Should this bother me?

In going through the records I got with the CLS63, I see no mention of a trans fluid change in that last 30k miles, so I wanted to have it done before One Lap. The service procedure requires the fluid to be pumped up through the fill hole at a certain temperature and whatnot and I don't have that equipment so for how rarely this will be done, I found a local shop to do it. This shop was very highly recommended on the MBWorld forum and has many very positive google reviews. It also is only 10 minutes or so from SWMBO's work, so I had her take it in.

As part of their service, they will drop you off at work and then pick you up when your car is done. They dropped her off this morning using a car presumably from the shop. When they picked her up, it was in our car, and she then drove back to the service shop with the guy in our car, and then went back to work.

For some reason this is bothering me, that they used our car to do the shuttling. I have no idea who this guy was who was driving my 500hp car around. SWMBO is upset as the car was low on gas but had enough to make it to where she was going after work where she would get gas, but because it was used for at least the round trip to get her, it didn't have enough and she had to go out of her way to get gas and then was a little late. Should I be bothered by this? I know it really isn't that big a deal, but still...

Seems odd. She should not have to return the valet as part of thr valet svc.

I wouldn't be bothered by it. Presumably they would have had to test drive it anyway, so why not pick up your wife as well. If they're highly regarded one would expect the technician wasn't hooning around in the car.

Yeah, they have to test drive it anyway, deal with those cars all the time and you were along for half the test drive. I'd be cool with it.

Local VW dealer does this all the time. Drop you off and pick you up in your own car.

They don't have courtesy cars or a shop car.

Local Ford Dealer always uses their own shuttles.

Size of the place matters.

I don't really like that either.

I'm not crazy about it, but some of it depends on what they're used to driving on a daily basis. If these guys are driving around in high-end AMG Mercs all day long, then they're probably not hooning customer cars.

I'd like it a lot less if I knew they were transporting other customers around in my car. My thought is that a customer car shouldn't be used to taxi other customers around.

In my mind, one benefit to this would be that the tech could go over any other issues with your wife or you while you were driving back.

You notice different things sitting in the passenger seat of your own car.

The lack of gas would be more annoying to me, but then what brand of gas would you expect them to put in the car?

Don't like it at all.

I've seen the range of employees who work in shops both big and small.

I also wonder if their insurance would be adequate for this.

rabble rabble rabble

I don't see it as a big deal, but then gasp I do things like let the dealer change my oil.

My personal opinion is it's much ado about nothing.

I always leave my vehicles at shops with a full tank and I snap a photo of the odometer. That way I know how many miles were put on it. I usually note it on the service slip if i have to sign one. Depending on the service it is getting expect 20 to 50 miles being put on it.

Another thing. Why did it get dropped off that low on fuel in the first place. How are they supposed to check there work? This is an AMG63 and you are talking being in convinced by fuel usage? I think you got the wrong car if this is an issue. What would you be saying if the shop called you to say they did the work but could not test the car for fear they would run out of gas.

I don't get what the complaint is here.

I really don't care about a few gallons of gas, it was about expectations. We did not expect anyone to drive the car much. One side effect of that expectation was that SWMBO had to go out of her way to get more in an area of few stations when not expecting it.

20-50 miles of driving? For something as simple as a trans fluid change? That seems really excessive.

We are not used to what is normal for servicing at shops as we do everything ourselves possible, except inspections, alignments and tire mounting (and even then I drop off loose wheels and tires).

I'm letting it go, they were very nice otherwise, but in a service situation in the future with pickup/drop off, we will ask more about it to ensure everyone has appropriate expectations.

Insurance regs vary by state, but in GA, if you loan your car, you loan your insurance. I recently loaned my truck to someone who backed into someone else and caused $2800 worth of damage. It ended up on MY insurance, even though I wasn't there.

You have indicated they are probably using customers cars to ferry people, including people who don't own the car.

So, let's think about this....

If the shop used you MB to ferry someone else home and had a bad incident on the way, seems to me that it could be possible YOU would be on the hook for the damage to your car, another car, 2 drivers, and a stranger riding in the passenger seat.

It is a very questionable practice.

If it was a shop owned car driven by an employee, all the issues are resolved through either his auto ins, commercial liability ins, or worker's comp.

I have no indication that anyone got a ride in the car other than the valet and my girlfriend. If that was otherwise, then I would be quite upset.

I work in insurance, and you are right that the insurance follows the car for permissive users, meaning my $500k liability policy covers them as well as me. A shop engaged in the business of repairing or whatnot will have their own garage keepers policy that will take primary liability from mine for anything that happens while in the care/custody/control of the shop, so I'm not worried about liability in this situation.

So next time opt not to have them shuttle you, take a taxi, and use a flatbed to haul it to and from the shop. Specifically request for the car not to be driven also. If the car fails 1 mile away from the shop, oh well. You only trusted them to work on your high dollar machine, not drive it.

I was a tech for ten years, I would have done the same thing. We drive 5-10 different cars a day. We aren't dreaming of abusing your pride and joy. We just want to get your gf picked up and get on to the next job. Also typical hooning for a tech is to get on it hard in a straight line. Usually once. Maybe bark the tires. No burnouts, donuts, demolition derbies, on ramping over school busses. You could call and complain, but they will remember you, and think your an shiny happy person.

gearheadmb wrote: I was a tech for ten years, I would have done the same thing. We drive 5-10 different cars a day. We aren't dreaming of abusing your pride and joy. We just want to get your gf picked up and get on to the next job.

All this. I've been a tech for 20. Your car is just a car that we have to diagnose, repair, and verify. An AMG is no different than a bottom-rung Kia. You treat everything equally respectfully because it's not only not yours, but you are being entrusted with its care. No, I am not interested in "seeing what she'll do (hyuck-spit)" because that is irrelevant to what my task is.

a different POV...

pick up the client in their car and in the drive show them the service has been completed... in your specific case there was no way of showing it... but if it had a bad wheel bearing, or bad brakes, the pick up would reveal it if the work was shoddy, incomplete, or not even serviced.

Sonic wrote: I really don't care about a few gallons of gas, it was about expectations. We did not expect anyone to drive the car much. One side effect of that expectation was that SWMBO had to go out of her way to get more in an area of few stations when not expecting it. 20-50 miles of driving? For something as simple as a trans fluid change? That seems really excessive. We are not used to what is normal for servicing at shops as we do everything ourselves possible, except inspections, alignments and tire mounting (and even then I drop off loose wheels and tires). I'm letting it go, they were very nice otherwise, but in a service situation in the future with pickup/drop off, we will ask more about it to ensure everyone has appropriate expectations.

So who was supposed to put gas in the car? If your GF/Wife is anything like mine she gets all bent about putting gas in a car (I am not sure she ever has put gas in any of our cars now that I think about it) and if this happened to her I would hear about it. I assume you heard about it? It is about the inconvenience of her having to get gas and her complaining about it yes? I have this same battle / argument with my wife about once a month. AND I get told that her car needs gas only on the days I need to get out of the house early and I have to be on time and her car has the reserve light on. AND she drives by 2-3 stations every day picking up the kids from school and yet now it is a problem (my problem). You have no idea how irritated I get at her about this. It is called planning ahead on my wife's part (or the lack there of). Makes me nuts every time i think about it. I try and explain to her that when it gets below a half tank GET GAS. Hell go to a full serve if you must. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Oh and she has an H2 so the MPG's of that thing are probably about the same as your AMG63.

I think I see where this is coming from now. (unless I am completely off base and my wife is an anomaly).

I don't know about your car specifically but they may have had to re program / have the computer re learn the shifting of the transmission with the new fluid. This can take at least 50 miles o driving around with a bi directional tuner computer and in some cases a 2nd technission while you try adn get it to accept the new peramiters for the various driving conditions. You have to do quite a bit of driving of variable types while the computer re learns things.

My Jag was that way if you want to be completely sure that it adjusts to the new fluid.

dean1484 wrote: (unless I am completely off base and my wife is an anomaly).

I've honestly never heard of a woman that forces her other half to put gas in the car for her, even at his own inconvenience.

z31maniac wrote:

dean1484 wrote: (unless I am completely off base and my wife is an anomaly).

I've honestly never heard of a woman that forces her other half to put gas in the car for her, even at his own inconvenience.

Yea, that's a new one to me as well. Did your wife grow up in Jersey or something?

dean1484 wrote: So who was supposed to put gas in the car? If your GF/Wife is anything like mine she gets all bent about putting gas in a car (I am not sure she ever has put gas in any of our cars now that I think about it) and if this happened to her I would hear about it. I assume you heard about it? It is about the inconvenience of her having to get gas and her complaining about it yes? I have this same battle / argument with my wife about once a month. AND I get told that her car needs gas only on the days I need to get out of the house early and I have to be on time and her car has the reserve light on. AND she drives by 2-3 stations every day picking up the kids from school and yet now it is a problem (my problem). You have no idea how irritated I get at her about this. It is called planning ahead on my wife's part (or the lack there of). Makes me nuts every time i think about it. I try and explain to her that when it gets below a half tank GET GAS. Hell go to a full serve if you must. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Oh and she has an H2 so the MPG's of that thing are probably about the same as your AMG63. I think I see where this is coming from now. (unless I am completely off base and my wife is an anomaly).

Holy E36 M3! Are you married to my ex-wife?!? She would pull that on me ALL THE TIME! I feel your pain, brother.

I'll bet if you made her walk once, she'd remember the gas.

I know several women who have never pumped gas (although I would stop short of saying they "force" their husbands to do it).

My wife will usually ask me to put gas in her car if its low and im going out for a quick errand. But id be damned if she refused to pump her own gas she would be walking, in the summer for sure.