BMW of San Francisco

Reason for Visit: Service

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
This dealership would hung up the phone with the customer before the customer explained program for advise/appointment. The staffs in SF dealership would recommand you to go to other dealer because they didn't like to accept the job for warrantee maintenance.

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Reason for Visit: Service

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
This dealership would hung up the phone with the customer before the customer explained program for advise/appointment. The staffs in SF dealership would recommand you to go to other dealer because they didn't like to accept the job for warrantee maintenance.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: Yes

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
In late Feb 2007, I requested price quotes on a European Delivery 335i (E90) from several BMW dealers. Alex responded quickly with the price I had in mind. Other dealers played the "come in and we'll talk price" game. So I went with BMW of SF. My previous dealer in the east bay (from a 2004 purchase) responded several days too late, at a much higher price.

Alex was on top of the ED process, and I didn't have to go to the dealership until I had to sign the purchase order and lease paperwork.

Just some minor quibbles:
1. I asked for wheel locks to be installed (at my expense) during redelivery last July, but it wasn't done.
2. I was missing some documents (odometer statement, IIRC) that took a few days to get to me.
3. The AT and CH highway toll stickers were removed from the windshield by the dealer lot staff (partly my fault by specifying not to remove them).

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
We had to beg to get calls back and answers to our questions when purchasing our car. Buying a CPO car, we were treated like 2nd class citizens. And when we took the new car in to get the remaining service done that was not complete when we bought the car, it took 5 calls over 4 days to get our service rep to give us a call back. You shouldn't have to beg for service at any dealership. As long time BMW drivers and owners we would not recommend BMW SF.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
We had to beg to get calls back and answers to our questions when purchasing our car. Buying a CPO car, we were treated like 2nd class citizens. And when we took the new car in to get the remaining service done that was not complete when we bought the car, it took 5 calls over 4 days to get our service rep to give us a call back. You shouldn't have to beg for service at any dealership. As long time BMW drivers and owners we would not recommend BMW SF.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
UNETHICAL and INCOMPETENT! Please be careful if considering purchasing from this dealership!!!

I purchased a new 2006 325i 1 year ago and was heavily pushed to buy a Lojack Vehicle Recovery System (which I did). They failed to inform me at the time of purchase that my car comes with a vehicle recovery system which is part of the BMW Assist service. I found this out this year when renewing my assist service. Naturally, I was very upset when I found this out. I felt cheated and duped.

When I contacted Michael Greening, part owner and general manager, to discuss the issue, he informed me that he did not know the difference between the 2 systems. He then fielded my calls to Shannon McGuinness, the finance director. She handled my call by telling me about the superior qualities of Lojack. However, she still gave me misinformation about the BMW Assist. (I confirmed this by calling BMW Assist 3 times).

I requested a refund for the Lojack as they sold me a redundant product without disclosing the preexisting services. Of course they refused. As our calls progressed they became increasingly unprofessional and rude. Shannon, in particular, is easy to become defensive and curt.

In essence, there are 2 major issues at hand:

1. They lack knowledge and understanding about the products they sell. The fact that the manager admits to not knowing the differences between the 2 systems smacks of ineptitude. This also reflects poorly on the sales staff under his management.

2. They are unethical and moneygrubbing. If they had given me the proper information when touting the Lojack and explained why having one would be benenficial in ADDITION to the BMW Assist, I may have chosen to buy one anyway. Instead, by not explaining everything fully and clearly, they have shown that they are only interested in making a quick buck.

Ultimately they failed to understand that the crux of the issue is not whether Lojack is superior to BMW Assist or even the actual dollar amount of the Lojack itself. I requested a refund because the conditions under which I purchased the Lojack system were so unscrupulous. The actual dollar amount of the system is in reality inconsequential. What I wanted is for them to be accountable for their actions. They are incapable of seeing beyond a few hundred dollars.

I purchased the car and paid full in cash. I actually really enjoy my BMW as it makes for a pleasant commute. I was prepared to be a loyal long-term customer. Obviously, they do not care about developing lasting customer relationships. The whole experience has left a sour taste in my mouth.

If you decide to purchase a BMW anyway, look for another dealership. If you decide to purchase at BMW SF, be very very careful. Otherwise, I'd start looking at Mercedes.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: Yes

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
Kat in the parts department is great to work with. I have nothing but good things to say about her.

I purchased a 330ci for my wife from San Francisco BMW. We could not beat the price that Grace quoted us. We went to BMW of Marin and asked them to match or beat the price from SF BMW. The sales person told us that we should be looking at Hondas and not BMWs. Why is it because we are Asian? We went straight to SF BMW and drove home with a silver 330ci. I also complained to BMWNA about the terrible service I received at marin BMW and I priased the excellent service I received at SF BMW.

I have not had any issues with SF BMW to date. I even bring my 2003 M3 to them for maintainance.

My brother in law had several issues with SF BMW regarding both his 3 and 5 series. They took his 5 series for a joy ride and damaged his front fenderwell and scraped up his brand new Dinan exhaust. He has complained numerous times of grease marks all over his interior. He said SF BMW was looking into the matter, since they have receiver similar complaints from other customers.

I still continue to bring my car to SF BMW. They have not wronged me yet. I am thinking about trying Peter Pan. i will let you know how that turns out.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: Yes

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
Carol was the best. Total no-nonsense deal, great pricing without having to haggle and get all the typipcal smarmy dealership behavior. Totally smooth transaction. If I still lived in SF, I would have gone back to buy my 740 from her.

Not sure if she's still over there, but she rawks.



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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: Yes

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
I bought a 645 from Alex Hichiya, a salesman, and he bent over backwards to make sure I was getting the best price. He made the process so easy for me--he got me a better deal than the deal I had on a car I had ordered from a dealer in Berkeley, so good, in fact that they couldn't match it. He and the management were very thankful for my business and they treated me with respect. Apparently the dealership is run by new management, and it shows!

Alex spent a lot of time with my wife and me going over the car (3 + hours) and he stays in touch to make sure our car and we are in good care. We are about to trade in our S500 for a 750 as soon as the lease is up.


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Reason for Visit: Service

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
Like another review noted, the advisors are fine, but cars somehow get damaged there. I've had different cars get scratched, dinged and wheel damage - I'm sure some of it is due to the horrible parking sitution there and the people parking and detailing. At least they do a walk around sheet so you have recourse if you catch the damage when you pick the car up, but who wants to repaint the door (or leave the car there a week in their care) on your previously perfect car?

The actual work done on the cars has been okay so in spite of the damage issues I'll leave it as a 'yes'.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
I wanted to exchange the cassette player in dash for a single disc player, JD in parts found the single disc player in the computer for my 2001 325I and quoted $529 for part and $80 to $100 for labor. he said they had two in stock. I made an appoinment for 2 weeks later because they were very busy, I said no problem I can wait, when the time came I took the car in on 4/1604 8:30 am, at this time I spoke with webster who asked me to go to see my car which was parked outside, he took me to a different car, I told him that was not my car, he then when to get the correct information ,he did not seem to know what he was doing, we sat at his desk, schedule the work to be done and told me he will call me by noon that this would not take long because the part was in and it was an easy job, at 4:00pm after not hearing from BMW I decided to call to find out if the car was ready, left a mesage for Webster in his voice mail, 4:10pm webster calls me back to say that the work could no be done, that JD had quoted me the wrong price (eventhough he got it from the computer)new price is $960 for part and $170 for labor and the parts needed to be ordered. this whole experiance has left me with a bad taste and I would hesitate to have any other work done in my car, or recommend this dealer to anyone, they could had called me early in the morning to let me know of the problem, not at 4 pm. BMW knew of this appoinment 2 weeks in advance. when I went to pick up the car, my car keys were not the pick up desk, they did not know were my car was, send me to see Webster , he had the keys, they told me the car was being washed and was going to be ready in 5 minute to wait outside, after waiting about 20 minutes the car shows up. a whole day was spend and nothing was acomplished, other than make a customer very upset.

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Reason for Visit: Service

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
I brought my car in for service and to repair a dented speaker grill. The speaker grill got dented by this dealership the last time I brought it in for service.

Anyway, I pick up the car and the paper work stated that the speaker grill repair was completed. When I get in my car, the speaker grill was still dented. I called my SA and showed him that it was still dented and why was the paper work showing the job was completed. He could not explain why but he volunteered to fix it for me right there and then. He basically sticks a screwdriver between the door frame and the rubber gasket (it's the driver's side tweeter speaker grill) and starts pushing on the grill from inside to push out the dent. It helped a bit but obviously the outcome is not too good since the shape of the grill did not go back to it's original curve. Now rather than one big dent, it got pushed out but the surface is wavy.

As if this was not bad enough, the service advisor tells me that they did me a favor by not charging me since it's not a warranty item. I do understand that if I caused the damage, but they caused the damage in the last visit and it was even entered in the system as such.

I have owned BMWs since 1992 and have tried other dealers in the Bay Area (all of them in the Peninsula and SF). Unfortunately, my experience with other dealers is somewhat similar. The quality and customer service is just plain ridiculous.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
By far, this is the worst auto dealer I've ever dealt with. Compared to Lexus dealers, BMWSF is something worst out there - no credibility, you should never trust the sales, even with your deposit down.

Here is my recent experience:
We liked a 2004 BMW 545i (Stock# E45127) shown on BMWSF.com as part of its Internet sales specials.

So I called in and talked with the sales rep, Danny Andrade about the price and agreed on $51K plus sales tax and license fees. On 12/22/2004, I called Danny and told him we would be coming over to pick up the car on 12/23/2004; he asked me to put down the deposit and I gave him my credit card number and details to lock that car because he stressed that if someone else got the car before me, I won’t be able to get it. At 1:00PM On 12/23/2004 I left Danny a voice mail telling him I would make it to BMWSF to pick up the car that afternoon and never got his response. I tried many times to contact Danny via his work and cell phones and left voice mails telling him that I will be coming over before 4 in the afternoon.

As we know this is important to get a hold of a sales person before coming in, I was waiting for response from Danny. Then just after 4, I got his voice mail saying that he got a buyer willing to pay a higher price for that car and he had to pass the car to him – but he never informed me of this as he should have done so since I put down the deposit first on that car. I left him a voice mail telling him this is not fair and I will have to report this to BMWSF management team and BMW USA.

On 12/23/2004, I filed a complaint letter to BMWSF management letter via its web site and also cc’ed its Internet Sales Director, Marc Gusto and on 12/27/2004, I talked with the general sales manager and addressed the concern but got no clear indication of any actions taken towards the sales rep or any compensation to customers.

DO NOT SHOP THERE!!!


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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
It has been almost ten years since I bought a '93 740i from BMWSF but since I still have it and went through my file recently, I thought I'd take time to trash the dealer. DO NOT BUY A CAR FROM THEM!

Salesman Vlad, who no doubt has left to rip people off at another used car dealership, and sales mgr Mike Petrillo "helped" me buy this car cheap, becuase I threatened to buy one provately in Menlo the next day. Choice that July day was two used 740s, one with unattractive pinstriping but better tires and the one I bought. Vlad said he "wanted to sell me this one" for my bargain price of $31k (Blue Book at the time was about $37.5k and BMWSF had it on the lot for $42k). "Had I known then what I know now!" I asked if the car was ever hit or painted and got "No" back from both guys - not true at all! What was almost certainly true was that Vlad's commission on a painted car was higher - Car was definitely painted and not by a good shop either. When the paint started to blow out of roof gutters, I returned to complain and asked for Hans Geisler, who once referred to the car as the "repaint job." Hans was the one person at SF who seemed to want to provide customer satisfaction but he was taken off the case asap. No one else ever talked to me at the dealer and I took the car to Weatherford for maintenance from then on. Schmidt, the owner (at least thru 2001), must be an idiot for not realizing that the next move a used 740i buyer makes is a new BMW, as was the case with me. Naturally, I never gave SF a chance to sell me the 545i I have and if you're smart, you won't give these morons a chance either!

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
I have to admit that the salespeople at this dealership are excellent even though I didn't choose to buy my new car here. They're friendly, helpful and technically knowledgeable about their cars. (Don't you hate talking to a salesperson that knows less than you do about the car they're trying to sell?) It's unfortunate that they are so inflexible with their discounts because I would guess they're losing a fair amount of business to places like Peter Pan, Weatherford and Allison where the prices are generally much more competitive.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
Carol was very nice to me in the beginning, everything went smoothly as i completed the European Delivery transaction. I paid for the car IN FULL mind you 30 days before i was scheduled to pick it up. as september 2001 rolled around well you know what happened and everything was up in the air. BMW offered to ship directly without me going to Germany and so i accepted and canceled my trip. Everyone was emotional then and I didn't want to fly 1 week after 9/11. I thought this was a great gesture. well the following two months were a long wait to get my car things were backed up and I had to wait until december. My car arrived in So cal on the nov 27th and I called carol to find out when i should expect it at the dealership. she said it should be in by thursday or friday which was a week from that date. well I didn't recieve the car until the 17 of december. Carol kept ignoring my calls and refused to call me back. when she did say it would be in it wouldn't arrive and this would frustrate me even more. On the friday before i took delivery I went into the dealer to speak to someone personally since this is the only war to get anyones attention at SFBMW. I asked the guys at the front if my car had come in, they looked on their sheet and said "Yes" It just came in today. meanwhile Carol shows up and the guy I was talking to says to her I'm here inquiring about my car. She looks at me and practically yells at me that she's "busy with another customer and she'll call me when it comes in!!! very condescendingly.
My jaw was on the ground and I felt this big. _ The guy says to her that the car came in, he just checked, and then she goes "no it didn't I would know if it did."
I wanted to cancel my order right there. so if you buy from SF BMW don't buy from Carol Kobac

Also they're very unprofessional regarding answering their phones
next to impossible to get ahold of anyone other than the receptionist.



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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: No

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
It' s hard to write an objective review since I've had numerous negative dealings with the dealership. Starting from when I first tried to purchase a car. It took them almost 2 months to return my phone call by which time I placed the order through Carsdirect.com. This happened again when I asked to test drive a new vehicle. The service department is courteous but incompetant. It took them 7 visits to fix a bad power seat. The parts department is the worse. 20mins to get through on the phone. They sometimes never return messages. And once they gave me crap about not wanting to give me a parts catalog because they were almost out. Well whats the point?

I'm now a happy customer at Sonnen BMW in San Raphael.

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Reason for Visit: Sales

I recommend this dealer: Yes

My Review of BMW of San Francisco:
I got an excellent price when I purchased my car and all my requests were fulfilled (no decal in window or back of car, no drilling front bumper for plates). I havent had to bring in the car for service yet so I cant say about the service department. The parts department has been pretty helpful but the holding times on the phone to reach anyone at the center are insane. (10+ min when your question is going to take 20seconds)

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