Mercedes UK Customer Service

[3rtt]

So 2 months into ownership of my new Mercedes V Class 250 AMG with upgraded Comand Online, the Sat nav is sending me, sorry, trying to send me down one way streets the wrong way in London city centre. The system is so dumb and extremely frustrating to use, considering how the Comand Online is sold to the customer.
After checking with Mercedes UK customer service, I’m told the system does not require an upgrade as it has the latest mapping installed.
The suggestion from Mercedes UK customer service is, quote:
“ Mercedes-Benz endeavours to update the navigation systems on our cars as regularly as possible to ensure that the system is correct and as accurate as possible. However, I appreciate that there can be variances between the current road network and our system. The Mercedes-Benz Research and Development team are actively working to reduce these variances and if you are willing to complete the Satellite Navigation Feedback form then I can pass this information on to expedite this process.
This form can be filled out at your local Mercedes-Benz Retailer who can then submit it to the relevant Research and Development team. I am sorry that I am unable to provide you with an immediate solution to the issue however in this instance we require the process described above is followed in order to act upon your concerns. “
So I visit my local Mercedes dealer, Sytner of Newcastle and show them this correspondence.
Neither the sales or service team at Mercedes Newcastle, with over 16 years of experience with Mercedes have ever heard of such a form to fill.
You can imagine my disgust at being sent up a completely blind alley ( no pun intended) by Mercedes UK Customer services.
I have replied back to Mercedes UK explaining the response from my local Mercedes dealer and requesting a speedy reply as the product is not fit for purpose and quite frankly, potentially quite dangerous.
I make no apology for posting this as I believe, this type of service from Mercedes should be heard.

[Andehh]

Not at all suprised. Dealers are massively "dumb" to the features of new cars and their capability. Ask anyone on site at a dealership anything even remotely "beyond the brochure" and you are in a land of hopelessness.

I went through something similar with Ford, too long a painful story to detail here, but stupid dealers, stupid first line customer support, but with enough phone calls got through to an escalated team who took me seriously,and eventually helped me out with details of an update & registering my annoyance suitably.

(namely, car defaulting to AM radio if Bluetooth audio was last selected when you left the vehicle)


Edit... As for your issue, this won't actually be Mercedes who can help. Their maps will be provided as a service by a third party organisation, with very little two way hanger request/suggeatycommunication between Mercedes & said company, as said company will supply the generic maps to several other parties on several year long Pre signed agreements. Sorry...

Edited by Andehh on Tuesday 27th February 21:18

[2354519y]

Had to listen to the tale of woe from my boss this afternoon.
Cold weather recently has been causing the drivers side door handle to seize up and not close.
Today it fell off.
Was taken to the local dealer who kept the car most of the day.
Did nothing with it.
Just told her it needed a new handle
Needed to be ordered
Was going to take a week
See you then
You can collect the car

She wasn't amused

[Wooda80]

Jeez

[peteA]

Newcastle Mercedes Benz are ste closely followed by Mercedes customer care, it’s anything but, they couldn’t care less. Together they’ve contrived to make sure I never buy a Mercedes again.

Having shared my equally crap experience I hope you at least get sorted!

[Silenoz]

In the process of my own battle with Mercedes at the moment, so this doesn't surprise me.

I told them that they need to make their marketing clearer, and that "the best or nothing" actually meant they would offer fk all!

[Pericoloso]

2354519y said:

Had to listen to the tale of woe from my boss this afternoon.
Cold weather recently has been causing the drivers side door handle to seize up and not close.
Today it fell off.
Was taken to the local dealer who kept the car most of the day.
Did nothing with it.
Just told her it needed a new handle
Needed to be ordered
Was going to take a week
See you then
You can collect the car

She wasn't amused

If it's not in stock ,what else could they do ?......

[peteA]

It took them all day to find out it wasn’t in stock? Great eh...

Maybe they could have offered a courtesy car while they sorted it all out due to a fault on one on their cars then renders it unusable? (Assuming it’s in warranty and it’s unusable due to safety and security grounds?)

If it’s anything like my experience it’s just the genreral ‘don’t give a st’ attitude more than any specific issue

[Saabaholic]

COMAND is utter ste, it really is.
I now have the standard Garmin on the 8" screen and its way better. In fact miles better.
Maybe because Garmin actually know what they are doing.

[3rtt]

Over 24 hours now and no reply from Mercedes UK customer services.
Mercedes position their marque as a premium brand, yet their service and after sales is just really pathetic. If I treated my customers in the same way, I would not have a business.

[Sheepshanks]

Saabaholic said:

COMAND is utter ste, it really is.

The one in my 2005 model C Class works well. Maps (via DVD) are pretty up to date, although I've got the last one now, there will be no more.

Mercedes customer service is legendary though, and not in a good way. It's often discussed on MB forums and typically after a couple of back and forths you'll get a "this is our final position on the matter" message.

Edited by Sheepshanks on Wednesday 28th February 21:09

[CoolHands]

I can’t see why anyne would realistically expect an inbuilt sat nav to be much good. If the worst of it is a few one way roads that have probably been changed by local authorities since the maps were done, it isn’t that bad. Still get you from London to Birmingham won’t it?

Use waze like everyone else.

[Sheepshanks]

CoolHands said:

I can’t see why anyne would realistically expect an inbuilt sat nav to be much good. If the worst of it is a few one way roads that have probably been changed by local authorities since the maps were done, it isn’t that bad. Still get you from London to Birmingham won’t it?

Discover Nav in my wife's VW Tiguan is laughably bad at everything, but particularly its handling of traffic information. Part of the reason I passed on the cheap Alltrack lease was it would mean having the same system.

[3rtt]

CoolHands said:

I can’t see why anyne would realistically expect an inbuilt sat nav to be much good. If the worst of it is a few one way roads that have probably been changed by local authorities since the maps were done, it isn’t that bad. Still get you from London to Birmingham won’t it?

Use waze like everyone else.

It's a bit more than just a few one way roads in the city of London. This is my second V Class with Comand Online. I travel the country regularly and rely on a quality sat nav system. Clearly the Merceds Comand Online is not quality, neither is the Merecedes Customer services.
Maybe I should try a motor scooter coolhands

[Robbidoo]

3rtt said:

Over 24 hours now and no reply from Mercedes UK customer services.
Mercedes position their marque as a premium brand, yet their service and after sales is just really pathetic. If I treated my customers in the same way, I would not have a business.

You're not going to like this, but my advice is to just let this go. Put a phone on a kenu airframe and get on with it, or sell the car.

As a previous poster mentioned, Mercedes don't write their own nav software, it will be bought in from a third party (A quick google suggests that it's Garmin). The incorrect map data can only be fixed by that third party, and then rolled up into a new update that Mercedes probably release to customers (as a pay option) every six months. The latency between a map correction being called out, checked, implemented, and shipped, is massive - it could be a year.

Switching to something that has a fast feedback mechanism for mistakes - like google or Waze, is really going to minimise your chances of being given a wrong turn - which seems to be your primary concern.

[Rick101]

Yet people keep buying them.

I look now and again but then I'm reminded why anything past around 1995 isn't worth having.

[3rtt]

So latest update.
After chasing Mercedes Customer service, they inform me that there is a sat nav report form. All Mercedes Sytner Newcastle have to do is request the form from Mercedes services.
Form received, filled and returned.
Do I expect a positive outcome from this ? Given the experience with Mercedes Customer service, the dealer network and the outdated sat nav system installed in the Comand Online, no I don't.
Google maps it is then.

[Viperzs]

2354519y said:

Had to listen to the tale of woe from my boss this afternoon.
Cold weather recently has been causing the drivers side door handle to seize up and not close.
Today it fell off.
Was taken to the local dealer who kept the car most of the day.
Did nothing with it.
Just told her it needed a new handle
Needed to be ordered
Was going to take a week
See you then
You can collect the car

She wasn't amused

That's odd. I had two new suspension airbags for my CLS ordered one evening, received and fitted the next day with the car ready to collect.

On the topic of Satnav I much prefer the one in mine to the one my Dad's Range Rover has, that's absolutely useless! The system itself isn't at all intuitive to use

Edited by Viperzs on Saturday 3rd March 15:25

[Andehh]

Only way round this is models that offer android auto print apple carplay.

Best of all both worlds!

[K2MDL]

I have dealt with various MB dealerships over my many years driving the brand and one for me at least stands head and shoulders above the rest. They don't always get it right first time but are generally interested in what you have to say and considering how poor MB UK appear to be at supporting their own dealers, (although I have never had a problem with them), they do a fantastic job for me.

I've used MB Ascot, MB Brentford (heaven help me) and MB World. The only dealer that gets anywhere close to the standard I would expect is Hughes of Beaconsfield. Still (I think) a family owned firm with their own body shop on site (Ascot and even MB World do not have) and one I still have my Mercs serviced/repaired by.

Good guys indeed, but as usual it's down to the staff you deal with and how good their managers are - at managing them.

Edited by K2MDL on Wednesday 7th March 20:49