Service A seems to be a simple oil change and inspection. Can't a provate shop like Jiffy Lube conduct this service for far less than the dealer? Im debating taking it to the dealer or a shop like Jiffy Lube for this service? Any advice?

 

YOU HAVE A VERY HIGH TECH CAR AND YOU WANT TO TAKE IT TO JIFFY LUBE? THESE CARS ARE DESIGNED FOR A CERTAIN TYPE OF OIL AND OIL FILTER AND IF THEY ARE NOT USED CAN CAUSE MAJOR ISSUES WITH THE VEHICLE. GRANTED A SERVICE A CAN BE A LITTLE PRICY BUT IF YOU FIGURE A OIL CHANGE AT JIFFY LUBE SHOULD RUN YOU ABOUT $40 AND YOU THEN HAVE TO CHANGE THE OIL EVERY 3,000 MILES YOUR COST OF A SERVICE A IS CHEAPER AT AN AVERAGE PRICE OF $250 AND YOU CAN GO 13,000 MILES BETWEEN THE SERVICES. I STRONGLY CONSIDER TO GET THE FULL SERVICE DONE BECAUSE A DEALER WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU LONG BEFORE A JIFFY LUBE WILL.

 

Youd be asking for trouble with over filling the oil, not using the correct oil filter wrench, the wrong oil, and besides some of the guys that work at those places are just average joes that dont know anything about your car especially your benz. Ive seen many customers come from jiffy lube and end up coming back to the dealership with loose trans pans and oil leaks from lossened bolts. Take it to a professional or a german car place that would be another sugestion to you.

 

i agree with chassis, do not jiffy lube your car. dealer or knowledgable indy. (with SDS.)

 

I refuse to pay $400 for an oil change, so I happened to find the Kwik Kar across the street from my house is owned by a Mercedes Benz owner--so he personally changes my oil--it costs more than the regular oil change (about $100) but he used the Mobil One Mercedes full synthetic oil and the right oil filter. He even resets my service light! Maybe I just go lucky finding him, but research your local oil change places and make sure they use the Mobil One M (for Mercedes) fully synthetic oil and you should be OK. Have your air filters changed too!

 

Not sure what you have for a warranty, but if the guy you got to change your oil is a Mercedes guy have him update your log with Mercedes so if anything goes wrong you can verify that all your stuff was done.

NeV

 

Trust the dealer? I bought a used 2006 C230 from a dealer, two years ago. They only gave me one key, I had to purchase an extra one. The car had an intermittent problem with the right-side mirror signal light. The dealer acknowledged it, but never fixed it. The turn signal lever was not working, the dealer 'fixed' it, but it is loose.
I went through at least two scheduled service and inspections since.
A few months ago, the front tires needed replacement, so I went to a tire shop, not the dealer. Guess what? The tires were the wrong size! A DEALER sold me a car with improper tires, another dealer performed two scheduled 'inspections' and maintenance that included tire inspection and rotation. It took some little guy with a tire shop down the block to discover the problem that two dealers failed to notice when the car was sold, and twice again during the scheduled service.
Should I trust that the dealer(s) used the right oil and filter, or that the work was performed at all?
Forget Jiffy Lube, they are notorious for not performing the work they charge for, just check out YouTube.
Find a guy with a little repair shop who will allow you to stand by and watch him do the work. If he says the insurance policy prohibits customers in the work area, take your business to some other shop with a different insurance policy.
Buy your own filter and bring it to him and make sure he uses it. Any gas station should carry quality oil, make sure they use sealed bottles.