E90 M3 delivered - doesn't have options stated by dealer

[-BEASTMW-]

Just took delivery of a 2011.5 E90 M3 this evening, shipped from an out-of-state dealer. Haven't had much time to play with it, but it's in good shape and I'm terribly excited to get to know it. It felt awesome just driving around the block!

However, I noticed that it does not have Comfort Access (no ridges on the door handles, battery door on key, or start when key in pocket, +confirmed by VIN), and from the VIN it looks like no alarm either. Both of these are included in the Convenience Package, which the dealer stated prominently in ads on multiple sites, even listing out those specific features as items included in the package (I grabbed cached screenshots of a few of them as evidence).

This is a pretty big bummer to me - I had looked for the perfect M3 for a year, and although I'm not so spoiled as to think my life is over because I have to use a key like 99.5% of the population, I intend to keep this car for 5-10+ years and the main reason I went from an S2000 to a 4-door M3 is to plan ahead for kids. My wife's C350 has the Merc version of Comfort Access and after using it and thinking about life with kids, that was a key criteria in my discriminating search. Not to mention the lack of alarm, which not only sucks, but will raise my insurance premiums if I don't spend my own money to install one. On top of that, when I do eventually sell (who knows, that could be sooner than I think due to many possible events), not having these features will decrease value, especially as keyless locks/ignition become more commonplace.

I requested a resolution and suggested that they pay for my local dealer to retrofit Comfort Access and the alarm. While the alarm appears to be a $200 kit and it's pre-wired, Comfort Access looks like an expensive pain to add (4 door handles, wiring, coding, 2 keys, ignition stuff...). I guess I'd be fine with some cash, but how does that work?

Suggestions/thoughts? Has anyone been in this kind of situation, and how did it get resolved?

[roastbeef]

i haven't used them yet, but mike benvo has a good reputation on this forum. i didn't see a comfort access retrofit on his site, but that doesn't mean he can't help you. http://www.bpmsport.com/

this retrofit is probably one of the more expensive retrofits. only the front doors are included in comfort access though. i would imagine you would need two new keys, and that in and of itself is going to be expensive.

i'd be pretty pissed if a car didn't come with a package they advertised it had. it doesn't matter how insignificant the package may seem- it had a major role in your decision to buy the car. i'd be polite and cordial, but firm. if it was a bmw dealer, you'll have a lot more leverage in negotiating.

[BPMSport]

Retrofitting comfort access is quite the job. My suggestion would be to put a number on it that you're comfortable with living without that functionality... And if they don't agree, pass on the car. Personally I wouldn't want one without it, but I am a feature whore.. If it doesn't bother you too much, then don't worry about it. For me it would be a deal-breaker.

[GMWNashville]

I agree with Mike. CA is a deal breaker for me..

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by Mike Benvo

And if they don't agree, pass on the car.

he bought a car from an out of state dealer that advertised the car had comfort access. car showed up without comfort access.

[BPMSport]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

he bought a car from an out of state dealer that advertised the car had comfort access. car showed up without comfort access.

I understand that. So the car was misrepresented and he should pass on it, meaning unwind the deal. That is unless he comes up with a dollar amount they agree to pay to compensate him for the lack of functionality he was expecting.

[-BEASTMW-]

Thanks. I do really love the particular car I got, so I don't want to unwind the deal. I can come up with a dollar amount for sure. It's just a bummer and the price I would have offered would've been lower if I had known about this.

It is a BMW dealer so I feel like I do have pretty decent leverage, although they aren't local so they are not dealing with a repeat customer. However, with social media today that doesn't matter so much.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by Mike Benvo

I understand that. So the car was misrepresented and he should pass on it, meaning unwind the deal. That is unless he comes up with a dollar amount they agree to pay to compensate him for the lack of functionality he was expecting.

I'm with you on this, Mike. They misrepresented the car. It may have been an honest mistake, and I would give them the benefit of the doubt and try to resolve it amicably. If CA is a must-have, then pass on the car. I'm sure they'll be able to sell it to someone else (not really your problem though).

[anerbe]

CA is a nice feature, but with two kids, no sensor in the rear door doesn't make things that much more convenient.

You have to touch the front handle first before opening up the rear. Or you reach in your pocket to unlock all 4 in the first place.

Miss my S4 that had sensors on all doors.

Again, it's a nice feature, but it's more for just drivers/front passenger.

[kb9uwu]

you bought a Civic M3

[BzsBimmer]

I thought you knew it didn't have CA. When you provided the VIN on your other thread, it didn't show to have CA.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by anerbe

Miss my S4 that had sensors on all doors.

Same. I wonder if it could be retrofitted somehow?

[-BEASTMW-]

Talked with the salesman. He was very apologetic and took responsibility on behalf of the dealer. The car was originally delivered in Germany to a military guy (US spec however) and shipped to the US two years after purchase when the owner moved back, so apparently they couldn't look up the build info the way they normally can.

They offered to take back the car or come to a monetary settlement. I asked them to give me an estimate on how much $ to retrofit a factory alarm system (is it true you can buy a kit for this? How hard is that to DIY install?) and then we'll negotiate a value of Comfort Access and tack that on. That part will be interesting, as it's mostly subjective at this point. Was this offered as a standalone option when new, and if so, how much was it?

Interesting side note: it had the airbag replaced last month for the recall. I thought a fix was not ready yet?

Originally Posted by BzsBimmer

I thought you knew it didn't have CA. When you provided the VIN on your other thread, it didn't show to have CA.

Had no idea, and didn't really look for it specifically because the option codes can be fairly cryptic, so I took their word for it. Since I knew it had most of the other Convenience Pkg items, I didn't really think to cross reference every individual option to confirm that. Guess this is one pitfall of buying sight unseen.

[kscarrol]

Originally Posted by -BEASTMW-

Interesting side note: it had the airbag replaced last month for the recall. I thought a fix was not ready yet?

Doesn't surprise me that dealers are getting airbags to move inventory before customers get theirs...

[BimmerRookie]

I think you should ask for quite a bit for a monetary settlement regarding CA. Some people will say that it's not absolute necessary and that it's a luxury you can live without, but let's be real here.....in this day and age, key-less entry should be a must..

As for the alarm system, I wouldn't be too worried about that, unless you really feel like you need an alarm.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by kscarrol

Doesn't surprise me that dealers are getting airbags to move inventory before customers get theirs...

don't get me started on this

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BimmerRookie

I think you should ask for quite a bit for a monetary settlement regarding CA. Some people will say that it's not absolute necessary and that it's a luxury you can live without, but let's be real here.....in this day and age, key-less entry should be a must..

As for the alarm system, I wouldn't be too worried about that, unless you really feel like you need an alarm.

that's not the point. The point is it comes down to deceptive advertising. This is a potential violation of federal FTC and likely similar state advertising laws.

IMO, OP should raise a stink, put a number as suggested on the value of CA and get them to reimburse him on it. Likely the dealer will oblige on a reasonable amount and likely will get him a settlement paper to sign to relinquish further litigation.

If dealer doesn't oblige, he should file a formal complaint with the state attorney general. He should also lawyer up for a civil suit as well. Usually, by threatening both criminal and civil action, that'll get both sides to resolve the issue in an reasonable manner.


OP, don't get greedy. Do some research to see what a comparable car would be valued at without CA, use KBB or truecar as a source...

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by kb9uwu

you bought a Civic M3

bruh, we're not sure whether ZCP was in play here...remember no ZCP = civic

[-BEASTMW-]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

OP, don't get greedy. Do some research to see what a comparable car would be valued at without CA, use KBB or truecar as a source...

Definitely not trying to be greedy. I know I could play hardball and get potentially a lot out of them - their offer to take it back would mean eating the ~$1k to ship it back plus another $1k I paid to have it shipped here, plus having to process and resell the car again. And retrofitting the stuff would prob cost a similar amount. But I don't believe in exploiting the situation - they've been good to me throughout the process and everything else has gone smoothly. I'm not going to take advantage of an honest mistake to make an outsized "profit" from it.

I don't think KBB/Truecar is a good way to value it, as it doesn't represent what those options are worth to *me* as the buyer. Kind of like DCT/manual would probably be valued roughly the same, but a DCT would be a complete non-starter for me personally, much like a black exterior. As another example, if ZCP was shown on these sites as an option (which it is not), it would probably be valued at maybe a few hundred bucks. But we know it could command probably a bit more, especially for the right buyer.

[-BEASTMW-]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

bruh, we're not sure whether ZCP was in play here...remember no ZCP = civic

It is ZCP for the record Slicktop, manual seats (no Premium Pkg), but has some good options (nav, PDC, Individual Audio). It's kind of loaded except for the heavy stuff, which I like.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by -BEASTMW-

Definitely not trying to be greedy. I know I could play hardball and get potentially a lot out of them - their offer to take it back would mean eating the ~$1k to ship it back plus another $1k I paid to have it shipped here, plus having to process and resell the car again. And retrofitting the stuff would prob cost a similar amount. But I don't believe in exploiting the situation - they've been good to me throughout the process and everything else has gone smoothly. I'm not going to take advantage of an honest mistake to make an outsized "profit" from it.

I don't think KBB/Truecar is a good way to value it, as it doesn't represent what those options are worth to *me* as the buyer. Kind of like DCT/manual would probably be valued roughly the same, but a DCT would be a complete non-starter for me personally, much like a black exterior. As another example, if ZCP was shown on these sites as an option (which it is not), it would probably be valued at maybe a few hundred bucks. But we know it could command probably a bit more, especially for the right buyer.

yeah, but you have to see, it's not about what it's worth to you. It's about how much it'll cost to get you what you want to make you whole, which is a comparable car. How much it's worth to you is "greed" as it is not concrete and allows a wide range of discretion in assigning value.

It's probably worth $1k to me, but who knows, it's worth $10k to someone else? Generally, the best way is to say, look here's a comparable car with the feature, and it costs $1.5k more, therefore, the difference in value of what they misrepresented is $1.5k.

If I were the dealer and you started talking about "value to you", I would just take it back, b/c that's the cheapest, cleanest, least time consuming way of resolving the issue. Might have to pay you for the cost of shipping it to you.

BTW, if this does to into litigation, the judge and defense will probably test to see if you're a "reasonable consumer". And based on your activities on this thread, they can judge that you have some fault for not doing your due diligence and therefore claw back some of your monetary claims. You've even admitted that you've ran the VIN, posted it on this forum and realized you didn't run down the list and ask questions. That shows some sophistication in terms of ability to do diligence. Oh btw, the fact that posted on this forum and if you decide to remove you prior posts and they found out it's b/c of this discussion, then that's obstruction....so...tread lightly at this point if you think this will go into litigation.

[UPSROD]

Most dealers have a disclaimer concerning their ads...most are made up by an independent source. The idiot that does all of the Auto Nation dealers lists ALL of the 2013 e92 M3's as Lime Rocks...no mater what color or options!

https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invent...ting=150958205