Dealership Warranty Service Experience

[mitch808]

Originally Posted by Poppyboy

That's funny. Does that get you a free clay bar-ing?

He gave me some free parts just yesterday. Something so trivial, he just reached over the parts counter, and said take this....

Originally Posted by P1et

Or perhaps a nice ham?

I saw my parents in DFW the other week, and brought home 3 7-8lbs briskets. I gave one to a co-worker, I keep one, and I had a spare.
You would agree that TX can do brisket, and people will accept it graciously. I really like the place I go to in DFW where I pick them up.

[Poppyboy]

Here's an update, folks. Just got a call from an SA (Perillo). They can't duplicate the infrequent and brief grinding noise from the starter, but I told him it's definitely still there. They're replacing some front bushings, the battery, water pump and idler tensioner, in addition to a few smaller items. Good stuff thus far. I hope the next update includes replacing the starter. My warranty expires TO-DAY. Meanwhile, driving the 550i loaner has been fun. It feels much bigger than my previous E34 and E39....

[airshaq20]

Originally Posted by 007_e350

I would never do that **** em -

which dealership do u go to Op ? Westmont is not too bad, offcourse there are jerkes here & there but compared to Bill Jacobs ... I've never tried Patrick bmw (schaumburg's) but I've heard good stuff abt it, they're pretty 'generous' for the lack of right word

Here's how I look at it, it cost about $80 parts and labor to replace the front wipers (I know, I know, I can buy a $30-40/pair wiper) but if I can get them to replace my wipers every visit, I keep a good relationship with my SA and at the same time, get all the things I need AND have some comfort that he takes care of my car while on his watch - that's cheap! I just tell my self, I paid my wipers every visit for $50!

Oh yeah, I learned this from my brother-in-law. He told me every time he travels, he would tip the cleaners the day he checks in and he always get clean towels, toiletries, clean room, etc without asking for it. He doesn't tip when he leaves.....I realized, hey, this will work when I get my car in for service or warranty work - and it does!

[airshaq20]

I also do this when I get my yearly inspection, tire balance, alignment, etc. When I get my cars in my local tire shop, the minute I see the guy work on my car, I hand him $10-20. Most of the time, they would even invite me inside the shop and let me watch them work on my cars. So yeah, tip before they work on your cars!

[shark715]

We bought our X5 lightly used from a non-BMW dealer, and we have had all of our service done at Bridgewater BMW here in New Jersey. Have never had an issue at all. They have treated us just as if we had bought the truck from them.I can't say anything bad, and it never occurred to me to tip any of their employees.

[P1]

Originally Posted by mitch808

He gave me some free parts just yesterday. Something so trivial, he just reached over the parts counter, and said take this....



I saw my parents in DFW the other week, and brought home 3 7-8lbs briskets. I gave one to a co-worker, I keep one, and I had a spare.
You would agree that TX can do brisket, and people will accept it graciously. I really like the place I go to in DFW where I pick them up.

The grass is always greener on the other side, right? Seattle is by far my favorite city in the US when it comes to quality of food. Really enjoyed Crush and Luc's in Capitol Hill. The Barking Frog is Woodinville was excellent, also.

I had my entire team in town for meetings, and I took them out for BBQ yesterday for lunch. They were completely blown away by the brisket even though this was a quick spot (Rudy's) that no one locally would really consider as "high quality" BBQ...

[P1]

Originally Posted by shark715

We bought our X5 lightly used from a non-BMW dealer, and we have had all of our service done at Bridgewater BMW here in New Jersey. Have never had an issue at all. They have treated us just as if we had bought the truck from them.I can't say anything bad, and it never occurred to me to tip any of their employees.

Same here, and it should never make a difference. Considering how many people move in between states, I bet the people who buy AND service their cars at the same dealership is very small.

[mitch808]

Originally Posted by P1et

The grass is always greener on the other side, right? Seattle is by far my favorite city in the US when it comes to quality of food. Really enjoyed Crush and Luc's in Capitol Hill. The Barking Frog is Woodinville was excellent, also.

I had my entire team in town for meetings, and I took them out for BBQ yesterday for lunch. They were completely blown away by the brisket even though this was a quick spot (Rudy's) that no one locally would really consider as "high quality" BBQ...

Hit me up when you are in town, I'll take you out for some food.

[P1]

Originally Posted by mitch808

Hit me up when you are in town, I'll take you out for some food.

Will do mate!

[infamousdiz]

Originally Posted by airshaq20

I usually give $50 to my SA and ask him to replace everything he could find.
I never deal a porter - I always call my SA to make an appointment, I ask for a loaner, give him a heads up on what I expect to get done and on the day I drop it off, I shake his hand with the bill and ask him to take care of my car.

I usually get a few calls during the day for updates and I would always get something like "oh, we replaced your plugs ahead of time so you don't have to come back in the next few months".

I do the same, a few dollars translates to the best customer service and experience one could as for.

[infamousdiz]

Originally Posted by Poppyboy

BMW service sucks. This is the second dealership I have dealt with for three different cars, and each location has pissed me off in so many different ways. This time, I wanted to get in one more service before my warranty expires. They claimed to do a "full inspection" to see if anything needs fixing/replacement. I know they are normally only allowed to fix what is specifically pointed out to them, but the service manager assured me they would do a close inspection anyway and get in whatever service they could. Meanwhile, they wouldn't even squeeze in a last oil and filter change for me, even though it had been almost a year (low mileage service). Also, they wouldn't replace the spark plugs, even though there had been four oil "changes", but not oil "services". WTF??? They even didn't fix the loose carpeted panel on the side of the rear HVAC vents, which was not replaced correctly during the previous service when they installed new vents. The work order said "compared carpeted panel to other X5 and found no difference". That is total BS. I mentioned this to the SA. He said they ordered the clips for the carpeted panel (no mention of that in the work order), but they "weren't in yet". Then why did he have me come in to pick up my car? That was a week ago. Still no call to let me know the "ordered clips" were in. I wouldn't give these clowns a dollar for a rip off extended warranty. With a good OBD II reader, strong DIY skills and a dependable Euro mechanic, I'll be just fine without the dealerships. Just awful.

After two dealerships and you seem to come to the same conclusion......it's you bro

[Poppyboy]

Originally Posted by infamousdiz

After two dealerships and you seem to come to the same conclusion......it's you bro

It's actually not me, "bro". If you actually read what I and others wrote about a particular dealership instead of making a snide, useless comment, you'd see that my most recent visit has been positive thus far because of different personnel...

[P1]

Originally Posted by infamousdiz

I do the same, a few dollars translates to the best customer service and experience one could as for.

I have never had a poor experience at my dealership, and am on my second SA. Being kind, building a relationship and giving them glowing reviews when they are sent out will go a long way. And every once in a while, I let them "sell" me something that is not covered under warranty, such as an alignment, because I bet it's one of their target metrics.

[Poppyboy]

Originally Posted by P1et

I have never had a poor experience at my dealership, and am on my second SA. Being kind, building a relationship and giving them glowing reviews when they are sent out will go a long way. And every once in a while, I let them "sell" me something that is not covered under warranty, such as an alignment, because I bet it's one of their target metrics.

I'm going to need to especially "sweeten the pot" with them now that I'm out of warranty (after this current visit). I'll handle DIY stuff, but I know I'll eventually need them for more complicated service. I've started a spreadsheet to track (non-maintenance) expenses against the appx. $3800 cost of extending the warranty (non-maintenance) by two years. While I may be overly optimistic, especially given that I only drive @ 5-6k miles per year, I think the two years will fly by very quickly. It also seems (based on more recent postings) that the 5.0 versions have more problems than the 3.5, but I dunno...

[Poppyboy]

Update: I received my X5 back today from its final warranty visit. They didn't provide a free A/C cleaning, didn't fix a loose piece of trim, found nothing with the periodic climate control display fading, found nothing with the starter grinding noise (but said it's been noted multiple times for post warranty coverage), found no faults with my EVAP system, even though my OBD reader suggested a possible fault, replaced a leaking oil filter housing gasket, replaced rubber mounts of both tension struts/upper thrust arm bushings, replaced the battery (P/N 61 21 2 353 812), replaced the alternator drive belt tensioner, replaced the water/coolant pump and reinstalled the center console carpet trim. All in all, even though they missed a few things and wouldn't throw in a spark plug change, it was a pleasant experience; much better than previous visits. I'll send the service manager a letter of appreciation with a gift card.

[P1]

The A/C cleaning is puzzling, unless it was already done once before. Did they refuse to do the other items, or would only do them if you paid? Good to hear you had a better experience this time. Are you in CPO territory now?

[Poppyboy]

Originally Posted by P1et

The A/C cleaning is puzzling, unless it was already done once before. Did they refuse to do the other items, or would only do them if you paid? Good to hear you had a better experience this time. Are you in CPO territory now?

They said the warranty wouldn't cover the A/C cleaning, and they weren't able to replicate any "smell" (probably because it doesn't exist). I have the service records, and it wasn't previously done. They quoted me a price of $300+ to do it (no way). They wouldn't do the spark plugs because I've had 4 oil "changes", but not 4 oil "services" due to low annual mileage oil changes. They didn't fix the loose piece of trim because they completely ignored it even though I explained it multiple times. I'll just fix it myself in the Spring. I'm completely out of warranty now. I'll handle as many DIY jobs myself where possible. For issues outside of my abilities, I have a couple of indy shop options. I'll be tracking my expenses vs. the appx. $3800 quoted for a 2-year warranty extension (no maintenance included).