Going Back For A 4th Service Call in 2 months. Advice?

[X5Boston]

Originally Posted by Boston X5 4.4

Let me guess - Herb Chambers dealership on Com. Ave.?

Ding!

I have called corporate and they seemed to have gotten very good at getting them to look at things.

What would be involved in getting them to take the car back and how should I approach things? I am very concerned about reliability considering I've already had quite a few issues.

[X5Boston]

To add, I have been very patient with everyone throughout the entire process from initial order through today's service.

I originally ordered my E70 mid October 2006 with a expected delivery date of late December or early January. Then the date became late January, then early February, then late February, then early March, and finally took delivery in mid March. My salesman told me I was one of the only people that did not call every day asking for a status update and did not press for an explaination. I let him know I understood that it was out of his hands and he had no control over delivery schedules. I was the model customer. The night of delivery, I waited almost an hour so that he could close a sale. I patiently waited in the showroom since I know each sale was important and he had commision at stake.

During the first service call, I went a week without a vehicle and took a loaner the beginning of week two. I called once for a status update but otherwise let the dealer do their work. More than half of the item were "could not duplicate" and not addressed. That service call, led to one item actually being broken.

For the second service call, I spent an hour cleaning the loaner car to clean up some of the grime left by previous drivers. Again, I did not press them for explainations every day. I patiently waited for status updates every few days. Still, my issues were not fixed despite promises that everything was thoroughly tested.

After 30 days of the vehicle being out of service, I called corporate to ask about acceptable levels of service. They got me a service appointment ASAP. The third service is where I was angry but calm. Being lied to automatically puts me off and to have a SA practically suggest I'm an idiot is too much to stand. Then the added insult of having parts slapped together willy nilly led me to call corprate over the long weekend.

Today, I refused to deal with the last SA (who replaced my original SA as he has left for a new job) and requested a new SA. This person seems more knowledgable but I am not confident everything will be addressed. So here I am without a vehicle (no loaner or rental provided this time) while I await the latest fix.

Hopefully this present a clear picture of the patience I have shown over the past two months.

[drod]

don't keep the truck...return it immediately!!!

simply put your truck is part of a bad batch.... if they haven't figured it out by now...they won't.

swap it for a new one if you can!!!

that would be my decision!

[X5Boston]

Originally Posted by drod

don't keep the truck...return it immediately!!!

simply put your truck is part of a bad batch.... if they haven't figured it out by now...they won't.

swap it for a new one if you can!!!

that would be my decision!

It seems so. Guess the power steering being bad out of the factory is a bad sign. I found my old thread from March about the heated seat not working right out of the factory as well. It didn't seem a big deal since warm weather was coming. Little did I know it would be such a big deal.

Sorry for all the questions but who would I ask about a tradein? My dealer or corporate?

[marcx5]

Originally Posted by X5Boston

It seems so. Guess the power steering being bad out of the factory is a bad sign. I found my old thread from March about the heated seat not working right out of the factory as well. It didn't seem a big deal since warm weather was coming. Little did I know it would be such a big deal.

Sorry for all the questions but who would I ask about a tradein? My dealer or corporate?

call corporate... push it up the ladder as best as you can... don't give in.... and let them know about Herb Chambers.... this dealer has perhaps the WORST reputation in the entire country for BMWs. threaten to sue them if you have to.... this dealer really needs to get their act together....

[Boston X5 4.4]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Boston X5 4.4
Let me guess - Herb Chambers dealership on Com. Ave.?

Originally Posted by X5Boston

Ding!

I have called corporate and they seemed to have gotten very good at getting them to look at things.

What would be involved in getting them to take the car back and how should I approach things? I am very concerned about reliability considering I've already had quite a few issues.

Herb Chambers in Boston has the most incompetent and dishonest service department that I (or many friends) have ever had the misfortune to come across. You can buy your car there for a few 100 less but don't go there for after sales service.
It is very routine for them to say that they fixed something and then get caught on not having done the repairs. And yes I have examples - said that they did an oil/filter change for but same filter was still in car afterwards. Said that they replaced a part on a friends 6'er per a recall and did not not, just reset SES. Admitted in both cases (after much arguing) that mechanic/SA lied about the work getting done. The list goes on and on and on.
Anyway, rant over.


Seems like most of your problems are reliability problems with the car and to a lesser extent problems with Herb Chambers incompetence. First thing I would do is clearly (and non-emotionally) document everything that has happened in chronological order and Herb Chambers response and set up an appointment with the heads of and service and say that you want them to buy back the car based on your reliability concerns - its worth a shot. Don't waste any more time talking to the SA's - insist on talking with senior staff from now on. Document every discussion from now on. At the same time I would contact BMNA and push up the ladder as far as you can - you may get the 'independantly owned' BS but you need to push and approach from every angle.

I seem to remember other members being successful here with other dealer buy-backs (not E70's) so maybe they can help with whether or not you have a real case and if yes, give some advice on the best way to pursue it.

Have a look and post over on bimmerfest too.


Good luck

[marcx5]

Originally Posted by Boston X5 4.4

Quote:
Originally Posted by Boston X5 4.4
Let me guess - Herb Chambers dealership on Com. Ave.?





Herb Chambers in Boston has the most incompetent and dishonest service department that I (or many friends) have ever had the misfortune to come across. You can buy your car there for a few 100 less but don't go there for after sales service.
It is very routine for them to say that they fixed something and then get caught on not having done the repairs. And yes I have examples - said that they did an oil/filter change for but same filter was still in car afterwards. Said that they replaced a part on a friends 6'er per a recall and did not not, just reset SES. Admitted in both cases (after much arguing) that mechanic/SA lied about the work getting done. The list goes on and on and on.
Anyway, rant over.


Seems like most of your problems are reliability problems with the car and to a lesser extent problems with Herb Chambers incompetence. First thing I would do is clearly (and non-emotionally) document everything that has happened in chronological order and Herb Chambers response and set up an appointment with the heads of and service and say that you want them to buy back the car based on your reliability concerns - its worth a shot. Don't waste any more time talking to the SA's - insist on talking with senior staff from now on. Document every discussion from now on. At the same time I would contact BMNA and push up the ladder as far as you can - you may get the 'independantly owned' BS but you need to push and approach from every angle.

I seem to remember other members being successful here with other dealer buy-backs (not E70's) so maybe they can help with whether or not you have a real case and if yes, give some advice on the best way to pursue it.

Have a look and post over on bimmerfest too.


Good luck

all true. although i would suggest Herb Chambers rips people off on the 'sales' side too... i've never seen them offer a good deal, and the one time it almost happened, they then lied and 'changed their mind'. just stay away from this dealer and let others know too.

[X5 Meister]

Although it has been a massive headache I doubt it would classify as a lemon. I've had bad experiences in the past as well with nearly 10 BMW's to date. My suggestion is to go to another dealer and tell them about the ordeal and be firm about what needs to be done. Drop your current dealer and tell corporate about them and name names.

[X5Boston]

Originally Posted by mgruber

Although it has been a massive headache I doubt it would classify as a lemon. I've had bad experiences in the past as well with nearly 10 BMW's to date. My suggestion is to go to another dealer and tell them about the ordeal and be firm about what needs to be done. Drop your current dealer and tell corporate about them and name names.

I've been doing my homework and it appears that I do meet my state's criteria for dropping the "L" bomb. In the first year, a vehicle is allowed three unsuccessful repairs on an issue or 15 business days out of service. Realistically this is the absolute last resort I want to take. In my opinion, the only people who win in these cases are lawyers (no offense to those in the legal profession). I'd rather work out an amicable solution that is fair to everyone.

Several issues have been in on going multiple times including dynamic drive failures, replacement of various suspension parts, replacement of power steering parts, 2 recalls, unresponsive transmission, and sundry items such as malfunctioning seats and various electrical gremlins such as an indash CD player that refuses to turn off.

So far the vehicle has been officially out of service for 30 business days or 37 calender days.

When the X5 works, its a great vehicle. I've owned two E53 X5s including an early production model and loved them. Never thought the new one would be such a dog.

I'm a bit tired of driving around in a dirty, stripped down 325s and Chevy Impala or for 4 days in the first case as now, no vehicle at all.

[X5 Meister]

Sounds like you know the Lemon law better than I do, so I stand corrected. If that is the case then perhaps it might be the best solution since this entire thing is costing you a ton of time as I can only imagine. Perhaps you can speak to corporate and the dealer about trading it in for something else?

As much as I like the new X5 I try to avoid early production runs of brand new cars for all the headache they can cause. Nowadays the problems seem to be electrically related and linked since the car is basically a computer on 4 wheels. I'm truly amazed that you've had suspension pieces replaced! One would expect at least that such components are robust enough for day to day driving, much less the occasional offroad stuff an SUV/SAV is built for. Shame on you BMW.