I own a 2007 CLS550 with 68000 miles on the clock. I bought the car showroom new and have performed most of the scheduled maintenance myself.

Recently, I found a few drips of oil under the car.
A quick check on the internet revealed that the cam caps on the back of the cylinder heads weep oil over time and have to be replaced.

We're butt deep in snow here now so I went to Aristocrat Motors here in KC and asked for a quote on the repair. The service writer said $200, including the parts. I quickly decided that was too much so I went to the parts counter and bought the three plugs for $24.

Once in my garage, I was able to remove the plugs and refit the new ones in TEN MINUTES!!!! Literally, ten minutes. I am a skilled mechanic but I had never performed this task before. I am sure I could do it in 5 or 6 minutes with a little practice.
By my calculation, thats about $1000 per hour for labor, plus a 50% markup on the caps.

I called the service manager at Aristocrat and the guy actually tried to justify the price.

I know there are some wonderful, honest Benz shops out there. This isn't one of them.
Just my opinion.....

 

Dealers have set prices for everything...that's what keeps the independent's business booming. I take my Benz work to KH Auto in Mission, KS. All ex-dealer people and honest as the day is long. Glad that you got your repair done so easily.

Your profile says CA, so are you visiting or have you relocated to the sunny Midwest?

 

dealer doesn't charge by the minute. they charge by the hour. i don't see why you are wound up about a $200 repair. they will charge you $400-500 for a new battery.

relax

 

They actually charge by the tenth (.1) of an hour. BUT, it's just a matter of principle.
You are right, $200 won't change my life. It is an $80,000 car. But suggesting that it takes more than an hour to do a job that literally takes 10 minutes is disingenuous at best and downright fraud at worst.
It's no wonder that automotive service has a reputation just one notch above "criminal".

 

Thanks for the referral. I will KH a try!
I do live in Overland Park, KS, but most of my business interests are in California.