Things Dealers tell Customers - Page 7

colodak · 08-21-2012, 04:23 AM

buying tires is a joke anymore, when I bought mine last month, I knew what I wanted, called 5 different dealers/parts houses , and of course got 5 different prices of ranging from $300/set to $500/set for the same tires. Needless to say I went with the $300/set. But, the dealer I bought mine from, while being the most expensive for the tires was the cheapest for mount/balance when I took the bike to him (was having other work done). Buying online wasn't much cheaper, in fact was about the same in price as the shop I bought them from.

Customer service

, I've gotten to the point of where if they won't at least acknowledge me when I walk in the door, I won't bother asking them for help. My friends mother does "secret shopping", one of the stores she regularly hits is Best Buy. Her last visit 6 months ago, she rated the store and management so poorly, they turned the entire staff within 2 months.

Falconx84 · 08-21-2012, 05:40 AM

With all these horror stories, I'm starting to think I could make some serious money opening up a dealership. I've worked sales with a "take every deal" policy for quite awhile.

Now if I can find a dealer website with stupid stuff customers say, lol...

slide · 08-21-2012, 05:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falconx84

Now if I can find a dealer website with stupid stuff customers say, lol...

A long while ago, I saw such a thread. It may have been on this site too. I'm not sure. It was hilarious and they have many more valid complaints about us than we do about them.

I put myself through undergrad school by selling real estate. The one thing I took from those years is that, "Buyers are liars".

TimothyCaseTimothy · 08-21-2012, 06:19 AM

BMW/Harley dealership sales lady in Colorado Springs via the phone (I have a loan set up and cash for a down payment on a new GSA)... "I don't really know anything about those bikes, I've only really sold Harley's"

Case closed.

PFFOG · 08-21-2012, 06:57 AM

What has happened is dealers have tried to turn parts and service into big profit centers, 10-20% mark up over MSRP on parts, $100/hr labor rates, specials they want the service department to push, whether the customer needs it or not.

Then they wonder why their customers disappear. If they would realize service and parts departments create LOYALTY, and are their BEST salesman, things will be different.

They would rather drive customers away after the sale and then spend MILLIONS in advertising to get new ones.

You want a good dealer, he is the one that is busy but NEVER advertises, the dealers that advertise out the wazoo, do so because they can;'t keep current customers happy.

manic mechanic · 08-21-2012, 07:11 AM

Used to go to a "local" dealer for parts, HD/BMW. Never bought a bike there, but it felt good when I could go in back to the parts counter and the parts guys not only knew my name, but what I was riding and sometimes asked how something I'd done in the past was working out. That dealer lost at least one of the franchises over some shady dealings.

SilkMoneyLove · 08-21-2012, 08:10 AM

My buddy came to visit me in WI. He wanted an oil change as it was due on his GS. The HD shop had the oil grade he needed and was on the way, but wouldn't do the change b/c it was a BMW.
I was surprised because this was a HD, Buell and Ural dealer and they have always treated me well.
The owner is a great guy and following the Golden Rule (he who has the gold, rules) my buddy bought the oil and we did the change in my garage.
My thinking is that the techs don't know BMW so the shop can't guarantee the work? Not sure, but that is my guess.

dirtrulz · 08-21-2012, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimothyCaseTimothy

BMW/Harley dealership sales lady in Colorado Springs via the phone (I have a loan set up and cash for a down payment on a new GSA)... "I don't really know anything about those bikes, I've only really sold Harley's"

Case closed.

Dont see a real problem with that, when a dealership sells more than one line it is common to have salespeople who know one line or the other. At least she was honest and didnt try to feed you a bunch of bs. You should have said you wanted to talk to the bmw salesman.

filmfan · 08-21-2012, 08:13 AM

This happened several years ago, but judging from some of the entries here, it could have been yesterday. No moto content though.

My wife got some inheritance money, and wanted to buy a new car. Choices were limited where we lived at the time, so we ended up on "Auto row" in Riverside, CA.

The typical encounter with sales went like this;
We'd walk up to the sales guy, or he would greet us next to some car or another.
I'd say "She's buying a car, I'm just here for the ride".
Then he would proceed to address me...

My wife would explain what she was looking for and they would say something like "we have a lot of cars out there, let me know if something catches your eye".

At one place, the Izuzu dealer, I think, we were looking at a model neither of us were familiar with. My wife said "what can you tell us about this car?"
They guys response, "The wheels go around".

My wife is short, so ergonomics are an issue. The suggested solution from several of these guys? "Just get a pillow and you'll be fine". Ehh no, for spending $xx,000.00 I want a car that FITS me.

This went on for the full day. We took a break for dinner, she was frustrated, mad and disappointed, ready to go home. I suggested one more try, we hadn't been to Toyota yet, even though it was high on the list.

We eat, get to the dealer after dark. The salesWOMAN comes out and we start the drill;
"She's buying a car..." From that point it was as if I had vanished into thin air.
My wife told her what sort of car she was looking for, and she listened and steered us toward a Corolla twincam-16.
She explained the features of the car in a straightforward way, with no BS.
She listened to the concerns about ergos and addressed them, by demonstrating the driver's seat and control adjustments, and explaining what was possible beyond that either in that car or others. Then she made sure it was a comfortable fit for my wife. And, said nothing that involved the department store bedding section.

At that point, I knew the car had just been sold, all the other stuff, test drive, figuring out the price etc. was just window dressing. We went home in two cars that night.

slartidbartfast · 08-21-2012, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SilkMoneyLove

My buddy came to visit me in WI. He wanted an oil change as it was due on his GS. The HD shop had the oil grade he needed and was on the way, but wouldn't do the change b/c it was a BMW.
I was surprised because this was a HD, Buell and Ural dealer and they have always treated me well.
The owner is a great guy and following the Golden Rule (he who has the gold, rules) my buddy bought the oil and we did the change in my garage.
My thinking is that the techs don't know BMW so the shop can't guarantee the work? Not sure, but that is my guess.

One hole to take the old oil out and another hole to put the new stuff in. Any HD tech who couldn't handle that shouldn't be playing with sharp objects, let alone wrenching on $20K motorcycles

slide · 08-21-2012, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slartidbartfast

One hole to take the old oil out and another hole to put the new stuff in. Any HD tech who couldn't handle that shouldn't be playing with sharp objects, let alone wrenching on $20K motorcycles

How'd he get the filter w/o the tool?

Dave in Wi · 08-21-2012, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bogfarth

Babbitts! Had I only known of such admirable and wondrous pricing prior to dumping a wad at the stealership for OEM parts! Thanks to you I don't ever have to visit that den of greed again! You, sir, deserve a pint!

.

I'm not sure just how tounge in cheek your reply is... Let me play devils advocate just for the heck of it. Do I expect a dealer to spend the capital to buy, stock and store parts, AND compete on price with the warehouse online parts places? No. I would LIKE them to stock common parts like valve shims, valve cover gaskets, etc. I have no problem with them having to charge more than an online place for this. I still check with the dealer before ordering, as things can change daily.

It really depends on the online place you deal with also. I have found at least one that does not stock parts, and they order once a week, the parts ship to them, then they ship the parts out to the customer. It takes 2 weeks to get a part from them. I will gladly pay more from a dealer to get it quicker. I like Babbit's because they are geographically relatively close to me, and I can usually get OEM parts within 2-3 days.

Dave in Wi · 08-21-2012, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slide

How'd he get the filter w/o the tool?

I know the K bikes take a special tool, do the twins use it as well?

slide · 08-21-2012, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave in wi

i know the k bikes take a special tool, do the twins use it as well?

y.

slartidbartfast · 08-21-2012, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave in Wi

I know the K bikes take a special tool, do the twins use it as well?

It's only a filter wrench and you only need the special one if you have an OEM filter. Even then any half-decent mechanic could easily find another way to get the filter off. How do you think SilkMoneyLove got it off in his garage?

08-21-2012, 05:40 AM	#92
Falconx84 Lurker Joined: Jul 2011 Location: Martinsburg, WV Oddometer: 272	With all these horror stories, I'm starting to think I could make some serious money opening up a dealership. I've worked sales with a "take every deal" policy for quite awhile. Now if I can find a dealer website with stupid stuff customers say, lol... __________________ V-Strom DL1000k7

08-21-2012, 06:57 AM	#95
PFFOG Richard Alps-aholic Joined: Aug 2005 Location: Western NY, further from NYC than 6 entire states Oddometer: 1,175	What has happened is dealers have tried to turn parts and service into big profit centers, 10-20% mark up over MSRP on parts, $100/hr labor rates, specials they want the service department to push, whether the customer needs it or not. Then they wonder why their customers disappear. If they would realize service and parts departments create LOYALTY, and are their BEST salesman, things will be different. They would rather drive customers away after the sale and then spend MILLIONS in advertising to get new ones. You want a good dealer, he is the one that is busy but NEVER advertises, the dealers that advertise out the wazoo, do so because they can;'t keep current customers happy. __________________ Tuscany 2010 Maritime Alps and Vosges Richard

08-21-2012, 07:11 AM	#96
manic mechanic Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Aug 2011 Location: up nort' somewheres Oddometer: 107	Used to go to a "local" dealer for parts, HD/BMW. Never bought a bike there, but it felt good when I could go in back to the parts counter and the parts guys not only knew my name, but what I was riding and sometimes asked how something I'd done in the past was working out. That dealer lost at least one of the franchises over some shady dealings. __________________ '76 R90/6, '07 K1200GT Rounder #6 MOA Ambassador, Biergarten co-chair RA WI Regional Rep, rally security chair

08-21-2012, 08:13 AM	#99
filmfan Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Sep 2011 Location: Nude Hampster Oddometer: 119	This happened several years ago, but judging from some of the entries here, it could have been yesterday. No moto content though. My wife got some inheritance money, and wanted to buy a new car. Choices were limited where we lived at the time, so we ended up on "Auto row" in Riverside, CA. The typical encounter with sales went like this; We'd walk up to the sales guy, or he would greet us next to some car or another. I'd say "She's buying a car, I'm just here for the ride". Then he would proceed to address me... My wife would explain what she was looking for and they would say something like "we have a lot of cars out there, let me know if something catches your eye". At one place, the Izuzu dealer, I think, we were looking at a model neither of us were familiar with. My wife said "what can you tell us about this car?" They guys response, "The wheels go around". My wife is short, so ergonomics are an issue. The suggested solution from several of these guys? "Just get a pillow and you'll be fine". Ehh no, for spending $xx,000.00 I want a car that FITS me. This went on for the full day. We took a break for dinner, she was frustrated, mad and disappointed, ready to go home. I suggested one more try, we hadn't been to Toyota yet, even though it was high on the list. We eat, get to the dealer after dark. The salesWOMAN comes out and we start the drill; "She's buying a car..." From that point it was as if I had vanished into thin air. My wife told her what sort of car she was looking for, and she listened and steered us toward a Corolla twincam-16. She explained the features of the car in a straightforward way, with no BS. She listened to the concerns about ergos and addressed them, by demonstrating the driver's seat and control adjustments, and explaining what was possible beyond that either in that car or others. Then she made sure it was a comfortable fit for my wife. And, said nothing that involved the department store bedding section. At that point, I knew the car had just been sold, all the other stuff, test drive, figuring out the price etc. was just window dressing. We went home in two cars that night. filmfan screwed with this post 08-21-2012 at 09:12 AM

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08-21-2012, 04:23 AM	#91
colodak Adventurer Joined: Jul 2012 Oddometer: 77	buying tires is a joke anymore, when I bought mine last month, I knew what I wanted, called 5 different dealers/parts houses , and of course got 5 different prices of ranging from $300/set to $500/set for the same tires. Needless to say I went with the $300/set. But, the dealer I bought mine from, while being the most expensive for the tires was the cheapest for mount/balance when I took the bike to him (was having other work done). Buying online wasn't much cheaper, in fact was about the same in price as the shop I bought them from. Customer service , I've gotten to the point of where if they won't at least acknowledge me when I walk in the door, I won't bother asking them for help. My friends mother does "secret shopping", one of the stores she regularly hits is Best Buy. Her last visit 6 months ago, she rated the store and management so poorly, they turned the entire staff within 2 months.

08-21-2012, 06:19 AM	#94
TimothyCaseTimothy Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Sep 2011 Location: Denver, CO Oddometer: 408	BMW/Harley dealership sales lady in Colorado Springs via the phone (I have a loan set up and cash for a down payment on a new GSA)... "I don't really know anything about those bikes, I've only really sold Harley's" Case closed.

08-21-2012, 08:10 AM	#97
SilkMoneyLove Studly Adventurer Joined: Nov 2007 Location: Minneapolis Oddometer: 855	My buddy came to visit me in WI. He wanted an oil change as it was due on his GS. The HD shop had the oil grade he needed and was on the way, but wouldn't do the change b/c it was a BMW. I was surprised because this was a HD, Buell and Ural dealer and they have always treated me well. The owner is a great guy and following the Golden Rule (he who has the gold, rules) my buddy bought the oil and we did the change in my garage. My thinking is that the techs don't know BMW so the shop can't guarantee the work? Not sure, but that is my guess.