Is It The Vehicle Or The Ownership Experience That Motivates You To Purchase A Brand?

I'm a car guy, so it's about the car.

I'm a car guy but I'd have to say it's both. Generally the car is more important but the ownership experience has to clear basic hurdles.

Here in South Florida, my local BMW dealership's service facilities are like an bus station in a small town, while the Mercedes and Lexus dealerships both have beautiful check-in and waiting areas. I'd want to see a pest control certificate before I spent any time with BMW.

MercBasher,
Maybe the Lexus and Mercedes dealership are making too much money off of you and they can afford to build such nice dealerships and the BMW dealership gives aggressive pricing and doesn't rip you off in service. Ever thought about that? Clearly not if you are a narrow minded buyer and never knew how to run a business. Think "overhead".

If you were "suckered" into buying a Saturn, then you got what you deserved! There were a plethora of better vehicles at better prices on the market. Saturn had only two good qualities:

1. It's dead and gone.
2. One of the hottest girls in high school drove one.

It's the vehicle first, but the ownership experience must follow.

BMW = Break My Wallet ....lol

product first, followed by product, followed by...product. a capuccino and a leather chair in the service dept has precisely ZERO influence on my automotive choices. and a too shiny dealership says they're making too much money on me.

BMW rips you off every time you buy a car. They are in the process of improving their dealerships around the country to stay up with LEXUS...........

Knowitall1985,
Clearly Lexus already ripped you off and that's how they can afford nice dealerships...
The Lexus dealers by me in Chicago are far from nice. I love my BMW dealership. Its clean and organized, not overdone. But thats german for you.

It's the car. My experience - with many brands behind me - is that the Ownership experience is universally bad. Example - I attempted to buy a new Infiniti and needed a 30 minute test drive with my wife to finalize the deal. Dealer says "no way", we have to be accompanied by a sales person, Guess what - "no sale". When the ownership of that dealership changes, we will go back - but, not until then. Parts price gouging, price gouging on new products, misrepresentation of product, price gouging on new car add-ons, and recommending and overcharging for unnecessary service all indicate to me that most dealers are looking for victims and have no interest in customer service or doing a good job for the customer.

I would go with both. The product obviously comes first and the ownership is a close second. If I loved a vehicle and the ownership experience was terrible then I wouldn't ever deal with the brand again and the same goes for the recipricated.

Would you like your mac and cheese served on the gold platter or the platinum platter monsieur?

Silly question, of course it's the vehicle.

Stupid question. Its all about the car.
T

The ownership experience will make or break any decision. Obviously if love the car but hate the dealership or the warranty process your decision to buy again is affected.

Of course it's the car, the ownership experience only helps to retain the customer afterwards.

It’s the economy, stupid.
It’s the jobs, stupid.
It’s the deficit, stupid.
It’s the corporations, stupid.
It’s the deficit, stupid.
It’s the car, stupid.

Motivation is only the first step.

Its all about the Dealership experience. That's why Lexuses are the best cars in the world. I'll take a Message and a Cappuccino over a run in the canyons any day.

The Lexus dealership experience makes them the "best cars in the world"? Get real.

I agree. I dont need a fancy presentation for my food either. If it tastes good, just put it on a plate and I will eat it. I dont feel like overpaying at a fancy restaurant just because of "ambiance" and 3 small pieces of food on my plate because its all about presentation.
If it tastes good and its a fair price, im in!

BOTH!

It's the car! I only go to a car dealership to buy a new one, or take the current one in for warranty issues.

Lexus built new dealerships when sales increased to their highest level in 2007. They didn't rip anybody off like BMW does with vinyl interiors with leather prices. They did it with volume.

Lexus is trash

BMW=OVERPRICED GERMAN TRASH