Santa Monica BMW
Customer Reviews of Santa Monica BMW
it all depends on the salesman. artour is fantastic.
byon 09/01/2013
artour came up to me when i was looking at cars, and he introduced himself and was informative with no pressure. i spent nearly a decade in NYC before moving back to LA, so i don't have time for BS. artour is originally from boston, and he gets the joke. he knows that being shady and cagey doesn't endear him or the product to a customer who is spending money for a high-end car. in my case, it was a base 320i, but artour understands that i might be the guy who decides to come in three or four years later for the M5. artour is no BS and won't waste your time. he went from being the newbie there (he used to sell mercedes) to being the top salesman in a few months. it's not hard to understand why. if everyone was like him, buying a car would be a lot more pleasant.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
Shameless lies
byon 05/13/2013
Lies! lies! lies! I was going to buy a new car from this sales guy "Achillas b". The guy tries to get friendly with you, creating small talk and keeps bragging about how transparent and straightforward he is. He didn't respond properly to my calls and emails. I left him a VM on his cell and didn't get a response. Then I called the dealership and asked to talk to him. He picked up the phone and as soon as I introduced myself he said "Oh sorry, I'm in a meeting, I'll call you later!!" It was a long story, but my point is when you walk into SMBMW, imagine you are going into a miserable used aftermarket car dealership! They have no values and integrity whatsoever. Such a shame for BMW to be represented by these guys. Of course the BMW USA is not much better than this dealership either. I'd recommend not going with the BMW brand at all, or at least not doing business with [non-permissible content removed].
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? No
Santa Monica BMW (Used)
byon 04/19/2011
I purchased a 2008 M roaster from the used department at Santa Monica BMW. The customer service at Santa Monica BMW was excellent. Mario from the used department returned all of my phone call and provided the necessary info required in a very timely fashion. I flew into LAX and he picked me up in his own personal vehicle. When i arrived at the dealership the vehicle was spotless with a full tank of gas. Mario had the service department install a wind deflector and arranged a company to come into the show room for three hours to apply a 3M clear bra. The quality of work from Gary in part on the install was perfect. Staff was friendly and easy to talk to. I highly recommend Mario and his crew at Santa Monica BMW (used).
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
A no service type of dealership.
byon 02/01/2009
Buying a BMW is supposed to be an experience. After my first and only trip to Santa Monica, I knew they were not the one for me. They are either understaffed in the sales department or no one is interested in selling cars. There were so many people looking at cars, and no one was helping anyone. After 15 minutes -- I can't believe we waited that long -- we were able to find someone. He was OK. The car sells itself. But I would never buy from this dealership.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
Avoid this place at ALL COSTS --- This place is SHADY!
byon 11/09/2008
I purchased an X5 "certified" pre-owned from these guys. Supposedly the do a zillion inspections to certify it. A year later my X5 ends up in a body shop for some side damage. While they are taking it apart on the rack they call me over to see what they have found. Turns out the pristine lease return was in a major front end accident and had frame damage. So what do they do? Blame it on me. Then the body shop. Only problem for them was 1) it was in a BMW certified shop and 2) I got a good auto attorney fast. It took a few months buy they bought it back full price from me. The real issue is that if you buy CPO you are trusting the dealer at their word and Santa Monica BMW has no integrity. I'm trying to buy a new BMW now and the dealers I'm talking to won't work with them at all to transfer inventory. You know its bad when your fellow dealers dont want to work with you either.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Don't even waste your time.
byon 05/29/2008
I unfortunately leased a car from Santa Monica BMW. At every step of the process, the salesman repeatedly lied to me and wasted my time. Some examples of what this person did were changing the start date on the lease papers so that I would end up paying for an extra half a month, lying about the price of tires I had to purchase for the car, and failing to disclose that BMWs run flat tires are not repairable and that by purchasing them I would be paying $250 every time I got a flat tire. These are only a few examples, but I would never allow any of my friends or family to ever go to this dealership again.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Save yourself some grief go somewhere else
byon 03/10/2008
This has got the be the worst BMW dealership in the Los Angeles area. Some of the slimmest salesmen around. The need to fire and rehire all sales people. If you insist on going here just keep in mind they will say anything to sell you a car.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
Awful experience at santa monica bmw
byon 03/03/2008
I have never written any review in my life, but am so outraged by how i was treated by Santa Monica BMW. I walked into the dealership fully planning on leasing a car from them, was undecided between the 328 and 335 models. I requested to test drive each, and let them know that i was in fact looking to buy something "today" if i found an acceptable deal. The salesman hardly said a word in either test drive, and gave one word answers to my questions. When we were done, i sat down at his desk and asked him to give me the payment numbers to see if we could make a deal. i started telling him the features and mileage i was looking for, and he interrupted to tell me I HAD TO LEAVE because they were going to be having an employee meeting!!!!! (This was the middle of the day on a Friday) I asked him if he was serious, and he said yes, he would call me with the information. i couldn't believe that they were not only letting me walk out, but kicking me out. nonetheless, i started again to tell him the features i was looking for so he could call me with the price. He refused to write anything down and escorted me out. i really had my heart set on the bmw, but drove around to other dealers while i waited for his call. It has now been 3 months, he never called. i drove by the new Lexus dealer in Santa Monica, stopped in to look, i was treated like a queen- extremely professional, answered every question quickly, and i am now driving a Lexus. I was so upset that i even called the SM BMW dealer afterward, and asked to speak to the manager about my experience. Again, i am still waiting for my call to be returned... i don't know how these people stay in business.
Rude and dishonest
byon 03/01/2008
I went to Santa Monica BMW looking for a 328i with Leatherette and the dealer was very rude. He said that I wouldn't be able to find that car (which I did at Nick Alexander Imports) and that there was "0 difference between the 335i and the 328i" and tried to steer me toward that. He was clearly dishonest and acted like I was an annoyance rather than a customer. I will never go back and will tell as many people as I can to not steer clear. There are much better dealerships that are still close by.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
I walked out and bought an Audi
byon 08/03/2007
I walked into the Santa Monica BMW showroom and told the sales rep I wanted a 5 series wagon with particular options. I had the consumer reports printout with pricing and told the salesman that all I cared about was the final price on the car. I explained that I was not trading in a car. In addition, although I would finance a little less than half the cost...I did not care whether my payments would be $500 or $1000 per month. The salesman and I test drove the car with the options I wanted. We returned to the office and I again told the salesman that all I wanted was the best price on the car. I again showed the consumer report price guide. The sales manager came in and began his routine about where did I want my monthly payment...after being showed consumer reports price guide. I quietly explained that I did not care about the amount of monthly payment and all I needed was the best price on this particular car. Repeated myself again and when he started the routine about best price...I stood up and left. Recieved a call 20 minutes later with an offer. Recieved another call the following morning with a slightly lower offer. I explained that I would not buy from Santa Monica BMW after the sales manager's performance. I went to Beverly Hills BMW several days later, found the car was no longer listed on the inventory. I checked the BBB and several onlines reviews (googled) and am not surprised at my negative experience. I bought an Audi A-6 wagon.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
1 Comments
My poor experience with Santa Monica BMW
byon 07/20/2007
When I wanted to buy a car, I naturally started at Santa Monica BMW. They were within walking distance from where I lived and worked - ultimate convenience. During the consideration process I stopped by several times to check out their inventory of used and new models. The attention I received was less than adequate. I was never treated like a serious buyer, and was often told to wait for long periods of time before meeting with a sales associate. Their prices were high and very little negotiation was possible. Lastly, they were unable to give me information on the European Delivery program, which I guess they don't participate in. I'm glad I didn't purchase from them, as I've heard horror stories from friends who used their service department. Save yourself a trip and avoid Santa Monica BMW.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
1 Comments