[clarkb286]

> "Batteries in most german cars are also deliberately placed under major engine components"

Source? I used to own a 2000 Audi S4 (bought in 2005), and the battery was easy to access and didn't take much labor to to replace. I now own and drive a 2006 Mercedes-Benz C55 AMG that I bought in 2009. One of the very few issues that the car has had was a parasitic battery drain, which went unnoticed for a long time, until I started a new job in which I was able to work from home, and, therefore, I didn't drive the car very often during that time span of around 4 years. Before I eventually determined what the problem was (the passenger power seat control module continued to draw current when the car was turned off), I had to replace the battery ~7 times (which usually didn't cost me anything since the since the batteries were still under warranty when they finally went dead). The battery in my car is very easy to access (it's not located under any major engine components) and is also very easy to remove, requiring little more than a socket wrench and no more than 15 minutes of labor.

[gambiting]

For what it's worth - I've had a 2016 GLA45 AMG, and that car was a piece of cake to work on. Did majority of maintenance by myself and everything was nicely laid out and accessible, haven't ran into any issues where something felt like it was intentionally placed in an awkward place. I'd bet a person who has never worked on cars could change the turbo on that engine.