Need buying advice: Lexus ES300h vs Mercedes GLC vs others

Looking for peace of mind in after sales service. Coming from owning Japanese and Korean cars, I get cranky if vehicles are not serviced well or over billed (had a few cases with some American owned cars) and if the driving pleasure is not the same post servicing.

BHPian ravimittal99 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hi Bhpians,

This is my first post here, so excited as well as scared of the moderators screening this post.

I am looking to buy my first premium luxury car in the price range of Rs. 50 to 70 lakhs and with months of research zeroed in on a few models, but unable to decide. Maybe Bhpians can pitch in and help make a better informed decision.

Currently own:

• Honda City petrol automatic: I use this with driving about 600 kms per month.
• Hyundai Verna, Innova: These are primarily used by family.

(A typical Japanese, Korean mix of cars without much hassle on maintenance of these)

What I'm looking for:

• Badge value of owning a premium luxury car.
• Peace of mind in after sales service. Coming from owning Japanese and Korean cars, I get cranky if vehicles are not serviced well or over billed (had a few cases with some American owned cars) and if the driving pleasure is not the same post servicing.
• Features which would wow me for quite a few years and wouldn't feel dated.
• Interiors which don't rattle while driving thanks to my liking for a quiet cabin interior (been pampered in Honda cars).
• Safety. Assuming cars in these segments and ranges are usually high on safety.
• I am not specific for a sedan or SUV and anything is fine with me.

What I have ruled out:

• All Audi cars: I find their design very plain. While they have the best features, it fails to excite me.
• All BMW cars: Loved the driving pleasure but I am scared of their maintenance costs having seen so many people talk about the issues in BMWs.
• All Jaguar and Land Rovers: I have heard from people who owned these cars about maintenance and parts issues so this becomes a big no for me.
• All Volvo cars: I don't like their design.

What I'd like to choose from (sorry but this is not really an apples to apples comparison, but my choices are quite varied):

Lexus ES300h:

What I loved:

• The drive. Pretty smooth and comfortable.
• Loved the way the salesman explained most features and sounded genuine.
• The after sales reliability of Lexus and Toyota (after having read through all the pages of this post. Hats off to V.Narayan sir for such a splendid post).
• Ventilated seats for front and back passengers.
• Seat recliners at the back.
• Spacious and ample leg room.
• Looks huge and love the exterior of the car.
• Heads up display.
• Card key.

What I didn't like:

• Not enough customizations on instrument cluster.
• The feel of a non-tech savvy car.
• The old style gear. Doesn't feel luxury.
• Doesn't have a panoramic sunroof. Just has a moon roof.
• CD player! But why?

Mercedes GLC 200:

What I loved:

• Badge value of Mercedes.
• Full digital instrument cluster and MBUX.
• Panoramic sunroof.
• Looks elegant.

What I didn't like:

• Honestly, I find the drive very ordinary (Have also drive my sister's GLC Coupe and felt it was quite like my Honda City. Sorry please don't judge me on this. The drive just didn't excite me).
• Worry about their after sales service, parts reliability and over billing having read so much in the forums here of first time owners having issues with their new ones (despite the fact that I can take their service maintenance packages).
• Not as spacious as the Lexus.
• Feel the interiors can rattle after sometime.

Mercedes A-Class sedan:

What I loved:

• Badge value of Mercedes.
• The looks and sleek design.
• Full digital instrument cluster and MBUX.
• Panoramic sunroof.

What I didn't like:

• Not sure how much of a 'A 220' badge will bring a brand value while spending approximately Rs. 50 lakh OTR.
• Lack of space in rear seating.
• Didn't find any (except 1) A-Class on roads here in Hyderabad.
• Sharing the same engine as Nissan Kicks (I haven't test driven this car yet, so my views are simple based on this assumption that the ride quality will be just ok. Mayne Bhpians can tell more).
• Worry about their after sales service.

So I'd like to choose between Lexus or Mercedes primarily and between the ES300h, GLC, A-Class or any other Mercedes (GLA, E Class if you may).

Having not realized, the choices are many when it comes to luxury cars, knowing you can spend in the rage of Rs. 50-70 lakhs and this has got me more confused. Hoping to see your valuable inputs coming in.

Here's what BHPian akash_v12 had to say on the matter:

I'll be honest with you, go and take a look at the BMWs. The 5 Series, 3 LWB or even the X3. They offer exactly what you want in terms of value for money and service.

I'm also going to recommend looking at the Volvos. After all, you spend more time inside than the outside.

Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:

If you're looking at absolute peace-of-the-mind, nothing like a Lexus (or its sibling, the Camry). Top notch reliability backed up by top notch after-sales service.

Among the luxury brands, a close 2nd would be BMW. The brand's reliability is surprisingly strong, after-sales is satisfactory, the cars are generally better priced than the Lexus range and most importantly, they are a LOT of fun to drive. Get the extended warranty and you're all set.

Test-drive between these two brands and you'll be fine. Akash's suggestion of the BMW models is spot on.

Here's what BHPian androdev had to say on the matter:

I feel you won't go wrong with any of these three brands in India: Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. If you consider first 6 years and 1 lakh km, there is no clear winner among these three bands in reliability and total cost of ownership.

Purchase price: Similar.

Insurance costs: Similar.

Scheduled service and running costs: Mercedes > BMW > Lexus (but the variation in 6 years/1L km would not be more than 1-2L max). People tend to make a big deal out of it but the actual savings are paltry. IMHO, this is inconsequential for this budget category cars and borders on penny-wise pound-foolish.

Failures and unscheduled visits: No catastrophic failures are expected within 6y/1L km in any of these three brands. Lexus would certainly be more confidence inspiring in this department. However you are advised to take full extended warranty for any brand you buy which closes the gap between different brands.

Downtime due to unscheduled visits/accidents, etc.: Mercedes-Benz would have the best turn around times due to better logistics. Lexus would have fewer instances of such visits in the first place. Most owners in this category are likely to have multiple cars at home so I wouldn't give too much importance to this. I doubt any owner would have a downtime more than 20-30 days in a span of first 6 years.

Long term ownership, high mileage and resale value: It has to be Lexus. Single-owner well-maintained BMW/MBs also tend to be trouble free for many years but certainly not as consistent as Lexus.

I don't have a lot of familiarity with other brands, so I have not included them in my post.

As you have observed, there is no car that offers everything. My post is meant to reassure you that if your ownership time frame is 6yrs/1L km - you can pretty much buy the car that offers what you want the most from it - Prestige, comfort, bullet-proof reliability, driving pleasure, great interiors, etc.

My favourite car in this segment is the BMW 530i, however I seem to be jinxed and never managed to convince anyone to buy it on this forum. That doesn't stop me from trying though. Lol. Take a test drive and drive it hard.

Here's what BHPian lamborghini had to say on the matter:

Completely agree with you regarding BMW, but in Mumbai the Lexus service isn't as good as BMW or Mercedes; mainly because you're in a Toyota dealership and not a full fledged Lexus set up that seems to be there in some cities like Delhi.

That being said it varies from city to city as my last experience with Mercedes too has left me underwhelmed after the dealership changed owners.

Downtime really depends on parts availability. My experience has been similar with Mercedes being the quickest at arranging for parts.

20-30 days and more is possible too depending on what parts need to be replaced.

But at the same time the maintenance of our BMWs have always been lower than

the Mercedes counterpart: E60 vs W211, F30 vs W205. The newer Mercs seem to be more rattle prone, and not built to the same standards as the previous generation.

Similarly routine maintenance at Mercedes has always been higher than BMW. Just the gearbox oil which has to be changed every 4 years on Mercedes along with a routine service saw near 6 figure bill.

Do go through this thread, which could give more pointers.

I would urge you to consider the two brands you've ignored. The A6 interiors are in my opinion a very nice place to be in, the exteriors will age well. Maintenance isn't great because of poor service quality but look out for extended warranty plans .

I found the build to also feel like it would last better than Mercedes in terms of rattles.

Enough has been said about the BMW. plus they have excellent service and warranty packages as well. Yes, hydrolocking is an issue so if you drive in areas known for flooding, you may want to rethink
but I found the interiors held up better than Mercedes though not as well as the Audi.

Right now prices are high due to limited inventory but wait a few months and enquire again in Jan to see what stock clearance discounts are being offered.

The 3 Series has more legroom and is easier to drive, but the 5 series will be more planted and a better highway cruiser.

I'd stick to choosing between these 3 brands (Lexus being the third).

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.