How is Irvine BMW for service?

[W Cole]

Originally Posted by MaxBoost335

I bought my M from them as well. Took it in to get the 1200 mile service only to find 25 miles was added to the car when I came back to pick her up. I was pissed and complained to the service manager, he apologized and filled up my car with a full tank of gas. I guess it was better than nothing.

Thats funny. I had quite the opposite experience, Irvine BMW took my car in for some warranty complaints and could not replicate ANY of the issues. They put a total of 3 miles on my car, this included parking my car, etc.

My service advisor was half-retarded as well. They were terrible.

[infantrytroop22]

Okay, so I'm about 400 miles away from needing my 1200 mile service. Since it is such a simple service my only real concern is the dealer damaging my car unrelated to the service (i.e., scratching or denting it). Which dealer would I have the best luck with between Irvine, Crevier and Sterling? I live about 5 miles from Irvine. Wherever I go I am going to wait for the car and tell the SA that the service tech's are not to drive the car off the lot and I will be inspecting the car like crazy after they finish the service.

[e1000]

I bought my M3 new from Irvine BMW and they wouldn't give me a loaner and i called in a solid 2 weeks to setup my service. I went to Crevier instead.

[infantrytroop22]

Originally Posted by e1000

I bought my M3 new from Irvine BMW and they wouldn't give me a loaner and i called in a solid 2 weeks to setup my service. I went to Crevier instead.

Wow, that's really bad service. Luckily I won't need a loaner because I will be waiting. I may be crazy but I want to be there to make sure those fools don't drive my car off the lot.

[THE TECH]

I just setup my 1200 service at Steve Thomas. It's worth the peace of mind.

[infantrytroop22]

Well, I still have a little way to go but I think I am going to try Ernie at Sterling.

[infantrytroop22]

Originally Posted by infantrytroop22

Well, I still have a little way to go but I think I am going to try Ernie at Sterling.

Nevermind. He isn't there anymore...

I talked to Richard at Irvine and he said the service could take up to 3 hours because they have to drain the diff fluid 3 times. Is that true? Do they fill up and drain the diff fluid 2 extra times? That seems really weird. Maybe he meant it takes 3 bottles but that's not how he phrased it and I don't understand why that would take long.

[Leonardo629]

This may come as a surprise, but despite the many bad reviews we've seen when it comes to BMW of Monrovia sales, their service dept is actually very nice.

I've had my last 4 BMWs serviced by them over the past 5 years, not a single issue thus far. They always finish the the break-in service within couple hours, and the techs don't drive your car around to add mileage unless absolutely required.

You don't have to argue with the tech about the break-in service for M vehicles either.

Ask for either Tim or Matt...

[W Cole]

Originally Posted by infantrytroop22

Nevermind. He isn't there anymore...

I talked to Richard at Irvine and he said the service could take up to 3 hours because they have to drain the diff fluid 3 times. Is that true? Do they fill up and drain the diff fluid 2 extra times? That seems really weird. Maybe he meant it takes 3 bottles but that's not how he phrased it and I don't understand why that would take long.

Unless there are two Richards at Irvine BMW this is the service advisor that helped me last time. The guy is a brain donor.

[infantrytroop22]

Originally Posted by W Cole

Unless there are two Richards at Irvine BMW this is the service advisor that helped me last time. The guy is a brain donor.

Ha, great...He was one of the few SAs at any dealership that was actually recommended.

Does anyone else have any recommendations for a SA at Sterling, Irvine or Crevier?

[M3PO]

Originally Posted by W Cole

Unless there are two Richards at Irvine BMW this is the service advisor that helped me last time. The guy is a brain donor.

Was it Richard Toumayan (middle aged Armenian (I think) guy)? He's been very helpful to me.

[chili cheese]

I've had my 335 and my M3 in for service there. I would say Irvine BMW is fair to good, but not great. Maybe 4 out of 5 stars in my experience.

I should also say that they put a little flag/note in my last service printout indicating that I had aftermarket exhaust and wheels.

[infantrytroop22]

My concern is them scratching my car or causing a problem unrelated to service since I am only having them do the 1200 mile service. For those of you that have been there, have you had any issues with them causing any damage to your car, etc?

[M3PO]

They've never damaged my car. I've taken it to them at least 6 times I'd say. It's there right now actually...

[Malek@MRF]

Irvine BMW is a joke. I recommend you steer clear away from it unless you want your car back in worse shape.

[infantrytroop22]

Originally Posted by Malekreza11

Irvine BMW is a joke. I recommend you steer clear away from it unless you want your car back in worse shape.

Where should I go? Can they really mess up a 1,200 mile service?

[Malek@MRF]

Originally Posted by infantrytroop22

Where should I go? Can they really mess up a 1,200 mile service?

Yes they can. In my case, they forgot to do the transmission drain and refill which is a required procedure for the 1200 mile service.

Go to Crevier BMW if you are in the orange county area.

[infantrytroop22]

Originally Posted by Malekreza11

Yes they can. In my case, they forgot to do the transmission drain and refill which is a required procedure for the 1200 mile service.

Go to Crevier BMW if you are in the orange county area.

Oh. Well good thing I have DCT so I don't need the transmission fluid changed. Of course, they would probably end up changing mine.

[W Cole]

I forgot to add. My front brakes were screeching really badly so they removed my front wheels in order to measure/inspect the pads. They must have torqued the wheels down improperly because when I left the dealer my steering wheel was shaking from side to side. I removed the wheels, retorqued properly and the problem went away.

Putting a wheel on is pretty basic stuff. If they can't do that properly then there is reason for concern IMO.

They said the front brake screech is due to weather conditions and that they couldn't replicate the problem (or any others..). Well they only drove the car 3 miles total so I'm not surprised they couldn't replicate. And my brakes screeched during summer just as they do now during winter so I'm not sure why they blamed in on weather. Its so bad that whenever I drive someone in my car for the first time they are always confused where the loud metal on metal screeching noise is coming from. They think it must be from an 18 wheeler or similar vehicle.

[W Cole]

Originally Posted by M3PO

Was it Richard Toumayan (middle aged Armenian (I think) guy)? He's been very helpful to me.

Yes. I had a couple of issues:

- He literally refused to tell me what firmware version my car has. I asked him several times and he kept "forgetting" to find out. My DCT transmission has the 2nd gear lag issue and the previous owner had taken it in for the DCT stalling issue. He knew nothing about these problems and also didn't seem to understand how BMW service campaigns/recalls work. He offered no help in resolving the issues. These are serious safety concerns and should not be taken lightly. They put a total of 3 miles on my car while they had it and said they couldn't replicate the problems.

- He called me at 5:00pm on the wednesday before thanksgiving to tell me my car was ready and I had to be there before 7:00pm when the service center closed or I would be charged an extra day or more for the loaner car. I told him I could return it first thing the next morning as I was in San Diego at the time and it would be very difficult to make it back in time during rush hour traffic. He said they would be closed and I wouldn't be able to return the car the next day.

[M3PO]

Originally Posted by W Cole

Yes. I had a couple of issues:

- He literally refused to tell me what firmware version my car has. I asked him several times and he kept "forgetting" to find out. My DCT transmission has the 2nd gear lag issue and the previous owner had taken it in for the DCT stalling issue. He knew nothing about these problems and also didn't seem to understand how BMW service campaigns/recalls work. He offered no help in resolving the issues. These are serious safety concerns and should not be taken lightly. They put a total of 3 miles on my car while they had it and said they couldn't replicate the problems.

- He called me at 5:00pm on the wednesday before thanksgiving to tell me my car was ready and I had to be there before 7:00pm when the service center closed or I would be charged an extra day or more for the loaner car. I told him I could return it first thing the next morning as I was in San Diego at the time and it would be very difficult to make it back in time during rush hour traffic. He said they would be closed and I wouldn't be able to return the car the next day.

On the loaner thing, he called me on Friday at about 530 and told me I could come get it or wait so I opted to wait until Saturday morning. I picked it up at noon on Saturday.

[THE TECH]

I did my service on Friday at Steve Thomas and it went off without a hitch. Great service and very quick. Definitely worth the drive.