Mercedes-Benz: Love it or hate it

[Slash]

For as much as we like our MBs, their problems with quality and reliability are becoming more pronounced plus the new design direction that the entire line of cars have taken these past years imho lost their appeal as a top of the world design. As an owner of MBs this has gone too far to the point that as much as I hate it, I will not buy MBs again unless they go back to a distinctive design (and get better quality).

Fortune magazine has recently published an article on this and I couln'd agree more. Here's the article and link:

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MERCEDES-BENZ
Mercedes Hits a Pothole
Owner complaints are up. Resale values are down. And competitors are gaining ground. Is Mercedes-Benz losing its shine?



Spend $25,000 on a car that doesn't run the way you expect it to, and you get pretty angry. Spend $50,000 or $100,000, and you get really angry. Just listen to the anguished howls of Mercedes-Benz owners on websites like troublebenz.com, lemonmb.com, and mercedesproblems.com, as they vent about the latest mishap to afflict their Benzes. Depending on the model, the complaints range from faulty key fobs and leaky sunroofs to balky electronics that leave drivers and their passengers stranded. Regardless of the severity, a single sentiment runs through the gripes: This shouldn't be happening to a Mercedes.

No auto manufacturer wants to hear customers whine, but the sensitivity is magnified at Mercedes, which commands a steep premium for its products because of the belief that they are engineered to higher standards, are assembled more carefully, and feature more advanced technology than more pedestrian brands. So it's not good news when customer surveys by J.D. Power & Associates rank Mercedes quality as much worse than average—in 26th place, behind Oldsmobile, in one survey. Other industry researchers see slipping consumer sentiment and declining resale values. The bad vibes have resonated all the way to Stuttgart, Germany, where Mercedes has made its home for more than 100 years. Longtime boss Juergen Hubbert is devoting a good deal of energy these days to unraveling the problems that have led to the customer complaints. "Quality is part of our heritage, one of our core values," Hubbert says. "That's why we are working like hell to solve the problems we've seen."

Life would be relatively simple if quality were the only issue on Hubbert's plate. But as he gets ready to retire in 2005, after nearly 40 years with the company, he faces lots of other unfinished business....

Complete article here: http://www.fortune.com/fortune/investing/articles/0,15114,517706,00.html

 

[BMWCool]

An interesting article but pretty much well known for quite a few years now, looks like it all started when they bought chrysler and they changed direction and strategies. A sad page for the history of this great company. maybe now that they have a new top chief, things will get better. if not many more MErcedes owners will continue to migrate over and buy Beemers..

 

[SDNR]

...... the new design direction that the entire line of cars have taken these past years imho lost their appeal as a top of the world design. As an owner of MBs this has gone too far to the point that as much as I hate it, I will not buy MBs again unless they go back to a distinctive design....

Slash, I think the new design direction at MB was a direct response to the market demanding more dynamic and interesting designs. I'm sure MB have also been looking enviously at BMW doing extremely well with their daring designs; so although, still more conservative than BMW, I don't think it is fair to say that Mercedes-Benz's designs are not distinctive.

Having said that, I do agree with you that some of that old MB philosophy, pertaining to strict priciples of form and function, has changed over the past few years. I would argue however, that this transformation really started in the early 1990's, particularly with the R129 - which, in my opinion, is one of the most important models Mercedes has ever built.

 

[Alx]

As for reliability that is a major issue. I hate leaving my car for weeks at a clip at MB. But the damn thing is so advanced, i guess there is hardly anything you can do. It would be great if it had Japanese quality, but its rediculous that it has constant issues, but its not only MB, for the most aprt its all GC's. sadly.

 

[Jono171]

I'm not convinced that Mercedes-Benz cars have lost their appeal in terms of design. Sure, it's clear that they no longer have the timeless qualities of the of the W124/126 and R129, but IMHO there are still distinguishable shared design cues/features between all of the ranges. The new design language is in response to what (the majority of) car buyers now want. Mercedes-Benz can no longer rely on people purchasing their cars because of their understated elegance and rock solid build quality - car buying consumers' demands have changed over the last few years.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but no matter what the price level, people want aggression, cutting-edge shapes and lines, and something that makes a statement, and Mercedes has answered this so far with the R171, W219, and W164. Yes these new models are treading on new ground in a similar (though less extreme) way to the E65/60/90 BMWs, but evolution can only take you so far, and there definitely comes a time when the design language and philosophy needs to shift.

Re: the quality and reliability, I wholeheatedly agree that the problems experienced by many Mercedes owners over the last few years are unacceptable for any manufacturer, but have complete confidence that things will be different at DC over the next few years. 50% of the problem is the customer interaction side of things. I have an absolutely brilliant dealer, and have been shocked to hear of the problems people have even trying to replace warranty items. There are dealers out there that don't give a squat about their customers, and although much of it is out of MB's control, it's often the dealership experience (regardless of how many problems or faults there are on a car) that makes or breaks a repeat customer.

Just my 2 cents!

 

[SDNR]

A very good analysis there Jono171. It would also be worth nothing that the market for Mercedes-Benz has changed markedly over the last 10-15 years;they have gone from being a brand associated with conservative, middle-aged, men in business suits, to having a very youthful and dynamic image. Mercedes was always a brand of the "establishment" but it has transformed itself into a brand that appeals to a larger, more newly-rich clientèle - these days, a lot of MB's traditional customers might find an A8 more to their liking than the "rock-stars taxi", the S-class has been reinvented as.

 

[Zafiro]

lemonmb.com was a intresting page. Didnt know there were pages like these.

 

[Alx]

They exist alright, almost for everything..... at least its not popular that it hurts sales.