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Why is the dealer offering me a free 'Mercedes-Me' adaptor

With the 'Mercedes Me' adapter being offered free, I can’t help but think about the possible ways it can benefit the company.

BHPian Sanidhya mukund recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I had recently sent my 2013 Mercedes C200 for a major service to Global Star, an authorised Mercedes Benz dealership. While my car was there, they told me about an offer- a little device called the ‘Mercedes Me Adapter’ is being offered for free.

I had agreed for the installation, but due to a sudden change of plan, my car wasn’t available on the planned date of appointment. When I told them the same, they were kind enough to reschedule my appointment. They further went ahead and offered me doorstep installation!

Now this obviously sounds like a reason to be thrilled, but on the contrary, it began ringing some bells in my mind.

  • Why are Mercedes-Benz offering a device worth 6-7k for free?
  • Why is the dealer going the extra mile by offering doorstep installation?

Here’s a bit of info on what exactly the Mercedes Me adapter is (info received from the dealer):

The *Mercedes me Adapter* is a device which is inserted into the diagnostic socket of the vehicle and subsequently connects to the smartphone by Bluetooth®️. In this way, it is possible to read out information from the vehicle. A range of safety, service and mobility functions can be used via the Mercedes me Adapter app.

Information about the current vehicle status: fuel level, mileage, parking location and time.

Vehicle health

The vehicle health section displays all vehicle data and context-sensitive feed in order to provide you the most relevant features viz. oil level, coolant temperature etc. at fingertips. It also reflects overall condition of the vehicle, malfunctions, if any in the vehicle with a short description within the app.

Driver score

The app records driving behaviour of driver and generates an automated driver score depending on braking and acceleration behaviour. The higher the score the better the driving behaviour!

Preferred dealer

Choose and set your preferred service dealer partner. Connect with them via email or call directly via the app.

App based

Connected car features available on the Adapter app. convenient user interface with seamless integration on Android and iOS operating systems.

Emergency call system

Emergency number is available in the app. Depending on the smartphone settings, Customer and vehicle details are transferred to the call centre for quick assistance

Roadside breakdown management

Roadside assistance numbers are available in the app and that you can now connect directly with the Roadside assistance call centre for quicker response.

Multiple vehicle management

You can connect with multiple cars through single Adapter app on their smartphone.

Parked vehicle locator

The vehicle locator is automatically activated at the end of each journey and the app detects and saves this as the parking location. The location on the map as well as address is indicated on the app.

Service reminder

You can receives timely reminders for scheduled services in app and from his preferred dealer for a seamless workshop experience.

Dealer locator

You can locate the nearest dealer no. matter where he is in India.

Online appointment booking

Booking a service appointment has never been this easy! Book a service appointment directly via the app.

Now, being totally honest, I don’t see too much utility in there. At best, it is an interesting toy to fiddle around with. At first, it seems as if it’s a no brainier- it is being offered free, they'll come to your house and install it for free and you also get a fun toy. No reason not to go for it, then. But wait!

I remember a line that my marketing professor had once quoted, “Everything is free when YOU are the product.”

What this basically means is that a business organisation wouldn’t give you too many freebies unless they get something in return. As an example, we are able to use social media for free because we give them something that is very, very valuable nowadays-personal data.

With the Mercedes Me adapter being offered free, I can’t help but think about the possible ways it can benefit the company. The overly suspicious and naive part of me is scared that this adapter, plugged into my OBD scanner can be used to remotely wreak havoc in my cars electrical systems. The very thought of an MNC doing this to its customers worldwide is ridiculous, but is something that is theoretically doable nonetheless.

The more rational part of me believes that obviously, Merc is getting some data out of it. Reading their terms and conditions, I couldn’t find anything that would raise an alarm, but I am being suspicious nevertheless.

My questions to the experts are:

  1. Are my suspicions reasonable?
  2. Should I get this thing installed? It comes for free but I don’t see any utility in it.

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

I don't think that would ever be on their radar. However I do recall that Apple used to slow down older iPhone over updates in order to handle the aged batteries.

One way to put it is that they are collecting data. A Mercedes owner is a consumer with higher purchasing power. Also it could help them in their research or study for future vehicle development. Another reason or supporting cause could be to future proof the car. Most new cars come with connected technology these days and this device might help those who require such features in their older cars.

If you don't see any utility in it don't go for it. But I have to advise you that whether you like it or not, all new cars are connected these days. So any new car purchase will likely see that your data is collected.

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

The main motive is market research, for which you are the unknowing guinea pig. They also offered the same to me when I took my car for a service last year.

Basically, the OBD device will collect data about your usage pattern, driving style, etc. Mercedes will collect information from a large pool of customers. Using this, they can figure out patterns in the data which would give them an insight into preferences which are common among their customers. They can then use this knowledge to tweak what features and services they offer to future buyers.
By giving you this OBD device for free, they are saved the expense of hiring market research firms such as Nielsen and Gartner to conduct surveys and collect the exact same data. This way, they get the data for free.

For the customer, it offers a semi-connected car experience where you can see various parameters about your car such as fuel level, overall condition, location, etc.

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

Agreed with the comments on market research & Mercedes getting free data. What Mercedes can do with that data? Well, the possibilities are endless. Know how owners are using their cars, the data could support an in-house insurance arm, approve / reject warranty claims when fitted on newer cars, reliability data etc.

But it could also be free for the initial 1 - 3 years and once you get hooked onto it, Mercedes will tell you "here's an annual fee of xxxx rupees for continuing to use it". Think of this as a free trial period.

Or just that Mercedes ended up with excess stock and is practically giving them away instead of junking them.

Quick Googling shows Mercedes offered them for free in the UK too - one of many links.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

 
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