[GregL]

Originally Posted by danno

Won't you be spending more than $450 the first time your MB needs servicing? ... unlike BMW where the service is free. My GF's Mercedes ran over $700 for her first service.

I know that the OP is in the US, but here in Canada BMW only covers oil and filter, I have to pay for everything else just like I do at Mercedes, except when I go to the latter I receive the absolute best treatment a service department can give. As of this week I defected from the service department at my BMW dealer of purchase and am going to give a different location a shot, not happy at all.

[ironic]

my bmw has been good to me, sorry to hear

[dmboone25]

Bye-bye.

[TurboFan]

Originally Posted by agentf1

Well after my first service experience I have to say I am sorry I bought a BMW 335i from Otto's BMW and will be going back to driving Mercedes. Something told me I should have just bought a CLK but this cinched the deal. The neighbors all bought MB's after we got ours and were debating on switching after we did but I will advise them not to as well.

I only have a few thousand miles on the car and have never hit anything other than normal road bumps and developed a bubble in the sidewall of a tire. You can see there was NO trama at all, not even a slight scuff and they want to charge me 450 bucks for a new tire. At MB they ALWAYS covered everything even when it was clear that they shouldn't have. They fixed a scratched seat that was obviously our fault. I guess you live and learn. I did love the car other than the hour wait to be waited on when dropping it off for service despite my appointment, a filthy Explorer as a loaner (MB always gave me a clean MB and even dropped it off and picked my car up) and then being raped for a tire that is obviously a manufactures defect.

Old well, I guess my MB salesman will be happy.

Sorry, but had to vent on somebody.

Everything you've said is related to the dealer, not the manufacturer. I can site examples of everything you've said, but reverse MB and BMW. Look for a different dealer. I agree you shouldn't pay for the tire. Your dealer is a putz.

[Gnarz310]

the new 300 series are really sick

[Majikthese42]

Originally Posted by cars4lyfe

Believe it or not, Honda treats their customers better than some bmw dealers

Porsche too!

($90k, and the warranty doesn't cover lightbulbs???)

You're right about Honda --- we have several and the best part is you almost never need to bring them back to the dealer!)

[Kev]

Go get a Lexus if you care about dealer service and not the driving experience. I've had both MB and BMW and I can honestly say that service for both suck! Good luck with your MB and pray that your 7G-tronic does not break down if you decided to get a CLK

[jhilsinho]

LOL
Very interesting take (real) on the subject

Originally Posted by retlod

LOL!

"I hate BMW cars because my 3rd party tire was defective and my dealership won't kiss my a$$ and replace it even though it's not under warranty and I didn't buy tire insurance."

"Replacing the tire is so expensive, that I'd rather take thousands of dollars in depreciation up the butt and switch back to MB."

Okay, Mr. Logical, good luck to you and your neighbors.

[335Transformer]

Your Mercedes experience was unique. They are cheap pieces of junk. Never again will I own one.

[joeygott]

MERCEDES reliability has gone in the toilet the last few years. Not only have a heard it from owners, but look at CONSUMER REPORTS, and look at the CSI and the percentage of current owners that would buy one again. All well below BMW figures.
MB makes a beatiful car, but I think they started cost cutting to shuffle money over to Chrysler. I have no idea, but it's a FACT that their cars have gone way down hill when it comes to reliability. BEAUTIFUL cars though.
I too agree that most of your issues are DEALER related and not BMW related. Doesn't matter whether it's Rolls Royce, MB, BMW, or INFINITI, there are some bad dealers in the mix no matter.
LEXUS I would say would be the least likely to upset you, and make a very reliable car.
One other thing, MERCEDES resale value is also much lower than BMW.
Good luck either way,especially when comparing the 335.

[Ioman]

Originally Posted by agentf1

Well after my first service experience I have to say I am sorry I bought a BMW 335i from Otto's BMW and will be going back to driving Mercedes. Something told me I should have just bought a CLK but this cinched the deal. The neighbors all bought MB's after we got ours and were debating on switching after we did but I will advise them not to as well.

I only have a few thousand miles on the car and have never hit anything other than normal road bumps and developed a bubble in the sidewall of a tire. You can see there was NO trama at all, not even a slight scuff and they want to charge me 450 bucks for a new tire. At MB they ALWAYS covered everything even when it was clear that they shouldn't have. They fixed a scratched seat that was obviously our fault. I guess you live and learn. I did love the car other than the hour wait to be waited on when dropping it off for service despite my appointment, a filthy Explorer as a loaner (MB always gave me a clean MB and even dropped it off and picked my car up) and then being raped for a tire that is obviously a manufactures defect.

Old well, I guess my MB salesman will be happy.

Sorry, but had to vent on somebody.

Sorry to hear that you had a bad experience. I do agree that part of the overall experience of owning a car is the dealership that you bought/go to for service. I don't care if it's the best car in the world, if the dealership treats me poorly, I am not going to buy it.

The dealership will ALWAYS be a reflection of the car company IMO. I am sure that BMW does not want to hear complaints about one of their dealers.

If you are truly unhappy, file a complaint with the BBB, I would.

That being said, MB are way less reliable (according to the latest JD Powers survey, BMW made the top 10 suprisingly), costs more to maintain and generally score lower than BMW in most road tests. But if their dealership takes care of you, then go for it - they are doing what the BMW dealership SHOULD be doing. And one of these days BMW sales might be down, and they won't be able to afford to treat people as poorly as they do now.

I have been less than impressed with most BMW dealerships to be honest. I sure love their cars though!

[E90RWC]

MB is cool.

[John 070]

That was a funny post. What a shock when the 335 is worth less by about 8000 when he goes to trade it in. Then as the saying goes, over the tire, penny-wise and pound foolish. Though I do have to laugh about the Explorer loaner. What it is with those Phila. dealerships? Must be an unsophisticated clientele.

[e90fanatic]

Originally Posted by agentf1

Well after my first service experience I have to say I am sorry I bought a BMW 335i from Otto's BMW and will be going back to driving Mercedes. Something told me I should have just bought a CLK but this cinched the deal. The neighbors all bought MB's after we got ours and were debating on switching after we did but I will advise them not to as well.

I only have a few thousand miles on the car and have never hit anything other than normal road bumps and developed a bubble in the sidewall of a tire. You can see there was NO trama at all, not even a slight scuff and they want to charge me 450 bucks for a new tire. At MB they ALWAYS covered everything even when it was clear that they shouldn't have. They fixed a scratched seat that was obviously our fault. I guess you live and learn. I did love the car other than the hour wait to be waited on when dropping it off for service despite my appointment, a filthy Explorer as a loaner (MB always gave me a clean MB and even dropped it off and picked my car up) and then being raped for a tire that is obviously a manufactures defect.

Old well, I guess my MB salesman will be happy.

Sorry, but had to vent on somebody.

sorry...i have to vent as well....why do people associate tires with car make? you realize that BMW doesnt make tires? whether to cover the damage is sole discretion of BMWNA. They are NOT obligated to cover your damage. You might have hit something on the highway and you might have felt nothing. If you have a loaner offered, you should be grateful as well. I had to stick with 1998 Pontiac Sunfire with my previous car. But here, we get BRAND NEW BIMMERS. It's more of a dealer problem then BMWNA's fault. Get your facts straight...good luck with MB...

[karliejai]

MB fucking charges you an arm and a leg for everything... EVERY SINGLE LITTLE THING!

[Neema]

glad your leaving us, know why? BECAUSE ITS AS SIMPLE AS GOING TO A DIFFERENT DEALER FOR SERVICE. AND....BMW doesnt make the tires, so take your problems out with Bridgstone. Looks like your just trying to make an excuse to go back to MB. Have fun with a soggy riding, over priced, passion-less, flashy........mercedes :rocks:

[NeTWorKz]

Originally Posted by 3XTR3M3

ON top of all that, they put the window switches on the doors!!!!

SO TRUE SO TRUE!! That was so gay...

[Jonmartin]

Nothing Mercedes makes under $65K compares to a 3-series I should no I'm coming from a $125,000.00 CL55 AMG and I Barely miss it, I don't even miss the whole car just little things about it but considering the price difference thats pretty sad it's funny when people look at me all funny when I tell them what my last car was.And I either say well you had to be me to know why or I just let them think whatever they want depending on my mood.

[Neema]

Originally Posted by Jonmartin

Nothing Mercedes makes under $65K compares to a 3-series I should no I'm coming from a $125,000.00 CL55 AMG and I Barely miss it, I don't even miss the whole car just little things about it but considering the price difference thats pretty sad it's funny when people look at me all funny when I tell them what my last car was.And I either say well you had to be me to know why or I just let them think whatever they want depending on my mood.

makes perfect sense man, if your into a car and you appreciate it, then whatever it may be....go for it. I came from an S500 and an ML500 (ML's are jokes) and I dont miss a damn thing either, now we have 3 BMW's and going on 4 soon and im perfectly happy with that, though BMW electronics suck (iDrive).

[ShinyRedCar]

Originally Posted by Boost_Nation

glad your leaving us, know why? BECAUSE ITS AS SIMPLE AS GOING TO A DIFFERENT DEALER FOR SERVICE. AND....BMW doesnt make the tires, so take your problems out with Bridgstone. Looks like your just trying to make an excuse to go back to MB. Have fun with a soggy riding, over priced, passion-less, flashy........mercedes :rocks:

very constructive

[ENINTY]

I won't go into the BMW v.s. MB thing. But DIDN'T THE OP READ HIS WARRANTY BOOKLET THAT SAYS THAT THE ORIGINAL TIRES ON HIS CAR COME WITH A TIRE MANUFACTURE'S WARRANTY. If the tire wasn't damaged by abuse, a bubble in the sidewall should have been considered a defect and covered by the OEM tire manufacturer (Bridgestone I assume). All new cars come with an OEM tire warranty. Christ.

[Crimson92]

Originally Posted by Boost_Nation

glad your leaving us, know why? BECAUSE ITS AS SIMPLE AS GOING TO A DIFFERENT DEALER FOR SERVICE. AND....BMW doesnt make the tires, so take your problems out with Bridgstone. Looks like your just trying to make an excuse to go back to MB. Have fun with a soggy riding, over priced, passion-less, flashy........mercedes :rocks:

sounds like you didnt have your cheerios lately