days. I also got an MB tax disc holder and a key fob! The service chap said I should be good for another 10k at least depending on how I drive at which point he anticipates an A service.

 

[G MAN]

So how did they come up with & justify £500? That's an awful lot of money for oil & filter!

 

[2slow2calm]

They just pad it out with labour and explain that the car was 'on the ramp' and checked here there and everywhere, service was overdue by a long way. He gave me the whole service sheet. Yeh I think £500 is way OTT for my car but I was quoted an average of about £450 for a B service ... I would have thought mine would have been below average (cost wise given that it's only covered 13,100 miles), but then add in the speaker cover + fitting + S&S and you are at £500! They really have got ripping off down to a fine art, gotta hand it to them! But still for some strange reason I'm very happy in my mind, it's kind of a relief that it's sort of been given the 'all clear' by MB and I can enjoy it fully now since that overdue B was looming in my head since I got it.

 

[Ron Palfrey]

I feel so lucky that my "oldish" C280 has no modern devices telling me when the service is due or overdue. I carry out my own servicing, every 9000 miles on the dot, which means about every 9 months. Takes me half a day but I know the jobs have been done. Costs me parts and fluids and has never yet cost me more than £100. Oil and filter change is less than £50 as I'm careful where and when I buy my oil. Picked up 10 litres of Mobil 1 for little money in France during my summer holiday and I'll be using that this weekend when I carry out the 108,000 mile service. It'll be more expensive than usual because the auto-transmission fluid is due for changing but it'll still work out to less than £100. Only time it sees a garage is MOT time but it always sails through without a problem. Brilliant car!

I know what you mean though about the 'all clear' from Merc. I was fortunate in that I've known my car since 1995, and the previous owner always had it serviced at the Main Dealers (and paid their prices !!!).

Ron

 

[2slow2calm]

Hey Ron,

Yeh I wish I knew something about cars (I only know how to drive them...and put on a spare wheel...have trouble doing that sometimes). If I did I would do all my servicing/repairs myself - after all you can't beat your own work if you are a perfectionist - that would be the best for me. Maybe I'll learn this mechanical stuff one day, I've just never had the opportunity to watch at close range anyone carrying out repairs/services. So until I learn, I'm at the mercy of garages.

------
Anyway back to the original point of this topic!

When I push the fog lights in they sort of go back a bit then when I stop pushing them back they spring back into place. Is this normal or are they totally insecure (ie. going to fall out soon!) I've pushed them both quite hard with my hands, and they seem to 'spring' back convincingly.

 

[G MAN]

Ok got my car back, yay! They charged me £500 in the end (apparantly he added some 4 point discount scheme or something) for B + one n/s/r speaker cover and S&S(Spruce and Shine!). They did nothing but change the oil and used shell helix ultra, sprayed some smelly stuff inside and gave the exterior a once over. Maybe I should have just taken it in for an A - no plugs or filters were even changed, but this was my first service experience and ASSYST showed overdue B by 286 days. I also got an MB tax disc holder and a key fob! The service chap said I should be good for another 10k at least depending on how I drive at which point he anticipates an A service.

You have my sympathy, we've all been there , felt that way & gone with it
Then you come on here & realise there are other ways & means to avoid being shafted by the stealers!! Enjoy the car & check the warranty!!

 

[Mr Teddy Bear]

Spring Loaded Lense's

Mine are Like that, part of the design.
W208

 

[television]

All of the set ups a wrong in my view. though it may be convenient to have everything under one roof,it is the most expensive way of doing things.

all of the electronic makers have one warehouse with one central service as they do not need retail outlets. why does the service side need such plush images, it is not doing them much good, if the service side was separated from the sales then maybe the running cost could be reduced, indeed all of my working life in the service trade it has been said that if you need service or repairs, then you go out and get that done, it is not something that you do when out shopping.

This must be the subject that upsets people more than any other.

 

[2slow2calm]

Thanks for the quick replies guys and teddy bear for clearing up the spring loaded lenses issue.
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"We've all been there" - G-MAN

Glad to know I'm not the only one!
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I agree sales should most definitely be seperate from service. I think with MB a lot of the OTT premium one pays for routine things is due to issues that have been discussed in other topics. Malcolm points out that people find it upsetting, too right, that said MB are not the only ones guilty of this. However, this experience has confirmed for me that I can't trust an MB dealership anymore than I can a mechanic working from the side of the road with my money.