beleve it or not you can still perform DIY on every car. Mechanics make good money if there shop is on flat rate...going by what the book time is on front shocks it could be 3 hours, but it might only take the mechanic 1hr to do it...thats where you make your money.
But in all reality, screw it. I'll DIY and spend the money I saved on tools to DIY more things
Having friends that are MB Techs and using some of the shop equipment is nice too
I'll be testing my 300D injectors soon on the MBZ tester @ the local dealer.