Who is wrong here? The dealership or the customer? We need you to judge!

I can't help but feel that there are a number of serious exaggerations here, but...

The BMW dealers here in Las Vegas are not all that customer friendly either, especially when compared to my local Lexus and Infiniti dealers.

lexus sales and service is better. and it's a MAJOR reason why people buy a lexus. it's not so much about amazing product.

BMW is purely about product. great product. and DESPITE a dealer experience that is apparently not as good as lexus (personally i've had no problems), the cars STILL sell like crazy. the product is that good.

imagine what might happen if BMW or mercedes matched lexus in sales and service?

This boils down to whether all BMW dealers are contractually bound to accept returned lease vehicles as part of their franchise agreement. If I was BMW, I would terminate an offending franchise immediately upon discovering such breach of contract.

I suspect the Mercedes dealer helped out because the owner also owns a BMW dealership or he figured that the wholesale value of the BMW was higher than the residual value which he would use to settle with BMW.

hahahahahahahahahhaa lol

enthusiast
It's stupid to assume that people only buy Lexus becaues of good customer service. Believe it or not, people actual like Lexus, because they like it. Although I do agree with you that if BMW improved their customer service they may sell more cars (because they're able to close the actual deal, not attract new buyers).

From personal experience, I agree, BMW must teach their sales associates to be condecending an stuck up. Funny thing is, most of them are probably badge whores or simply, sales people, who dont truly appreciate the bimmer for what it is.

He's thinking that people are pitifully stupid that they'd spend 82k on a Lexus just because they were "treated well".

What a ridiculous comment.

There is no full story here, I see only one side.

Agreed. At this point it's just hear-say.

I agree with you, it wouldn't make sense for both, a regular employee and a GM to act this way at the same time.

No one deserves to be treated the way this person is describing. However, I'm sure there's more to it than she's letting on, although again there is no excuse.

When you turn a vehicle in, it makes the dealer liable for the vehicle while its in their possession. It also takes up space. If a dealer is short on space they have every right to decide not to accept your car, respectfully. Although this usually only happens if your not purchasing a new BMW or the lease company is not the Automakers financial institution.

// Please attach picture of Raquel.

LOL!

funny. she probably looks like a nut job.

If true, there are multiple employees there in need of a punch to the face.

I have no doubt that she was not as sweet and innocent in the matter as the letter implies. Having said that, if the GM did indeed say such things then what he did is inexcusable. That is your job and you are expected to maintain appropriate professional conduct – including providing an appropriate reasoning for all actions.

As far as the GM goes such behavior is unbecoming, telling of his upbringing, and something which you really cannot get away with. My experience is that those who would behave in such a manner are playing to a particular insecurity. What makes someone trash is not what or how much they have it is simply how they treat other people.

This last weekend, fortuitously enough, I witnessed a salesman become snippy. I was out with a very good friend (whose title happens to include the words “President and CEO”) furniture shopping. He is moving in a few months and wanted to look around. Well he found a beautiful ebony topped living room set at Roche Bobois. While one of the gentlemen went to get information on it, another, a Frenchman, came up and was really pushy about selling it that second. I sat there in shock (on a beautiful white leather sofa that had been featured in Architectural Digest)

Nothing new. Ive had a case of BMW arrogance too. I was looking at a 328 at the end of this summer. This guy told me that BMWs are very exclusive and that they might not have every color possible, that they would have to order a special one that'll take about 2 months. I then asked about any deals they had going, like end of model year specials. This guy told me this is BMW, all our cars sell regardless, Don't expect any year end deals. He is probably telling the truth, but he wasn't trying to work anything out. I mean, cmon. It's only a 40k BMW. It's not like I'm looking for an M3, M6. So back to Infiniti.

Although its not his fault that you can't afford it.

Im happy you pay full price for everything.

just out of curiosity, should he have lied and said there would be deals and/or savings he knew would not exist just to tell you what you wanted to hear? I would think that would be worse.

Why get excited, most sales people will tell you that they have the #1 car even if it is a Yugo that is the sales game, you as a customer have the ultimate choice, hang in the there and sit with the sales person to show a real intent to purchase or leave the dealership because the first thing out of their mouth is no discount. most young ladies tell a first encounter with a man no i won't go out with you if you like her she wants a persuit do you just give up come on that is life, you want a car deal go for it, they won't deal which in today's world is hard to believe if a dealer has a profit they will get that unit off their lot, it may take work on your part but that is the game otherwise walk out, find another dealer?

JRob, I agree with you. I guess it just pisses me off how he said he would have to order it, and he needed a 2 month notice. He made it seem like it's some exotic car, when all I was looking for was something that has good performance, good fuel economy, and something that looks good, as an everyday car.

No, I'm just not cheap enough to allow a lack of a discount to stand in the way of me getting something that I not only want, but that I feel the engineering, style, and workmanship is worth paying a little extra for.

Wow,

While there is a certain "stigma" associated with BMW dealers and the attitude they like to portray towards customers of other car brands, but this story is way over the top. Sounds like the entire dealership culture over at Brecht has gotten out of hand. They're just a little too caught up in their own hipe.

I can't see how anyone can disagree that the way this potential client was handled by Brecht was dead wrong. I would expect that kind of treatment from a BMW salesperson who couldn't/wouldn't take the time out of his pressing day to do a lease return, but to have the same response from as high up as the GM position is simply unacceptable. There is precidence for this kind of behavior at BMW however, and it has been known to extend all the way up the corporate ladder to the CEO position. When stories like this hit the press however, the result is almost always the same: Immediate termination of the person in charge.

A smart and alert salesperson would have sat down with the client, offered to help, and engaged her in some sort of conversation. They could have asked her if her experience with the car was a good one or not. They could have found out her likes and dislikes about the car and the original selling dealership. Maybe the dealership she bought the car from was rude and she was looking to change. She might have expressed whether or not she liked leasing vs buying. All information which could have led to another sale.

A lease return is like any other client coming through the door. In most cases they can be better than most. They're already driving your product, they don't owe more on it than it's worth, they need a car right away, they're probably a good credit risk since they're currently in a lease with a bank, etc etc. How many clients walk in the door that prequalified?

Simply unbelievable.

Are you really that naive that you would believe her side word for word. I mean, they threatened to call the cops on her. IF thats true, and thats a big IF, why would they call the cops on her.

Lets just set the scene. She has kids with her, shes being nice as pie with her questioning, so lets call the cops on her, riigghhtt.

please, they threatened to call the cops? either this is a joke OR she was a hysterical nutjob screaming her head off in the dealership (in which case i would have called the cops too).

I cannot believe none of you have experienced something this outrageous with a car dealership and that you feel it may not be true? I have had this very experience with a Ford dealership and I was as pleasant as could be and they basically threw me out. Do not think for one moment this kind of behavior does not happen at these dealerships. Their stand after I talked with the owner\manager was that, "what are you going to do about it"? I contacted the district manager and complained and he said that the dealership is a franchise and they cannot do anything about it. What !!!

I have always made an appointment before returning my lease instead of showing up on the last day and expect the dealer to take my car. That way, they could check for damages and advise me to fix them instead paying big bucks in penalties. Dealers usually will sell the car at an auction if they do not take it into their used inventory, but they don't have to take a loss/risk just because Chase says to take it anywhere she wants (Chase doesn't own the dealership obviously so who are they to say that the dealers must take the car?). I would have taken the car somewhere else just to save time instead of arguing. Keep in mind that Chase was closed and when the brother went to the MB dealer, it was another time/day. Oh, why would the dealer threaten to call the police? She must have either gotten out of line herself or refused to take a "no" for answer. I think the only mistake the dealer made was not to advise her of other options - like "why don't you try the dealer across the street because store policy doesn't allow us to take the car in?".

Xlnt post and most likely that is what happen, i can tell you in 28 yrs of busines ownership Appliances and Auto's our family run operation called the police twice once for a military man that threaten to machine gun the showroom floor if we didn't get him into finace faster and he went to his truck and reach for a weapon so we took it very seriously, and a Dr.( so called lady) who drove her new 45 k car up to the showroom window and threaten to smash it if you didn't give her money back, the problem she didn't buy the car from us she thought all dealers were owned by the Corp like Costco i guess and demanded we make the refund?

It wasn't a total loss; at least she was able to publicly slander the dealership. Hopefully each member of the manangement team will develop inoperable brain tumors.

After hearing this story I will make a point of bringing a hidden voice recorder whenever I go to a dealer for any reason.

Just think of the financial damage that could have been done to the dealer in this case (i.e. after submitting a copy of the recording to all the local news stations and distributing it on the internet)

recording the incident on your mobile phone and subsequently posting it on youtube would be even better proof.

Where is Iamevilhomer when we need him to chime in on this?

001

listen houston:

i've had no problem with BMW dealers. do i love them, no. but as long as they get the job done i care about product first and foremost. service is an ancillary issues for me. i do believe others have truly amazing experiences with lexus sales and service. still not a reason to buy a lesser product.

THERE ARE ALWAYS TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY. I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT THIS "PRINCESS" WAS JUST A INNOCENT VICTIM. I'VE NEVER STEPPED FOOT INTO A BMW DEALER, BUT FOR A MANAGER TO ACT THAT WAY, HARD TO BELIEVE. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE WHAT AX SHE HAS TO GRIND AGAINST THIS DEALERSHIP. ALSO, FOR CUSTOMER RELATIONS TO SAY THAT "NOTHING THEY CAN DO AND DON'T EXPECT A CALL" DOES NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT MANUFACTURE'S CR DEPARTMENTS. BMW'S CR DEPT. HAS A LOT OF PEOPLE CALLING WITH PROBLEMS, SO TO SAY ALL THAT, HOGWASH! ALSO, SHE LETS THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG BY STATING THAT SHE'S BEEN TO THE DEALERS 10 TIMES, INSTEAD TO THE ONLY TWO THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN FOR MAINTENANCE, WHAT, ONLY A ONE YEAR LEASE??? STORY DOES NOT ADD UP LIKE HER IDEA OF MAINTAINING A CAR.

don't worry bulldog, everyone won't have a 335i Convertible by next summer. They're still too hard to get without ordering one for that.

"It's not just an old wife's tale about 'crappy BMW dealership experience', yet everyone here somehow comes up with the typical "well, my sister's friend's cousin had the same thing happen at Lexus". Stop it, no it didn't. Ever."

There's not a single person here who mentioned a bad experience at a Lexus dealership- just a few bad BMW experiences, and one from Ford.

yeh sounds like rachel was on something...lol. a lot of exageration

Hahaha, serves her right for leasing/buying a BMW.

001...you live in San Diego, why don't you give a call or stop into Brecht BMW on your way to/from work and publish their response to this posting?

....or do you have an ax to grind with Brecht BMW?

That was the first thing we did...we're just waiting for a formal response in the blog from them.

Could be tough if there are any lawsuits in process, etc.

We have no axe to grind with any dealership, just trying to get to the bottom of this.

Without knowing the full details it is hard to side with one or the other.

That's why we published this here to hopefully get the real story.

001

Thanks 001..that's the right thing to do; sounds like we won't be hearing from them.

don't know about the rest of you but... i've never just shown up (after bank business hours like this lady), dropped down keys, taken a picture (what the hell is that about?) and left my leased car with any random dealer. generally, you plan in advance (which this lady never did), make an appointment for inspection (which is essential to assess damages beyond normal wear and tear) and return the car. pretty easy.

she sounds like a mess who just waited till the last minute and screwed herself.

You sound like a bit of an overly defensive BMW fan. They are not known for their great dealers and there is no reason to make excuses.

That's why I couldn't help but question the veracity of this individual.

I simply refuse believe that someone would fail to plan the return of a leased vehicle better than this, and if she did wait until the last possible second, she was probably the RUDE one, demanding that she get what she wanted.

As they say, poor planning of the part of one does not constitute an emergency on the part of another.

S4:

i'm not making excuses. but have any of you just shown up the evening your car was due back at some random dealer and demanded it all be handled instantly? and we're only hearing one side of the story.

how do you know this woman isn't just some lunatic?

nothing wrong with showing up last minute...the lease ends on a certain date and you have EVERY RIGHT to return the vehicle on that date, so long as it is within business hours.

r15, the dealer is in no way obligated to take that lease return, the only lease returns BMW dealers "have to" accept are ones through BMW Financial Services (and even then if the dealer didn't originally sell the car they don't have to keep the car, just do the inspection and lease end paperwork and tell BMW to come get it). This dealership might not even be a Chase Bank affiliated dealer, not all dealers are contracted with every lending institution. Also, why did she drive to a dealer 45 minutes away from where she lives, a dealer who she didn't buy the car from and who she never even spoke to? She lives in California, there's no way there weren't closer dealers to her than this one. She probably drove by them to get to this one. I live in Cincinnati, there are four BMW dealers within that distance. Regardless, they didn't sell her the car, she didn't call to schedule the lease end inspection or return, or even to find out if she COULD drop the car off there, and she waited until the bank was closed to do the turn in so the dealer couldn't even verify the lease contract was complete (for all the dealer knew she still had a year left on the lease, it was stolen, whatever)...

We're obviously not hearing the whole story. Just because she waited until the last second and didn't properly plan doesn't make that someone elses problem. Dealers don't call the police on people who are rational, they call the police on people who are refusing to listen, making a scene, disrupting business, and refusing to leave.

I love it, this is typical attitude from BMW and all the germans MFG's thats why Lexus spanks them every year.

i love how you just automatically believe this.
two sides to every story.
furthermore, exactly how does lexus 'spank' BMW?

autopro, you are truly ignorant if you believe that. This article is not about BMW vs Lexus. Stop adding your ridiculously bias comments because it makes people think all Lexus fans are ignorant - which just isn't true.

Like most people here have already posted, there is probably more to this story. Car dealerships are privately owned and each dealership has its own policies that have nothing to do with the car manufacturer itself. If you want to talk Lexus, my cousin has had several horrific encounters with the Lexus of Westminster dealership. They were real nice when she bought here new IS, but were very rude and dishonest when she came in for service. She also owns two MB, one bought from Laguna and one from Long Beach. She has had service at both those MB dealerships, as well as others, and she admits that each dealership has a very different attitude towards customers.

It is about Lexus vs BMW you don't spank the mighty germans in ten years by just bringing out products that offer a better value. Its about customer service.Lexus dealers are the best in the country.I know you may run into a couple of a-holes with any dealer,but BMW's dealers in general are a little cockey.To answer your question enthusiastx11 YTD numbers BMW 216,337 Lexus 244,656 that my boy is a spanking.

why no comment here S4?

all of a sudden this is 'typical BMW dealer.' isnt' that just a little presumptuous?

autopro:

we know it's no contest globally...BMW and mercedes dominate. but even in the states, BMW and mercedes far outsell lexus in passenger cars. so who exactly is getting 'spanked.'

lexus as a brand only outsells BMW and mercedes brand because of the 100,000+ $40,000 RX they sell per year.

enthusiast, I have no quibbles with BMW dealers. They're fine, nothing exceptional. I feel the same way about Audi dealers, with respect to my good friend Paul (salesman). It's defensive fans who can't admit a fault that I have trouble with. Not even BMW is perfect.

S4:
never claimed perfection.
in fact, i've already said lexus is known for much better sales and service.

if there were a trend of problems like this i'd take it seriously. but this is one person and one side of the story. so all we can do is guess what's going on here.

The Lexus franchise is only 17 yrs old. That's the only reason they don't compete globally.If the wanted to they could take over europe too. People buy Lexus products because of quality,value, service,reliability and the overall lack of NVH.Only a small percent of people are enthusiasts we just don't matter.

I've had a bad BMW dealership experience, myself. There is one terrible dealer in my area, and the other is very good.

First, the bad:

About two years ago, in December of 2005, I was getting rid of the old A4 my son had driven and replacing it with a new winter car to complement my S4. I started at BMW- I wanted to drive a used 330xi, nothing expensive. So, I walked into the dealer and there appeared to be quite a few slightly tipsy salespeople. They might have had a holiday party--but why would you ever do that during open hours, when a potential customer like me would walk in?

I asked one of them (who wasn't drunk) to pull out a 2004 330xi. He obliged, and said it would be around in a few minutes. We waited... five minutes passed, then ten, then fifteen and finally twenty. I stepped out in disgust, and have vowed never to go back to Fields BMW. I ended up with an A3 2.0T DSG (floor model) from my favorite Audi dealer.

My good BMW experience: shopping for my wife, I have gone to Fields's rival, Knauz. There is a huge chain there- Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, MINI, Jaguar... but we've focused on the BMWs. I have driven the X5 3.0si, 535xi and X5 4.8i there. Because of the time spent at Knauz, we now have a favorite salesman. It has much better service, a more airy interior and is more popular overall. It seems like I'll be ordering an X5 4.8i from there later this month.

why didn't she simply call ahead of time and save her the horrible 45 min drive?

I just sent the dealer i nice long email. ^^

As a x car dealer of course i don't like to see the public mistreated, on the other hand it seems that the rest of the story must be heard in relations to the dealer's side.
It is not good practice for any dealer to summon the police since a police report is public record could appear in the local press or news agency it is something a dealer wouldn't want to happen. If of course a threat took place that put the general public or employees inharms way you have no choice.
I believe the client started yelling in the dealership and went around telling all that would listen that the dealer was unreasonable in their demands. This prompted the GM to either instruct her to leave or have a police agency called.
The women should have gone to her car and if she has a cell phone call the local BMW distric office to put on record that she tried to leave off a lease car at other then the dealer she purchase from. She then calls the dealer where she purchase the car ask for the GM and explain what happen and that she may be a day late because of it in returning the lease vehicule back to them.
People would come into the dealership on a Sat and demand we take care of their lease problems, Sat is boom day for a dealer and many times we would have to make them wait for hour or two to address their lease purchase problem the finance peple are very busy on weekends and they generally had all the answers not the sales consultants.
This is not to say a sales person who had no sales that day and then was told by a cutomer to help her out became frustrated and started a confrontation that has and does happen again though the dealer is very recluctant to call the police unless a real threat was made.
PS BMW dealers are no more rude then anybody else, i can tell you stories about Chrysler dealers that makes your hair stand out or high volume Toyota dealers. For the most part these problems start with a poor managment team who doesn't want to train its staff in the rigors of the very tough auto business.

I know that attitude is everything in business and customer service and the client could very well have come in with a bad attitude of entitlement that could have rubbed everyone the wrong way.

I also know that BMW dealers UNIVERSALLY seem to have this public relations problem more than any other brand, and it extends beyond the dealership level all the way back to Germany. It has always been that way and I'm not sure how it came about.

Even when execs from BMW leave and go to other companies, they tend to have problems adjusting to the new corporate cultures they go to. Look at the CEO that left and went to VW. He lasted what, a week or two? He made some stupid comment to the press about Piech and the Phaeton and he was immediately gone!

I have a feeling the same will happen with this GM at Brecht.

"Look at the CEO that left and went to VW. He lasted what, a week or two? He made some stupid comment to the press about Piech and the Phaeton and he was immediately gone!"

Ah, I remember that! Axel Frieden! He worked for Audi, and he bad-mouthed Piech. Was fired by the next week.

Excuse me, not Axel Frieden. That's someone else I know :-S

Axel something, though...

Axel Mees ;)

She should know very well that she need to return her BMW to the original dealer.

Looks like she didn't get what she wanted, and made a scene there.

BINGO!

We've all seen it everywhere from WalMart to Bloomingdale's, customers simply have this false sense of entitlement regardless of their own (often obtuse) attitudes.

Whoever penned The Customer Is Always Right, never anticipated the kind of consumer in today's market.

She should know very well that she need to return her BMW to the original dealer.

Looks like she didn't get what she want, and made a scene there.

lets be realistic, this sounds a little far fetched who cares that its a BMW dealership but for any dealership to act like this....the article makes it sound like as soon as she walked in they jumped down her throat. It seems like there are alot of exaggerations, as well as some left out parts of the story. Why would a management team, or sales staff go through all of that over something it sounds like they do on a regular basis. Lets be logical here, this story sounds very far from what actually occured. It sounds like they maybe said something shed didnt approve of she flipped out, and they asked her to leave. Ive heard of bad times at dealerships but this unrealistic.....come on!

I love the public in general, every sales person is bad or a crook but every customer is misunderstood?
I always listen to both sides, as a owner i had employess for over 25 yrs and the clients would tell me fire him he lied about the deal i would tell the customer in 25yrs this person never had that accusation now tell me what transpired, and they would stand up and say if you don't fire him i will never come back, i showed them the door and location of the local competition?

I don't believe the story for a second and I would a bet a dollar to a doggone doughnut a wacky Lexus fanboy made this malarkey up.

There are two sides to every story..my guess is, if she is like every other woman I see, she was probably on her cell phone with a friend ignoring her kids who were playing getting the cars in the showroom dirty and that is what prompted the anger from the dealership staff.

With what I have seen and heard in regards to customer service I know that there are multiple versions of each story. I do understand that some dealers are bad and some customers are stupid. So I don't know really who to believe, but I believe that BMW USA could have given her a better answer than point out Franchise issues. I don't know how BMW dealers treat customers, but I have seen many times Lexus referenced as being very good and that their service draws customers to them. That statement about Lexus drawing customers because of their better service does point out one thing: that other luxury frontrunners (Cadillac, BMW, and MB in the US) don't have good service. My experience with my Acura dealership has been professional always no matter why I am there, the service department is excellent as well.

In the end I would like to hear the dealers side, but I don't know how BMW treats its customers.

I will say this, for service alone, I always find it far more pleasant to go to my local/neighborhood BMW Certified Service Centers than the actual dealers.

BMW dealers are known for this kind of attitude, Mercedes too, so it doesn't really surpise me that they would throw the customer out. I've heard several horror stories from these two manufacturers.

But, i dont understand why their was no set date and dealer which she had to bring the car to. First off they have to check for damages done to the car and then they give you an estimate at what it would cost to repair and like that you can do the repairs at your body shop and maybe save a few dollars or just pay the bill. Everytime i returned a leased car someone from the manufacturer would come and inspect the car 1-2 weeks before the lease was done. And then they would tell me this day before this time at this dealer and everything is done.
I've never leased BMW's, only owned, so is this how BMW works.

BTW, every dealer regardless of the brand is capable of giving this kind of terrible service. From my experience nothing compares to Audi and Lexus dealers.

damn, i forgot to jack a case of water at my oil change yesterday...

Who the hell knew what really went on here, its only one side to the story. The manager could of been having a bad day, look at the mayor of Altantic City, the damn guy leaves office without telling anyone. It turns out he admitted himself to rehab, without telling anyone but his laywer. People are crazy, bottom line.

I cant say I have had great experiences at BMW dealers. Thats a part of the reason why i am not a big fan of bimmers, its The whole stigma that comes along with it. The "Im better then you because I drive A BMW," I dont buy into that crap. Their salesmen are always rude, and dont want to talk to you unless they have to. I am young, so I understand why they would not want to. but I am more than capable of affording a loaded 3 series. I never had the problem at Lexus, Infiniti, Audi or Cadillac. I actually liked the people at Audi, making me very much consider the A5.

My wife and I have been purchasing Lexuses for the last 16 years. Over that time period each time it has come time to purchase a new car we have stopped at the local BMW dealer,and each time we have been treated with indifference bordering on rudeness. They seemed uninterested in selling us a car and we simply walked out. Most recently I thought we might purchase a new convertible as a fun car and I stood and waited 20 minutes for them to find a sales person, who when I asked question 3 said he was too busy to help me. There was not another person in sight. Really, is this a way to sell cars? For a vehicle so grossly overpriced you'd think they would work harder.

I have to put my two cents in. I have had bad experiences at quite a few dealerships. From incompetent sales people, to them being mad because you don't want the product that they have and even some who were just plain rude. I was in a BMW dealership recently and they were rude. There is no other way to get around it. I think this story is a bit dramatic and I don't believe it all. But I will say that I get very good service at my chosen Mercedes dealership. But at the same time they made the purchase experience a pain. But after I got the car I have been very happy with the service.
T

As with most issues there is generally more to it than stated. But I do know in the UK I have been exceptionally badly treated by BMW staff, when you are looking to spend £50,000 on a vehicle, you would expect to at least get spoken to in civil manner. Thats why I am now on my 3rd new Merc. If this really happened as stated I'd be sure it made all of there local press and major motoring magazines as well.

I think this article certainly touched a nerve. I, too, had the unfortunate experience of being ignored at a BMW dealership while I waited to plunk down a wad of cash on a new car. I finally got tired of waiting a eventually bought a vehicle from their competitor.

This woman may have done herself a disfavor by dropping by at the last minute, but this dealer (if what she writes is true) didn't seem in the least bit interested in getting any business from her.

It's a funny relationship we have with our vehicles... most enthusiasts just LOVE their cars... but almost everyone has a horrible stealership story.

Some costumers, because they own a certain product form a certain manufacturer, think they own the whole company....

Id have been tempted to drive it through their showroom window!

Typical BMW dealer though, unless they can make money theyre not interested.

I work at Lexus, and things are very different, up until very recently in the UK, BMW were hardly governened at all by the manufacturer. (mystery shops,standards targets,customer satisfaction surveys etc) They now have bought some of this into their business, but i suspect for some it will be too late. Relying on their market share is now not enough.

The lady should keep going with this and go to as many consumer watchdog organisations as she can. Motoring press, radio, tv....keep writing letters and she'll get somewhere.

i was 22 years old the first time i walked into a BMW dealership. i knew i coulndt really afford more than a base 325i at the time. the dealer treated me with complete disrespect and when i would ask him questions about the car he would say " look it up" " the bmw isnt like any other car, it is a completely different animal"
i left and stayed with my 1995 mazda millenia.
a year later in 2003 i got a 330xi and the dealer i got was alittle better but still VERY arrogant.
i love BMW'S but hate theirattitude at the dealership.

when i got an infiniti fx for my father they were definitely better, and an acura for my wife also very nice.
mercedes wasnt bad either when i went with my cousins, but BMW definitely sucks when it comes to their customers. i went to jaguar also complete assholes.
and as far as Nissan,toyota, and honda go the experience isnt great either i feel cause customers are a dime a dozen. too much volume.

Rude and indifferent isn't going to cut it, if a small business owner or a BMW dealer whatever treats you like i don't care if i sell you something today or tommorow you walk out and make sure the owner or manager on duty understands why you are leaving.
This housing meltdown was the same thing, builders didn't have time for you stand at he back of the line and maybe we will sell you a house or lot and we just may raise the price again if you get smart with us also.
Now go to a housing tract it is empty, they are so nice and willing to help, i say to late the market is a bust what comes around goes around?

There are always two sides to every story. Why did she not call ahead and make arrangemnts to drop off the vehicle? Why did she wait to the last day? Alot of dealerships are very short on space and may not have had room. Brecht BMW may not have had a relationship with Chase. Who says Brecht BMW has to take a lease return for a Chase customer? This lady sounds arumentative and who cares that she lives 45 miles away? The fact she lives 45 miles away is only her problem. With living so far away why did she not contact the dealership ahead of time to make sure they would accept it. Chase has no business claiming all dealerships will take her lease return. Brecht BMW may have been rude (and should not have been) but my question is were they being rude or did she not like what they were saying? Anyone who thinks ALL dealerships are crooks should go buy a bicycle. If someone has a problem every time they go into a dealership I am quite sure the problem is not with the dealer. There are as many bad customers as there are bad dealerships.

As all these post show the car business can evoked lots of passion. Somewhere sometime in one's life they have had a experience with a dealership, it is big business and accounts for a big bite out of one's budget in this country you got to have wheels.
I used to tell all sales people and staff put yourself in the place of the consumer, when you have to buy a big ticket item you are also scared, unsure, and looking for help.
Let the customer feel comfortable and let them tell you what they want and only give a differing view if asked, if they feel they are in good hands with you then you won half the battle, but if you leave dealership and work for someone lese they may have a complete differnt way of running their house.
A lot of dealers don't want you the sales consultant or the client in control they want managment to be your watch dog they don't trust you or the customer ever, i say run from that dealer you don't want to buy a car there or work there, a hostile enviorment is not what you want.

Who is wrong here? The dealership or the customer?

The dealership is wrong and the woman was misinformed.
Did the dealership actually state why they wouldn't take the car?
Sounds to me like the woman had a little bit of "customer is always right" attitude as well.

BMW doesn't do "customer is always right"... that's for WalMart.

Keep in mind I'm sure BMW salesmen are trained to smell money and smell a phoney waste of time from a mile away.
Funny thing is people just keep coming back for more...

pretty stupid... for BMW... exclusive for what... kickin the customer in the bud...

I find it so funny that so many consider BMW so special...

They're (from the 3-Series to the M8) pretty common in my neighborhood/city, and have pretty much zero degree of exclusivity, even my E54/4.8is is not that uncommon a sight, and my E46/M3 is anything but rare.

I'm more surprised when I see a fully loaded Saturn Aura than I am at the sight of another BMW... LOL!

I would buy a Jaguar myself and enjoy the best ownership experience around... I've been there and done it with BMW before:(

I agree with the very very very first comment that there is some exaggeration here. I have experienced BMW dealers to be a bit on the snobish side but I can not see anyone going to this extent for nothing. I'm in the business and I know how customers can get on this subject. The funny part is she mentioned her vehicle was leased through Chase which 90% of the dealers out there use. So she should have dropped the car where she bought her new car. I'm sure that had something to do with this whole thing coming up. And my last point is the BMW corporate rep I'm sure explained things a little fdifferently than she put them but the bottem line is correct, they can not tell the dealer what to do. Oh well crap happens...

Most of the BMW dealers I've dealt with always think that they are doing the customer a favor by just greeting them. Unquestionably some dealers are better than others, but not many.