My Euro Delivery Disaster

[ApexM3]

Wow. Hope it all works out for you.

[Curt2000]

Originally Posted by truths2k05

This will be my second euro delivery, so ill put it like this. The fact that you are in Europe far outweighs the color of the car and a different color of thread on the stitching. Put the finest paint and leather interior on a Prius and see if that enhances your driving experience. It's an M3.

The op has solutions, get a refund, get another car, get over it.

First world problems, by the way 80k ain't squat.

To everyone reading, let this be a reminder to ask for a paint sample, when asking for an individual color.

Having just returned from my own individual color ED experience I will weigh in. The fact that I took delivery of my car exactly the way I ordered it at Welt, drove it on the autobahn, took it on the ring, and dropped it off personally at the port to be delivered to me stateside are all very grand memories. The sentimental value of the car will be very high as I drive it around town and stare at it sitting in my garage. I don't care if BMW gave me the i8 concept to drive around Europe, its just not the same, when my car arrived it would just be another car, none of my experiences in the i8 would be attached to it. The OP paid a premium for his individual order, a statement of his own imagination and taste. He also went through substantial planning to pick the car up in Europe with the intention of cultivating the sentimental memories and attachment to 'HIS' machine but all of that has been poisoned now. I cant imagine the disappointment he must be feeling. The ONLY way to make it right is for BMW to pay for his mirror return trip to pick up the car the way he ordered it. If the individual interior is not available then accept the refund for the option and move on or cancel the order.

If he had asked for a paint sample when he was ordering it he would have received an atlantis blue swath since Steve Thomas has already stated that they triple checked the order before they sent it off. BMW made the mistake at the factory so he did everything he could do...

[b-thumper]

Whoah, this turned into a heated debate!

Everyone values Individual options differently. For some people, they would rather have a discount than those options. And those people can buy from BMW's normal menu of colors and options. Liking the car is a baseline assumption here. But the excitement for me was to get the dream car, in a rare color, drive it in Germany, and on the Nurburgring. For people that don't care if their car is the wrong color, then they really need not read this entire thread. The issue at hand is really only relevant if you are someone that gets excited by the Individual program.

As to why it took 4 years: Individual color paint has to be approved before the order is placed. Individual interiors can also take an extended period of time to sort out. At the start of this process, I was interested in an E90 in Audi's Nogaro Blue. I have 2 Audi's in that color now, one painted via Audi's Exclusive program. The original dealer I started with (who shall remain nameless) caused me to miss the order deadline for the E90. I was waiting for approval on Nogaro Blue, but made it clear that I did not want to miss the order deadline for an Individual E90. One day I call the salesman and he informs me that he forgot to tell me, but that not only was Nogaro Blue denied, but that the order window has closed for Individual paint on an E90. Call me crazy, but I didn't want a stock color E90 and so I went and bought an A4 Avant in Nogaro blue for daily driving duties. As I was contemplating an E92, I stumbled across Steve Thomas BMW and contacted them about an E92 with some Individual options. There was no pressure, but we got the ball rolling on what was initially to be an M3 in Nogaro Blue, with matching blue alcantara, and blue stitching on the seats. Of the exterior color list I had requested, Nogaro blue was surprisingly APPROVED, in addition to several other colors (including Atlantis with the correct paint code). The blue alcantara interior was not approved, but they were willing to do blue leather in any way I wanted. For a VERY VERY LARGE sum of money. I decided that I wanted the two-tone blue/black leather interior, but that I had to get a leather sample before I could approve the option. It turns out BMW DE was waiting for us to order the car that way (with the $$$$$ interior), before they would provide a leather sample. And not the other way around. To be frank, I'm not paying for an option that is 50% of the base price of the car without seeing a leather sample. So I bailed on the custom color leather and decided to stick with deviated stitching. That was also frustrating because they could not provide a sample of the thread being used and I had concerns about it matching the exterior and custom color leather.

Since beginning the order process, I went from one to two nogaro blue cars and the prospect of owning 3 was starting to sound less exciting, especially since the matching interior leather was not going to happen. So of the final 3 colors I had approval to order (Nogaro, Mora, and Atlantis), I settled on Atlantis. We got the order placed and voila: 4-years passed.

To those that say you should get a sample in advance, I have seen Atlantis blue in person, I don't require a sample. But it is a fair request and I would like to see that option in the future.

[BMRLVR]

No offence to the OP, but am I the only one that noticed that Atlantis is not called Atlantis Blue, it is called Atlantis Metallic. Perhaps the OP should realize that part of the confusion may have been due to this!

I do hope the OP gets properly compensated since I can imagine the dissapointment of being delivered a car that wasn't what he ordered! You would think that between his dealer, BMW NA, and BMW Individual that they should have confirmed the details of the order before the car went into production.

[SteiniDJ]

Wow, I had no idea that the individual process was this tedious and expensive. 50% of the base price to have the leather in a custom color sound a bit off the charts to me, but understandable that they'd offer it as an option to those capable and willing to pay for it.

But, am I right in saying that you can have a BMW in any color you want, as long as BMW greenlights it?

Hope these things clear up and that you'll get a chance to drive around Germany in your new M3. I'm heading there myself next year in a Z4; can hardly wait for it!

[Majin Buu]

Originally Posted by SteiniDJ

Wow, I had no idea that the individual process was this tedious and expensive. 50% of the base price to have the leather in a custom color sound a bit off the charts to me, but understandable that they'd offer it as an option to those capable and willing to pay for it.

But, am I right in saying that you can have a BMW in any color you want, as long as BMW greenlights it?

Hope these things clear up and that you'll get a chance to drive around Germany in your new M3. I'm heading there myself next year in a Z4; can hardly wait for it!

yeah, no kidding. I could have bought myself a nice new 370z or Mustang GT for the cost of that little roll of custom-colored leather. I wonder if that added cost of those individual cars actually translates into any resale value. I highly doubt it unless you find a used car buyer who really really really wants that specific custom color. What a huge financial penalty to pay just so you can be unique. First world problems indeed.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by b-thumper

At the start of this process, I was interested in an E90 in Audi's Nogaro Blue. The blue alcantara interior was not approved, but they were willing to do blue leather in any way I wanted. For a VERY VERY LARGE sum of money. To be frank, I'm not paying for an option that is 50% of the base price of the car without seeing a leather sample. So I bailed on the custom color leather and decided to stick with deviated stitching. That was also frustrating because they could not provide a sample of the thread being used and I had concerns about it matching the exterior and custom color leather.

To those that say you should get a sample in advance, I have seen Atlantis blue in person, I don't require a sample. But it is a fair request and I would like to see that option in the future.

Personally I think it would have been something "wrong" to put an Audi color on a BMW. Don't get me wrong, I looked up Nogaro Blue and I like it (though I like Atlantis more since it has a higher "flair" factor), but something rubs me the wrong way about a competitor's color. I'm surprised it was approved.

OP I think you dodged a bullet by avoiding a blue interior. If you do indeed mean completely blue leather as opposed to blue accents on various parts, I think that would have looked hideous, not to mention doing actual matching blues on the interior and exterior would have made the car a one-note blueberry IMHO. I think the two-tone black and blue interior on the E39 M5 looks bad enough personally.

As for providing samples in advance, if they're going to charge you ~$35K for an interior (outrageous and not worth it no matter what the color IMHO), I agree they should have provided a sample. However, I also understand why they don't with the interior or the thread, since generating that sample involves a lot of labor (just like painting a tow hook cover), and if they did that for free as part of the ordering process, then the cost of those options would be even higher to cover people asking for one or even multiple samples of colors they're considering.

Originally Posted by BMRLVR

No offence to the OP, but am I the only one that noticed that Atlantis is not called Atlantis Blue, it is called Atlantis Metallic. Perhaps the OP should realize that part of the confusion may have been due to this!

Getting the "friendly name" of the color wrong would be irrelevant. If the numeric paint CODE is correct (which it sounds like it was on the paperwork), then there's no excuse for BMW messing up.

Originally Posted by SteiniDJ

But, am I right in saying that you can have a BMW in any color you want, as long as BMW greenlights it?

Yes. But completely custom colors (as opposed to colors that aren't standard for a given model but are still part of BMW's company-wide catalog) are very expensive. I didn't realize an interior was THAT expensive, though.

[chris s]

Interesting...i never knew you could order an Individual BMW using a color from another company's palette. I thought it HAD to be at least a BMW color.

Closest thing to Nogaro Blue would have been Santorini, however. Any reason why you didn't just go with that?

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by jphughan

Getting the "friendly name" of the color wrong would be irrelevant. If the numeric paint CODE is correct (which it sounds like it did on the paperwork), then there's no excuse for BMW messing up.

I am the owner of an Individual car and have ordered another in the past. One thing that I need to stress to you is that much of the individual process involves emails from sales managers to BMW NA and from BMW NA to Individual. Many of these emails are informal and if the purchaser is not actively involved in the process mistakes are possible.

If you look at all of the Individual cars that are built, this is the first mistake of this magnatude that I am aware of. I do agree though, the mistake should not have been made and the OP should have this situation made right!

[b-thumper]

Originally Posted by BMRLVR

No offence to the OP, but am I the only one that noticed that Atlantis is not called Atlantis Blue, it is called Atlantis Metallic. Perhaps the OP should realize that part of the confusion may have been due to this!

I do hope the OP gets properly compensated since I can imagine the dissapointment of being delivered a car that wasn't what he ordered! You would think that between his dealer, BMW NA, and BMW Individual that they should have confirmed the details of the order before the car went into production.

I totally see what you are saying there. Somewhere along the way, it was colloquially referred to as Atlantis Blue. In my defense, here was the final request emailed to the dealer (in December) for my order:

Hi <name redacted>,


2013 M3 Coupe (for Euro Delivery, followed by Performance Center Delivery)

Options (and code):
NDSW Black Novillo Extended Leather
ZCP Competition Package
ZCW Cold Weather Package
ZPP Premium Package
655 Satellite radio with 1 year subscription
6NR BMW Apps
752 Enhanced Premium Sound
5AC Automatic High Beams

Individual Options:
XE8 Piano Black Trim
Deviated Stitching (Color to be based on exterior color choice)

Individual Colors:
299 Technoviolett Metallic Violet OR
359 Mora Metallic Purple OR
399 Atlantis Metallic Green OR
Audi's Nogaro Blue that has been previously approved


Technoviolet has been denied once already, but it can't hurt to ask again since it looks like it was 2012 Model Year last time we made the last request. Nogaro blue is still on the table as it would be ever-so-rare, but I need to be SURE. Taking the bicolor interior out of the equation makes me feel better already.




Thanks,
John

I'm not going to post every communique I've had with the dealer and BMW, but the color was correctly submitted, up until the factory in Germany.

Originally Posted by jphughan

OP I think you dodged a bullet by avoiding a blue interior. If you do indeed mean completely blue leather as opposed to blue accents on various parts, I think that would have looked hideous, not to mention doing actual matching blues on the interior and exterior would have made the car a one-note blueberry IMHO. I think the two-tone black and blue interior on the E39 M5 looks bad enough personally.

Yeah, I was planning an interior very similar to the E39. It would be 2-tone. Not all blue. I actually photoshopped what I wanted it to look like (keep in mind the p-chop is from an E90).





On it being expensive, I totally agree that it's crazy, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a 911 or Cayman S with these kinda options through Porsche. Not to mention that I'd be driving a Porsche (which I don't want). I had specifically considered a 997.2 GT3, but it would have been way more expensive than the Individual M3 exercise. Plus I like the M3. It's got great utility for road and track.

Originally Posted by chris s

Interesting...i never knew you could order an Individual BMW using a color from another company's palette. I thought it HAD to be at least a BMW color.

Closest thing to Nogaro Blue would have been Santorini, however. Any reason why you didn't just go with that?

You can order anything as long as it's approved. There are a number of green M3s from Porsche's GT3 RS palette.

On Santorini, it's nice, but it's a standard M3 color in other parts of the world. I'd rather have Nogaro Blue if I'm going down that road.

[BMRLVR]

Originally Posted by b-thumper

I totally see what you are saying there. Somewhere along the way, it was colloquially referred to as Atlantis Blue. In my defense, here was the final request emailed to the dealer (in December) for my order:



I'm not going to post every communique I've had with the dealer and BMW, but the color was correctly submitted, up until the factory in Germany.



Yeah, I was planning an interior very similar to the E39. It would be 2-tone. Not all blue. I actually photoshopped what I wanted it to look like (keep in mind the p-chop is from an E90).





On it being expensive, I totally agree that it's crazy, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a 911 or Cayman S with these kinda options through Porsche. Not to mention that I'd be driving a Porsche (which I don't want). I had specifically considered a 997.2 GT3, but it would have been way more expensive than the Individual M3 exercise. Plus I like the M3. It's got great utility for road and track.



You can order anything as long as it's approved. There are a number of green M3s from Porsche's GT3 RS palette.

On Santorini, it's nice, but it's a standard M3 color in other parts of the world. I'd rather have Nogaro Blue if I'm going down that road.

Agree with you on all points above! Please keep us posted on what BMW does for you to rectify the mistake!

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by b-thumper

Yeah, I was planning an interior very similar to the E39. It would be 2-tone. Not all blue. I actually photoshopped what I wanted it to look like (keep in mind the p-chop is from an E90).

Wow, actually I think that looks pretty good! The only things I'd have changed would have been using the headrest setup from the first pic (blue stitching but not completely blue like the second pic) and keeping the upper rear part of the seats and the steering wheel black rather than making them blue. However, that blue is nothing like Atlantis Blue, which I don't think would have worked on the interior. If you'd used the blue here on the outside as well I could see it working well since that's sort of a deep royal blue -- or this blue with a completely different but complementary exterior color. Somehow your design works a lot better than the E39 M5 in my mind, I think because of the areas you chose for coloration, whereas the E39 had part of the center and part of the bolsters. I don't like the standard two-tone M3 options either for that reason; I think they should have gone all the way up the center instead exactly as you did. But nicely done, and nice Photoshop work!

[chris s]

[truths2k05]

Originally Posted by Vanmarsenille

A fine example of your assertion is quoted immediately below:



First world problems? So, what are we supposed to be discussing on these BMW forums? Starvation in Africa? And by the way, $80k is a lot of money to a lot of people. Maybe it isn't to you, but saying so makes you sound like a pr1ck, especially in light of the subject of this thread.

Thanks for calling me an asshole. I'll say it again 80k or 800k ain't squat. That's bill money, what I have a problem with is the Op not doing his due diligence to make sure that his paint that he is paying 4700 invoice via a paint sample is what he wanted before going to Europe. He had according to his own words been on this mission for four years, even missed the end of e90 production that ended 2011.5, because he couldn't make up his mind. It was his job to make sure that he put in the correct order, and verify that the order was correct before it went into production. 4 years to come up with Atlantis blue and deviating stitching, big whoop.

Get a refund, get another car and stop bragging about spending 80k cash. I guarantee most everybody that has bought an m3 is at the 70-75kmsrp range anyways and they are not making a big stink about it.

Next time, I wouldn't use the word DISASTER unless the car got totaled or you were cut off on the autobahn at 120+ and had to be airlifted out.

It's fixable, and whining on the forum won't get you anywhere with BMW. Call BMW of North America and give them hell if you feel so strongly about it.

I'll say it again first world problems, having your health and loved ones secure is all that matters in the end. Not my car being two shades lighter ruining my awesome European getaway. Your paradigms and the way you look at things ruined your trip, not anything else.

Maybe you guys would be a little more appreciative of what you take for granted, if you thought about those kids in Africa and what they would give to just see Europe let alone own a 80 thousand dollar car.

[truths2k05]

Originally Posted by Skullbussa

Translation: It took you 4 years to decide what most people are able to decide in a weekend, if not a few hours. Any time, money, energy spent on putting together your perfect BMW is time you willingly spent; BMW did not require this.

I am sorry BMW made a mistake on your car but it was simply a mistake. The fact that you decided to fly to Germany and plan a trip around buying a car does not make their mistake worse or "raise the stakes". It was an accident. Your extremely particular demands about color does not make you a more important BMW customer than the plebeians with their "slushbox" X1.

The BMW manufacturing process is not going to be derailed because you cannot get blue thread in your interior. I think it is preposterous that you would wait until the last minute to submit your order to BMW and when problems come about that order, you demand the restaurant to stay open past closing time to get your steak cooked right. That is not the way the world works, my friend. You snooze, you lose.

Finally, I question the wisdom behind spending $80,000 on a 3-series BMW which is at the end of its model life-cycle; it seems to me you could have spent the next....(oh, year?) inspecting the catalog for the F80 and bought a new M3 with new technology and performance.

In summary: Yes, BMW screwed up. They have offered to make it right the only way they can. You are being difficult and playing a victim here. It's a car, not a wedding dress. When customers act the way you do they typically ruin a good thing for everybody - I can only imagine this is just one more strike against the Individual program and probably only leads BMW managers to wonder why they even bother indulging the eccentricities of obsessive-compulsives.

That about sums it up. +1

[Vanmarsenille]

Originally Posted by truths2k05

Thanks for calling me an asshole. I'll say it again 80k or 800k ain't squat. That's bill money, what I have a problem with is the Op not doing his due diligence to make sure that his paint that he is paying 4700 invoice via a paint sample is what he wanted before going to Europe. He had according to his own words been on this mission for four years, even missed the end of e90 production that ended 2011.5, because he couldn't make up his mind. It was his job to make sure that he put in the correct order, and verify that the order was correct before it went into production. 4 years to come up with Atlantis blue and deviating stitching, big whoop.

Get a refund, get another car and stop bragging about spending 80k cash. I guarantee most everybody that has bought an m3 is at the 70-75kmsrp range anyways and they are not making a big stink about it.

Next time, I wouldn't use the word DISASTER unless the car got totaled or you were cut off on the autobahn at 120+ and had to be airlifted out.

It's fixable, and whining on the forum won't get you anywhere with BMW. Call BMW of North America and give them hell if you feel so strongly about it.

I'll say it again first world problems, having your health and loved ones secure is all that matters in the end. Not my car being two shades lighter ruining my awesome European getaway. Your paradigms and the way you look at things ruined your trip, not anything else.

Maybe you guys would be a little more appreciative of what you take for granted, if you thought about those kids in Africa and what they would give to just see Europe let alone own a 80 thousand dollar car.

I think we'll agree to disagree. You're all over the board; one minute it's $800k is "bill money", and the next, you're taking the moral high ground about starving children in Africa. This is a BMW discussion forum, not UNICEF.

[truths2k05]

Originally Posted by Vanmarsenille

I think we'll agree to disagree. You're all over the board; one minute it's $800k is "bill money", and the next, you're taking the moral high ground about starving children in Africa. This is a BMW discussion forum, not UNICEF.

You brought up Africa and starving children not me. 80k ain't jack shit, student loan bill money. When you own your own business and have a high overhead you will understand that 80k is not life changing money, it will pay some bills,student loans and not much else. Maybe you would donate some money to UNICEF as it is eating at your conscience to not do so.

[mkPOTO]

wow that is crazy, so you dont like the color at all?

[FLOSS M]

I would have taken the color/car at a big discount and called it a day. Just my $.02

[truths2k05]

Originally Posted by Skullbussa

The point he is making is that we now live in a world where people can accidentally get black stitching instead of blue stitching in the heated leather seats of their cars that cost more than what the average person makes in their lifetime...and can voice their pain and suffering about such "disasters" online to sympathetic ears.

If the car had been scratched-up and BMW refused to repaint then yeah, maybe I'd understand. But this is so-far removed from what is even remotely a "disaster" that it really just smacks of narcissism and the worst kind of excess most of the rest of the world hates us for.

+1

[Vanmarsenille]

Originally Posted by truths2k05

You brought up Africa and starving children not me. 80k ain't jack shit, student loan bill money. When you own your own business and have a high overhead you will understand that 80k is not life changing money, it will pay some bills,student loans and not much else. Maybe you would donate some money to UNICEF as it is eating at your conscience to not do so.

Well, not to belabor the point, but you did refer to the OP situation as "first world problems", which invites the comparison. As for your other assumptions, well, I'll just leave those alone.

[yoelev]

Originally Posted by Team Plutonium

Last time I checked you were the hater in this thread.

hey do you even have an m3 anymore?