MB Service Contracts

[MercVirgin]

Hey People, I have a Sep '04 C200 and it's going to be off MB Warranty next month!;
Looking at various options I've narrowed down to the following:

1) 3 year Major Mechanical Breakdown Warranty (£800) provided by a third party and then servicing either independently or with MB (to keep MobiloLife cover)

2) MB Service Contracts: the approx £15pcm (i.e. approx. £180 per year) difference in the price quoted between their 'Standard' Service Contract and the Service+ (which seems to cover everything except tyres) seems to be a no brainer, i.e. you'd opt for the Service+ and even though both include scheduled Servicing for the car, the Service+ will cover in between incidents too but it's working out at approx. £900 per year which to me sounds expensive but as it covers 'everything' might be worth it should something MAJOR come up in that time (looking at 3yr contracts)
Also as Service+ will cover MOT'ing (and rectification work) it seems to add another string to it's bow but as i've not serviced a MB yet (i've only just got the car) i don't know if annual running costs would be anything like near the £900 i'd be paying for the Service+ Cover

Also with the MB cover what's the likelihood that should something come up that could be overlooked i wouldn't be told about it by a MB Garage as they know it'll cost them to rectify it? After reading some of the posts here it seems that not all MB garages are completely honest!!

Appreciate pple's thoughts and experiences! Thx.

 

[whitenemesis]

The MB garage doesn't foot the bill for work under Service contracts. It's charged back to MB. So, possibly, the garage may be more diligent?

 

[Rory]

My car’s an Oct 04 car, and I’ve just been through this dilema – my conclusion was to take ServicePlus.
I’ve owned my car (C270 Estate) since it was 6months and 6000 miles old. My use of the car has changed a lot from what I expected and it’s only done 30K now. The only time it’s ever been to a dealer is for an A service at 18000 miles, and it’s due a B at 35000.
With that track record, on the face of it paying £900/yr seemed (seems) ridiclous, but my thinking was that it only needs something of medium significance to go wrong and it could easily cost that. This year the B Service will cost best part of £500 and next year it needs an ATF change. Of course the MOT’s (and any repairs are a significant benefit too). I also don’t handle stress / hassle with cars very well ! and I really don’t want to be worrying about whether to use the dealer or hunting around for an independent etc if anything does go wrong with the car.

Effectively I would appear (hope) to be getting a very good warranty for a few hundred pounds per year. The difference you note between the cost of Service and Service Plus seems ridiculously small - I thought Service would have been much cheaper.

I asked one of my dealers service advisors about ServicePlus and (somewhat surprising, as they probably get a pretty poor labour rate from MB) they were *very* keen that I go for it.

As far as coverage is concerned, I did initially have some doubts about this – but some forum members emailed MB and got replies that indicated pretty well anything would be covered. My thinking is that if it wears out, it’s covered. If it breaks, then I would hope & expect MB to pay anyway, even if the car is out of warranty.

Bear in mind that you take it out after the 3 year w’tee has expired then there may be an inspection fee and any issues found need to be corrected (so it’s best to take it out while still in warranty). MOT’s can be done under ServicePlus straightaway, but servicing and pads/disks aren’t covered for until for 3 month / 3000 miles.

 

[kingsize]

I'm intrigued by this.

Does Service plus mean that for a monthly fee ALL my servicing, repairs etc would be covered?

I have recently bought a 2 1/2 year old e320 cdi, and was told that I could extend the MB warranty for £475 pa once it runs out in Jan.

I do like the sound of this service plus though - how much does it cost, or is a specific quote to each vehicle?

 

[MercVirgin]

Rory, Thanks! It seems that i'm not the only one in this position (thank goodness.) I thought that i might have been missing (...or assuming!) something but as you too have noticed the difference between the cost of Service and Service Plus seems ridiculously small then i guess MB are just pricing it to make pple go for the Service+
I've just taken delivery of my C200 on a 54 plate with 32k miles and FMBSH to date - trying to anticipate the costs (and justification in maintaining a FMBSH) going fwds is difficult - a friend had an oil leak into his C200 Electric Loom that cost ++£1k to sort out, in his and others opinion that would not have been covered by an extended warranty (it happened shortly after the Manufacturers W'tee ran out! Wear and tear on a seal caused the leak) but i assume something like this would be covered by the Service+ contract. Also i can completely relate to not being able to handle the stress and hassle with cars very well! And the benefit under the Service+ about not having to worrying about whether to use the dealer or hunting around for an independent etc. if anything does go wrong with the car i guess is worth the bit extra you are paying!
One thing tho' i've rung three different MB Dealers and given them all the same criteria (expected annual mileage and 3year term) and have got three different prices back (difference of up to £10pcm) so even with these it might be worth shopping around, under the contract you can use ANY approved MB Gge so i'm confused as to why each dealer's giving a different price? I though they all logged onto the same MB database for pricing??
Also whitenemesis observation about the diligence of a MB gge carrying out work under a Service Contract (and it's charge back to MB) is a bit more reassuring as i contacted a (highly) recommended Indep. Gge and he (ex. MB Tech.) seemed to imply this was common practice for garages working under contracts / warranties to minimise their costs but if they are 'charging' their work (be it to me or MB or a Third Party Warranty company) then i guess it makes sense that anything that does come up they'll flag and rectify. Only if the same gge was providing the Warranty / Contract i guess you should be concerned!!!
Thanks guys for your replies! This is a great forum!

 

[MercVirgin]

kingsize, check out:

http://www2.mercedes-benz.co.uk/con...ce_Contracts/Service_Contracts_3-6_Years.html

for more info - and let me know what you think!!

 

[MercVirgin]

kingsize, yes the quote's based on your specific car, expected millage (...i'm not quite sure what they'd do if you go over this millage though, i assume some leeway is in place??) and term of cover (1,2 or 3 years!) also if you just go over your car's 3rd b'day then you can only take up to a 2 yr contract out so as has been said it'd be good to get this in place just before then and then you'll also effectively have a continuous warranty cover too.
I'd be interested to know what price you get, for my C200 it was approx. £80pcm inc. (darn that VAT!) which at £2+change/day doesn't sound too bad at all. Also by spreading the cost it beats having to deal with that £500 service charge in one go too! As i said though i might be missing something so if there's anything you think then again please do let me know! Thanks.

 

[benzo]

I also took up service plus for my E320 cdi instead of just extending the warranty when it runs out. IMHO it's better value for money than extending the warranty.

 

[Rory]

Mine is just under £80/mth, in VAT, based on 3 yrs, 12K/yr. There is a PPK (pence per kilometre) charge if you go over the mileage. It's marginally cheaper to go for a higher mileage in the first place than to pay the excess, but there's not much in it. It's all done in KM's and converted to miles as the contract is run on software for commercial vehicles.

It's best to do it for 3 yrs as the price stays the same and it can be cancelled with max 3 months notice (they say max 3 mths to stop you cancelling right after a major service). Note it can only be done in whole years, so one you go past 3 yrs, you could then only take a 2 yr contract (max age is 6yrs, and 120K miles).

If you read the brochure linked above, there is a phone number to call - I did it all with them. I checked my local dealer and their price was same, but they insisted the car needed a check, which isn't correct as the car is still in warranty.

I was concerned about the coverage - reading the brochure it really sounds like it's meant to cover service, mot and brake pads, and that's about it.

However, see these pages for what is hopefully good info on coverage:

http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/showthread.php?t=18621&page=3

http://mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=26720&page=3