[vladinecko]

ok, i'm not posting this under the dealer forum because it's not really a review, rather an informative question. it is rather long so if you don't want read the whole thing, feel free to scroll down to a short version of it.

FULL VERSION:
i read more and more how some of you get calls from your SA congratulating you to your b-days, letting you know about events, giving you opportunities to sign up for closed events that are not publicly available, giving you random gifts, test-drives of pretty much any BMW that have on the lot, and just general feeling of being an always-welcomed and valued customer.

the reason i'm asking this is because i don't get any of those things i just listed from my SA. from day 1, i never got a phone call about status of production, nor did i get a reply to 3/4 of my emails about the status, i wasn't offered, or rather, i was DENIED a ride to the dealership the day i took delivery when i had absolutely no other way of getting there, i've never heard from him after i took delivery, etc. etc. basically, i signed the papers, gave him money, and that's as much of interaction as we've had so far.

now here is when i started being concerned about this. as many of you know, my car got f*cked up 5 times in 4 months. so i dropped it off at the dealership's body show hoping they would do the best job. needless to say, they didn't. although they removed most of the damage, they left a vast number of paint spots (like they painted over dirt) that were sticking out AND they put a cut in the passenger seat. i expected an apology, royal treatment and nothing but "sweet" words. instead, i got a blank face from the service manager who just rolled his eyes and told me to come back at my own convenience saying they would take care of it in 15-30 minutes. when i came back, taking off work, it took them 2.5 hours just to fix the paint problem not even touching the seat. while i was waiting, my SA came to talk to me (having absolutely no customers in the store) for about 5 minutes about his family then he went back to his office to play solitaire and browse music in iTunes. after about an hour of waiting and complete boredom, i started giving him hints i wanted to test drive the new Z4 M (which i'm interested in buying as my next car). he didn't get the hints so i asked him directly "i want to test drive this car while i have to wait [till your body shop fixes they mistake] because i'm interested in it." the car was sitting on the lot, was neither sold, reserved nor otherwise incapable of a test-drive. he sweet-talkingly refused to let me test-drive it and went back to his office browsing iTunes.

SHORT VERSION:
for the entire time i was at the dealership, no one offered me any words of apology for wasting my working day to fix their incompetent mistake (except for the body shop guy), my SA treated me like air, the service manager couldn't roll his eyes any more or he would start floating, and in general, i didn't feel like/wasn't treated like i bought a $45k BMW, i felt like i bought a used 1986 Ford Escort. they didn't act negatively, rather, ignorantly.

so, is this how everyone feels about their purchasing experience (no phone calls, no emails, zero to none attention while at the dealership, no willingness to test-drive cars (i also wanted to test drive a 650i and regular Z4), and overall nothing, but paperwork at the beginning and that's it. or are those that get gifts, warm welcome every time they come, and other offers and goodies only a rare exception to the rule?

any comments/input/experience would be appreciated as this is a deciding factor whether or not i will change dealerships when buying my next car.

[David328M-Sport]

Sorry to read your poor treatment.

So many previous posts citing poor customer service leads me to strongly suggest the you name the dealer involved if you cannot resolve any disputes.

The community here, especially the 95% of you from the USA do have a very big influence on certain issues. Like seeking out the standout dealers and avoiding the lazy ones.

Of course you should not be treated the way you were, but whilst that was happening, could you not have bypassed this loser and spoken to another, hopefully competent person to address your requirements. I personally would have dobbed him in for playing itunes (or whatever personal stuff he was doing) on company time.

I run my own business and excellent customer service and attention is my most important goal. The best advertising os word of mouth - replutation - so if a member does have a problem, let the dealer know then and there. Nothing less than proper attention is acceptable.

Cheers Vlad and I hope you sort it all out without any more upset.

[canucklion]

Hey, Vlad, sorry to hear man, that's pretty shitty treatment. Everyone I was over at the dealership, I was offered free drinks, and my SA would come talk to me immediately, or would apologize if he was with another customer. Even after I took delivery of my car, I went back once to have my car reset (it was still in shipping mode), and he shadowed me around, I almost felt bad haha, I was like, I don't want to take you away from your busy schedule, I can just browse around while the tech is resetting the computer.

I believe it's up to the individual SA, like David suggested, I would seek out another SA at the dealership, I'm sure if your current SA doesn't seem to want your business, someone else will gladly have you as a customer.

that's my two pennies

[CnoteMD]

Vlad, I would highly recommend finding another dealer. My experience with the salesperson at my dealer was very similar to yours. However, the service department has been wonderful. In the end, I still support the dealership and will simply find a different salesperson when its time for me to buy another car.

If I had bad experiences with sales AND service, I would escalate the complaints to the general manager or the owner. If the situation still goes unresolved, then its time to move on. I don't know the situation in Pittsburgh. Hopefully that isn't the only BMW dealer in your area.

It still amazes me that despite BMW's attention to detail they continue to allow dealers to provide such low levels of customer service. I can't tell you how many stories of horrible customer service I hear regarding BMW dealers. Something needs to be done (and NOT that stupid rating system where they all beg for 5's!!!) :mad:

[- Paul -]

Originally Posted by CnoteMD

Vlad, I would highly recommend finding another dealer.

What he said - Is there one nearby that you could use. I'd just cut my losses and never use them again.

[E91 Dude]

Sorry to hear about your experiences. It must be so frustrating. I agree with everyone else about finding another dealership. They don't deserve your business.

[LEDZEP]

Everyone at my dealer (IG Burton) has treated me wonderfully, even when I've been grumpy with them. Sorry to hear that you're getting treated poorly. Simply find another dealer for your next purchase. There is no reason to settle for it.

[Jay_328]

I purchased from North Carolina (after my CA left, they sucked), so I moved on to a Virginia dealership. No problems at all. Dude it's your money so if you feel that you are treated badly there ....... just move on.

[Artz 330]

damn sorry to hear that. My dealership treats me like king. Well we did buy 5 cars there in the last year an a half...

[StewtheBassman]

Vlad, it's hard to believe that someone as smart and alive as you are would take that. Clearly you're a forgiving and kind person too.

Fire that stupid sack of beans and get another Sales Associate.

My dealership gets together regularly in interdepartmental teams to discuss how to make the customer experience ever more perfect from top to bottom. This is how BMW will grow their business, not just by making great cars.

I have used all aspects of my dealership.

Service, body shop (two big accidents), emergency towing and repair, and I've bought two cars there (40k and 50kcdn). The X5 we bought elsewhere CPO (availability), but my SA was super classy and didn't berate me when I went to confess to him. We service the X5 there and they treat it like it was theirs.

My dealership also has a man in charge of calling all clients after they have had warranty work done to ensure they are 100 per cent happy. That's all he does!!

After I bought my first 3 series my SA let me take out a 545 with him the next week to feel it go.

Change SAs, in fact from the level of service you're getting elsewhere there, change dealerships, those guys are going NOWHERE.

My SA has recently left, to pursue more steady work hours. The guy next to him loves his job (sold findtom his E90), and I have adopted him. What did he do? Tomorrow morning I'm off to the xDrive comparison event to bang on xi cars versus the competition at a tracK!
And if you need reminding about excellence, read LedZep's posts about his purchase and service experiences!

[clutch09]

Which dealership and who is your SA? I'm in Pittsburgh too, bought my car from P&W and my CA has been very good with returning calls and assuring me he'll provide floor mats, keychains, etc.

Kanishk

[rikuF10]

vladinecko,

I am living on the other side of the planet from where you are.....and I got the same treatment. My car rattles like hell since day one. My salesman just "disappeared" after I paid for my car. My one-month old 325i stayed in their service department for 3 weeks....putting on high mileage on my brand car. In the process, they scratched my door. I complianted to every department here, and finally they fixed the problem in 3 days. The best part is that I found a pirated music CD inside my CD-player. No wonder they took so long to find the rattles....

What a great service!

[vladinecko]

thanks a lot for your comments guys! that's exactly what i needed to hear. it seems like a good majority of you have really good relations with their dealerships and people working there. i kind of feel bad because people at my dealership and my SA weren't assholes to me, they just didn't try to make me feel a valued customer. i didn't get the treatment i expected, that is, at least some kind of appreciation for the money i spent there.

i will write a review of the dealership i'm talking about in the dealer's forums. all i'm going to say is that your experience as a buyer of a BMW will end the moment you pay for the car. actually no, you're not gonna get any attention, and i mean none, right after you hand them the deposit check.

[canucklion]

Vlad, I was sorta expecting to get no more niceness after I've bought the car (that was my experience with Ford), but was totally thrown offboard with BMW's after-sales attitude, I hope you find a nicer dealer that will take care of you man

[335I talian Stallion NJ]

I'm in north NJ, what dealer do you use?

Originally Posted by CnoteMD

Vlad, I would highly recommend finding another dealer. My experience with the salesperson at my dealer was very similar to yours. However, the service department has been wonderful. In the end, I still support the dealership and will simply find a different salesperson when its time for me to buy another car.

If I had bad experiences with sales AND service, I would escalate the complaints to the general manager or the owner. If the situation still goes unresolved, then its time to move on. I don't know the situation in Pittsburgh. Hopefully that isn't the only BMW dealer in your area.

It still amazes me that despite BMW's attention to detail they continue to allow dealers to provide such low levels of customer service. I can't tell you how many stories of horrible customer service I hear regarding BMW dealers. Something needs to be done (and NOT that stupid rating system where they all beg for 5's!!!) :mad:

[BK]

That's ridiculous. I agree it's time to go to a new dealership.

Why the heck wouldn't he let you test drive the Z4? I'm currently test driving a number of cars (intend to buy a new car within the next year), and I've been to Acura, VW, BMW, Audi, Infinity, and MB dealerships so far. I walk in during my lunch hour without an appointment, ask to test drive the car I'm interested in, and they give me the keys. In a way, I've been a little surprised -- I've been half expecting some dealer to say "no, not without an appointment," but so far I've had no problems whatsoever. Every dealer has been great and low pressure. Plus, it's been a blast to test so many cars. Maybe if I asked for an Z4 or M5 or something they'd be more reluctant? I've been sticking around the $30-50K range.

Find a new dealer. There are good ones out there!

[BKsBimmer]

Vlad, sorry to hear about your experience with your SA.

I think you should write the Dealership and let them know how you feel about it.
If you don't get satisfaction try a different Dealership.

[CnoteMD]

Originally Posted by 335I talian Stallion NJ

I'm in north NJ, what dealer do you use?

Prestige BMW in Ramsey, NJ

[JSpira]

Originally Posted by vladinecko

ok, i'm not posting this under the dealer forum because it's not really a review, rather an informative question. it is rather long so if you don't want read the whole thing, feel free to scroll down to a short version of it.

FULL VERSION:
i read more and more how some of you get calls from your SA congratulating you to your b-days, letting you know about events, giving you opportunities to sign up for closed events that are not publicly available, giving you random gifts, test-drives of pretty much any BMW that have on the lot, and just general feeling of being an always-welcomed and valued customer.

the reason i'm asking this is because i don't get any of those things i just listed from my SA. from day 1, i never got a phone call about status of production, nor did i get a reply to 3/4 of my emails about the status, i wasn't offered, or rather, i was DENIED a ride to the dealership the day i took delivery when i had absolutely no other way of getting there, i've never heard from him after i took delivery, etc. etc. basically, i signed the papers, gave him money, and that's as much of interaction as we've had so far.

.

I think that BMW dealerships should of course always do as much as possible to make their customers feel welcome, as you put it you should have the general feeling of "being an always welcomed and valued customer."

That having been said, you should not count on having a relationship with an SA that includes cards and phone calls. It's really your salesperson who should manage the relationship, not the SA - in fact, in some dealerships, your SA can vary on each service visit.

If your salesperson doesn't go the extra kilometer, and you see that as being emblematic of the dealership, then yes it's time for a different dealership.

[tl_boy]

i get treated a little better, like he would offer water, and i did get a generic xmas card, but he was slow to answer emails and he only spent 20 minutes explaining the cars gadgets to me on purchase. that part kind of ticked me off, but it was closing time, after closing time rather, but still.

i don't understand the royal treatment you guys talk of. I've been to Mercedes and Lexus dealerships, and its self serve bars, yeah they're really nice, have treats and drinks, but the salesperson doesn't ever run up and start chatting. They are busy with other customers or who knows what. I've seen my salesperson goofing off on the computer too. And neither he, nor another salesperson at another location were very acommodating in getting me a car with xenons.

Basically, I think ALL the dealerships in Houston suck if you want royal treatment forget about it. you'll get average treatment at best.

[tl_boy]

how old are you that any dealer will hand you the keys just like that?

Originally Posted by BK

That's ridiculous. I agree it's time to go to a new dealership.

Why the heck wouldn't he let you test drive the Z4? I'm currently test driving a number of cars (intend to buy a new car within the next year), and I've been to Acura, VW, BMW, Audi, Infinity, and MB dealerships so far. I walk in during my lunch hour without an appointment, ask to test drive the car I'm interested in, and they give me the keys. In a way, I've been a little surprised -- I've been half expecting some dealer to say "no, not without an appointment," but so far I've had no problems whatsoever. Every dealer has been great and low pressure. Plus, it's been a blast to test so many cars. Maybe if I asked for an Z4 or M5 or something they'd be more reluctant? I've been sticking around the $30-50K range.

Find a new dealer. There are good ones out there!

[Jean330xi]

Originally Posted by JSpira

I think that BMW dealerships should of course always do as much as possible to make their customers feel welcome, as you put it you should have the general feeling of "being an always welcomed and valued customer."

That having been said, you should not count on having a relationship with an SA that includes cards and phone calls. It's really your salesperson who should manage the relationship, not the SA - in fact, in some dealerships, your SA can vary on each service visit.

If your salesperson doesn't go the extra kilometer, and you see that as being emblematic of the dealership, then yes it's time for a different dealership.

JS is right - you should expect a relationship with the Client Advisor but expectingthis from the SA is unrealistic.