What's with the Mercedes-Benz oil spill?

At the beginning of this year, Mr. Pang, the owner of Mercedes-Benz E-series car, found oil leakage in the engine cylinder during three and a half months of maintenance. Mr. Pang went to the Mercedes-Benz Beijing Center to negotiate and asked for a change of car, but the center said that it needed an evaluation by the technical department and asked Mr. Pang to wait for a reply. Mr. Pang learned from a staff member of 4S that there are many car owners similar to him. However, the staff of Mercedes-Benz Beijing Center said: At present, there are no relevant complaints at hand. Coincidentally, one day after a Beijing car owner gave his car a free test, there was an oil leak. At the beginning of May, a Mercedes-Benz car in Nanjing was mainly responsible for the oil spill. In addition to the oil spills in Beijing and Nanjing, Mercedes-Benz oil spills in Wenzhou, Taizhou and other provinces and cities are also frequently reported. From 20 1 1 to March 20 12, 123 15, the complaint reporting command center received many complaints about Mercedes-Benz luxury cars, most of which were related to quality and after-sales service.

In fact, due to the oil spill, Mercedes-Benz luxury cars have left traces of "oil" in many places in China in recent years. Complaint records show that in February of 20 1 1, another owner of a Mercedes-Benz luxury car in Wenzhou had an oil spill, and there were still quality problems after inspection and maintenance on 16. The owner and Mercedes-Benz China quarreled endlessly, even if the industrial and commercial departments intervened, they could not put out the war between them. 20 1 1 year 1 month, a consumer in Wenzhou bought a Mercedes s400 for 1.36 million yuan. A month later, the car door could not be opened and the ignition could not be started. Failures cannot be eliminated after inspection; In June165438+1October of the same year, Mr. Li from Xiaoshan, Zhejiang Province spent nearly 500,000 yuan to buy a Mercedes E200L from Huace Mercedes-Benz 4S store. Just 48 days after Mr. Li drove, he accidentally found an oil leak near his car engine.

Looking ahead, in May 2009, the oil pipe of the Mercedes-Benz convertible that Ms. Chang bought in Beijing was in the wrong position, and the oil pipe was damaged when the hood was opened, resulting in oil leakage;

In March 2009, Ms. Deng from Zengcheng, Guangdong Province, an imported Mercedes-Benz car suffered an oil leak and the cylinder burst for the first time in one month. The results show that the engine tie rod of this vehicle seriously does not meet the national industry standard.

June 5438 +20081October, Mr. Liu's Mercedes-Benz in Hangzhou suddenly stalled, and the D block could not be started. The inspection result is "serious oil leakage in the gearbox".

On June 5438+ 10, 2008, when Mr. Zhou's Mercedes-Benz E230 was driving for 4,800 kilometers, it was found that the gearbox leaked oil. When the vehicle mileage reaches more than 7000 kilometers, the oil leakage becomes more and more serious, and the engine still has "clicking" abnormal sound.

In March 2007, a company in Shanghai bought Mercedes-Benz E240 sedan for three years, and the size and quality problems followed. When the vehicle reached 70,000 kilometers, the crankcase leaked oil, and the gearbox leaked oil. The engine was removed and the suspension connecting rod and ball joint were changed several times. When driving to 654.38+0.2 million kilometers, the engine stalled and the ME computer burned ... According to rough statistics, the vehicle was repaired more than 50 times in the process of use, costing more than 654.38+0 million yuan.

Generally speaking, except for industries with serious bubbles, the price and value of products in the market should basically correspond. To the disappointment of consumers, new cars worth millions of dollars are leaking oil endlessly. Even if the price changes due to the change of supply and demand, there will be no such situation of poor quality and serious deviation of value. Mercedes-Benz luxury cars are expensive, but it is very chilling to fool China consumers on product quality. Mercedes-Benz lost not only oil in China, but also the hearts of consumers.

Unable to ask for help

Complaints about Mercedes-Benz are far more than that. Of course, the oil spill made consumers angry. What's more, Mercedes-Benz China concealed and relied on it in the process of dealing with the problem, not to mention returning the goods, and even failed to solve the problem in time. Mercedes-Benz's behavior is obviously "lack of minimum respect for China consumers".

Mr. Yang, the owner of Guangdong, bought a Mercedes S400,2011on April 27th. On September 29, the car was driving in the rain and the engine stalled because of water absorption. According to Mr. Yang, although there was water on the road at that time, the depth did not exceed 10 cm, and all vehicles were driving normally. Finally, the test result given by the 4S repair shop is that the engine shell is broken and the engine is scrapped. Moreover, the manufacturer said that the engine water is not guaranteed, and it will cost more than 300,000 yuan to replace.

"Also driving in the rain, why are other vehicles ok? Is there any defect in the air intake design of this car? " Mr. Yang expressed doubts about this and demanded compensation from the manufacturer.

However, the explanation given by Mercedes-Benz China is that the user's manual indicates that this product can only wade under the condition of 25cm still water depth, and consumers should bear the responsibility of improper operation because they did not read the user's manual and caused the engine to get water.

20 1 1 In the second half of the year, Mr. Li, who lives in Jiaojiang District, Taizhou City, spent more than1600,000 yuan to buy a Mercedes-Benz GL450 imported off-road vehicle. However, this joy did not last long. One day, Mr. Li found a pool of oil on the floor of his garage. The surprised owner immediately sent the Mercedes GL450 for inspection. After investigation, it was confirmed that the oil leaked to the bottom line.

Since then, Mr. Li has been entangled with Mercedes-Benz China for a long time. At first, the luxury car was sent to the 4S shop, and the repairman said it was just a small problem. Seeing that the new car was demolished layer by layer, Mr. Li and his family were very distressed.

The key is that the new car has been split into eight pieces and the fault has not been ruled out. The repairman of S shop told Mr. Li that they needed the authorization of the owner to disassemble and check the engine because they could not find the fault. To move a luxury car like Core, Mr. Li said that he could not accept it and proposed to return it or change it. Mercedes-Benz China noncommittally. The two sides are in a stalemate. Today, Mr. Li's car is still quietly parked in 4S's shop.

Mr. Li of Taizhou also thinks that it can be returned according to the catalogue of three guarantees in Zhejiang Province. Due to the serious quality problems of the Mercedes-Benz GL450 he bought, he will have the right to continue to ask Mercedes-Benz China to meet his return requirements.

Previously, relevant consumers said in an interview that Zhejiang consumers enjoy great advantages in automobile rights protection. As early as 200 1, Zhejiang listed automobile products in the "three guarantees" catalogue, which also means that consumers can choose to repair, replace or return if there are quality problems within 7 days after buying a new car. If it is within 7 days 15 days, you can choose to replace or repair it.

But in fact, these regulations on protecting consumers' rights and interests have spread to Mercedes-Benz China, and it has gone in one ear and out the other. Faced with the demands of consumers and the handling opinions of the industrial and commercial departments, Mercedes-Benz has no intention of repentance. There is no more effective solution except "being dealt with" like Tai Chi. It always insists on only returning and not changing, trying to minimize its losses.

Differential treatment

Such a world-class brand has been repeatedly complained in China, and there have even been many vicious cases of consumers "venting their anger on Mercedes-Benz". Despite the extreme factors of consumers, people can't help but doubt the service quality of Mercedes-Benz, and some consumers directly complain that "Mercedes-Benz treats domestic and foreign countries differently".

It is understood that in Germany, if a Mercedes-Benz car breaks down on the road, and the location of the failure is more than 100 km away from the place where the license is applied, you can enjoy the special comfort of Mercedes-Benz: providing customers with three-day hotel accommodation, free trailers, car rental or car exchange fees, etc. In New Zealand, if a Mercedes needs to be repaired in the factory and can't be driven on the same day, the maintenance point will lend the owner a Mercedes for free until the vehicle is repaired.

In China, Mercedes-Benz customers will not get any compensation no matter where their cars break down. Where there is no maintenance center, the owner will find a way to send the car to the maintenance center himself, and all expenses will be taken care of by himself. All this seems to confirm consumers' complaints about "differential treatment of Mercedes-Benz at home and abroad".

Regarding the question of "differential treatment", automobile professionals pointed out that the most critical reason lies in the lack of relevant and perfect laws and regulations in China. "In some countries, if the car is repaired twice during the warranty period, the manufacturer can be asked to return or replace the car. However, none of our 4S stores can do this. Only by truly establishing and perfecting a neutral third-party appraisal institution and providing it with strong legal and regulatory support can this differential treatment be fundamentally solved. "

Jia, an automobile expert, said that there is no way to avoid these situations at present, and it is estimated that the situation will improve only after the introduction of the three-guarantee policy for automobiles. However, some people think that the automobile three guarantees regulations and automobile recall regulations can basically protect the rights and interests of automobile consumers, but China should draft an automobile law. Only by stipulating the contents related to all aspects of automobiles, especially those related to automobile consumption rights protection, can such problems be better solved.

Facts have proved that consumers can successfully defend their rights only through legal channels. 20 1 1 Nanjing Mr. Zhao applied to the court for accident identification because of oil leakage from his car. Entrusted by the Yuhuatai District Court in Nanjing, the Ministry of Public Security and the Appraisal Center sent personnel to cooperate with the court personnel and the representatives of the original defendant to conduct on-the-spot investigation. According to the appraisal report issued by the appraisal center, the court finally ruled that Mercedes-Benz China should compensate Mr. Zhao for 630,000 yuan.

However, not every car owner can be as lucky as the consumer who lost 630 thousand in Nanjing. Due to the high cost of rights protection, most consumers will not choose to defend their rights in court unless they repeatedly negotiate with the maintenance workers when facing the Mercedes-Benz luxury car with oil leakage. This is also one of the reasons why Mercedes-Benz is arrogant in China. Because of the tolerance of consumers, Mercedes-Benz China, who bullied customers in big stores, had the courage to fool consumers, forming the usual trick of "something went wrong-the consumer negotiated with the 4S store-stayed in the car to observe-the observation failed-the consumer asked for a return-ignored". However, if Mercedes-Benz China continues to hurt consumers' hearts, it is difficult to guarantee that more consumers in China will not defend their rights through legal proceedings.

For an enterprise, the trust of consumers plays a very important role in its development. However, in recent years, an oil spill occurred in Mercedes-Benz luxury cars, which led to a decline in consumer trust. If you want to save the precarious situation of Mercedes-Benz China, please face up to the problem and give the public a clear explanation as soon as possible, so as not to hurt the hearts of China consumers.

When it rains, it pours/Misfortunes never come singly

At the same time of frequent scandals of Mercedes-Benz, the market performance also plummeted. Mercedes-Benz sold 65,438+04,677 vehicles in China market (including Hongkong) in April, down 65,438+065,438+0.2% year-on-year. This year-on-year decline is unusual in the passionate year of luxury car market, because Audi's performance in China market, including Hongkong, is still strong. In April, the sales volume was 34,265,438+0 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 44.0%. BMW is no exception. In April, the sales volume of BMW Group in China market surpassed that of the United States, reaching 27, 197 vehicles, up 30.8% year-on-year.

The performance of Mercedes-Benz in China market is undoubtedly amazing. What is the reason why Mercedes-Benz's performance in China market is so different? As we all know, the sales of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars in the US market are still strong. The data of 22,336 vehicles in April made Mercedes-Benz surpass BMW, becoming the best-selling luxury car brand in the US market that month and the best-performing luxury car brand in the US market so far in 2065,438+02.

However, Mercedes-Benz does have some quality problems in China market. Reports of Mercedes-Benz spontaneous combustion and Mercedes-Benz oil leakage may affect the "good performance" of Mercedes-Benz in China market. But BMW and Audi are not without flaws. In March, BMW decided to recall more than 6,543,802 imported and domestic BMW 5-series cars, BMW 6-series coupes and BMW 6-series convertible coupes produced between 2003 and 2065.438+00 from May 12, which is considerable. Because the DSG problem has not been effectively solved, Audi has been questioned by consumers. Therefore, the market performance of Mercedes-Benz has plummeted, and there should be other problems.

Among the reasons given by Mercedes-Benz officials for the year-on-year decline in sales in China in April, Mercedes-Benz B with high sales volume has been exhausted, the M-class has just been released, and the localization of GLK has just begun, which temporarily hindered the high sales of the above-mentioned best-selling models before the China market resumed. Obviously, the problems of these cars belong to the import market.

The first reversal of Mercedes-Benz imported car market was in April 20 10, when BMW replaced Mercedes-Benz as the champion of domestic imported cars. Prior to this, Mercedes-Benz had been firmly in the top spot for decades. 20 1 1 In April, BMW imported 1 1000 vehicles and Mercedes-Benz imported 9590 vehicles. Results During 20 1 1 year, the imported cars of Mercedes-Benz in China market never made a profit. Therefore, the decline of Mercedes-Benz in China market is largely due to the unsatisfactory performance of the imported car market.

This should be related to Mercedes-Benz's failure to integrate domestic and imported sales channels. Mercedes-Benz's sales in China market have always been independent of domestic production and imports, while BMW has already combined domestic production and imports into one. The situation of Mercedes-Benz double-line sales will make imported cars and domestic cars sometimes fight and compete with each other. The most typical example is the contradiction between imported e-class cars and domestic e-class cars competing to seize the market around 20 10. At that time, the sharp reduction in the price of imported E-class cars undoubtedly had a great impact on the domestic E-class car market.

Mercedes-Benz China has realized the existence of such problems, but it has not been completely solved until today. During the Beijing Auto Show, dieterzetsche, Chairman of Daimler's Board of Directors, said: The goal of Mercedes-Benz China is to establish a legal entity wholesale company. This part of the work is very complicated, involving many interests, and there are still some problems that need to be solved through consultation with partners.

Obviously, this channel integration involving the balance of interests among Mercedes-Benz, BAIC and Li Xingxing has become one of the biggest obstacles to the development of Mercedes-Benz in China market. If this problem cannot be solved as soon as possible, Mercedes-Benz will be left behind by Audi and BMW in the China market.

Note: This article is the exclusive contribution of China Automobile Consumption Network. If you need to reprint, please indicate the source.

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