Do rebuilt cars still have factory warranty?
 

I'm looking at buying a new car for my wife. Deciding between Mercedes C300 and Infiniti G37xS.

My father-in-law is a rebuilder in Victoria. As luck may have it, he is currently working on a 2014 Mercedes C300.

I can get a good price on it, but I'm concerned about the transmission issue alot of owners of that model are experiencing:

2014 C300 4Matic Transmission jolt/jerking problem - MBWorld.org Forums

My questions is, if this car has a "rebuilt" title, will Mercedes still honor the factory warranty? From the sound of it, they may be releasing a software update soon to solve the transmission issue.

I don't want to risk buying this vehicle without a warranty, and then having to pay out of pocket to fix the transmission on a brand new vehicle.

Any tips/advice is appreciated!

No. They may or may not discover it's a rebuilt, so you might get by for awhile, but when push comes to shove, no it does not have any warranty.

Also, maybe you should consider not compromising on safety, warranty, and resale for your wife to save a few dollars.

I'm assuming Mercedes Canada tracks all of the vehicles by VIN number? Once I transfer the car to my name it will eventually get updated in the system that the car now has a rebuilt title?

Like I said in the OP, my father-in-law is the rebuilder, and we have been driving his vehicles for years without issue. I would only consider purchasing a vehicle that he has rebuilt by hand.

Thanks for your reply.

I think it's best to email Mercedes Canada and see what their official stance is for this. Report back so we can know. ^^

Call here:

Mercedes-Benz Canada
Customer Relations: 1-800-387-0100 (available 24/7)

Their answer is more accurate than Revscene.

This is in the USA service/warranty booklet, but I guarantee the Canadian one is similar:

http://www.mbusa.com/vcm/MB/DigitalA...on_booklet.pdf

Looks like the call-center closes at 5pm EST. I will have to call in the morning.

I was wondering, is there a way for me to confirm which packages the vehicle has?

It's on the island right now, so I can't check myself. If I can get the VIN number will I be able to phone Mercedes and they can tell me all the details about the vehicle?

You will probably have better luck contacting the service department of a dealership with the VIN, they may be able to generate an options list for you.

if it was written off by icbc and comes up on the auction as rebuildable, and someone bids/buys and rebuilds, passes inpsection than it becomes a rebuilt..
If your father in law somehow landed on a hit car that didn't go through insurance than it'll have a clean title.

Avoid rebuilt vehicles. No one will ever fix the car properly after a total loss, no one!

Like lowside67 said "you should consider not compromising on safety, warranty, and resale for your wife to save a few dollars".

I hear a lot East Indian's do this type of this with rebuilt cars in Vancouver.

I just did the CarFax on it. Looks like it was a leased car from Mercedes. Guy picked it up in Dec 2013 and only drove it 4 months. Father-in-law told me the only reason it was written off is because the air bags deployed. There wasn't that much damage. He only had to replace dash, front bumper and radiator. Title is coming up as salvage/rebuild. Considering it was a leased car, Mercedes must know what happened to it.

I'm saving over $20k from the sticker price. Even without a warranty, I think it's a good deal for a fully loaded C300 with every package/option (retails for $52k).

Tough decision though...

its like youre looking for someone to tell you " buy it its a good price and a steal! itll be fine! " lol if youre wondering so much about it just buy it then :suspicious:

Just remember how epic the depreation will be in the next couple years on your new car

Aren't writeoffs based on the cost of replacing the vehicle vs repair.

If the above the true, then I think the cost of replacing the airbags would have been much cheaper than writing it off. That couldn't be the only reason why it's titled as a rebuilt now.

If you were already in the market for a new cClass, then buying this would make sense, as you would save 20k, worse case scenario is you'll spend 10k fixing it a few years down the road from faulty parts caused by the accident that you won't initially find. But if you were in the market for a 30k car rather than a 50k cClass, then don't buy this, even if your father in law does repairs for free, he doesn't manufacture mercedes parts. When your tranny/engine goes out 2 years down the road from the accident, a new benz tranny/engine is not going to be CHEAP.

For example, replacement honda balljoint ~ $50, benz $150+

You aren't actually saving $20k because you aren't getting a new car without a warranty, you are getting a used one. While sticker might be $52k, an identical 4 month old car is worth about $10k less as nobody pays full price for the new one. Now your difference is actually only $10k for it being a rebuilt.

Now $10k is a lot of money, but there are two things to keep in mind... How much will repairs cost you that would otherwise be under warranty and how much less is it worth as a rebuilt when you sell it again.

Typically a rebuilt is worth at LEAST 25% less, so if you own it for a few years and sell it again, between the price difference and paying to fix things you may not even be ahead. Keep in mind it will be 20 times harder to sell as no dealer and very few people will consider buying it.

I just don't think you are getting as great of a deal as you think, you are literally paying exactly what that car is worth. I once bought an audi s5 rebuilt, it was 1 year old with 10k and I literally paid 50% of new. I drove it for a bit, it was a complete piece of crap, it didn't drive the same, and got rid of it, which took forever.

Not recommended.

yeah, so there would be no way you would be able to get any warranty work done since I'm sure MB would have it in their system has that car has been written off.

there is no way that that car only had the airbags deployed and written off. (unless something shady has gone on)

general criteria for insurance companies to write off a car, is if the repairs is >80% of the value for the car. since it was only 4 months old, the value would be in the high $40k range. 80 % of that would be over $35k of repairs. so just imagine what needed to be fixed for $35k.

I wouldn't trust any rebuilds, unless you have personal knowledgefo the vehicle and somehow know it was a quality repair. but most the time. to make money, thay would have to cut corners.

just my thought. but then i know there are a lot of people out there that are happy with rebuilds. so good luck

SMELLS LIKE BULLSHIT

They probrably had replacement insurance policy if the car was that new

I continue to marvel at the ignorance of those that do not realize these.

Also consider resale value. If you go to trade it in to a dealer no one will want to touch it. If you do find someone willing to take it on trade, then you will be taking a massive hit over average retail. Secondly, I'm pretty sure no major finance company will finance a rebuilt car which again has a negative impact on resale value since only cash buyers can purchase it from you. The only way to avoid this is to keep the car for 10+ years. Is that the plan or are you only planning on keeping it for only a 2-5 years?

my dealers that I have worked for: sir, rebuilt? :fuckthatshit:

IMO, rebuilt vehicles are never a good deal. Cars with unibody structures are a lot like tin cans... they are very durable to a certain point, but if you completely crush one you can never put it back the way it was. You are compromising on structural integrity and ultimately safety for a couple of thousand dollars. Don't mean to sound like a jerk, but if you/your wife is lying there in the hospital I am almost 100% sure you or she will regret not paying the "premium" for a clean-titled car. All I'm going to ask is... what price do you put on your own safety in the event of a bad collision? If that price is more than the amount of $$ that you would save, get the rebuilt car. If not, look elsewhere. Just my $0.02.

I dont mind rebuilt cars my father has a 07 accord he bought in 08 with 10,000kms on it. His friend who professionally rebuilds cars brought it in fixed it as close to factory spec. 6 years later he's now at 114,000kms and no issues whatsoever. Im sure there are good and bad stories you have to decide whats best.