BMW dealer rant

vtwinpower

vtwinpower

Well-known member
I purchased a 2007 BMWF800ST from a private seller that had 14K on the ODO, he just had the 12K service done at BMW of Ventura. ( take head off, check valves, replace seal and close up).
After 1k of riding I was cleaning it and used a flashlight to look everywhere, noticed a little oil in the area behind the cylinders where it can pool. Thought nothing of it, maybe a sloppy job by mechanic. Wiped it clean and went about riding it for another 3K miles. Again oil was there. I took it to BMW of Walnut Creek, they removed the head and found where the tip of a zip tye was pinched in the seal when the 12K service was done which caused the oil leak.
I Emailed the Ventura dealer and sent them pics of the seal with the tye right next to it to show the deformity of it matches.
Now I know I have had the bike 8 months and 4k miles more on it, this is about the principle of owning up to your screw up. Job was done wrong and he admitted they did but went on to say it has been too long. All I ask is honesty and I was only asking to meet me 1/2 way ($150) as a gesture.
Now I will be posting and sending Emails to all the BMW owners groups in the US telling my story and bashing them.
If I lived closer I would go stand in front of the dealership with a sign, sounds over the top maybe but I am a man with integrity and when I do something wrong I fix it.
All that for $150.
 
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ScottRNelson

ScottRNelson

Mr. Dual Sport Rider
Holding a grudge won't actually hurt the dealer any. It will affect you, however.

Give it up and get on with your life. :cool
 
fast4d

fast4d

Well-known member
the same dealer replaced the short block on my bmw under warranty. they wanted an extra $100 to replace one valve shim after they installed original head on new block and found it out of spec. guess BMWs book rate wasnt enough?

picked up the bike and went for a long ride. half way down the mountain my boot was covered in oil.

valve cover gasket was pinched.

bike is out of warranty now. this is why I never goto the dealer for service.

did I tell you they had my bike for almost two months?

a friend with the exact same bike dropped a valve. job was done in 3 days after bmw approved the work. another dealer in the LA area.
 
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boney

boney

Miles > Posts
Welcome to the BMW experience. Most of the long term BMW owners who are not rich have learned this about the dealers and do their own service for this very reason. They might have also let.the oil collect until the 24k service which should be soon enough.

Don't bother with the grudge or reposting of your experience, we all know already.
 
Back2basic

Back2basic

SirCrashAlot
I would tell them to take care of it or you will go to Bureau of Automotive Repair, or BBB. Usually repairs are warrantied for 1yr/12k.
 
mototireguy

mototireguy

Moto Tire Veteran
On the plus side your have the BMW Walnut Creek dealer making this diagnosis/finding and not some independent shop or Joe Mechanic

Maybe you can fax/email a copy of the BMW WC work order/findings to the Ventura guys?

If still no respect from Ventura then your limited options include those listed above, BAR, BBB, Bmw Forums, Yelp and suck it up.
 
hophead

hophead

Well-known member
vtwinpower said:
I purchased a 2007 BMWF800ST from a private seller that had 14K on the ODO, he just had the 12K service done at BMW of Ventura. ( take head off, check valves, replace seal and close up).
After 1k of riding I was cleaning it and used a flashlight to look everywhere, noticed a little oil in the area behind the cylinders where it can pool. Thought nothing of it, maybe a sloppy job by mechanic. Wiped it clean and went about riding it for another 3K miles. Again oil was there. I took it to BMW of Walnut Creek, they removed the head and found where the tip of a zip tye was pinched in the seal when the 12K service was done which caused the oil leak.
I Emailed the Ventura dealer and sent them pics of the seal with the tye right next to it to show the deformity of it matches.
Now I know I have had the bike 8 months and 4k miles more on it, this is about the principle of owning up to your screw up. Job was done wrong and he admitted they did but went on to say it has been too long. All I ask is honesty and I was only asking to meet me 1/2 way ($150) as a gesture.
Now I will be posting and sending Emails to all the BMW owners groups in the US telling my story and bashing them.
If I lived closer I would go stand in front of the dealership with a sign, sounds over the top maybe but I am a man with integrity and when I do something wrong I fix it.
All that for $150.
Click to expand...

hmm, otoh I can see how (the guarantee of something) that is a required maintanence service cannot realistically be held accountable for if that service interval has been exceeded....in your case it was poor workmanship done by the Ventura dealer, did the Walnut Creek BMW shop go to bat for you or is this strictly a bmw corporate thing?
 
D

DIY

Well-known member
boney said:
Welcome to the BMW experience. Most of the long term BMW owners who are not rich have learned this about the dealers and do their own service for this very reason. They might have also let.the oil collect until the 24k service which should be soon enough.

Don't bother with the grudge or reposting of your experience, we all know already.
Click to expand...

Really? I have never owned a BMW and had assumed from the swanky dealerships that it would deliver a superior level, read: I don't have to check that it wasn't screwed up, of service and work. So it's the same, but different? That's too bad.
 
Whammy

Whammy

Veteran of Road Racing
i dont own a break my windows but i'll join in

Damn them all to hell.
Those dishonest sons of monkeys.
If I had a bat and their dead horse id beat it like this:deadhorse.
Don't get me started I'm apt to call their mothers names too.

Sorry people don't like to own up to their shortcomings.
Lesson learned, and never ever go there again.
 
vtwinpower

vtwinpower

Well-known member
Hazardous Waste said:
W/C BMW is one of the reasons I'll never own another BMW motorcycle
Click to expand...

It wasn't Walnut Creek, it was Ventura.
And it just makes me feel better to bitch, I usually take it with a grain of salt but this time I am going to send all the way up the ladder, and keep it going until I get a response.
I am a pretty calm guy overall.
I can afford keeping her up and really like the bike, I knew that BMW have issues , and that they will never admit their faults.
 
danate

danate

#hot4beks
vtwinpower said:
It wasn't Walnut Creek, it was Ventura.
And it just makes me feel better to bitch, I usually take it with a grain of salt but this time I am going to send all the way up the ladder, and keep it going until I get a response.
I am a pretty calm guy overall.
I can afford keeping her up and really like the bike, I knew that BMW have issues , and that they will never admit their faults.
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear of your woes. I am with you. Complaints need to be lodged for dealers with shitty service.

http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/us/en.../en/individual/contact/contact.html&notrack=1

I recommend sending emails as in my experience phone calls get blown off. Emails are easier for them to forward up to a regional customer service representative, who is more likely to actually do something about it.

I was the squeaky wheel about my VW when it ate shit repeatedly and had a shoddy engine replacement by a dealer and with one email I got the company to buy the car back from me. In the long run, they took very good care of me.

As far as beemers go, I love them, but you gotta take care of them yourself. If you really don't want to, the only dealer I'd trust for service is San Jose BMW. They have been great the couple of times I've needed help. I bought my bike from them brand new and other than the 600 mile break in service it hasn't been back for the last 70,000 miles.
 
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boney

boney

Miles > Posts
DIY said:
Really? I have never owned a BMW and had assumed from the swanky dealerships that it would deliver a superior level, read: I don't have to check that it wasn't screwed up, of service and work. So it's the same, but different? That's too bad.
Click to expand...

Well, you can pay a dealer $2000 to replaces a (improperly installed by the factory) leaky seal when your bike is out of warranty (over 36K miles) or do it yourself for $27 knowing that the job will be done to your standards and on your timeline. You can leave your bike at the dealer for a week or more, or just bust out the job in a weekend in the garage, and be riding again on Monday with a fat wallet.

Here's the deal with dealers. Every job is referenced by the 'book.' It's a list of how long each job should take and how many hours to charge for it. If the tech goes over time, it costs the dealer money. If a tech comes in under time, he can be a super star, start work on another bike and be earning the dealer more money. Either way, they charge each job by the book. It's how they know what to quote you, and it's why they rarely go over the quote. It's also, in my opinion why little things like zip ties get trapped under a valve cover gasket. They just don't have the time to be as careful as you and I when they're in there. They're on a clock. We're not.

Unless it's a high volume dealer, the shop is where the bulk of the money is made.
 
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fast4d

fast4d

Well-known member
alot of BMW dealers service LE motos. I know ventura has service contracts with a few....

that is a MAJOR money maker for their service depts. I wonder how fast that will dry up in the coming years.
 
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