Yes the cars are different... we all know that. I went from a 99 GS to an 06 A4 to an 07 335i... lots of differences there obviously.

But the one I didn't expect was the service level.

It might just be a local thing, but at least here in Memphis, Gossett Audi's service department is a crap hole physically speaking... the Hyundai dealer down the street has a nicer service department. It's actually a VW/Audi/Porsche/Bentley service department which just makes it all the worse that it's like this. It's disorganized, service manager tries to tell me a badly squeaking seat is normal because "cars make noise", and my issues take a couple of visits to fix... they put me in a ragged out enterprise rental car, tell me to make sure I fill it back up before returning it, and if the work can't start for 24 hours because they're waiting on parts they actually want me to return the car and then come back the next day to get a loaner car again. I understand keeping the car out for a day when no work is being done costs them a little extra money, but they need to understand a customer's time is worth money and gas as well since it's not at all on my way to anywhere. The satisfaction surveys are worthless since they sit right in front of you while you fill them out and want to question anything that you don't give a 5 out of 5 star rating to. They do wash cars here but do a **** poor job of it... looks like you paid a 6 year old 5 bucks to do it and he got bored and walked off after getting half way done.

BMW's dealership around here, Roadshow BMW of Memphis, is much nicer, as is their service area. It's not on par with my Lexus dealer, but close enough for me to not care. The level of professionalism at the dealership is still not on par with Lexus though... service advisers are running around like chickens missing their heads, not really acknowledging customers... the couple of times I've been there I just sort of stood around, wondering where my service guy was, and not really acknowledged by anyone. Contrast this to Lexus which more or less has people standing in the service bay darn near waiting to open your car door for you and shake your hand. Also their eagerness to fix small issues on their cars is much worse than Lexus. When I had my Lexus I could point out the smallest thing that wasn't quite right and was never looked at like 'it is a car, what do you expect?' With this BMW dealership I get treated very skeptically and like I'm asking for the world when I point out a very obvious issue. Also , the service advisers at BMW aren't very personable and have a much more business-like demeanor when talking then at Lexus where you feel like you could very well be best friends with the guy and not have even realized it.

With my GS400 I didn't even buy the car from that dealership, nor was it bought from that dealership... I bought it from an out of town wholesaler, used, with 30k miles on it, and yet they still treated me as well as any of their most regular customers.

With my BMW I am asked by the call center rep (they schedule appointments using a national call center, which I also don't care for since I like to talk to my service adviser that is already familiar with me and the car) if I bought the BMW from Roadshow BMW. I asked if that made any difference and she informed me that I would not be eligible for a loaner car if I had not bought it from there. I did... but it still pissed me off that they even made that distinction. So much for quality nationwide dealer support.
Oh, also, I had an issue with my headlights pointing almost straight down... serious safety issue at night as I could only see ~20 feet in front of my car! This was the result of the dealership's incomplete repair job/checkout after an accident I was involved in but that didn't upset me as much as the fact that they couldn't be bothered to schedule a priority appointment for me despite the fact that I told them driving like that was a safety hazard at night, and I had to be able to drive at night. They're lucky I didn't have an accident before my appointment because of their lack of concern.
At least they give out BMW loaners... but they do tell you to fill them back up and that they'll charge you if you can't return the car exactly the day of your car being ready to be picked up.

Anyhow... point being aside from the obvious difference in the cars themselves... the differences in quality of service is what took me most by surprise.

I'd like to say I'm going to go back to Lexus after this BMW's lease is up but the problem I have with Lexus is everything costs too much. I guess you obviously get what you pay for, but the dealer around here acts like it's sticker price or bust on their vehicles, and of course service costs themselves when doing maintenance or out of warranty work are through the roof.

Maybe some day I'll go back to Lexus, and when I do, the #1 reason will almost definitely be quality of service.

 

Hey, don't feel bad, it all differs from dealer to dealer. For instance here in Brooklyn we have Bay Ridge Lexus, which is the biggest craphole in the wall I've ever been to. There no parking lot for customers, the entrance is a roll down gate in the middle of a busy block, theres nowhere to even pull up. Once you get inside, things aren't any better. Basically you have to look for parking for half an hour, then walk inside, wait another half hour until someone decides to pay some attention to you, and then you can bring your car in. Loaner? Yeah, good luck. Service? Horrible. They never return phone calls, treat you like they are doing you a favor, and just generally suck.

On the other my parent services their S500 at the MB dealer on Caesars Bay. Their services and convenience are superb, they got a huge parking lot to put into, service people that are ready to take care of you, loaners, etc. The point is, you might want to look for a different dealer that will take better care of you.

 

Appreciate your post This just about sums it up.. Dealerships vary... Would a screwed up dealership hinder me from purchasing a vehicle that suits my wants & needs? No

 

Around here there's only one one dealer for each of the lux brands - BMW, Lexus, Benz, Audi, Acura, and Infiniti all only have one dealer in the Memphis area with the next closest dealer usually being at least a couple hours away.

Cadillac is the only exception I can think of. There are two Cadillac dealerships here in town, though one is exclusively Caddy and the other sells some other GM brands.

 

for some reason, i find your summary very very pleasant to read. i mean it was a bit hillarious at parts, and from a readers standpoint, it was like reading from a magazine.

wow

 

Althought it is not conclusive by any means, one of the factors in the dealer arrogance and quality department is the number of competing dealerships in the same area....particularly for low-volume-selling cars. The less competition and fewer alternatives you have, the less incentive the dealer has to give good service......unless it is like Saturn, where they can lose their franchise of they don't. In other words, take Lexus, or BMW, or Audi, or any upmarket car. You are more likely to get good service if there are competing dealerships of the same brand in the area.........service shops know that the average customer isn't going to drive a couple of hundred miles to another shop if he/she isn't 100% satisfied the first time, especially with $4.00 a gallon premium gas.

 

It was a very good read.

I've used every Lex dealer in Atlanta and some I wouldn't recommend to Al-Queda. Hennessy Lexus of Gwinnett is far superior to them all.


As for my pals with BMWs here, they all say service stinks but they love the car and basically keep Vaseline with them on the way to the dealer.

 

good post, but I believe this is more dealer related, then brand related.

My Audi dealer here is awesome. Had the car modded up and caused some problems with things. they still fixed them under warranty. Always had a brand new loaner car to drive, and all the doughnuts and bottled water I could handle. They really got me withthe doughnuts.

 

I disagree. Lexus has been built upon providing excellent customer service. This includes having dealerships that look appropriate to peoples attire to mannerisms.

Lexus will enter the most competitive,
prestigious automobile race in the world.
Over 50 years of Toyota automotive experience
has culminated in the creation of Lexus cars.
They will be the finest cars ever built.

Lexus will win the race because
Lexus will do it right from the start.
Lexus will have the finest
dealer network in the industry.

Lexus will treat each customer
as we would a guest in our home.

If you think you can't, you won't...
If you think you can, you will!
We can, we will.


Audi is simply amazing to me as the dealers here are not top notch and then the arrogance is worse than BMW or Benz! You would think Audi is the best selling luxury brand in America. Sadly, this trickles down to VW.

There are good/bad dealers with all brands but Lexus has proven to keep customers the happiest.

Lexus has been either #1 or in the top 3 in Dealer service here or in Europe/Asia since day one.

 

Well, i need to start charging my guests $108.00 per hour each time they step foot in my living room

 

^^ lol!!

the service is pretty expensive, but the fix a lot of stuff on goodwill/warranty even if the warranty is over

 

haha! I really think it's hit or miss. My BMW dealer where I'm located, is awesome. They go the extra mile on everything to make my experience as easy as possible. I wasn't expecting it really. I expected to be met by snobs, but everyone there was extremely helpful and nice. I'm on on my third BMW, and I haven't had a single issue with them. BUT I'm no fool, and I know they are some HORRIBLE ones out there as well. I'm just lucky

 

I have heard similar stuff about BMW dealerships. The whole loaner car thing isn't very well mastered by BMW yet. Lexus does excel in that area. However, a BMW doesn't need to be brought in nearly as often as a lexus does for regular maintenence. My only concern is if I have a warranty issue. Other than that I won't see the dealer too often I think. I do love my car though. It is much more fun than my IS350 actually. My service at Lexus was up and down depending on what day I was there. My last trip was total garbage. At least at BMW if I get treated poorly it is free of charge. Lexus they treat you nice from time to time but they rape you on charges.

 

Yeah, despite any deficiencies with the service quality it is comforting to know that there'll be no surprise maintenance charges on my 335i... just tires.

By the way what prompted this thread was me calling in today for my 15k mile service and also because my sunroof pinch sensor has malfunctioned (according to the in car computer display) and thus I can't use my sunroof, which sucks because I use it literally every nice day every single place I drive (probably why it's broke!) and also I think there's something wrong with the weather stripping on the driver's door as there's often water accumulated on the scuff plate and a tiny bit of excess wind noise. This was not the case before my car was hit so that's likely because of the wreck.

The sunroof is the only issue I've had with the car that's not related to when I was hit. Well that and a speaker assembly in the door that buzzed from mid bass.