9th Jul 2001, 12:57

So "the cars sell themselves" do they? Well, they need to, because the dealers do the complete opposite.

I walked into a BMW dealership earlier this year enquiring about a new 330 Ci, and wanting a test drive. I have the company cash waiting, and needed to place an order for something fairly quickly. I have never felt so patronised and unimportant. They weren't sure when I could have a test drive and weren't bothered that I was keen to do a deal. My overwhelming impression was that, if this is how they treat people before they buy a BMW, what are they like afterwards?

Chalk up a deal for Jaguar!

24th Jan 2002, 17:01

I don't understand the need to purchase a used car from a dealer. Dealers seem to be more interested in financing rather than the product they are selling. Why should the main dealers cars be any better than an independent, or any other ex fleet sales company? I have found we are being charged around 2.5k extra to be sneered at (if you're lucky) by stuck up sales people.

There are many excellent private mechanics specialising in BMW and every other current model.

We need to put more pressure on dealers to provide the level of service we expect.

Why is a visit to a showroom great until the sales guy looks you up and down and decides you are not worthy of the product he has for sale?

13th Jul 2002, 15:33

I agree completely - the 328i Sport Coupe is a fantastic car - I've had mine a good while now, and would not swap it for anything, but another 328i Sport, or perhaps an M3, or a 330Ci Sport. You can park a 328i Sport Coupe anywhere, next to anything else, and it just oozes class and money - the Vauxhalls and other mass market cars of the world look just pathetic next to one. It is the benchmark by which I judge other cars. The attitude of the dealerships is pretty hit and miss - if you go to the right dealership, they are fine. In my experience, they tend to look down their nose at you if you want to buy one of their cheaper models - the 316's and 318's - it's not exactly fair, and I put a lot of it down to the fact that the salespeople tend to drive the top of the line BMW's as a perk of the job - they then view the cheaper models as inferior, and the people who drive them inferior to them - despite the fact that they actually couldn't afford to buy the car they're lucky enough to be driving. BMW could address this by having their sales people drive 316's, or dare I say it, some sort of pants car like a Peugeot.

Dealer attitude isn't a problem with a 328i Sport - most of the sales people have respect for those cars and their owners, as it's a car they would aspire to own themselves. Just human nature.

30th Dec 2003, 05:42

I have owned a 1996 E36 328i saloon for just over 6 months now and am very impressed with it. It has full leather, air con, electric everything and best of all 33k on the clock. It looks and drives like new!

The car I owned before was a 1991 E30 320ise coupe which I was also very happy with and mainly the reason I wanted another 6 cylinder BMW. My wife wasn't sure about spending £6,800 on a 7 year old car, but after driving it for a while said that she wouldn't want any other make from now on!!!

Motorway driving is a relaxed experience, even at speed and the engine has more than enough grunt to pass easily. In fact I just stick to the outside lane full stop! (the BMW lane!)

Twisty country roads are fun as the car is surefooted, but can become tailhappy if provoked,although this is still not a shock as plenty of feedback is transmitted to the driver.

All in all, a very happy owner.

5th Oct 2008, 04:49

Loving the badge snobbery here, also the BMW lane! Whats that all about then?

328 is a nice car but performance-wise no quicker than the 1998 Vauxhall Vectra GSi I am currently driving. (So does that mean I can join the BMW lane?)

And when it comes to parts and servicing, I think I will keep the trusty rusty old Vauxhall for now!

28th Nov 2008, 10:44

Okay, if you say your Vectra is so great, lets put it on a track with the 328i, the BMW will WASTE it. And with the BMW, you get a lot more extras than with the Vauxhall. Come on, you can't even put BMW and Vauxhall in the same class.

If you just drive a 328i once, you'll understand what I'm saying.