Complaint Review: Mercedes-Benz - Claridge - Nationwide

It was late in the afternoon, when I went in to get my car after it was serviced at Claridge. I asked about how much wear was left on my tires. The service manager told me that he did not know cause the tech who had worked on the car already went home. He said he would call me the next day to let me know.

I spoke with the Service manager the next day and he told me that I had 4 in the back and 3 in the front. I asked him what that meant... he said that it was 50% in the back and 40% in the front. That implied I would need to take my car in soon to have my brakes changed.

But here is the RIP-OFF, two weeks before I had my car lowered and I had new brakes installed in the rear at this other store. I had even seen them do the job. So I was shocked, to say the least, when Claridge told me that I ONLY had 50% left. To give them the benefit of the doubt I ask again if they were "sure" that it was MY car, I gave them the color, make and model. Let's just say that my car is rare, and on the high end. There aren't that many in the Bay Area. The Service manager said, yes, that is your car. I told him that it could not be true, something was fishy here. He said he would call me back, after he checked with the tech again. Needless to say, he never called me back.

I went to Clairdge after work and the Service manager "lied" and said that he tried to call me, but I was not there. I had given him my cell phone! Well I told him that I wanted to have them check my car and "let's see" how much brakes I had left. They had the nerve to tell me to go wait in the lounge. "Sorry, that ain't going to happen". I told them that I was going to stand right there and WATCH them check my car.

The hoisted up my car, a tech check the rear brakes and said "These are brand NEW brakes", then went to check the front and said that those were 60%. I was about to flip my lid. The Service manager could say nothing. Tried to offer me a Detail job.

Is this their practice of trying to swindle unsuspecting people by telling them that they need service "soon" and falsely telling them that they have equipment that needs repairing "soon"? I think that if I had not known that my brakes were NEW I would have believed Clairdge and in a couple of month's time come in to have new brakes installed. Is that their way of making the extra buck and telling their techs to lie about what service is needed? BUT wording so that they can claim that they did not say " it needed repair right away, but soon would".

I have my family's cars ALL serviced at Clairdge, now I wonder how much of any of the work done on them was needed or if they actually did the work.

If the tech was not sure it was my car, then he should not have said it was my car that only had the 4 and 3 left on the brakes. THIS makes me doubt the credibility of the dealership. How can they employ people who are so incompetent or irresponsible? Those techs are dealing with very expensive cars.

C.

Fremont, California
U.S.A.