[ajmat]

Originally Posted by androdev

3. Repair costs are ridiculous even if you consider this is a fancy car. I was expecting 50K for the DRL + chrome strip + labour. One parking sensor on the right came loose and I wanted them to fix it in place. Due to GST, their systems were down so I got just verbal estimate as follows:
Bumper: ~90K (just the part excl paint etc.)
DRL: ~40K (For comparison I had to change rear tail lamp 2 years back it was 35K, surprised DRL is this expensive, could be weak rupee)
Chrome strip: ~20K
Parking sensor: ~10K (I told him the sensor is fine, just fix it in place but he was "no saar... it is old part, xyz is loose, etc.)
Plastic trim: ~10K (There was a crack on a plastic piece that sits as a buffer between radiator and bumper)
With labour, I am looking at ~2.5L

So basically great car, great build, etc. but extremely thoughtless and needlessly expensive service support.

To be continued...

You could probably fly to the UK, get these parts from the UK from a breaker and save a lakh!

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by androdev

This incident captures the entire essence of owning a car like Mercedes in India.

1. It is a great highway car. Kids and wife hardly knew what happened except for the hard braking. Mercedes brakes might be as effective as others but the driver feel is less assuring than say BMW. BMW feels as if a fighter plane is landing on an aircraft carrier. While the passengers don't panic in Mercedes, the driver certainly wants more feel (possibly effectiveness) from the car.

2. The car build is excellent. It was a pretty serious collision. There is no paint damage. Damages include: DRL works but it's chrome extension is broken. Minor hairline crack (about 1 inch) in the bumper. Small piece of bottom chrome liner broke. You can see the Left Vs Right here:
Attachment 1654755

3. Repair costs are ridiculous even if you consider this is a fancy car. I was expecting 50K for the DRL + chrome strip + labour. One parking sensor on the right came loose and I wanted them to fix it in place. Due to GST, their systems were down so I got just verbal estimate as follows:
Bumper: ~90K (just the part excl paint etc.)
DRL: ~40K (For comparison I had to change rear tail lamp 2 years back it was 35K, surprised DRL is this expensive, could be weak rupee)
Chrome strip: ~20K
Parking sensor: ~10K (I told him the sensor is fine, just fix it in place but he was "no saar... it is old part, xyz is loose, etc.)
Plastic trim: ~10K (There was a crack on a plastic piece that sits as a buffer between radiator and bumper)
With labour, I am looking at ~2.5L

So basically great car, great build, etc. but extremely thoughtless and needlessly expensive service support.

To be continued...

Been there done that. I ran up similar bill for a dog hit accident in my X3. But the damage was or atleast looked more substantial. The problem is once you have to 'replace' its all the same. That's why we have insurance. Think of it as return on investment.

Accidents are always dangerous. High speed + hard braking/ Swerving = lots of potentially dangerous possibilities. I'll take the bumper cracks and replacements 10 out of 10 times.

[androdev]

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." - Pablo Picasso

I have the necessary insurance (uber expensive covers everything sold by Mercedes themselves) but I did not see this case to be fit for such a big bill.

Sorry about the instalments, busy days shuffling between work, family errands and garage.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by androdev

This incident captures the entire essence of owning a car like Mercedes in India.

Not sure if you have some warranty package which you don't want to risk but you can actually try seeing if it can be done outside of Mercedes dealership.

You can try contacting fellow member Nirmal (nirmaljusdoit) who runs a detailing service (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/banga...bangalore.html (Exterior & Interior Detailing : Keystone Enterprises (Bangalore))).

Nirmal specializes in high end cars detailing like pretty much most of the supercars (ferrari, porsche, Lambos) in Bangalore. Some of his customers come to him for body work and he arranges parts and undertakes the work.

I got my altis rear quarter panel done by him as well as both my cars detailing.

You can try contacting him and see if he can help out in this case and the difference in price. Might be worth considering for such a small low risk damage.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by ajmat

You could probably fly to the UK, get these parts from the UK from a breaker and save a lakh!

Well said.

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Been there done that. ..... That's why we have insurance. Think of it as return on investment.

Your experience was the first thing that came to my mind when it happened My guess is your car has newer pedestrian protection design. This car being a 2007-ish design, the bumper is made to last. When I removed the bumper and saw the inside of it I was impressed, the materials are stronger, has a stronger lining behind and has foam pads to prevent flex.


Given that it is 5+ year old car, it doesn't bother me a lot to live with a tiny crack on the bumper. Also it is almost certain they will mess up the pain job, its very hard to colour match aged panels.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Not sure if you have some warranty package which you don't want to risk but you can actually try seeing if it can be done outside of Mercedes dealership.

No coverage, prefer A.S.S. to keep things simple.

You can try contacting fellow member Nirmal..

I know Nirmal personally but I thought he only does detailing, didn't know he has bodyshop. I have a soft commitment with the dealer this time but I will contact him to see what services he offers. Thanks for the info, he is someone I can trust.

Just a quick update:
The reason I got the car back from the dealer was I felt they are being too casual in piling up the estimate. Their list of parts is valid but except DRL and Chrome strip all else is an overkill. The red-flag was when the service guy said he needs to order a new parking sensor, that's when I realised they are just making a list without using their brains. I was 100% sure, it just needs re-seating.

I removed the bumper and everything looks good. Nothing that warrants a replacement (definitely don't want a repaint when the paint is in perfect condition). Mercedes has stupid design for parking sensor mount, it is held in place by the adhesive tape which partially came off in my car and the sensor was dangling.


I applied some fevikwik and stuck the mount back in place and it is all good now. I am going to tell the dealer to order DRL (40K) and Chrome strip (20K) and thats about it.

Here is another one of my past projects

[GTO]

Originally Posted by androdev

Spot the damages and guess how much was the estimate from A.S.S

Originally Posted by ecenandu

The damage is near the right hand side fog lamp area and since it is a Merc, 1.5 lakhs INR for the repair.

Hat's off Ecenandu. And your post was in less than 10 minutes!

Originally Posted by androdev

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." - Pablo Picasso

In my 20 years of following the Indian car scene, you are the only S-Class owner I know who'd do this kind of DIY .

Originally Posted by androdev

I am going to tell the dealer to order DRL (40K) and Chrome strip (20K) and thats about it.

Why don't you order it yourself? GSF Car Parts.

[sooraj.naik]

I recently rear ended a taxi in Dubai. The car started throwing service park assist system error. One of the front sensors was broken and a minor crack in the bumper. As usual, A.S.S quoted me the bill of 5,000 AED for the repair. I didn't want to claim the insurance.

Approached an FNG and got to know the sensor was broken. A new sensor set me back by 18$ and 25$ shipping charge. The sensor was painted one which saved me from major headache of getting it painted. The sensor was fitted in flat 10 min, and the fitting charge was 20 AED.

[asw]

I told him the sensor is fine, just fix it in place but he was "no saar... it is old part, xyz is loose, etc.

I thought only Chevrolet SVC in chennai does that. They change even good parts. But in an hurry I too have to say ok for it.

No wonder why Chevy left India. Now I have to keep my Cruze baby as an vintage and buy another car.

[AbhiJ]

Originally Posted by androdev

I am going to tell the dealer to order DRL (40K) and Chrome strip (20K) and thats about it.

Attachment 1654912

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/For-...c-7f3c9854433f

[androdev]

Originally Posted by AbhiJ

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/For-...c-7f3c9854433f

Not comfortable plugging in any non-OEM electrical parts into the car. I am prepared to pay the dealer prices, no issues. I just want them to replace only what is necessary but I guess that's too much expect from a company that operates from a facility of few acres in the central business district They will make more money even if they turn the dealership into a car parking lot.

[androdev]

Which one to buy? Both will be 19". No other suggestions please, I feel this car will look good only with classic multi spoke or 5-spoke.

[Turbanator]

No other suggestions please

Looks you need a new Car

I feel this car will look good only with classic multi spoke

To me, classic ones on top will go better.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

Looks you need a new Car

My status has changed to struggling entrepreneur

To me, classic ones on top will go better.

That's my preference too. My 7 year old said blah so wanted do a quick sanity check

[agambhandari]

Originally Posted by androdev

Which one to buy? Both will be 19". No other suggestions please, I feel this car will look good only with classic multi spoke or 5-spoke.

Get the classic multi spoke ones. The other ones are AMG style and look best on the ML and GL

[androdev]

Just an update on the repair. Since the DRL is working fine and only the trim is broken I ordered Chinese DRLs from Aliexpress. Think I paid 16K for a pair (there was no option to buy a single piece) including customs (~41%).

My plan was to use my current DRL with the trim from Chinese clone. I ended up swapping only the chrome trim and it was a successful transplant.

During surgery:


After transplant (red box item is the broken chrome strip):


Was feeling good about myself until I realised the chrome trim itself has a part number, so all I had to do was order this chrome trim off from somewhere for Rs 3K + shipping and duty

Few lessons learned:
1. The Chinese replica was a good match, I was very skeptical. But the quality is very poor compared to the OEM. I knew I won't be using the actual DRL but only the trim so it was a good decision but any parts that are functional better to stick to OEM.

2. Always research the part numbers and look for the smallest part that needs replacing. If I was a bit smart enough to disassemble the DRL before ordering the full DRLs, I would have figured out that I need only the chrome trim part.

3. EMS (speed post) shipping was fast and efficient. I was called and informed about the duty and was asked to pay cash on delivery.