For 155K+ Crowd: M-B High-Mileage Award

[Douglas]

For anyone with a Pagoda, or any other Mercedes, with more than 155K on the clock, I recommend the following link for a factory grill badge:

http://www.mbusa.com/mercedes/MBHome.html#/onlymbMenu/eventsCommunity/

I guess most of the cars from ebay wouldn't qualify for this since they always seem to have 48K on them....  

[Rolf]

How does Mercedes determine that the car has 155+ on it?

[Douglas]

I think they take your word for it. You fill out the form, take it to your local dealer who signs it, then you send the form in.

[Douglas]

BTW, the link I posted was for US cars only. I'm sure there's an equivalent form for other regions.

Also, the "entry level" badge is actually stamped with "250K kilometers." (Of course, this works out to 155K in miles.)

[halman2228]

Actually, you are required to take your car in to an authorized dealer and have a Service Advisor verify the odometer and sign off on the form.

I obtained one recently for the wife's '90 560SEL. It's pretty well made (solid metal) and they even send a bound certificate that looks pretty classy .

No charge (41 cents for your stamp) and they delivered mine via FedEx!

Regards,
Kevin

[Douglas]

quote:Originally posted by halman2228


Actually, you are required to take your car in to an authorized dealer and have a Service Advisor verify the odometer and sign off on the form.

Kevin,

As a matter of fact, I just had the identical experience here in NY so you're exactly right. I assumed they just sign it without even looking, but they really did verify the exact mileage.

Very impressed with how consistent Mercedes dealers are based on this random sampling. It makes the high-mileage badge mean more.

[Rolf]

I still wonder how Mercedes can determine the milage on our cars since the odometer only goes to 99,999 and then starts over.

[J. Huber]

I cannot say for sure I qualify for the 250K KM award. But I might. I know that since 1980, I have put 105,000 KMs on the car and the car read about 13,000 when we got it. The engine was shot and the car obvious saw a lot of moisture  :?  -- which leads me to believe that was either 113,000 or maybe just maybe 213,000. If it was 113K then I guess I need to hit 50,000 to qualify. The reason I bore you all with this is -- at what point will Mercedes engage in "educated speculation" about a car?

[Douglas]

I'm guessing they give you the benefit of the doubt in situations where the car pre-dates 6 digits on the odometer. After all, even the cursory exam that my W123 was given isn't exactly airtight since the odometer wasn't confirmed to be accurate, original or even functional. No supporting paperwork or maintenance records were asked for, nor were they offered.

[halman2228]

It's a pretty classy deal:

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Regards...

[Rolf]

I talked to a service manager at a local MB dealership. I asked him about the odometer, he told me  since the car is over 40 years old it would most likely qualify for the 155+ badge. He told me to bring it in and he would sign off on the paperwork. I figure if the car is driven an average of 4,000 miles a year for 40 years it would accumulate approximately 160,000 miles.

[Rolf]

Where does one attach a High Mileage Award badge on our cars or does one?

[Douglas]

You'd affix it to the black grill that's behind the chrome grill.

[Richard Madison]

Go ahead if you want to "ruin" (my word) the classic design of the front Grill but if you show your car, go cautiously.

Had a judge recently take off points for my vintage wood steering wheel ("didn't come from the factory with that") and for the Coco Mats (same reason). He wasn't moved by the Options list I showed him. The Judge was a locally well know restorer of MB's and should have known better...

And, of course, a high mileage badge "was not on the car when it came from the factory."

Another silly reason to pass on the badge: the odometer cannot show the actual mileage, so every one of our near 40 year old cars can qualify for a badge...even an actual 50K mile car can be "badged" since MB will assume the odometer has gone around at least once. I do not accept an award that everyone qualifies for.

Richard M, NYC ... Grumpy and Badgeless
P.S.

quote:From a previous posting by Longtooth: ...if a car is entered in a show (MB or classic car show),...fender garnish is an "authenticity" deduction (50% of points)...MB enthusiasts value originality.

Was the judge correct in deducting for the dealer added wood steering wheel and the cocomats even if "authorized" and sold by MB in 1969?
RM

[Douglas]

I've seen grill badges on award-winning cars and nobody seemed to mind.

I think the bottom line here is that car show judges are rarely knowledgeable. Peter Lesler made the effort to write up MBCA juding rules and hardly anyone bothers to familiarize themselves with them.

Don't be put off by car show judges, Richard--and certainly don't do anything to please them. You have a fine Pagoda and their assessment can't change that fact.

[hkollan]

Hi,

Did the option list you showed the judge list a wooden steering wheel as an original option for the car? If so it would be interesting to know what option list you are referring to, since personally I've never seen a reference to wooden steering wheel for these cars in any MB documents. The cocomats is a very nice original option, so I think the judge made a mistake on that one.

[Peter van Es]

I picked up some 200,000 km lapel pins from MB at an estate auction once. Guess they originated from somewhere in the 60's when 200,000 km was a big deal. They're in little faux-snake skin boxes that also look decidedly 60's.

I bought them since I figured my car has done at least 200,000 kms. No certificate needed.

Peter