Mercedes / service is becoming a BIG issue

Mercedes / service is becoming a BIG issue

September 29, 2005

This is a letter I sent to Mercedes-Benz USA CEO.

Mr. Paul Halata

CEO, President

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC

Customer Assistance Center

3 Paragon Drive

Montvale, N.J. 07645 Dear Mr. Halata,

Please accept my "quarter" worth of advice: customers should not have to pay for product defects. I own--and have owned--an ML320 for about three years now. Recently, my coin tray refused to open, later to be explained by a stuck quarter. However, whenever my impressive off-road vehicle, made for "off-road experiences", hit a pothole or incongruity in the road, its defective coin tray popped open. Otherwise, on normal occasions, the tray will NOT open. When I spoke with Mercedes' Service Assistants about this, I was basically told if the tray is stuck due to something inside, I pay for the repair. In my opinion, if it is a common component in the vehicle--i.e. a coin tray, and its malfunction is not seen in other regularly priced cars, it must be a design defect. Note that this is not YET a wear and tear item in the car-I have not open-and-closed it more than 10 times since I purchased the car. If there is a design flaw in which the affected item fails to serve the purpose for which it was built, who is responsible for paying the repair? That is my first question, which in turn leads to my second: What determines a design flaw? My ML320 Mercedes SUV had a simple problem: a stuck COIN tray due to a quarter, making it entirely inaccessible. Not only was I told by the Customer Assistant that I would have to pay for it, Arnold, from Mercedes' Customer Service, pointed out quite frankly: "Our conversation is not getting anywhere". Well, it was your personnel's decision "not to get anywhere", and that is why you are receiving my letter. I hope my experience is taken into consideration, and work will be done to improve the company's service, rather than not getting anywhere, as said Arnold. The service assistant manager Ms. Sharon Keen and Manager Mr. Ron Kidd at Duval, my local Mercedes-Benz dealership, initially charged me $190 to have the coin removed from the tray. After I protested, they kindly agreed the "quarter problem" was under warrantee. They waived the $190 fee. The tray now works fine, but I will not be putting any coins in it anytime soon. I have experienced several unsatisfactory engineering or equipment problems with my 2002 ML320 and my wife's C320 Sport Coupe. The ML320 had a deflated tire the first few weeks, continuous fuel gauge problems, and malfunctioning lights. The C320 had a tire problem on day one, auto windows problems, a stuck cassette tape (which we had to wait for parts from Germany), and car suspension problems that has yet to be fixed. So far, our trust in Mercedes-Benz luxury cars have only led to a frustration unexperienced with our previous Toyota and Nissan cars. The Craftmanship holds the noble symbol to a reputable luxury car like Mercedes, but I have not seen the luxury yet.

Most automobile companies are improving their quality, not only in their vehicles and final products, but most importantly their customer service and honesty. Mercedes' Customer Assistance department has miles to catch up.

Before I end this letter, all four tires of my ML320 were replaced because of a flat rear tire LESS THAN 24 HR after my car was back from the coin tray repair-adding a total charge of more than $900. I will just say that Mercedes' quality and service are now due for a major check-up. -- Long Click this link to e-mail the message author: Email User