And the dealers say....................

[Rasher]

My guess is that you're a serial complainer, whether riding a BMW or a Kawasaki

Not at all there are loads of companies I think are great and recommend, and very few I find dissapointing.

I rarely go into NOG, I did get a quote for a service, but they came up at almost double the price I can get it from another BMW dealer, I suppose it is up to them what they charge, and up to me if I pay it (No thanks!)

I do have concerns over quality and reliability and what does get me on this forum is that anyone who thinks an FD should not fail after a few thousand miles is an arsehole. In fact any negative criticism of the bike gets you blasted by the bloody BMW maffia.

It also seems you are expected to make a huge effort to get a BMW dealer to treat you fairly, my attitude is shite - why because I would quite like the warranty I was promised when I bought the bike? Or because I think if a "common" failure occurs on a bike then BMW should maybe help out?

I just want a fair level of service and support, and from day one, seems this is too much to ask in BMW land

Ah.............that's why a Rasher £1 is worthless at a UK BMW dealer.........good luck Rasher, nice way to 'burn your bridges'

What bridges? It would appear there were never any there in the first place as I had not spent years being really nice to my local BMW dealer - well I never had a reason to go there before I bought a BMW bike, yet it is my fault I do not have some sort of magical reltionship that will get me treated decently.

 

[Beemerman59]

Although I ended up buying my bike privately, I have have had excellent service with some warranty and out of warranty (goodwill) work from a dealer. In return they had my business for two services and a tankbag. I'm now doing my own servicing so they won't see me for a while but if I do ever decide I want to buy a new BMW they will be my first port of call. That is how a good dealer works - looking at the long term.

With most things in life, how you deal with people is key to getting what you want, and we are all human and respond in very similar ways irrespective of which side of the "Sales" fence we are sitting. Dealers read this forum and I have no doubt also share experiences with others on the quiet. It is a public forum after all.

 

[BBB61]

I do have concerns over quality and reliability and what does get me on this forum is that anyone who thinks an FD should not fail after a few thousand miles is an arsehole. In fact any negative criticism of the bike gets you blasted by the bloody BMW maffia.

It's not what you say it's how you say it. There are plenty on the forum who have been critical of BMW's but have not had anything like the reaction that you have had. Why would that be the case? Dead simple, all down to how they put their concerns across, many in an eloquent and constructive manner.

You could search the forums and find some good examples of how to do it. But I doubt you would learn from them, and in any case your have blown your reputation to smithereens over the last few months to the point where it is beyond repair.

 

[snerkler]

The problem with BMW dealers is unless you have bought a dozen bikes of them they do not want to do bugger all for you.

.

I disagree, Rainbow have always been excellent with me, even after just one purchase from them. They even helped me sell my first GS 3 months after I bought it as I just couldn't get comfortable on it. They put it on their website, added warranty to make it back to 12 months, dealt with it all and took such little cut that I got more than I owuld had I have sold it privately.
I then returned 4-5 years later and bought my current GSA from them and have had nothing but excellent service from them again. They really bend over backwards to help, whether it be to squeeze you in for a service last minute, do warranty work, arrange test rides etc etc. Can't fault them

 

[Mark Hooton]

Personal relationships over the commercial pressures

Rubbish, bought my GS in France and had lots of problems.

FPC, FD and EWS fine, btw.

Both Bahnstormers and Vines were really helpful with advice and Wally, at CW, rebuilt it on goodwill.

I have paid for only two services at CW and a Haynes manual, but they can't do enough for me when I roll up.

I will not part with my CW'ed GS now for anything

I did make the observation in an earlier post about it being down to how the guys are at the dealerships and, despite my personal concerns over the quality (only mine I hasten to add and as I said I love the bikes and my dealer(s) have been very good) apart from one chappie (who will remain nameless out of respect) I am very happy to report that they are a great bunch of lads and it`s pleasing to see another member also feels the same way.

On the `open forum` principle, and to be fair to all (right or wrong), it`s also interesting to hear the other end of the extreme!

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

I disagree, Rainbow have always been excellent with me, even after just one purchase from them. They even helped me sell my first GS 3 months after I bought it as I just couldn't get comfortable on it. They put it on their website, added warranty to make it back to 12 months, dealt with it all and took such little cut that I got more than I owuld had I have sold it privately.
I then returned 4-5 years later and bought my current GSA from them and have had nothing but excellent service from them again. They really bend over backwards to help, whether it be to squeeze you in for a service last minute, do warranty work, arrange test rides etc etc. Can't fault them

+1 Rainbow are excellent

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

I rarely go into NOG, I did get a quote for a service, but they came up at almost double the price I can get it from another BMW dealer, I suppose it is up to them what they charge, and up to me if I pay it (No thanks!)

You still don't get it do you

Ever heard of the saying ' We don't want his business', so a firm quotes double, so he doesn't take it and if he is stupid enough................they get a double whammy

They have probably read your comments here

 

[Rasher]

Well the funny thing is no dealers have responded to this post, which was the original request.

Yet loads of members of this forum seem to reply on their behalf, many of whom keep telling me NOG do not want my business, which is maybe a bit unfair on NOG if they would not mind my cash, but I get the impression they may have been slating me to other owners.

Every one keeps telling me that no BMW dealer wants my business, but no dealers have said that, I think people on this forum have done more to put me off the dealers and the bike than anything a dealer could do.

I was only going to a BMW dealer for servicing as the "warranty" (remember the one the dealer who took £8.5k from me never sorted) requires this.

As I have no proof of warranty perhaps that is a waste of time, if what you lot have to say it sounds like if my bike did go wrong every BMW dealer in the country would tell me to piss off anyway.

I may as well just cancel my service and save some cash, seems like the warranty is never gonna happen.

It all seems very one way, I have to be nice about BMW's, ignore all their faults, buy a bike with a warranty and not complain when I never receive the warranty

The closest dealer to me does not want my business, the second closest dealer to me (who flogged me the bike) never bothered to sort out my warranty and because I am not over the moon with that and I ask if carrying a spare FPC is a good idea, or state I think BMW should do something about design faults such as FD's it seems every BMW owner on the planet cannot stand me.

I'l get my coat

 

[snerkler]

Well the funny thing is no dealers have responded to this post, which was the original request.

Yet loads of members of this forum seem to reply on their behalf, many of whom keep telling me NOG do not want my business, which is maybe a bit unfair on NOG if they would not mind my cash, but I get the impression they may have been slating me to other owners.

Every one keeps telling me that no BMW dealer wants my business, but no dealers have said that, I think people on this forum have done more to put me off the dealers and the bike than anything a dealer could do.

I was only going to a BMW dealer for servicing as the "warranty" (remember the one the dealer who took £8.5k from me never sorted) requires this.

As I have no proof of warranty perhaps that is a waste of time, if what you lot have to say it sounds like if my bike did go wrong every BMW dealer in the country would tell me to piss off anyway.

I may as well just cancel my service and save some cash, seems like the warranty is never gonna happen.

It all seems very one way, I have to be nice about BMW's, ignore all their faults, buy a bike with a warranty and not complain when I never receive the warranty

The closest dealer to me does not want my business, the second closest dealer to me (who flogged me the bike) never bothered to sort out my warranty and because I am not over the moon with that and I ask if carrying a spare FPC is a good idea, or state I think BMW should do something about design faults such as FD's it seems every BMW owner on the planet cannot stand me.

I'l get my coat

I can't profess to know your full story but if you should have had warranty and not been given it then you have a right to be disgruntled IMO. However, I think the problem is that you may have not conducted yourself in the best manner which is why you seem to have alienated so many folk.

With regards to the FD failures I personally don't believe it's as bad as this forum makes out. There have been a number of cases of FD failures that is for sure, but the percentage in relation to bikes sold is small. So small that BMW have not been forced to do a recall or rush to get this fixed, small enough that no bike review, magazine etc that I am aware of has felt the need to make a big song and dance about it, or even mention it.

Regarding you comment about servicing at BMW as per terms of the warranty, I understood it that as long as your use genuine BMW parts you can have it serviced wherever you want?

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Well the funny thing is no dealers have responded to this post, which was the original request.

They never will

Warranty, if you bought an AUB s/hand bike from a main BMW dealer (which it seems you did) then you've got a bike covered by a 12 month BMW AUB warranty.................what more proof do you want?

You don't get a certificate, a card anymore (you used to in the old days)

Phone BMW Customer Service, give them your reg no and they will confirm your warranty and breakdown status, from date of purchase

It really is .....................very simple

 

[Rasher]

Phone BMW Customer Service, give them your reg no and they will confirm your warranty and breakdown status, from date of purchase

It really is .....................very simple

The dealer said there was a delay and they would chase it up, after a few calls chasing them up I E-mailed BMW (Who never bothered to reply) so after a few more weeks I phoned BMW and was told they had run out of books but would be getting more.

I have also heard from another dealer I mentioned it to that books were coming through for their customers OK, so they obviously now have stock (but could still not be bothered to send me one)

I do expect a written confirmation for warranty (along with terms and conditions) as I expect a certificate of insurance from my insurer, MOT certificate from the testing station and Tax disc from DVLA whn I pay for one.

The fact that neither the dealer nor BMW could be bothered to sort this out has not impressed me, and lots of people on this forum make excuses for BMW all the time which makes me think unless I fit a set of blinkers and start preaching God Squad style how wonderful BMW are then I will not fit in with owners or dealers.

I was also told the bike had had an annual service just before I bought it, this turned out to be untrue, they did agree to do this at a later date which is OK but I get the feeling they were not happy to do so.

I am not sure who has alienated who with this dealer, I think expecting a bike to be in the state it was claimed to be in prior to the sale is not unreasonable, nor is wanting proof of warranty and I don't fancy haggling a £1500 FD bill based on "they told me it had a warranty that covered this" a computer error could also easily erase thi information (assuming someone from BMW has not got so angry at my negativity and not deleted it already)

With under 2 months warranty left by the time the next service is due perhaps I should just cancel the franchised service and find an independant that wants the £350 of work, saving the poor BMW dealer from having me lowering the tone of their showroom for a few hours (although the lowly Kwak dealer I used with my last bike gave me a loaner so they did not have to tolerate me, not a bad ploy as I was tempted to buy one of them)

I do not really need BMW or their dealers, I am sure a Guzzi / Triumph / Yamaha / Honda dealer will take the GS off my hands as part exchange on one of their bikes - and some of them even have coffee as well now!

And before I go I am sorry if I have offended anyone, any gripes or concerns I have are not meant to be an insult to those who have bought or do love their GS' and I actually really like mine and apart from reliability fears and BMW dealers taking a dislike to me I have never had a bad word to say for the bike itself.

If I trusted the bike and the dealers I would 100% buy another one based on the performance / comfort / handling / luggage capability

Right gotta go, need to line up some test rides and find an independant service shop

 

[Sgt Bilco]

Right gotta go, need to line up some test rides and find an independant service shop

You've seen Steptoe in action so give him a call

 

[snerkler]

Rasher I'm not sure I've got any documents specifically telling me I'm covered by warranty, even though I bought new. All I have is a generic warranty book saying what warranty covers but it doesn't say my bike specifically. However, all new and approved used bikes come with the warranty so BMW can't get out of it should your bike develop a problem. Your bike will be on their system and so will be covered. And I'm sure there's full literature on the BMW webpage regarding what's covered under new and approved used bikes

 

[Rasher]

Cheers, there may be info on the web, but how hard is it to send someone a bloody document, and if they cannot do that how much hassle will it be making a claim!

With the approved used warranty I have been informed that you have to use a franchised dealer - another problem with no terms is I may have gone elsewhere and then if I needed to claim I am sure it would be refused and pointed out it was in the terms they never sent me!

The warranty is up in October, when purchasing the bike I was thinking of just renewing this again and sticking with franchised servicing, but the extra £200 per service and £350 for the warranty make for hefty running costs and as with all insurance based warranties making claims can be quite difficult as they tend to put everything down to "wear and tear"

Perhaps the new bike experience is quite a bit better, but I rarely buy new and prefer to look at 1-2 year old models, and IMO if a dealer is selling used bikes they should be willing to provide a good level of service, if they don't want skinflints like me then they should not sell bikes in my price range!

I also like to pay cash, which when I was a lad was a good thing, but these days sales people hate cash buyers (this is not a pop at BMW dealers - it is the same everywhere, and not just vehicles) I used to live well beyond my means and do not ever intend to add up how much money I wasted over those years - so now I save up & buy with real money every time.

I will do another 4k before the warranty runs out, so need to keep it up to date, hence currently booked in for franchised dealer service just before I go to the Alps, if I keep it longer term I will probably go independant, but I am hoping to get a new(er) bike before it will need the following service.

 

[Hexme]

Either sell your bike or enjoy it.....

Read this.

http://ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=271933

 

[Rasher]

Either sell your bike or enjoy it.....

Read this.

http://ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=271933

I do enjoy riding the bike and agree with all the positive comments about how great the bike is to ride, I am hoping to get another 12-15 months happy riding out of it before moving on.

I just find the BMW Ownership experience a let down, I stupidly assumed premium prices would ensure a reliable product and above average dealer service

 

[Hexme]

My dealership is Bahnstormers, they sell a premium product and provide a friendly premium service, always happy.

 

[Rasher]

Looks good there, but is a 140 mile round trip for me, still when the same service is @ £150 cheaper than local dealer it makes sense financially, but is still a pain as it turns a simple service into an entire day out and leaves me stuck in a shop for hours on end.

Perhaps if I lived closer to them and had bought a bike from them my perspective may be quite different.

Funny thing is when I was looking to but the GS I was told with the exception of the 24k service the others were £200 - £300, but once I had bought a bike the cost for the £12k service had jumped to beyond £400.

It is lots of little things like this that have got to me with the two dealers I have had the most dealings with, and then when I contacted BMW directly about the warranty book not arriving they ignored my E-mails and when I phoned they did not give a f*** either.

My view is if they cannot get the little things right you have no chance with the big problems, if my FD were to fail I would have no faith in the warranty not trying to wriggle out and calling it "wear and tear" or in my local dealers trying to help out in any way and 70 miles to Bahstormers is a long push - assuming they want my business.

Anyway I am almost as tired of moaning about BMW as everyone else is of hearing it, I still love riding the bike and think switching from a sportsbike to the GS was the best thing I ever did, even if I move on to something else next year I will cherish the miles I have done on the GS and it has completely changed my outlook on what makes a motorcycle great.

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

If you're worried about your 1200GS, sell it & buy an older one and maintain it yourself because it's simpler or use a good independent to do it..............the riding experience won't be a whole lot different on a 1150/1100GS

 

[cookie]

Recently paid less than £300 for the 24k service on my GSA. That was at CWs, not known for being particularly cheap AFAIK.

were FD to fail, I have no doubt that they would get me a new one on the extended warranty with no quibbles.