Benham Motorrad - Director contact

Grim Rider said:
Interesting to see a dealer being so open to comment so here's my thoughts on Benhams. I bought my GS from Clarks who were the nearest dealer then (and was always pleased with their level of service). Since Benhams opened and are only down the road from me I have visited a few times.

Personally I dislike the way it feels more like an extension of the car dealership next door and not like a bike shop (although I could also say the same about many dealers these days, including the Triumph dealer in Wolverhampton) so for example the one time I had some work done on the bike it was taken away and I could not talk to the mechanic who had worked on it (servicing was dealt with in the Mini dealership). The one time I went to order parts I had to go through the Mini dealership and into the BMW car dealership and then find the parts on the microfiche myself because the guy in parts had no idea what I was talking about and seemed to hold very little in stock for bikes.

However, I would echo previous comments about David in Sales. I have had the experience in several dealers (including the aforementioned Triumph dealer) when they are all over you when you are buying a bike then barely acknowledge your presence the next time you go in. David is always welcoming and informative and I enjoy calling in just for a coffee and chat. If I knew someone looking for a new BM I wouldn't necessarily recommend the dealers but I would send them to talk to him.
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Hello Grim Rider

Thank you for your feedback. I guess from your comments that your last visit was before September 2012? It is feedback such as yours that led me to make the decision to totally change the way we run bikes into a completely stand-alone business.

We appointed Andrew Fern as Motorcycle Manager late last year and he has transformed our business. Everything is now dealt with solely in the motorcycle showroom. Yes, you can still order motorcycle parts over the counter in the car dealership as the system is the same, but I would strongly recommend doing this in the motorcycle showroom where you will be talking to fellow bikers who have vastly greater technical knowledge than my car guys. In addition, all servicing administration is dealt with in the bike showroom and if you want to talk to our technicians, you are more than welcome.

I hope you will see the positive improvements we've made if and when you next decide to visit us.

Thanks for your comments.

Regards

S
 
Andybandit said:
No it's not a wind up.

By your comments it's ok for the mot station not to tell you about advisories and I don't have to change them.

As for clutch and pistons, I didn't know they are part of the mot.I also thought they were covered by the 12 months aub warranty no?

Tell me this, if you were buying privately and looked at an mot that had advisories on it, and the seller hadn't replaced said items, would you still pay full price?

Andy
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An advisory is an advisory nothing else.

If it had affected the MOT they they would have been changed.

Why would you not pay full price - it just may have been reflected by the advisories.

I suppose if the bike had been up for sale at £500 and you had knocked him down £200 because of the advisories then you would have been happy.

So would he.
 
Andybandit said:
No it's not a wind up.

By your comments it's ok for the mot station not to tell you about advisories and I don't have to change them.

As for clutch and pistons, I didn't know they are part of the mot.I also thought they were covered by the 12 months aub warranty no?

Tell me this, if you were buying privately and looked at an mot that had advisories on it, and the seller hadn't replaced said items, would you still pay full price?

Andy
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You bought a 7 year old bike with 12 months warranty, 12 months tax and MOT. That's what you got. Your issue is about brake disc wear and the fact that you didn't know they were partly worn. Well, my point is that everything is going to be partly worn and when you're buying a secondhand bike from wherever, you should be responsible for making whatever checks are important to you - yourself. Of course the brake discs are worn, so are the pads, so are the tyres, so are the headlamp bulbs. etc etc. The bike had passed all the safety checks within the MOT and you had a 12 month warranty which is designed to replace items if they are covered within it and if they break. Brake discs are wear and tear items so unless there's a cause of failure such as a defect in manufacture, design etc, they won't be covered anyway. All that's happened is you've missed the ideal opportunity to barter on the price.
 
You had to be told after 4 months of ownership that the handle bar grip was worn? C'mon! The dealer then replaces it free of charge and you still have the neck to raise it as part of a complaint post. No offence meant, but I think you're taking the proverbial slightly.
 
An advisory doesn't mean shit at an MOT. The tester feels that it's slightly worn but not a problem but may need changing at some point. I bet you a pound to a pinch of shit that you could take it to another station and they wouldn't notice.

The discs may have been worn slightly but are probably way above the lowest limit with loads of life in them. BMW themselves will advise a change way before the need to be done.

Get a grip FFS and just ride your bike.
 
Andybandit said:
Hiya

Iam personally disappointed with benham Wolverhampton .
I purchased an 05 gs in September 2012 with 12 months aub, 12 months mot and full service history. All carried out by benham the week of me collecting the bike.

The first time I washed the bike I noticed a split in the driveshaft gaiter. I duly took the bike back and they replaced it under the aub. Four months later my tax was due so I got out the mot to tax it and found that there was an advisory of worn handlebar grip, and slightly worn discs all round. I contacted Steve as I thought as an mot advisory I should have been informed that it needed new handlebar grip and brakes. He has since contacted me to say that he would replace the handlebar grip foc as on the advisory it says worn. But as the discs only say slightly worn he has offered me10% discount off replacing them

I feel that I should have been informed of the brakes needing replacement
A. For safety reasons - as they were the mot station
B. if I had known that they were in need of replacement I doubt I would have gone ahead with the purchase, and feel that is probably why I was not informed

I blame myself for not checking the paperwork thoroughly,but as I was buying from a franchised bmw dealership, I didn't think it was necessary

Andy
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You don't say (unless I've missed it?) how many miles your bike has done?

As an example, my 06 has done over 41,000 miles. Yes the discs are worn and it's still on the original set of pads which are approximately 50% worn. Both my grips are very worn. My twistgrip is showing white cords which I think are the heating elements? Neither the brake disc/pads or grips would be covered on my Motorrad extended warranty policy. Do I give a fuck? No I bloody well don't
 
Sgt Bilco said:
An advisory doesn't mean shit at an MOT. The tester feels that it's slightly worn but not a problem but may need changing at some point. I bet you a pound to a pinch of shit that you could take it to another station and they wouldn't notice.

The discs may have been worn slightly but are probably way above the lowest limit with loads of life in them. BMW themselves will advise a change way before the need to be done.

Get a grip FFS and just ride your bike.
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A lot of advisories nowadays only mean that the tester has to keep up the quota of advisories to continue in the green,

My back brake pads have been an advisory for a couple of years, I recon they will last another 20k miles at least!

If the discs needed replaced then it would be a fail.
 
Just a mention for Andy in the service department who after my bike developed a leaky seal and was showing excess play in the final drive bearings had it straight in, organized a loaner and got my bike sorted under warranty. No fuss, no drama just great service. Thanks guys.
 
I had my GS serviced at Benham earlier this week and Met both Steve and Andrew whom I found very friendly and helpful. I was also introduced to the mechanic who worked on the bike and discussed all he had done afterwards.

Likewise, when saw an aftermarket (non-BMW) accessory on a used GS they were selling and enquired how it had been fitted, Andrew informed me that the previous owner had done the work himself. I then asked Andrew if he knew where the guy had bought the parts from, to which he said he wasn't sure and rang the previous owner there and then and relayed the reply.

I found the premisses clean, smart and well laid out and will certainly go there again.
 
I've learned 2 things since posting

1. There is no point in having an advisory section on an mot, as you don't have to do anything about it

2. I was obviously wrong about my opinion of Benhams
 
Hi Steve
A little disappointed, I spoke too your service department this morning about my 2012 GSA with only 4300 miles on it.
My bike seems to have developed a small oil leak under the left pot. I was told that they couldn't possibly look at it until the 11th September I explained that my BMW warranty finishes on the 7th September and asked if it would still be covered by warranty. I was told in no uncertain terms that it would be up to BMW. I was also told that I can take it to another dealer if I want. I have visited your dealership in the past just for an oil check and was delighted by the service I received on that occasion and commented on it at the time. I don't really want to travel between 30 and 70 miles.

Kind Regards
Geoff Wallwork
 
Hi Geoff

My apologies for not seeing this message sooner. Have DM'd you and got the team to shuffle things around to get you in before the warranty deadline.

Regards

Steve
 
Director@Benham Motorrad said:
Hi Geoff

My apologies for not seeing this message sooner. Have DM'd you and got the team to shuffle things around to get you in before the warranty deadline.

Regards

Steve
Click to expand...

Good response. I'll call in the next time I'm passing in that direction:thumb
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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