BMW Main Dealer Service - Is it worth it ?(FALC)

[renmure]

I am looking at BMW's at the moment, all of which are more than 5yrs old, and I can't see much of a premium for BMW main dealer SH over independent specialists, particularly when being sold privately.

Perhaps all other things being equal it might make it more attractive to some folk but since you intend to sell, for the sake of a couple of hundred pounds I would probably just go to BMW to make life easier for myself.

[les]

Do they not still offer a 'value' oil service for cars older than 5 years? I seem to recall it was around half the price

[a4drk]

Yes, I think you are right.

[ClarkyBoy]

If i was in the buying market, i would probably appreciate just as much, if not more seeing the service book with a bmw specialist stamp or 2,

that kinda shows that you are not putting up with main dealer bull but want to make sure your car is kept in good hands? just my opinion, but man dealers are not worth the money at that age of car.. and lets face it, you are more than likely to get the thick apprentice working on your car at a main dealer than a well recognised smaller specialist ?

it could just be my poor previous experience with my local (Sh1te) main bmw dealer though - but i have had a few bmw's now.

[Stevoraith]

I think it's worth making the distinction between a BMW specialist and a 'normal' garage.

When buying a car I'd be happy with either a main dealer or specialist stamp in the book as they say to me that the owner is either happy to spend money on car maintenance or really wants it to be well looked after (or both).

A stamp from the garage round the corner doesn't give off either of those vibes to me.

It's also worth noting that in my experience specialists aren't much cheaper than main dealers for routine stuff like servicing (repairs are a different matter) and that if you go to the right dealer you'll get exceptional service.

I've banged on about them numerous times on here but Grassicks in Perth were outstanding for the five years I had my 330d. Always greeted me by name when I went in (presumably clocked the car as I drove in and looked up my details), always offered a shiny new courtesy car, work always clearly explained, made sure as much work was done for free under my service plan as possible (including changing all brakes which didn't really need done) and always had a chat about the car when I collected it (nice colour, how do you keep it so clean etc etc). That's how dealer servicing should be!

Pheonix in Kirkcaldy weren't quite so good and recently Eastern tried to rip off my cousin severely- it's a long story but his car was in for a new engine which took about three months and then they told him it needed new brakes all round since it had been sitting for so long without moving. He phoned me in a panic asking if £1500 was an ok price for new discs and pads all round. I told him to phone back and tell them to piss off and take it for a spin round the block to free the brakes. Lo and behold they then came back and said "oh yes, your brakes are ok now". Chancing feckers- would never use them ever.

[Sanjøy]

I would not think twice about buying a car that stated "I am based in Edinburgh, Eastern are a bunch of charlies so I used the best independent I could find". You could also swap that for Vardy in Dundee who I used for the panzer once who are an even worse bunch of charlies.

[ClarkyBoy]

I would not think twice about buying a car that stated "I am based in Edinburgh, Eastern are a bunch of charlies so I used the best independent I could find". You could also swap that for Vardy in Dundee who I used for the panzer once who are an even worse bunch of charlies.

Sounds like Aberdeen bmw then!

I would probably be more likely to buy a beemer if somone told be they didnt use JC BMW for that reason!!

[mattg]

Iv'e always found Douglas Park BMW in Glasgow to be on a par with servicing pricing compared to other local reputable independents. So have stuck with them.
They were also happy to quote on the basis that i purchase and supply the oil which also saves a few quid.

[Tommy Twist]

Apologies in advance for the slight thread diversion..

Tommy, I got rid of the Re050 runflats (£250 a corner)
I bought Falken 452's £440 for 4 !
Great tyre
David

Ps - planning on selling the car quite soon

Seconded. Bridgestone RE050 RFTs are hilariously bad full stop. Terrible ride, poor grip in the wet, and they tramline all over the road. I hated my E91 so much on runflats that I almost sold it a few months after buying. Falken 452's transformed the car - the difference really was that huge.

Mark

Yes, the experience you guys have had switching to a non-runflat summer tyre tallies convincingly with similar that I've heard and read elsewhere!

Actually, I don't find the Bridgie RE050s too bad in the wet at all – surprisingly grippy, I thought – it's their performance in cold, greasy conditions that has me reviewing the fine print in my life assurance policy! I know what you mean about the tramlining though – absolutely awful – although I found that inflating the tyres to 8 PSI above the recommended pressure helped a lot... improved the steering and handling during the warmer months too, but sacrifices too much grip now it's a bit colder! Not sure so much neg camber on the rear wheels as helps much in the winter either. Actually the ride on choppy streets is great compared to my S2 Elise, which crashed over bumps something awful! Different ballpark though, to be fair

My concern about switching to non-RFTs on a 'soft' 3-series SE is that the handling might become a little too vague (currently not too bad for a 4-seater barge) – especially with the wishbone and subframe bushes apparently being specced particularly soft in order to comply with the stiff OEM RFTs. I've gone the other way in the past with my Scooby STI, switched from a fairly 'standard' performance tyre to a stiff-sidewalled Bridgestone RE070 and it palpably sharpened the handling... not yet sure I want to go the other way with the BM

Anyway, thanks for the comments – great to share experiences

P.S. Do either of you guys have unwanted RE050s and/or wheels you'd consider selling?

[Tommy Twist]

It's also worth noting that in my experience specialists aren't much cheaper than main dealers for routine stuff like servicing

Indeed – often there seems to be an assumption that going independent will shave "a couple of hundred" off any servicing bill, but I've come to learn that isn't necessarily always the case, and that the saving can be surprisingly small in percentage terms...

Perhaps some of the indies are becoming wise to the fact that many punters are no longer valuing dealer servicing quite as highly as they may have in years gone by, and are now sooking up some of the gravy for themselves? Hmmm.

[a4drk]

P.S. Do either of you guys have unwanted RE050s and/or wheels you'd consider selling?

No, I sold my alloys & tyres to Sanjoy !

[Sanjøy]

Must put wheels in the classifieds......