I took my car to a mecahnic in Thousand Oaks, CA. I'm new to the area so I'm just testing some out. I had him do an oil change and he did a check around the car and found that my lower control arm bushings are really bad. He wants $650 for those and then he said some multi rear belt has cracks in it. He said if he replaces that he should replace a tensioner and shock absorber. That all runs for $590. I'm looking at $1240 or so for repairs. Should I get more shops to take a look? I don't want to get played here because I'm new in town and he wants to make some money. Any suggestions would be appreciated so I don't just drop over a grand for repairs that I'm not sure I need.

 

Welcome to the life of mercedes repairs, not cheap lol. I have a 99 C280 sport and so far i have invested a little under $3,000 on repairs. My car has 61k miles and one mechanic recomended i also get the control arm bearings replaced ($700). I went to another mechanic and he made a good point; most mechanics want to bring your car to brand new status when infact they parts still have more life in them. They try to scare you into thinking the part will break tomorrow. Just something to think about. anyways i would deff. get a second opinion and i had my belt tensioner replaced (it seized and broke the drive belt). By the way how many miles on ur car because that may determine whether your bearings should be replaced and i hear that some wear on the outside of the tire can be normal.

Good luck with the repairs and be careful of scams. sorry to make the message so long.