Independent or dealer service?

eko

This has likely been covered tons of times here, so apologies. A quick search of the forum didn't uncover any direct answer, so here goes..

My wife's 07 Merc B-Class is due it's B service. Last service she went to MSL Pottery Road, and they charged slightly in excess of €450 for the A service. The car also came back with misaligned tracking; it was fine beforehand, but after the service it started pulling to the left. I brought this to them and in short they shrugged it off and offered to track for an extra €100! :mad:

Anyways, this time around, am thinking of visiting an independent instead, since the car is out of it's 2 year warranty. Would using an independent garage in any way devalue the car come trade-in / sale time? Any other pointers to look out for?

Sorry for the clueless post; have been using the main dealer garage like a numpty for so long, and looking for a change (and to save a few bob or two, too!).

robtri

quick question, how long do you plan to keep the car for before you sell it??

A Main Dealer service is more appealling to a buyer of a relatively new car...
an older car, it generally doesn't make too much of a difference as long as it has a full service history....

jamhan

for merc's, your generally better going to main dealers. you do pay more but thats what comes with buying a merc.

Absurdum

there have been zillions of posts and threads here complaining about MSL's service and how crappy it can be!

Theta

I was thinking about if I should go main dealer or indie. I went in for the laugh and asked how much they would give me if I traded the car in and from what they told me (only had bought the car a year before in the same garage) I decided it wasnt worth it and Ill go indie.

I couldnt give a bean now if it has a main dealer stamp on it.

Kid Nothing

The only difference your going to see is the stamp in the book and having seen some of the parts that have come out of MSL stamped Mercs I can safely say you'd probably be better off altogether at an independent garage!

McSpud

Unless car was under warranty I can't see myself ever going to dealer again. Quality reliable Independent all the way.

eko

robtri wrote: »

quick question, how long do you plan to keep the car for before you sell it??

A Main Dealer service is more appealling to a buyer of a relatively new car...
an older car, it generally doesn't make too much of a difference as long as it has a full service history....

Hmm.. I guess she'll be keeping it for another year at least, unless she finds something appealing in the second-hand market come the turn of the year. For another year, would it make much difference?

eko

Thanks for the reply, guys. I actually always thought that the main dealer stamp on the service book would make some sort of difference come sale time, though since she probably won't be trading up again for a while, I wonder if it'll make any difference now.

Anyways, have indeed seen plenty of posts here about MSL. They've been okay for the most part all these years, apart from the afore-mentioned last service with this car. I guess they do tend to be more pricey, likely due to the marque and them being a main dealer. Are any independents also certified Merc specialists, I wonder?

Bandara

I personally (and most of my friends afaik) would not even consider buying a decent car (Merc BMW etc) without a FSH from main dealer. Its the first thing I ask when I ring about the car and if you have not got one I look elsewhere.

Just my opinion

squod

I'm getting my next one done at a main dealer, it works out cheaper than the phone quotes I'm getting.

Kid Nothing

eko wrote: »

Are any independents also certified Merc specialists, I wonder?

This is where people make mistakes (through no fault of their own admittedly). The majority of the lads in MSL are not certified Merc specialists, they just work in a Merc franchise, they trained the same way as every other mechanic. A lot of the time you'll find older independent garages that are far more familiar with all types of Mercs than those lads.

OldmanMondeo

Would a Main dealer service history add value to your car come trade in time?

TBH main dealer pricing over indepants is crazy, 1.6 Qashqui due a full service, Main Nissan dealer, €289.00, local trusted indepandents €180.00. All parts used will be OE standard to cover warranty etc...

Kid Nothing

A main dealer service makes no difference in my opinion. Come trade in time a FSH is a FSH, doesn't matter who done it.

OldmanMondeo

Just rang a dealer in Mullingar and for the same service on the Wifes car, she would save €130.00. We were only thinking of keeping with the dealer whom she bought the car off, not anymore.

Bandara

Kid Nothing wrote: »

A main dealer service makes no difference in my opinion. Come trade in time a FSH is a FSH, doesn't matter who done it.

maybe if your selling a punto, but I think you'll find it means a lot when your selling a 20 or 30 grand car.

mickdw

Hammertime wrote: »

maybe if your selling a punto, but I think you'll find it means a lot when your selling a 20 or 30 grand car.

I would be just as happy with independant garage stamps & a wallet full of receipts for everything that was done as I would be with a main dealer history on any mainstream car. If that means someone changes oil every 8k miles instead of waiting 20k miles to do it at the dealer due to the extra costs, well all the better. I include cars of high value in that.

smash

Try oph.ie - they're independent and specialise in Lotus, Porsche, Merc, BMW.

why pay main dealer prices when you can get the same service and parts for a fraction of the costs. I always use specialists.

blueband

eko wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, guys. I actually always thought that the main dealer stamp on the service book would make some sort of difference come sale time, though since she probably won't be trading up again for a while, I wonder if it'll make any difference now.

Anyways, have indeed seen plenty of posts here about MSL. They've been okay for the most part all these years, apart from the afore-mentioned last service with this car. I guess they do tend to be more pricey, likely due to the marque and them being a main dealer. Are any independents also certified Merc specialists, I wonder?

AFAIK, JetStar at the back of DunLaoghaire (not far from Pottery road) were and most likely still are an Authorised service agent for Merc.
You should be able to check that on the Mercedes website or just give them a bell

TomMc

40+ yr old indie mechanic with 20 years experience or spotty teenager in Merc overalls with very little? I know who I would put my faith in. Hands-on experience wins every time.