Dealer Service Woes

[4M]

So the story starts normally enough -

I'm getting a few error codes showing the coolant and O2 sensors are faulty. The car is running fine but still under warranty so I make an appointment with the dealer "concierge" and ask them to change the oil while it's in. (I have an HPDE coming up and figured it was a convenient way to knock that out). I also try to tell them the codes, parts needed to save time etc. but the SA basically pats me on the head and say that THEY will read my key and infer that I couldn't possibly know what's going on. Okay fine. Then the fun begins.

Five hours after I drop the car off (no loaner to boot - that apparently requires an appointment more than 10 days out or the title to a 7 series) I get a call and - guess what - we need to order one of those parts you mentioned and it's likely to take another day. We'll call you when it's ready. Arghh#1

Day 2 (Friday) passes and no call at work home or cell, so I call them at 6:30 to find out the car is ready and we're open until 7:30. Arghh#2 but at least I get my car back for most of the weekend.

My daughter drops me off and as I'm checking out, I see in the paperwork that they've changed the brake fluid, stating in there the usual "customer requests" vocabulary that starts most entries. Only a few problems with that: 1) I made no request; 2) they didn't call to ask me to do it and 3) most importantly, they bled my 3 month old Castrol SRF and swapped it with OE. Arghh#3 Despite the late hour, there is one lonely SA still around (Jr Agent Short Straw) on a Friday night who basically is just qualified enough to apologize and to hand me the card of his manager who will be in on Monday and will be calling me. (Guessing what happened was that the fluid was (as far as they knew) within x,000 miles of the recommended service interval and they just changed it under the guise of warranty work).

So, rather frosty, I drive home, go in and have dinner and then return to the driveway to move cars around to get mine into the garage. Fire her up and - you got it - the service engine soon MIL comes on! One of the codes is still popping up. Arghh#4.

I'm about the calmest guy on the planet and have no interest in screaming at anyone, etc. There's no long term value in that and it would only feel good for about 5 minutes. It's a series of mistakes and they actually did some things right - like using the correct oil and respecting my request not to wash the car.

So, it seems to me the Plan A Monday conversation goes something like the following: We're gonna find a loaner this time, get some SRF, some love on why the MIL is still lighting up and whatever that labor line looks like to make this right. I don't want your coupons and I don't want to come back here unless I have to because this experience has been a total PITA and taken (at a minimum if I have one more day) two more days than it should have. Plan B is to take the car to my usual independent shop, have them do the work and send the bill to the dealer.

What say you folks? Am I missing any pieces of the puzzle? Would you do anything different?? Thanks for reading my vent and for your input.

[M3/4 life]

Brother I can sympathize with your frustrations sounds like the same disorderly unprofessionalism I deal with at my dealership! It’s to the point now that I hate taking my M to the dealership for anything it’s a stressful event that I try to avoid as much as I can. As a matter of fact my M is in the shop now (been there since 8/5/14) getting the evaporator replaced which involves disassembling the entire dash and I’m having many of sleepless nights knowing that when I get the call to pick her up I have to go in there with my magnifying glass & white gloves to make sure they did their job correctly & didn’t mess up anything in the process it’s an nerve-racking PITA of a event…..I digress! Woosah....woosah.....woosah

However, to answer your question, no you haven’t missed any parts of the puzzle sounds like you have everything covered.

[4M]

Thanks Brother. Helps to commiserate.
Hope your current service ends well.

[M3/4 life]

Appreciate that brother, I hope your situation is resolved and all is well for you as well!

[///M///]

Looks like long lost bothers found each other. Sorry, only kidding, couldn't resist

I have almost always had bad experiences.....read here>>>>

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=995778

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=993445

[4M]

It's just a shame that it took this type of experience to bring us together . . .

It must be harder than it looks to run a solid service division at a dealer because this type of experience is way too common. What I dislike the most is being treated like I'm five.

[Agent-GHQ]

I've yet to experience this at the dealer where I purchased my car. So far, it has been a pleasant n professional experience. I'd would suggest filling out one of their suggestion or comment card. I believe most dealership ask for some kind of survey for each services.

[4M]

They do and I always fill them out and thank the Tech by name. Will decide this time based on how they handle this last step.

[dreamspeed]

Most dealerships don't know how to deal with any "mods" done to cars. They probably thought they were doing you a favor by changing the brake fluid.

I've had experiences where they said they did something but didn't, half assed a job, and don't even get me started on all the broken clips.

[4M]

Totally agree. I just wish I had the time and space to do more myself.

[4M]

So Monday started off with a call to the Service Manager. He agreed they screwed up on the brake fluid, said they would replace it and also determine why I still had a Service Engine Soon MIL lit up. He found it hard to believe that the Tech would have released the car with that lit up and wondered to me if I had done any mods that might be causing it. I told him it had never been an issue before and that since I was still getting an error code, I suspected it was one of the problems they were supposed to have addressed last week.

He sent a runner to pick up the car about 1:30 and aside from the fact that the dude overreved a cold engine away from the house (per Mrs. 4M) that worked out well for me. The work day passed and no call so I call the Service Manager about 5:30 and immediately get his voicemail announcing that it's Tuesday, that he will be away for training and will return all calls on Wednesday. A nice to know fact, but whatevs and I dial again, asking for a SA. No one to be found and I eventually ring through to the Cashier's office. In the credit where it's due Dept., they get props for being the most customer service oriented of the bunch so far. Even though computers are down and no one is picking up, they offer to take my number and have an SA call me back.

Sure enough, 10 minutes later I get the call. And . . . wait for it . . . guess what? "Your car has a bad O2 sensor, we had to order the part, it will be here tomorrow." Really??? I say. You mean the same exact part and issue I had back on day one; the part I suggested you order out of the gate and the error code I identified and you have in the intake notes from my initial visit?? [Which say:"Customer scanned fault codes and got two. One for coolant sensor & other was for oxygen sensor"] That one??? "Ummm - yeah." Now this SA doesn't know me from boo, probably saw 50 people yesterday and is just following up, but it speaks to the whole enterprise.

In addition to not being good for me - a visit that should have been two days tops, is now 4 and counting - how can this inefficiency be good for the dealer?? Are the margins so good that they can afford to have my car up in the air for 4 business days when they could be working on other cars, handling more volume, etc.? It just seems to me that there are missed opportunities galore here.

I may have to eat my words about coupons from the original post - but really I just want my car back at this point. Stay tuned.

[slipaway37]

Yeah, I was pretty ticked the last time I took my M3 in for some mysterious "whistling" noise for which the cause couldn't be determined.
When I picked up the ride the SA said that they had changed the oil, and I"m like WTF?! WHY DID YOU NOT ASK ME FIRST?!
They just drained fresh oil that I had paid for, and of course they didn't take a sample for me to send to Blackstone. I was pretty ticked about that.
It is MY car not theirs, period. ANY additional maint they think is required needs to be cleared with the customer first.
I'm not gonna dime them out because overall they are a great dealership, but dayum people!

[Yoddha]

Originally Posted by 4M

So the story starts normally enough -

I'm getting a few error codes showing the coolant and O2 sensors are faulty. The car is running fine but still under warranty so I make an appointment with the dealer "concierge" and ask them to change the oil while it's in. (I have an HPDE coming up and figured it was a convenient way to knock that out). I also try to tell them the codes, parts needed to save time etc. but the SA basically pats me on the head and say that THEY will read my key and infer that I couldn't possibly know what's going on. Okay fine. Then the fun begins.

Five hours after I drop the car off (no loaner to boot - that apparently requires an appointment more than 10 days out or the title to a 7 series) I get a call and - guess what - we need to order one of those parts you mentioned and it's likely to take another day. We'll call you when it's ready. Arghh#1

Day 2 (Friday) passes and no call at work home or cell, so I call them at 6:30 to find out the car is ready and we're open until 7:30. Arghh#2 but at least I get my car back for most of the weekend.

My daughter drops me off and as I'm checking out, I see in the paperwork that they've changed the brake fluid, stating in there the usual "customer requests" vocabulary that starts most entries. Only a few problems with that: 1) I made no request; 2) they didn't call to ask me to do it and 3) most importantly, they bled my 3 month old Castrol SRF and swapped it with OE. Arghh#3 Despite the late hour, there is one lonely SA still around (Jr Agent Short Straw) on a Friday night who basically is just qualified enough to apologize and to hand me the card of his manager who will be in on Monday and will be calling me. (Guessing what happened was that the fluid was (as far as they knew) within x,000 miles of the recommended service interval and they just changed it under the guise of warranty work).

So, rather frosty, I drive home, go in and have dinner and then return to the driveway to move cars around to get mine into the garage. Fire her up and - you got it - the service engine soon MIL comes on! One of the codes is still popping up. Arghh#4.

I'm about the calmest guy on the planet and have no interest in screaming at anyone, etc. There's no long term value in that and it would only feel good for about 5 minutes. It's a series of mistakes and they actually did some things right - like using the correct oil and respecting my request not to wash the car.

So, it seems to me the Plan A Monday conversation goes something like the following: We're gonna find a loaner this time, get some SRF, some love on why the MIL is still lighting up and whatever that labor line looks like to make this right. I don't want your coupons and I don't want to come back here unless I have to because this experience has been a total PITA and taken (at a minimum if I have one more day) two more days than it should have. Plan B is to take the car to my usual independent shop, have them do the work and send the bill to the dealer.

What say you folks? Am I missing any pieces of the puzzle? Would you do anything different?? Thanks for reading my vent and for your input.

Wait, you can have warranty work done by an independent shop and send the dealership the bill?! And they will honour it and pay the full cost??? If this is actually the case I will literally be jumping for joy and never take my M3 to the dealership again

[M3-S65]

Honestly, every time I take a car in to get it serviced I cringe my teeth. If they fix something right they break something else. Very rarely have I had a seamless service experience...
I feel your pain...but it might help to know that misery loves company and your not alone!!!

[dbski]

I see you're in Chicago, what dealer is this?

[Flying Ace]

oh brother, what a PITA! Time is more valuable than anything!

[4M]

SA just called. "Got some bad news - We need the car another day. We ordered the oxygen sensor yesterday, but it didn't come. We'll have it tomorrow and the car done even if I have to send a porter to get the part."
Are you kidding me?

Meanwhile my son does a drive by and sees it parked out back in the rain! Excellent. This just keeps getting better and better.

Recapping: Oil change, O2 sensor, coolant sensor and brake fluid change (x2). Knew 3 of 4 a week ago (brake fluid being a dealer inflicted wound) and we're going to be FIVE business days and counting for a (generous) 7 hours of Tech time to complete the work.

[4M]

Woke up to this auto generated email in my Inbox, no doubt routinely issued after Visit #1 and not knowing that we're now on Day 5 of this little odyssey. If I liked my service, I'm directed to leave a review on Google. If not, I'm redirected. Hmmmm. Seems prudent at this point to wait for the story to end.
---------
W.,

I want to thank you for your recent visit to our dealership. It is important to me that you were completely satisfied with your service experience. Customer feedback is vitally important to us and we have just one question:
Are you completely satisfied with your service experience?
Leave Us a Review On Google // Submit Your Feedback
Thanks again for choosing to be part of the Xxxxx Xxxxxxxxxx family. We look forward to meeting all your future sales and service needs!

Sincerely,


Service Director

[///M3Fresh]

Sounds like they are feeding you a bunch of BS and being lazy. Let us know how it turns up and leave an honest review on google too!

[Flying Ace]

just very inefficient operations across the board at this dealership.

I have to say, I've never seen anything this bad at a BMW dealership.

[4M]

Yeah this is a low. Not major money not major mechanical stuff - which makes what's happening all the more galling.

[4M]

Stepped out to get my haircut at lunch. Boy did I miss a lot . . .

Returned to two voicemail messages:

Message one: Pleased to tell you that we're wrapping up and should be able to deliver your car this afternoon. The Tech is on a check drive as we speak. Please call me back to let me know a good time for us to drop off the car. My reaction? - Finally


Message two: (25 minutes later) Sorry, spoke too soon. While he was out for the drive, the service engine light reappeared. I have my Master Tech on this one and he is baffled so we may have to escalate this case to BMW - what they call a PUMA case. I'll call you back in a few hours when I know more. My reaction? - There isn't an animation for that.

The story continues . . . Still hoping it ends well. But, in the event anyone has had O2 sensor issues with this pattern, do share.

Thanks