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Maintenance - What if you live miles away from the nearest dealer?
i don't know if there is a thread about this or not. i looked and didn't see anything, but then again i am blind... so what happens if you live miles away from the closest dealer to you? how do you get your smart fixed if it's having problems? my closest dealer is 6 hours away.
For regular maint, you might be able to go to your nearest Mercedes dealership. Bring your own filter and gasket. The oil is expensive but, they only charged me 25.00 labor here. Just call them first and ask them.
My sc told me that routine maintenance work can be done anywhere without voiding the warranty (any warranty work must be done at the dealer to be covered). The vehicle owner or the repair shop can order parts through the dealer and they will ship as necessary (shipping added). Parts cannot be ordered directly from the parts depot in Tulsa even if the part number is known.
Though the sc didn't mention it, personally I think it would be best to use competent, certified repair shops and keep all of their letterheaded invoices with the mileage noted for the record.
Received a computer generated "1st Scheduled Maintenance" from Mercedes Benz of Cherry Hill in Saturday mail. It doesn't refer to smart. I'll call Monday to see if my three month old smart is really due for service. The maual says first service at 10,000 miles or one year.
My opinion: An oil change wouldn't be a bad idea.
My question: "Does a Mercedes really require service three months after purchase?"
My sc told me that routine maintenance work can be done anywhere without voiding the warranty (any warranty work must be done at the dealer to be covered)....
The catch to clarify further is whether "routine maintenance" and "scheduled maintenance" are treated the same. I known with my MINI if I wanted to have an oil change someone else ...no big deal, but in order for the schedule maintenance to be properly acknowledged as provided by the warranty program, I'm pretty sure it had to be by certified MINI techs at MINI service centers. Even BMW could not sign off on this!
I think my guy was talking about the "routine" part of "scheduled" - oil & filter, air filter, coolant, bulbs, etc. Much beyond that might be warranty work, at least for the first two years. But sometime beyond two years it may involve non-scheduled (but common) maintenance like brakes and shocks and exhaust. I know that the smart centers would like to get all the work, but for those owners living multi-hours away, I think they are prepared to give them/us some sort of break.
i guess what im worried about is when i get my car home, (which is a few 100 miles away) what if something goes wrong...for example the a/c goes out for no apparent reason. what the heck do i do??? will they let me get it fixed here in town with a mechanic who is pre-appoved by them, (maybe MB) or am i just screwed and have to bring it back to smart if i dont want to pay for the work???
so what happens if you live miles away from the closest dealer to you? how do you get your smart fixed if it's having problems? my closest dealer is 6 hours away.
I'm 9 hours away.
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