Who is the best BMW Main Dealer in South/South East England?

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Thu May 10, 2012 7:22 am

Well I'm back into owning a BMW having briefly entertained a Volvo...and never will I stray again!

So I have a question please...who is the best BMW Main Dealer in South/South East England - Surrey/Hampshire/Wiltshire/Sussex/Kent, thank you?

It must be a BMW Main Dealer...and in particular for servicing and parts...

I appreciate similar questions have been asked before, but I'd like any more recent and up to date advise, thank you?

Back in January this year I used Wood in Hampshire (servicing at Hook in Hampshire), who on the whole were very good, kept me informed by telephone and despite a list of last minute work I asked for, they still turned the car around quickly and the loan vehicle was a BMW 1 Series...their only fault was not to have properly reset the on board computers' service intervals and perhaps not rotating the tyres (on my car back then, they were all the same size...not so with my recent new to me purchase of a X5).

Although I have to use a BMW Main Dealer for now, I'd be interested to hear of any good Indys in the same area too...for the future...

ianmaney · Post by **ianmaney** » Thu May 10, 2012 11:33 am

[quote=""doc4246""]Well I'm back into owning a BMW having briefly entertained a Volvo...and never will I stray again![/quote]

Haha, funny enough my wife said this after a 6 month excursion with a C30, she/we hated the sight of it, she's just about to pick up her 4th 1 series and has never been happier !

AW8 · Post by **AW8** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:15 pm

Hmm......

IMO main dealers may be likely to entrust routine servicing to staff of relatively low experience.

At least with a good indy you have more idea of the folk working on your car & you get to speak to the boss &/or the person who has worked on your car rather than merely speaking to a service adviser.

I have used 2 main dealers in south in past but mostly had no idea who was doing the work.

On one visit to a main dealer I happened to walk into the service area & witnessed a technician allow a whole underside tray on an E46 M3 to crash over 6 feet to the floor in a manner as if it was everyday routine.
A colleague then muttered to him to be careful as a customer ( i.e. me),was in the workshop.

For me if outiside of warranty and more than 5 years old it's simply a no brainer as to who I would want working on my car.

That's not to say all indy's are always perfect. I stopped using one prior trusted indy because one member of staff was rude beyond excuse.

I currently & happily deal with Rich & the team at Barkers Motor Works Haslemere Surrey. IMO no dealer/indy is 100% incapable of error, however, but my faith with Barkers is far greater than it is with local main dealers.

As with any dealer/indy I would always take issue or go elsewhere if treated badly & not resolved to my satisfaction.

stevee · Post by **stevee** » Thu May 10, 2012 9:22 pm

A good indy. This guy is good, imho: http://www.twgautomotive.co.uk , they're based in Camberley.

They quickly diagnosed and fixed some weird sensor issues on my M3. I'll take my X5 there once the free services finish .. ok , another 4 years!

S

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 3:37 pm

Erm...I'm really looking for details of a good BMW Main Dealer for servicing and parts...many thanks...

I have used Wood in Hampshire before and would like to know if anyone is prepared to suggest any other BMW Main Dealers in the South/South East of England - Surrey, Sussex, Berkshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire...maybe Kent, or around that part of the M25, M23, A3, M3 or M4 corridors.

Cheers!

dirtymonkey29 · Post by **dirtymonkey29** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:01 pm

Yellow pages will be your best bet then.
Personally I would use a good recommended Indy over a main dealer for servicing. Same parts, still get a stamp in the book and probably a more thorough service from an experienced technician, all for half the price and more. For parts I use either eurocarparts or gsf and buy good quality oem spec parts (lemforder, meyle, hengst, ect)
Are you purely looking for a main dealer for warranty purposes?
How old is your e70 and what's mileage/spec? A post with info in the new members area would be good.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:03 pm

[quote=""dirtmonkey29""]How old is your e70 and what's mileage/spec? A post with info in the new members area would be good.[/quote]

In other words.....

and..

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:33 pm

[quote=""dirtymonkey29""]Yellow pages will be your best bet then.
Personally I would use a good recommended Indy over a main dealer for servicing. Same parts, still get a stamp in the book and probably a more thorough service from an experienced technician, all for half the price and more. For parts I use either eurocarparts or gsf and buy good quality oem spec parts (lemforder, meyle, hengst, ect)
Are you purely looking for a main dealer for warranty purposes?
How old is your e70 and what's mileage/spec? A post with info in the new members area would be good.[/quote]

As you can see from my signature, my X5 is a 2007/MY07 vehicle on a 57 plate...the build plate in the engine bay is June 2007...mileage is currently 17,523 miles...

I've no more information to provide about my vehicle so have nothing to add in the new members area?

Does it matter why I wish to use a main dealer? I do have a warranty on the vehicle, but that is not the reason why...its simply my choice as it is your choice to use an indy.

And I don't think the Yellow Pages is my best bet and nor do you - personally I appreciate the advice that I've asked for rather than the hyperbole...?

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:45 pm

[quote=""X5Sport""][quote=""dirtmonkey29""]How old is your e70 and what's mileage/spec? A post with info in the new members area would be good.[/quote]

In other words.....

and..

[/quote]

That's about the level of it...shame really, would be a good site and certainly there's some other helpful posts and information elsewhere on here...still that's the nature of it all...

dirtymonkey29 · Post by **dirtymonkey29** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:56 pm

I use tapatalk app on my iPad or iPhone and can't see signatures.
It is a common courtesy to introduce yourself in general whether that's in the real world or within a forum. It's always nice to welcome a new member, find out more about that person and there interests etc and also a pic or two too show off your new pride and joy.
Your reasoning behind your choice of main dealer only for parts/servicing may have given some insight and brought about further suggestions or help from members that choose the same route as you have for similar/same reasons. The more info you can provide the more useful information you will recieve.
You've given a lot of areas which in my opinion you would be better getting the names of BMW dealers and addresses that are a suitable distance from you for yellow pages and speak to them direct, tell them what you want, what you expect and take it from there. You haven't had much response from the initial post other than Indy recommendations which is why I say this, not because I want to piss on your chips.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Fri May 11, 2012 7:05 pm

A lot of members don't use main Dealers because of their excessive labour charges. That will limit the likely responses to your original question, and again there are not many members using Dealers in your search area - so looking in Yellow Pages, or using the 'Dealer Search' option on the BMW GB website would perhaps give you names that you could then ask about? There is always he option of looking for reviews for a particular dealer on line.

Similarly those of us with new, or nearly new cars is small and many of those few have service packs in which case how good the Dealer is may be irrelevant. The dealer I use is my local one and the next nearest is neither convenient nor that close. It's not the one I originally used but I rarely go in that direction now whereas I used to go past them every day.

The number of members with E70s is vastly outnumbered by those with E53s and as before, many of the active E53 owners here no longer use Dealers. I stopped once mine was out of factory warranty, and I will in all likelihood do the same once my E71 hits three years old in late 2013.

I'm sorry if you feel that you haven't received the service you hoped for here, but the majority of Members will be delighted to help everyone in my experience...

No answers probably means no one has any recommendations for you.

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 7:16 pm

[quote=""dirtymonkey29""]I use tapatalk app on my iPad or iPhone and can't see signatures.
It is a common courtesy to introduce yourself in general whether that's in the real world or within a forum. It's always nice to welcome a new member, find out more about that person and there interests etc and also a pic or two too show off your new pride and joy.
Your reasoning behind your choice of main dealer only for parts/servicing may have given some insight and brought about further suggestions or help from members that choose the same route as you have for similar/same reasons. The more info you can provide the more useful information you will recieve.
You've given a lot of areas which in my opinion you would be better getting the names of BMW dealers and addresses that are a suitable distance from you for yellow pages and speak to them direct, tell them what you want, what you expect and take it from there. You haven't had much response from the initial post other than Indy recommendations which is why I say this, not because I want to piss on your chips.[/quote]

Of course you didn't, and I felt I had made my introduction in the opening line of my original post - even appreciated the 1st reply from ianmaney...

As you appear keen to state your opinion on common courtesy, I would have thought this would extend to welcoming the newbie...that would have been nice...but obviously not...

And the same information in my signature is also available in my profile...

The intended purpose of my post was to ask a specific and not a broad question, what I thought was a straightforward question and to a forum that might respond quicker and more efficiently than me ringing around many BMW main dealers who would reasonably be biased in their abilities, after all its the customers' advise I am seeking - not the suppliers.

The area may be large - but I have at least stated an area...

And I have no immediate inclination to explain more about myself or divulge my interests or even "show off" my "new pride and joy" it's neither new in age nor a pride and joy to me.

In my opinion I choose not to supply photos or even complete spec'd options of my vehicle - as I don't know if there may be someone out there lurking in the background who might just be considering it for their shopping list...

Your opinions and response to my question are noted...thank you for replying - unfortunately it's not the answer I was looking for.

Ashley · Post by **Ashley** » Fri May 11, 2012 7:17 pm

I dislike Woods in Bournemouth, but living & working there I tend to use them for ease (still in warranty). When I lived in Godalming I never got on with Vines in Guildford either, but did find Barons in Hindhead very good (not sure if they are still there as they were on the old A3). This is quite some time ago though so people would have changed.

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 7:36 pm

[quote=""X5Sport""]A lot of members don't use main Dealers because of their excessive labour charges. That will limit the likely responses to your original question, and again there are not many members using Dealers in your search area - so looking in Yellow Pages, or using the 'Dealer Search' option on the BMW GB website would perhaps give you names that you could then ask about? There is always he option of looking for reviews for a particular dealer on line.

Similarly those of us with new, or nearly new cars is small and many of those few have service packs in which case how good the Dealer is may be irrelevant. The dealer I use is my local one and the next nearest is neither convenient nor that close. It's not the one I originally used but I rarely go in that direction now whereas I used to go past them every day.

The number of members with E70s is vastly outnumbered by those with E53s and as before, many of the active E53 owners here no longer use Dealers. I stopped once mine was out of factory warranty, and I will in all likelihood do the same once my E71 hits three years old in late 2013.

I'm sorry if you feel that you haven't received the service you hoped for here, but the majority of Members will be delighted to help everyone in my experience...

No answers probably means no one has any recommendations for you.[/quote]

Thank you for the statistics, unfortunately it does not answer my question - and I guess I shall eventually see what the limit of likely responses may arise from my question and whether they do or do not answer my question.

It is a question that has similarly been asked in the past by other users of this forum and other like minded BMW forums...and I'm sure those of us that do use BMW main dealers in the area I stated already know their names...

I have indicated that I have used Wood in Hampshire before and mentioned my level of customer satisfaction with them...the BMW main dealers' reviews on their respective BMW websites are indeed a guage, but just that - so I was hoping for something a little more relevant and recent by posting my question on this forum and specifically in this section of the forum as it relates to the E70 series of X5 rather than any other model or series of model...

doc4246 · Post by **doc4246** » Fri May 11, 2012 7:44 pm

[quote=""Ashley""]I dislike Woods in Bournemouth, but living & working there I tend to use them for ease (still in warranty). When I lived in Godalming I never got on with Vines in Guildford either, but did find Barons in Hindhead very good (not sure if they are still there as they were on the old A3). This is quite some time ago though so people would have changed.[/quote]

Many thanks Ashley, I appreciate the information and it does resemble opinions of others on other BMW forums that I've looked at. As you mention people change and therefore so does the level of effort and quality of workmanship - I have experienced similar, so hence asking the question that has been asked by others before, particularly as regards any recent updates.

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