I really wanted to write a good review about my recent - ashtark61
I really wanted to write a good review about my recent experience at Mercedes-Benz of St.Clair Shores in Michigan on July, 2024. Everything was good at the beginning. I found a Certified Pre-Owned 2023 Mercedes GLE450 with 4,500 miles on it (supposedly). Advisor Kalin Atkinson was helpful in answering my questions and we agreed on the price. I was very excited about buying this car! This was my first Mercedes.
I inspected the car and found a couple cosmetic issues (small paint chips on the hood and front bumper) that Kalin Atkinson didn't specify previously when we discussed the condition of the car. These imperfections were small, so it was not a dealbreaker. General Sales Manager Nick Benuska offered to send me a touch-up pen, and I agreed to proceed. I was introduced to Charles F. Biggs, Jr, Financial Services Manager and started to sign papers in his office. As I already mentioned, the car was Certified Pre-Owned that gave me an extra 12-month CPO coverage with $0 deductible until 11/1/27. I was told by Charles that the car doesn't have a prepaid maintenance plan from the previous owner. That was not accurate (but I didn't know about that at the moment). He offered to sell me a prepaid maintenance plan, but I decided to shop around before making a decision. After all the documents were executed, I drove home to Ohio from the dealership. That is when the disappointments started.
My first disappointment was when after changing customizable dashboard, I saw that the actual mileage on the car was 6,800 miles instead of 4,500 as was stated in the papers that I signed (I didn't even think to check this at the dealership - but a 2,000+ mile difference is shocking!). How can a reputable Mercedes dealership not disclose the mileage more carefully?
I contacted Charles Biggs the next day regarding the mileage discrepancy, but he was unhelpful.
After contacting my closest Mercedes dealership in Cleveland regarding my next service date I was told that it should be in December and my car has a prepaid maintenance plan, purchased by the previous owner, which can be transferred to my name by the dealership where I bought the car. I contacted Charles Biggs regarding the prepaid plan transfer and was told that he would be contacting the headquarters to figure this out. The next day, he sent me a PDF document with confirmation that the prepaid maintenance plan was transferred in my name.
I scheduled my service visit at a Mercedes dealership in Cleveland 12/14/24, drove 80 miles to the appointment, and was told by the service department that I needed to pay $530 for a Service A. I tried to relay that I have a prepaid plan and was told that plan expired on 9/1/24 and there was no transfer in the Mercedes internal system, so I need to contact the dealership where I bought my car to fix the error.
On December 16, I contacted Charles Biggs regarding this issue and was told this time that the prepaid maintenance was not transferable and I have to buy it. Unbelievable - either the dealership doesn't know the rules or doesn't know what they are doing. This was my second disappointment. I called Mercedes HQ to confirm - the prepaid maintenance had expired.
The dealership never should proceeded to fake transfer it to me. This is just plainly dishonest. I was also told at the Cleveland dealership that my car is not certified and I don't have one extra year of warranty. The dealership that sold me the car, seemingly cancelled the CPO coverage.
Now my car has 8,000 miles on it. In the five months owning the vehicle, I've driven about 1,200 miles. After I got my first A Service done, I was told that the left rear axle is leaking grease and needs to be replaced. It would be replaced under the manufacturer warranty, but this fact makes me think that pre-sale certification inspection never happen or was cursory at best.
Stay away from Mercedes-Benz of St. Clair Shores in Michigan - this is not a "Mercedes" experience.
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