[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Deeps @ May 14 2004,19:18)]How come the labor charges are so high when everything they do is done with the help of sophisticated mahinery and laptops...All the mechanics,ucually, have to do is just press some buttons and knobs. *How much manual labor is involved in regular servicing?

Hey Deeps,

Well if you look again, the labour charge has been stated for cleaning the injectors & changing all the lubes, whic cant be done by pressing a button...yet
Manual labour is involved for these two things, but the rates they are charging are what is questionable.

cya
R

ps - GTO dyu get mobil1 @Rs 250 or 450 per litre? If you convert directly from $s its <250Rs, but i seem to remember u saying Rs450/Lt right?

[Aditya]

Price of a 5L can of good grade engine oil is about Rs. 450/-. I paid Rs. 432/- for a 5L can of Elf recently.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ] GTO dyu get mobil1 @Rs 250 or 450 per litre? If you convert directly from $s its <250Rs, but i seem to remember u saying Rs450/Lt right?

Yes, I used to source 1 liter of Mobil 1 at 450, but the prices have now shot up to 500/Liter. The MRP on the box is 700 though.

GTO

[GTO]

Update!

Mercedes should be ready from service soon. Heres the details on my bill:

1. 2800 - Labor to Clean fuel injectors Absolutely necessary
2. 5530 - 7 liters Mobil 1 I could have got the oil cheaper but didnt have the time to get the transaction done. Again a necessity.
3. 799 - Oil filter Mandatory with the oil change
4. 185 - Shampoo Well.....
5. 1061 - Brake oil Specified change by Merc
6. 960 - Coolant Special coolant here, and radiator flush is mandatory
7. 1919 - Air filter - Required
5674 - A/c filter It was used beyond the point of return. Paper material had almost shredded
8. 5544 - Fuel filter Required
9. 1336 - Fuel hose Has to be changed with the fuel filter
10. 300 - Clips
11. 4200 - Labor for changing lubes and filters. Cant argue much on fixed labour charges
12. 8000 - Brake pads This is the only area I didnt go with Autohangar. THey checked, pads are still good...obviously. Wonder what transpires with other C's though.

Total...about 30 grand.

GTO

[Revvmaster]

Hmm... so if u havent changed the pads, its around 22 k. Relatively better but still quite a bit on the steep side. GTO, just for knowledge sake, how much would it have cost if u'd have done it from a Mercedes specialist (non-mercedes service station)? Did u take any estimate?

Revv

[GTO]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Hmm... so if u havent changed the pads, its around 22 k

Nope. Total 30 grand without brake pads. 38 with them.

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ] GTO, just for knowledge sake, how much would it have cost if u'd have done it from a Mercedes specialist (non-mercedes service station)? Did u take any estimate?

Surprisingly, the replacement parts are much cheaper at unauthorised Merc specialists than at the AutoHangar. But I didnt contemplate it as a 2nd service elsewhere would void my warranty up.

GTO

[anshu12420]

hay thats really too much thats only for the the mercedes brand logo and there is no point changign disc pads so soon they much last atleast 25k kms ,disc pads in b segement cars like palio and indica last for around 50k kms,thats a shame for mercedes

[Kinetik]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (anshuman @ May 26 2004,16:42)]hay thats really too much thats only for the the mercedes brand logo and there is no point changign disc pads so soon they much last atleast 25k kms ,disc pads in b segement cars like palio and indica last for around 50k kms,thats a shame for mercedes

well maybe merc brake pads can "LAST" for around 50K's but wudnt they diminish in performance.. wudnt there be more brake pedal travel..etc *i mean maybe there's a difference between using ur pads *till they disentigrate and using ur pads till they stop giving u 100% efficiency , i guess merc doesnt want to compromise on the later..and wants to be on the safer side... *if the owner wishes not to then its his call ,, but lol its still kinda expensive

[Rtech]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Kinetik @ May 26 2004,18:13)]well maybe merc brake pads can "LAST" for around 50K's but wudnt they diminish in performance.. wudnt there be more brake pedal travel..etc *

No, there should not be any change in pedal travel. Thats the good thing about hydraulic disc brakes, they are self adjusting. Not like the rear brake on my bike, which needs manual adjustment every other week!

And Merc specifying a change of pads at just 16,000Km's is only to allow dealers to make some money! It should have said "dealers to CHECK wear on pads"!

Guess they don't get too many people like GTO who actually pay attention to the car and what they charge, forget about actually knowing what should be done!

GTO, the dealer must be cursing you !

[Jaggu]

injector cleaning?? is it mandatory?? at 20K Kms?? AC filter again, polen filters i assume, unless in very dusty condition? Pads if wear is within limits, spare it, and u can spare the labour+brake fluid also..

and there are couple of real neat Merc trained guys who have all the elctronic goodies who can do the job for loads cheaper.. yup u might be loosing on warranty.. i have a friend who has 3 mercs and often frequents Singapore just to get the spares, he claims better quality and loads cheaper too

then again if u can own one.. why not pay the bill and put in car maintanence expense lol ..

[Jaggu]

sorry havnt faced this issue of mandatory injector cleaning in any cars till now, hence the question.. is it mentioned in the service book? and do they have cleaning machines? My ford experience was very simple.. they removed the injector (clogged coz the car was lying unused for 6 months) dumped it and put a new one cost 8k for two he he

but they advice using cleaning fluid for our indian petrol.. which again has kinda not needed coz almost all the high octanes new bres have fuel additives for this..

[GTO]

Yes Jaggu, cleaning the injectors is mandatory at the 2nd service as specified by Mercedes Benz.

As a rule, the cars in my house dont visit unauthorised service stations for the first 5 years of their life. So, me contemplating another outlet for the Merc is out of the question right now...also in tune with keeping the warranty intact.

Let me tell you why I want to keep the warranty intact. Recently the air-con blower was changing its speed intermittently. Now this is supposed to happen in automatic mode, but it was even in the manual. A check got out a faulty evaporator and allied fittings. Cost to repair outside of the warranty? A Cool 75 grand. Am I glad my car is yet within the protection period.

GTO

[Jaggu]

u bet i go with warranty part, better if u can hook up an extended warranty esp with these exp cars..

[adityapd]

hey GTO,

i'm also facing a problem similar to the one faced by you . Recently i've observed that the aircon blower in my carb. esteem is changing its speed intermittently.

Any idea, what could be the reason ?

~A

[Jaggu]

esteem, just check the wiring and electricals, it aint automated stuff like merc..pure electrical probs here with maybe some stuff stuck inside the blower..