[Turbo Ed]

Well I wasn’t expecting a call from my dealer till about the end of the year! Ordered my plugs for the A45S a week before last and they arrived today. Slightly baffled as none originally showing on system when i placed the order! Not even in Europe. Like others i was given a date around July/August time. Happy days

Congrats!!
I have found the same thing on other components.
When I ordered all the parts to complete my new modified Cylinder Head, many were on 4 to 5 months quoted delivery.
However, I had everything in under 10 weeks.
It seems MB Parts like to work on the "under promise, over deliver " principle,
Hard to fault, in all honesty.

My plugs requirement is part of a bigger order, so will be interesting to see when they appear,

 

[Woodyman]

Also enquired about diff oil and gearbox oil and filter as both are due, again not in stock but available 2/3 days. Really surprised that a main premium dealership hasn’t got these main service consumables on the shelf!

Going back to the spark plug drama I don’t suppose anyone has the Torque spec and electrode gap measurement to hand? Was advised 23.5Nm for torque but had no idea about gap setting as these are gapped from manufacturer and literally installed without checking! Sounds about right these days.

 

[Turbo Ed]

Also enquired about diff oil and gearbox oil and filter as both are due, again not in stock but available 2/3 days. Really surprised that a main premium dealership hasn’t got these main service consumables on the shelf!

Going back to the spark plug drama I don’t suppose anyone has the Torque spec and electrode gap measurement to hand? Was advised 23.5Nm for torque but had no idea about gap setting as these are gapped from manufacturer and literally installed without checking! Sounds about right these days.

0.7 mm Gap
information straight from NGK while I was getting on top of the sourcing situation.

 

[Turbo Ed]

Also enquired about diff oil and gearbox oil and filter as both are due, again not in stock but available 2/3 days. Really surprised that a main premium dealership hasn’t got these main service consumables on the shelf!

Going back to the spark plug drama I don’t suppose anyone has the Torque spec and electrode gap measurement to hand? Was advised 23.5Nm for torque but had no idea about gap setting as these are gapped from manufacturer and literally installed without checking! Sounds about right these days.

You know the fact that your Main Dealership did NOT have the Oils/ Filter says A LOT about our vehicles.
I wonder if @veeeight with his ex factory data sources could actually give us the world wide sales numbers on the W177 A45S?
I am getting the feeling from all the various Tier 1's with whom I have been discussing different issues, that the total production quantities of our vehicle must be relatively tiny.
Which would explain why a UK Main Dealer did not even have vehicle specific consumables on the shelf.

 

[veeeight]

M-B Parts distribution in the UK works a little differently, there is a giant parts warehouse in Milton Keynes servicing the entire UK incl NI and CI.

Basically dealers keep very little stock of parts, all parts needed for upcoming work is ordered the day before, and delivered around 4am into the dealership (the logistics and deliveries have their own keys and secure delivery arrangements). So retail dealerships don’t keep parts “on the shelf” as such, save for really common items and consumables.

MBUK Truck and Vans also work overnight, servicing your van during your downtime, so you don’t lose a days work with VOR, but they have the same arrangements with same day deliveries for parts.

And yes, A45(s) sales are tiny. In the UK there were roughly 200 new A45s registered in 2022 (cf 1.6m total new car registrations in the UK in 2022). No world numbers to hand.

 

[veeeight]

229.71 oil is standard though, and is bought by dealerships in drums, so possibly someone is being economical with the truth there…….

 

[Woodyman]

0.7 mm Gap
information straight from NGK while I was getting on top of the sourcing situation.

Thanks…. I did see that measurement on the specs for the other plugs that aren’t suitable On the NGK website.

 

[Turbo Ed]

Thanks…. I did see that measurement on the specs for the other plugs that aren’t suitable On the NGK website.

Probably an NGK standard for a particular style of plug.
However, always good to know for sure, I agree.
Good Luck, hope the plug change addresses your issue.

 

[veeeight]

Don’t forget your spark plug connector grease A0029898051

 

[Woodyman]

Probably an NGK standard for a particular style of plug.
However, always good to know for sure, I agree.
Good Luck, hope the plug change addresses your issue.

Thanks, luckily for me my car has no running issues so its just literally some routine maintenance, plugs diff oil and gearbox oil along with gearbox filter. I’ve just done the engine oil service with pollen filter and replaced the aiffilter with a Sprint PO8.

 

[Woodyman]

Don’t forget your spark plug connector grease A0029898051

Would that be some Lithium high melting point grease? Or some not off the shelf Mercedes dedicated specifically designed coil cap insertion product….

 

[veeeight]

Would that be some Lithium high melting point grease? Or some not off the shelf Mercedes dedicated specifically designed coil cap insertion product….

It’s a dielectric grease.

 

[Woodyman]

Tune up grease, good on battery terminals and any kind of electrical connections. Handy to know thanks

 

[Theo]

Dealer called a little while ago, saying my plugs have arrived. Trying not to be excited until I pick them up later today. I'm debating whether I should purchase the most sophisticated, multi layer protection safe and put it in, or keep in a safe deposit box.

 

[Forrester]

Dealer called a little while ago, saying my plugs have arrived. Trying not to be excited until I pick them up later today. I'm debating whether I should purchase the most sophisticated, multi layer protection safe and put it in, or keep in a safe deposit box.

Which service are these plugs for. You already had some before which I am guessing you used for the current year service.

 

[Theo]

Which service are these plugs for. You already had some before which I am guessing you used for the current year service.

3rd year service in a couple of weeks, pushing the dates back a little in hope that either the gearbox gasket or the 235.64 oil arrives and include it in the service. These are the only parts still missing. I doubt they're both arriving in time though, so chances are I'll be going back a second time to complete the service.

Happy days though

A little under €100 btw, for the set. Sure wasn't expecting that!

 

[Turbo Ed]

3rd year service in a couple of weeks, pushing the dates back a little in hope that either the gearbox gasket or the 235.64 oil arrives and include it in the service. These are the only parts still missing. I doubt they're both arriving in time though, so chances are I'll be going back a second time to complete the service.

Happy days though

View attachment 11212

A little under €100 btw, for the set. Sure wasn't expecting that!

@Theo

They are $170 AUD + VAT List for qty 4 in Australia.
So, at current exchange rates, 100 Pounds Sterling, including VAT.

Seems like MB runs a fairly uniform parts price structure across the world.

 

[Theo]

Seems like I got them €17 cheaper. I was expecting something like €250 to be honest, only because AMG and NGK partnership is monopolizing the plugs. Who wouldn't pay for the only plug that can fit even if it cost three times as much, or four times, five times. Pleasantly surprised.

 

[Theo]

Btw they picked my plugs from a box that contained another two or three sets, which means the next couple of owners that take their A45s's in for their 3rd year service will never know anything about what we've been discussing here, be a normal spark plug replacement on a random Monday. Crazy, if you think I spent hours searching online. Timing is everything, isn't it?

 

[Turbo Ed]

Btw they picked my plugs from a box that contained another two or three sets, which means the next couple of owners that take their A45s's in for their 3rd year service will never know anything about what we've been discussing here, be a normal spark plug replacement on a random Monday. Crazy, if you think I spent hours searching online. Timing is everything, isn't it?

LOL
Always!!
Real Estate, or anything else !!

Do you think they gave you a Trade discount or did they charge you List price, obviously inclusive of Greek VAT?
What IS Greek VAT, by the way?