New low in stupidity at Hollywood Honda/BMW

Had a dead battery when I was leaving work (Sunset/Vine) two weeks ago and they were the closest around with the battery, I handed my buddy $200, that should cover it...

Yup, $198.40 :eek1

Thanks for the help... I didn't check to see what they normally cost, I don't want to know if I got ripped or not and just put it down to the cost of the trip.

Mike

$198?!?!?! I got my freakin Odyssey for $120!!

:huh

I was at Hollywood BMW week before last, riding between client meetings. I stopped in to take a dump in their bathroom and then left. They had some nice bikes there though.

Thanks Pasta, I feel much better now.

....OH..... uh

......but that Odyssey battery spontaneously exploded under by ADV tank with 8 gallons in it and burned my GS to the ground - your battery is better.... yeah....

I can't remember when I was last in a dealership for anything other than when I'm buying a shirt. I found a local independent guy who was a service manager for BMW for years, got sick of it, and now has his own shop. Its a one man operation. He is extremely good at what he does, charges a reasonable rate. He has been serving my BMW needs for the past 3-4 years. So....about 50k miles.

Pasta, sorry to hear about your shitty experience. BMW is not what it used to be.

Congrats on completing your slave cyl. repair.

my name is Ryan and I work as Master Tech here... I even posted a 10% off coupon in the vendor section that no one replied to. It applies to parts and service, with few restrictions (follow the link under this post.) I am sorry if people have had bad experiences, but if you talk to me I will be happy to help you above and beyond the norm. My hours are ~9am to ~7pm weekdays. Our (service's) phone number is 323 372 3250. I will try hard to make sure you get the right parts the first time, email me a list of what you need. Our internet order prices are better than the walk-in prices, (think overhead.) Please reconsider writing us off, hell, we even rode rincon shortcut together in '07...

P.S.: If I have a tool available, I will normally let people borrow it, within reason, of course.

That is a strong statement right there. Many would just lurk if they were being picked on. He is not being defensive, just asking for people to give them an opportunity.

Hey Ryan - Yeah I remember that day on the Rincon Shortcut - amazing day! I wish it would open up again soon...



I will consider not writing off your shop just for you, because you're a stand up guy (and aren't you a buddy of Errins as well...?) but how can I even start to trust the shop after all this crap they have perpetrated?

My shot is certainly not at you - its at the dealership. Please understand that - I have fairly long history with these guys...
My room mate is a BMW mechanic (cars) and he is constantly telling me stories of how the bureaucracy works over there. He says its just a mess half the time and they get in the way more than helping.

I have a long and sad history with Hollywood Honda/BMW and it goes back about seven years when they told me to not bring my bike there. It was a bike that had been purchased from that dealer and I just needed the carbs to be cleaned - yes it was 20 years old but the guy on the phone actually told me, "Dont even bring it here".

A very good friend of mine bought a VTX from there as well. After his break in, he brought it down to have the first service done. After it sat outside for a few months he went down to see what was up. The work had not been done and all the non aluminum parts had rusted and the bike was disgusting.

He was furious - he took it up to Burbank Honda (Which is owned by the same family, I have heard along with all the other Honda stuff in LA) and they did the work.

Other than that bleeder valve incident, my most recent run-in over there was at the big annual sale they have in April. I called ahead a few times and asked about the sale and what the big blowout items were, I told a few of my buddies about it who showed up and almost none of the sale items were what they told me they were. My friends were pissed and still spent a bunch of money.
I bought tires, boots, gloves, a helmet - spent some money.
When I got home I realized in the shuffle I had grabbed the wrong size boots. I ran back over there to exchange the boots for the correct size and they told me to take a hike.
I had just been in there 15 minutes before and spent a few hundred dollars and I cant exchange a pair of boots?

are you kidding me?

After that, I wrote them a few letters, wondering if the management or owners knew what was going on over there. In the past I have written letters to the police department, the CEO of AAA, and other motorcycle dealerships and have always had a response of some kind. I never got a response from those guys. Hell, I got a phone call from the CEO of AAA two days after my letter was sent - THAT Is customer service.

I have walked onto the showroom floor a few times inquiring about bikes.

The first time was about the CB1100 - the new one being built. I told the guy about it and he had never heard of a CB1100. Then I told him about the first one, built in 1983 and he said he never knew they made one. There was one sitting in the driveway and I had ridden it.
Then he asked me if I wanted to buy one of the bikes on the floor. They always ask for the sale, dont they? He never researched the CB1100 or the CB1000 that both will probably be brought to the US in the next few years.
I then asked about the 800GS - and it was pretty much the same story - No way is BMW making an 800GS!
Well they are all over the showroom floor now... and no I dont want to buy one.

Gabby is pretty cool. She is the only person I have ever had any dialog with over any extended period of time.

I have heard so many horror stories about Honda Hollywood... I cant even keep them all straight.

Im sorry man, Id rather ride the 50 minutes out to Ventura BMW or Irv Seaver.

The truth of the matter is, there are SO MANY laydown sales in LA that they dont need to be a good shop. They dont care about being a good shop, they just care about selling whatever it is the person that just walked in wants to buy.

If they wanted to be a good shop, they could be. But let's be honest, that would cost more money.

Whether you run a restaurant or a record store, people are going to discuss their experiences (good or bad) with other people. And in discussing their experiences, the stories always get exaggerated. This is the way of things. Hell, after I had work done at Ventura BMW, I got on the computer they have IN THE DEALERSHIP, logged onto ADV and praised them.

I would be doing that now if I had ever had a good experience with this shop - but I have not, therefore I cannot recommend that anyone ever go there unless there is some violent and far reaching shift in the climate of the management. They either have no idea what is going on, or do not care at all.

Im guessing it the latter.

That is ONE atomic

I will agree that it takes stones to post up in a thread like this, and I am sure all dealerships have people that have had a bad experience, sometimes I am one of those people, this is the interweb after all...

I like the idea of having one of our own on the inside. Ryan, I will give you guys a shot the next time I need something.

Now, when does Rincon open again and what can you do about AJ's boots?

Mike

I agree it would take courage to post up in here and try to make things right - that says a lot on its own.

as for the boots? Long gone... sold at a loss

ha ha,thanks. It's not so much that, it's the fact that I ride every day, I have previously worked in parts (Italian car parts for f^#$ sake.), and I know what the meaning of customer service is. Bottom line: I do give a shit. I don't claim to know everything, but I really do want all of your business, and others in the company do too. Fact is change takes time, and we are working on it. We are multiline, and that does have its drawbacks, but we do have certified techs for all the brands we carry. As for useless sales guys, well, they aren't there anymore, they all starved to death. We do have a couple of younger guys that might not know about older bikes, but they damn well better know what's on the sales floor. If this is not the case ask for Mike, he's the sales manager. As for the CB1100, I saw it as a screensaver at Honda HQ a couple of years ago and it didn't seem to be more than a design exercise. I couldn't get a straight answer from them as to whether or not it would be produced, though it did look the business. On another note: I hope to see Rincon open again soon, but who knows? I have heard Rowher will be open soon, that would be fun too. Let's go ride!!!

Thanks for the positive post, I have a 950SE, so if that adventure in the picture is yours, I have Motorex oil for you at a good price, I had them order it for me. Sorry about AJ's boots, but it appears that it is too late now. Maybe we can get him a deal on something else?

To all: Please remember to contact me for the parts and service discount, I'll put you in touch with the right people. Also remember that we won't always be the cheapest, but we'll do what we can. In the interest of not turning into a salesman, I will post no more in this thread. If anyone ever has a question or comment regarding Honda of Hollywood, or just needs help with some motorcycle related issue, email me. See you in the other threads!

Sounds like what I went through with my 1200GS, it sat in their shop for almost two years, outside.

two years?

:huh

The next time I need a part, Im coming straight to you then. I would actually like to see the dealership turn itself around. It sucks to live a mile from the place and hate to use it.

Moved to Vendors

Ryan,

Good Post , keep up the good work and do not let the
whiners get to you.