New Mercedes owner

[bulldoze]

Hello everybody, allow me to introduce myself, I have just purchased a used 2006 C class 220d Avantgarde Auto, mainly to get my wife to work and back each day which can be a tiresome and sometimes fraught 120 mile commute down the M1.

We pick up the car on Friday from a main dealer are there any questions we need to ask before we pick the car up? I have made a preliminary list which is a follows:

1. We have been quoted £210 road tax from the dealer, my own research tells me that it should be £170 for this model, who is correct?

2. Should we ask the dealer to update COMAND with latest map software? or version firmware? Should we be charged for this?

Car should be valeted and scuffs and scrapes sorted; also fully checked out mechanically, I have been told that it has 6 months left till next service (it has done 22k) brakes discs and pads are good and tyres are new.

Many thanks.

 

[Blobcat]

Hi & Welcome,

1) Check on the DVLA's pages against your registration as they hold the info on your car and what you will be charged
2) You can do the discs are not cheap however you can buy them from elsewhere although quite a few are copies which can cause issues. Comand.co.uk sell legal versions.
3) What is the mileage? reason I ask is that Mercedes recommend a one off ATF change at 40K miles now so it is worth making sure this has been done or that you're not going to be stung by a big bill in the near future.
4) When was it last serviced and what is the next service?

 

[bulldoze]

Thanks for the quick reply!

The car has done 22000 miles at the moment and the dealer said that it had been serviced 6 months ago but I will get an accurate date from him.

I have already checked the DVLA website and it states that my car should be £170. I am a little concerned that a main dealer can get this kind of detail wrong.

I will check out comand.co.uk and what they offer, although at first glance some of the prices suggest it would be much cheaper to buy a separate aftermarket satnav/phone/ipod system!

Thanks again.

 

[Blobcat]

Thanks for the quick reply!

The car has done 22000 miles at the moment and the dealer said that it had been serviced 6 months ago but I will get an accurate date from him.

I have already checked the DVLA website and it states that my car should be £170. I am a little concerned that a main dealer can get this kind of detail wrong.

I will check out comand.co.uk and what they offer, although at first glance some of the prices suggest it would be much cheaper to buy a separate aftermarket satnav/phone/ipod system!

Thanks again.

After market is fine but comand is very nice, Alfie can retro fit many things not just comand (ask whitenemesis...)
I wouldn't worry too much about the dealer getting the VED wrong it can vary depending upon the car specification so they will have given you a general rate for the model rather than specific to yours.

 

[jberks]

I can't think of much as the MB official PDI is pretty thorough. Some people have had issues getting a second key when the previous owner didn't hand it back.
Sadly, now the deal is done you're too late to get them to throw in an up to date DVD - though 2006 is probably up there with tomtom. If it has phone prep - do you have an appropriate cradle? (also too late now probably).
I'd check what the cost would be for an extra warranty to run when this one ends. It can often be cheaper now than later. Alternatively check out service plus - not as good as it used to be but still worth considering.
Mine was missing a sill kick plate of all things when they delivered it. Being a rear one it took a week before I noticed, so give it a thorough check over as they can miss the small stuff sometimes.

Above all - just enjoy it. I'd agree with the £170 btw - mine is and its got a bigger engine, is heavier and has silly fat tyres.