[rickygupta2]

Have heard about this guy before too but have been skeptical of taking my car to someone outside the agency. Is he really good? How is the garage like? Does he have the machinery and all? Thanks in advance.

Originally Posted by Parambir

There is this guy called Amarjit in Phagwara, Punjab who does repairs and service. He can be contacted on 9041100001.

[virkdoc]

Originally Posted by rickygupta2

Have heard about this guy before too but have been skeptical of taking my car to someone outside the agency. Is he really good? How is the garage like? Does he have the machinery and all? Thanks in advance.

Ranjit Randhawa at Kharar. Great guy and one of the best Ive ever seen.
Does a lot of cars and bikes.

[rvarghese]

Hi every one, a newbie to the forum here.

I own a C220 CDI 2014 Model, registered in Gujarat. I took the car to Kerala last year and couldn’t bring it back, so ultimately it is going to be there for ever as my father likes it. Recently the car was sent for periodical service (63000 kms) to Bridgeway Motors, Calicut. The car was under service maintenance contract and that expired in August. On my request, Rajkot Mercedes Benz service station extended the contract to cover my service costs and that was really a positive gesture from their side (otherwise it would have been costing me around 40,000).

I raised a request online in Mercedes’s website and Bridgeway Motors promptly picked up the car from my village home that is around 140 kms far from the service station located at Calicut.

On arrival to the workshop they diagnosed car and sought my approval for service costs and I asked the Rajkot service station to pay it out of service contract and they did so.

Next day, I received a long list of items to be replaced (the car is in mint condition and excellently maintained). The estimate was for around 1,60,000, I guess. The roller blind at the rear door was struck and it was costing 55,000. I approved the costs except for roller blind. The approval was given for 1,15,000.

They informed me that it will take around 10 days to get the job done as they have to import some parts. For me time was not a problem as the car would be just parked at home other than my Father’s short drive to the town and farm. There are 2 more cars available at home (BRV Automatic and Alto K10)

After 2 weeks I contacted them to check the status. They said it will take another 1 week as the parts are not arrived. So every week I kept inquiring the delivery date. After almost a month, I asked them to return the car without doing the job as they couldn’t meet any of their commitments. But they denied saying that parts have already been ordered and they can’t cancel their order to Mercedes. Been very busy I forgot about the car for a while and almost 2 months after pickup, I got a call from them saying that car will be ready next day morning and they will drop it to our home.I paid the bill immediately (1,15,000).

Next day morning their driver stared off to drop the car to my home, after driving around 50 kms or so an ESP error popped in and they drove the car back to their workshop. They called me and informed that it is due to the RPM sensors’ fault and two front wheel sensors need to be changed. I asked them to do it at their cost. They had some internal discussions and told me that they will do it under warranty as those sensors where changed previously and it is a repeating error.

So after another week they delivered the car and I had to pay another 6000 bucks for labor charges to replace the sensors. Bills are attached.

So what you guys think? organised loot during pandemic or inexperienced service outlet?

I live in Rajkot and I haven’t seen the car yet.

From Mercedes, I also own a GLS350d (2019) which is under service contract and extended warranty until 5 years of purchase which costed me a whopping 11-12 lacs.

[rickygupta2]

Originally Posted by rvarghese

So what you guys think? organised loot during pandemic or inexperienced service outlet?

I totally agree with you on the organised loot part. There are so many periodic part failures and replacements that keeping a track of all these things is almost impossible. I fail to understand that brands like Mercedes boast of superior German Engineering but seeing so frequent malfuctions I ponder sometimes that all this engineering thing is an eye wash in order to make people spend more and jack up the costs to astronomical levels.

Everytime one goes for service either the brake pads are worn out, the tyres are due for replacement, some part has to be replaced. And service costs go on increasing with each passing service.

I still remember when I bought the car in April 2015 I specifically asked about service costs to my RM and he said around Rs. 35k per service. And int the last 5 years I haven't had the opportunity to get my car serviced in Rs. 35k. They loot the customers. And the RM who sold me the car is still there. Whenever I go to get my car serviced he doesn't even care to say a hello. Just sees and ignores.

I am thoroughly dissatisfied by the car due to the high number of malfunctions and high service cost. The only thing that is positive is the driving experience but that also goes away when every 15k KM you have rear brakes wearing out and every 20k Kms you have front pads wearing out!

[10nitin]

Hey guys,
I have a W205 220d (2016) and I have started getting the 'check brake pad wear' message since the past week. Took a quotation from the Mercedes service center and they gave me a quotation for about 40k to replace the front brake pads. They haven't inspected the car yet as the quotation was just given by phone. I don't really know which brake pads are to be replaced yet. The car is out of warranty now. Do you guys think I should get this work done from the authorized service center? It'll be great if someone can recommend a good FNG in and around Delhi where I can get the job done.
Thanks in advance!
Nitin

[Parambir]

Originally Posted by rickygupta2

Have heard about this guy before too but have been skeptical of taking my car to someone outside the agency. Is he really good? How is the garage like? Does he have the machinery and all? Thanks in advance.

Have taken my Mercedes to him on three occasions. Twice for service and once for a loose injector connection which was rocking my car. They have the same set of tools and OBD reader that OEMs use. Garage is decent though not earth shattering but gets the work done. The best part is you see what they are doing and exactly what fluid they are pouring. At any point in time he has about 30 cars standing. Private guys and especially who have been around have a reputation to keep. I found the guy decent.

Mod Note : Please proof read your post prior to submission and use spell-checkers. Thanks.

[niruvrs9669]

I've personally dropped off our ML 320 CDI (2009) for repairs at Mercedes, Whitefield last week. The car comes with R19 tyres. I met the service advisor and senior technician to understand the issues and fixes.

The vehicle doesn't have any extended warranty, the estimation given to me was Rs.12 lacs, some of which were items excluded from previous list of repairs.

We finally settled to get important electrical, compressor and control unit fixes costing about Rs.3.5 lacs and paid an advance to source the parts.

These are some of the highlights;
1) The senior technician after a test drive with me, advised me to change the R19 Pirrelli's tyres to Continental's / Goodyear / Michelin's for a smoother / less noisy ride. However when I received the quotation, they repeatedly proposed the R18 Michelin's as replacement. At one point I had to tell them that the car's fitted with R19's, did you even check the tyres ? How can you fit R18s ? Lost a bit of confidence with that incident.

2) Service advisors are only people management guys and don't understand the vehicle well. I thought Senior technicians are actually the know hows, but my above interaction was with the senior technician !

3) I got a call on Friday saying that the parts would take 2 weeks, so I'm a bit skeptical to leave the car in their workshop knowing the mischief that can be done by some ! I told them that I'll pick the car and leave it back when the parts arrive. I've not received any response yet for this request.

Do you think it makes sense to get all the repairs done and go for extended warranty (if they give one) at this stage ?

[androdev]

12L is a lot. Do you get the car regularly serviced with them, or is it your first visit?

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

Do you think it makes sense to get all the repairs done and go for extended warranty (if they give one) at this stage ?

I don't think you can buy any warranty for a 2009 car.

Why don't you share details about the repairs that have been recommended by the dealer?

[niruvrs9669]

The car is regularly serviced at the same workshop to the best of my knowledge except for one Hyderabad visit for engine strut replacement.

Attached the repairs bill.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

The car is regularly serviced at the same workshop to the best of my knowledge except for one Hyderabad visit for engine strut replacement.

Attached the repairs bill.

I can break this down to few categories:

Regular maintenance items:
Brakes, tires, wipers, batteries, etc.

The prices are reasonable and I am sure you should be able to take a call to skip/defer some of these jobs. It is also possible to get these jobs from outside - especially tires, battery, wipers, A/C, etc.

Body work like mirror replacement: Again you can take a call on this as it is not super critical.

Engine related like glow plug control modules: Have you faced any issues or is it something preventive being suggested?

Air Suspension compressor: Has it failed?

Suspension control arms: Facing any issues other than mild suspension noise, etc.?

Steering: This seems to be biggest expense - what problems are you facing?

My general approach is to recognise that it is an old car and better to live with problems that are not critical and defer/spread the service costs over a period of time. Also don't leave the car with the garage while waiting for parts unless it's a couple of days.

If you share more details about the problems you are facing warrant these expensive repairs, you might get more helpful suggestions from fellow members.

[niruvrs9669]

@androdev,

Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback.

Yes, that's exactly the same approach I'm going with, critical fixes and live with the rest .

Steering assembly replacement was deferred as it only leads to leakage of steering oil. I was told to top up the steering oil periodically to avoid immediate replacement.

The air compressor makes a lot of noise on ignition, but the noise disappears after the air suspension levels are checked. I could live with it, but went ahead with replacement. The 4 air sacks were found to be alright.

I was told that the existing external Amron battery installed in the car could fail the control units at times as sufficient power wouldn't be provided as per the input parameters of the said control units. Hence replacing it, along with curiously missing auxiliary battery. These two items I'm going with Merc to avoid future electrical issues.

I've deferred the tyres, wipers, break pads and discs until next service due in 3000 km. Not replacing the mirror now, it just has the indicator cover broken.

Suspension control arms, actually no issue with it. They showed me a worn out Bush of lower control arm, but they don't replace the Bush, as it comes as a package with the lower control arms - which come in left and right pairs only ! . Quite a steal that. So not doing anything now.

Control units - one for rear San as the entire rear light assembly isn't been working except for one bottom right break light and right turn indicator. I thought it's risky to drive the car this way for long, hence getting the same replaced along with bulbs as applicable.

Engine related glow plug module, no issues faced but I was told to get this changed. I will check with them on the fault noted ! Thanks for pointing this out.

Will share more info tomorrow as I've scheduled a workshop visit. Thanks a ton for your valuable support and suggestions.

[Merc_Freak]

UPDATE: A week after I contacted the T&T guys, I got a call back from them and they asked why I hadn't gotten the battery from them yet. I told them that the price they were quoting was almost double the market price and that i'm their regular customer since my family has bought 6 cars in the past 5 years from them. So they told me that they will send their mechanic to my house for a checkup of the battery and if it needs to be replaced, they will try their best to match the market price. The mechanic came the next day, did a brief checkup and told me that the battery needs to be replaced. This time around they quoted 24K. After a few negotiations I brought them down to 21K and my car was promptly taken to the workshop, new battery installed, and delivered back to my house the next day. The battery they installed was the same Varta battery with same voltage. Thank you to all bhpians for their valuable advice.

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

@
Suspension control arms, actually no issue with it. They showed me a worn out Bush of lower control arm, but they don't replace the Bush, as it comes as a package with the lower control arms - which come in left and right pairs only ! . Quite a steal that. So not doing anything now.
.

I would be careful with suspension components. Your first priority should be safety, not cost. If the bush is worn more than Mercedes specification allows, you might want to reconsider. This worn bush will start to affect your handling and possibly also cause uneven wear on your tires.

I would check with a regular shop. All these components can be replaced individually. Not sure how diificult it would be to get hold of it in India.

On my W123 the upper steering knuckle is part of the steering knuckle assembly and Mercedes will only sell the complete assembly at Euro 850,—.

I am about to replace just the steering knuckle, which I can buy online from any number of outlets. I paid less than Euro 15 for it. Another reason you will not see me buy a brand new Mercedes.

[niruvrs9669]

Originally Posted by androdev

Engine related like glow plug control modules: Have you faced any issues or is it something preventive being suggested?

If you share more details about the problems you are facing warrant these expensive repairs, you might get more helpful suggestions from fellow members.

@androdev,
Just coming back from the workshop. I got a call this morning saying that the required parts have arrived, which generally takes 2-3 weeks. I was surprised !

The rear San - control unit was replaced, few bulbs need to be fixed as well which will be done. They showed me the San which was removed that had some 'fungal' growth on it. I'm going to take the old San back with me for some analysis .

The air compressor unit was replaced, which supposedly has 2 parts but they have replaced the main part saving me about Rs.17000.

There was no issue with the engine glow plug control unit, but for the warning sign that pops on ignition. So they aren't replacing it this time.

Will get the car back tomorrow, Shall post a general feedback after my test drives.

******************

While I was at the workshop, few good looking red GLCs and a white hip hop GLE edition 3 L were parked on the side. Hopped into the new hip hop GLE which had a classy interiors trim with some 27 interior color modes .

I was shocked to hear that the OTR is 1.30 Cr* for the new GLE. This brought a smile as I walked back to my SUV which looked much more stylish with the rear mounted spare. Now I'm planning to spend a bit more in installments to totally fix my car up. That shift in my perspective after seeing the new car .

[androdev]

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

I was shocked to hear that the OTR is 1.30 Cr* for the new GLE. This brought a smile as I walked back to my SUV which looked much more stylish with the rear mounted spare. Now I'm planning to spend a bit more in installments to totally fix my car up. That shift in my perspective after seeing the new car .

I know right, the new car prices in Bangalore have gone bonkers. Hard to justify to pay 1cr just to upgrade to the newer version of the same segment car unless one is very keen on being seen in the latest. For a discerning driver, few things have actually gone backwards in newer cars (speed beeps, auto start stop, downsized engines, no spare tire, etc.).