Who thinks SLM are Good!

[BBB61]

CW Motorcycles in Dorchester. A highly regarded BMW motorcycle dealer.

Bob

 

[judge]

Interesting that there were 184 views on this thread producing a couple of positive responses.

What's significant about that? People read but don't post a view because they don't have one? I read a newspaper every time I buy one but I don't write a letter to the editor every time even if as is the case most times I have an opinion on something.

Also there is a culture in forums like this where people like a scrap or like a disaster or hear a tale of woe.

And people just love it when a dealer has screwed up as they and their staff are exempt from being able to make mistakes as soon as they wear those three letters on their uniform and represent that corporate giant we love to hate.

This thread is slightly different from the norm in that we haven't had a great many jump on the dealer bashing bandwagon, in fact given the responses that are here there are very few agreeing with Banger.

I still stand by the oinion that he himself lost this fight by not pursuing it to its natural conclusion, given that he has now sold that bike and moved onto a KTM that suggests a line has been drawn under the experience.

Dave is good enough to tell us the dealer apologised and that he declined to take the matter any further when BMW invited him to.

That's why I personally think this thread and its attempt to attack the reputation of the dealer over this matter is out of line.

 

[Fanum]

That's why I personally think this thread and its attempt to attack the reputation of the dealer over this matter is out of line.

Don't you think that the positive views that have popped out go to mitigate any damage that might have been done??

What Banger said, the time elapsed and the balance of more positive views hasn't discouraged me from visiting SLM, and I hope others with positive views will pipe up as much as the ones with negative views in order to give a balance to things.


The dealers do have a right to reply as well Andy...it seems that unlike Park LAne though, SLM's have chosen not to say anything.

 

[judge]

Actually as is usually the case the natural order of things of the forum has delivered its verdict, if there was a swell of support it would have revealed itself, on balance I think what has come out is while there is sympathy with Banger's experience, not enough for the judge/jury/executioner role that the responders generally supply, to deliver a damning verdict of the dealer.

On the last point Bill, it takes a brave soul with a lot of time on their hands to step out of the bunker and post here as a representitive of a dealer. And they don't always portray themselves in the best of light.

BTW you might think my 'out of line' comment may have been directed to mods for not removing, not a bit of it, it's Banger's motive in this particular instance I'm addressing. I like the guy, he's a Palace fan and I'd hate to see him become the new sanguine

 

[Banger]

Actually as is usually the case the natural order of things of the forum has delivered its verdict, if there was a swell of support it would have revealed itself, on balance I think what has come out is while there is sympathy with Banger's experience, not enough for the judge/jury/executioner role that the responders generally supply, to deliver a damning verdict of the dealer.

On the last point Bill, it takes a brave soul with a lot of time on their hands to step out of the bunker and post here as a representitive of a dealer. And they don't always portray themselves in the best of light.

BTW you might think my 'out of line' comment may have been directed to mods for not removing, not a bit of it, it's Banger's motive in this particular instance I'm addressing. I like the guy, he's a Palace fan and I'd hate to see him become the new sanguine

I would Just like to add that on occasions i still go to SLM on Saturday mornings and did not and do not hold a grudge.
Indeed if you look at the old pictures of a trip to France 2 years ago on here most of them belong to the SLM riders club. This was taken after obviously i had the experience.
I was very Ill for two years and was not far from loosing everything but i fought back , and it took 2 years to do so. In that time my Families finances hit bottom and the Bike (GS) was the first to go. Indeed i could not even get out of my hospital bed for 3 months and lost 5 stone.
When the Mist rised away and after a long battle i now am back and thought that after so much time being ill i had lost my insurance no claims, lost my car and even my place on here etc etc. I had a string of a few seconhand bikes , Fazer 1000, ZX12R all second hand but did not like them much although the 12R is a monster and keep in the touch with the club who are a great set of blokes, I have always liked Motox and when i was 19 was very very good at it......Started at the age of 8!
So i wanted to get back there but the illness and age had left its mark so the idea of two thirds Tarmac A third Diirt Appealed and i love the looks and can ride on the road too.
So you see it was nothing to do with my experience with BMW but the weight of them at the time was a deciding factor
Indeed i recently went round Phil Reynolds House and saw his GS and thought 'I still love that old beast' That probably goes for Phil too. But not Pat offcoarse.
So my reasons fora KTM had nothing to do with my complaint' i still visit and sayhello but i would now do no dealings with them. so i have no grudge but was entitled to tell you of my experience as after 2 years in the Twilight zone to me it was recent.
Why cant you tell a statement to Damn the Dealership? If its not Personal which is why i blanked the names its a freedom of speech , its an opinion. If everybody had nothing but good things to say on here it would not serve its purpose.
like i said i ride with SLM and have no problem but i do think that BMW do ripp us off where as KTM dont, let me give you an example.
I recently bought a KTM Tour Jacket it was priced at £229, i wangled and hassled , **** gave it to me for £180 as i am a regular i then decided on a sleeveless Jacket (these are all 2005 new stock by the way) at £40 he gave me for £30 so you see i got the £ 30 jacket free and £20 back on the Original Priced Tour Jacket!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can you imagine that at SLM! Not a Chance
I then was told the 'Kettle has just Boiled mate help yourself and a Dounut and all in the service.
Its the Feeling of 'You are a Biker' like us not You are a 'Target' feeling like BMW.
So to stop waffling my grudge is That as BMW riders we get ripped off so if it goes pair shaped i will moan, its to expensive not too.
In the ' Good old days' you could sit down with a coffee and a chat without being inttimedated by salsman or having a Pair of £500 jeans thrusting in your face. At KTM they no that, They dont get you like that they have studied the good and Bad points of What customers of BMW say and to Get to compete with their cousins by what they have learnt
Less in your Face selling and More friendly is the approach and judging at their dominance at off-road and supermoto and now breaking into the GP Scene i think they have done it rather well.

I Like old judge too the Mrs (posh as he calls her) thinks he was Cuddly??
And yes i am a Palace nut full of a house of Chelsea nuts so i have to let of steam somewhere dont i

 

[Fanum]

Why cant you tell a statement to Damn the Dealership? If its not Personal which is why i blanked the names its a freedom of speech , its an opinion. If everybody had nothing but good things to say on here it would not serve its purpose.

Judge and I have had conversations about this on several occasions, and it is a bit of a worry.

Yes, you're absolutely right, it is an opinion, you do have the right to express it and if it's about a BWM dealer then this is indeed the place to talk about it.....

However, (and this is where the worries come in)....most dealers don't come on here to post, so it's a one-sided thing.

Any individual can say anything here, and human nature is to report the bad things everytime and only the good occasionally.

This means that a dealer could easily get a bad reputation because of one or two individuals having a pop, and the good service they've given tends to be ignored.

Furthermore, complaints about a dealer stay on here forever......so a newb might well come along when looking for a bike, notice their dealership in the dealer section and read up oin a complaint that might go back several years, through changes of staff and even ownership, yet the negatives about that dealership still stick.....this means we end up with a section that becomes a catalogue of complaints against a dealership that is often out of date and unrepresentative of their 'normal' practice and service levels.


In many cases, things get reported here when something goes wrong, but a lot of people don't ever come along and say what the resolution was, so again, the shit sticks to whatever dealer's name.


If all of us reported the good as well as the bad, and stood up afterwards and said when it was resolved, there wouldn't be a major problem, but dealers do get a bit of a bad deal here sometimes, and many are much better than the image that gets portrayed here.

I can completely accept the reasons for the delay in this case Banger, but I've got to agree with Andy that it does seem a little unfair to rasie it, even if it is fresh to YOU , although that has been put in perspective now.

 

[BBB61]

but i do think that BMW do ripp us off where as KTM dont, let me give you an example.
I recently bought a KTM Tour Jacket it was priced at £229, i wangled and hassled , **** gave it to me for £180 as i am a regular i then decided on a sleeveless Jacket (these are all 2005 new stock by the way) at £40 he gave me for £30 so you see i got the £ 30 jacket free and £20 back on the Original Priced Tour Jacket!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can you imagine that at SLM! Not a Chance

I don't know about SLM as I have never used them, but I have bought BMW clothing from Prestige, Sawbridgeworth and Park Lane.

I bought a Rallye 2 jacket and trousers from Prestige last summer and they happily knocked 15% off the retail price, a saving of £100. I bought a Tourance jacket from Sawbridgeworth last October for SWMBO. Retail price £255, they sold it for £200. And finally Park Lane. At their open weekend 2 weeks ago, they had a significant level of 2004 stock they were trying to shift. I ended up getting a £425 Streetguard jacket for £100 and SWMBO got a System 4 helmet for £100 (retail price £255).

As I said, I have no experience of SLM, but that is the experience of 3 other BMW dealers. Its a similar approach to what you got from your KTM dealer.

Bob

 

[GSmonkey]

SLM mis-sold an '04 1150GS to me. Told me it had ABS, but it didn't. Got my money back in the end. No real apology after a lot of my time spent doing the deal.

Like most companies that p!ss me off.....I never deal with them again. I now deal with Vines - albeit not particularly close to me, I always receive service that is second to none.

 

[Beemer]

Furthermore, complaints about a dealer stay on here forever......so a newb might well come along when looking for a bike, notice their dealership in the dealer section and read up oin a complaint that might go back several years, through changes of staff and even ownership, yet the negatives about that dealership still stick

I think that can be true but from my point of view I would still have ventured along and seen what sort of product/service was available to me and made my own decision. These forums are great for people to express opinions and views and that's as far as they go in my book!! You want an opinion go visit places for yourself.

Banger I dont really see the point 2 years on.

That's from a Charlton fan


Steve

 

[Captain Scarlet]

Bought a couple of bikes from SLM and also their sister dealer Thames Valley HD.

Simply can't sing their praises high enough, both pre and post sale - inc before I'd decided to buy my first bike from them.

Personally, I'll not buy from anyone else as their service and exchange deals have been first rate.