The Metris is not a gigantic seller, partially because of things like this- but it’s both a blue ocean (largely new to the brand/expanded sales) venture, and an introduction to the brand as a whole.
While some of you have had quality control issues, and more than that have had major dealer issues, almost all of you seem to love your vans. If the QC issues went away, and the some of the dealerships got their heads out of their butts and started offering loaner vans (if not cars), the sale of a Metris could:
1) Make you a Mercedes van customer for life,
2) make you into an advocate for Mercedes vans (I.e. convince your friends to buy them)
3) most of all, make additional sales of other vehicles. A ford van guy who has never owned a Mercedes would never be thinking MB sedan for their wife. If he replaces his Ford with a Metris, the dealership is good, and the QC issues weren’t there, next time they buy a family car, I would guess Mercedes would be on the list.
Sporadic QC issues and life time maintenance costs aside, besides a few years in the late 90s- mid2000s, I have held it indisputable that Mercedes-Benz products are always the best in their categories- if sometimes expensive.
Thus I hold that exposure to their products leads to long standing loyalty and repeat business. I consider myself alive because of my choice of vehicle.
The dealers that treat van customers poorly are idiots. The guy who buys a $28k Metris cargo today could very easily be the guy whose wife drives out in a leased $35k GLA250 or $45k GLC300 next year. And once that road is turned down, very rarely is it turned back- as any serial Mercedes owner on here would probably testify.