Snobby sales staff, off-limit AMGs, and 'affordable' cars that were anything but. Mercedes has pleaded guilty to perpetrating all these practices over the past 10 years or so, but now reckons its dealers are some of the best out there.
Marcus Breitschwerdt says we had it wrong
Contrite and forthright UK boss Marcus Breitschwerdt told us that Mercedes had "almost a lost decade in Britain" when its premium brand lead held in 2002 was lost, and badly, to BMW and Audi.
Of course we know that the product was a bit shaky back then, but he says part of the issue lay with the dealers. Not going to happen again, he reckons, and listed improvements.
Being PistonHeads, we'll start with those improvements around cars with V8s.
No longer will AMG be represented in dealers by a single SLS off-limits to all by the lucky few, we're told. Now he says there's a C63 and E63 available in every major dealer.
Go on, take it for the weekend!
"We know we had this bad attitude that said, oh you have to be customers for 500 years before we can give you a car to test," he said. "Now we make sure AMGs are test-driven, day and night, and given away over the weekend." We can
recommend that
. It seems to be working too - AMG had its best-ever month in September, with sales up 69 percent to 681 cars.
The boss also confessed to the practice that customers of most brands have long-despaired of - the shouty ads proclaiming a new car "from just £20,999!" or other tempting price. Only to find "an ugly car that is not supposed to be bought, small tyres, no chrome, underpowered engine - awful," according to Breitschwerdt. Add the options to improve it "after option three you can't afford it any more".
Well not any more. "Our philosophy changed - we created a sharp looking and well equipped base model."
Base cars will be ones you'd actually buy
We did check out whether this was actually true, and while some might say the entry A180 SE Comfort at £20,370 is underpowered at 122hp and under-alloyed on 16s, the sensible chaps at What Car? called that model "the best compromise" of the entire A-Class range. Don't worry, we're bringing this back to AMGs...
To wit, one interesting fact he did tell us: 90 per cent of all Mercedes purchased privately are bought through PCP finance. That's the one where you pay a lump sum after the time's up to own it, or swap it for a new one. That's an amazing stat, but maybe not that surprising if PHer cydaps' experience that new AMGs are cheaper than used is anything to go by.