I'm going to reseal both of my valve-cover breathers this weekend. Thursday night I pulled the engine cover and inspected the parts I would need to remove. All the rubber breather hoses (crankcase ventilation) were "hardened" from prolonged heat exposure and I was afraid they might split during disassembly/reassembly and then I'd be in a bad place. Checking Pelican Parts & FCP Euro the soonest I could get the parts is Tuesday. I logged onto the webpage for Mercedes-Benz of Birmingham, my local dealer, just expecting to get the phone# for the parts dept. As it was about 5AM they were not open yet but I saw ON THEIR SITE a button that simply said "ORDER PARTS". So I'm thinking, huh, maybe you don't have to talk to the parts guy anymore. I looked up my parts numbers and the price wasn't that bad. When it came to submitting my order the only way to receive them was to have them mailed to me, which stated no expected delivery date. Again, not a viable option, but I thought, OK, at least I know the dealership parts prices are not outrageous, so when they open I'll call and make sure they have these parts in stock. They did, so happy day I went to pick them up from the parts counter today (Friday) during lunch. When I got my total at the dealership parts counter I was a bit surprised. It turns out that when entering an online order through the dealership's webpage you are actually dealing with MBUSA, not the local dealership. Nowhere was that fact ever mentioned. Your parts would arrive from one or more of the six Parts Distribution Centers (PDC's) MBUSA has located throughout the U.S.A.
Grapevine, TX DFW Parts Distribution Center (PDC)
Vance, AL
Jacksonville, FL
Robbinsville, NJ
Carol Stream, IL
Fontana, CA

In the data below you will see the difference in prices. So, when placing an order at your local MB dealership parts counter be sure to ask what an item costs!!!

Mercedes-Benz OE parts prices (Crankcase Ventilation Hoses & Breather Hose Connector):

Internet Internet Dealership
MB List..Actual....Parts-Counter
Price.....Price......Price
$14.50 $11.14 $26.97 A1120180182 Hose - Mercedes-Benz (112-018-01-82)
$ 9.00 $ 6.91 $16.74 A1120180282 Hose - Mercedes-Benz (112-018-02-82)
$14.00 $10.50 $25.42 A1120180382 Hose - Mercedes-Benz (112-018-03-82)
$15.00 $11.26 $27.28 A1120180482 Vent Hose - Mercedes-Benz (112-018-04-82)
$ 7.00 $ 5.38 $15.12 A1120180209 Connector - Mercedes-Benz (112-018-02-09)