While shopping for our purchase of a 2016 F57, I contacted the four (4) closest Mini dealerships to our area (Ohio) 1) Airport Mini 2) Classic Mini 3) Mini of Pittsburgh 4) Mag Mini of Dublin . I asked each contact to provide me with their best quote on my final MiniUSA build. I also asked them to provide a "trade in value" for our current 2009 R56. The difference between dealerships and more specifically the salesmanship is fairly dramatic. I met someone with only 2 weeks experience representing Mini at the Cleveland Auto Show. I had one dealership insult me with a very low trade-in value for our current Mini that was more than $2000 less than the other dealerships had offered.....even though I purchased my Mini there new in 2009 and went there for maintenance . One MA was very prompt in getting back with you but was fairly "strong/forward" in questioning your commitment, finances, etc.... and wanted $1000 deposit compared to $500 from other dealers.

There were points that I considered before making my final selection on what dealership I wanted to order our 3rd Mini from.. In the end, it was NOT because my MA was the best that I encountered. My MA happens to a very nice 26 y.o. person but is relatively slow in getting back with you. In fact, it was 2 days before he responded to my e-mail request for a quote..... When he finally did respond.. he said "I'm sorry....I forgot to get back with you". This MA seems to be a nice person and could go from a 3 Star to a 5 Star salesman if he only had more enthusiasm AND would get back with you promptly. While sitting at his desk writing up my order....he was getting a call on his cell phone and stated "Man....this lady calls me all the time about her car"....and seemed annoyed. The fact is....when someone spends $34,400 on a car, they want attention and service. Being an "older buyer".....I prefer someone more mature in life experiences or at least someone who is attentive to detail and customer service.

Unfortunately...I don't think many MA's get paid a lot of money for what they do. BIG MISTAKE on the part of good dealerships....BECAUSE PEOPLE are EVERYTHING to the success of a business...AND a BRAND (MINI) You can have the greatest brand in the world (MINI for Example).... BUT if you have a lousy first experience with an MA or dealership......YOU...and ME.... and all of our friends won't be going there either... GOOGLE REVIEWS and other Social Media do mean a lot

Love to hear others experiences with their MA....both good and bad.

Thanks for reading and sharing...

 

It's a different world now, customers are more expendable, employees move around more and sales people are not car centric like they used to be. My MA is close to my age, mostly knows his product and did a decent job. Dealership support was pretty responsive and I didn't have any big complaints. Compared to our VW purchase Mini was far superior. In my case we only have one other dealer within a reasonable distance and frankly I'd rather pay more than drive 1+ hours over a 10 minute drive.

 

Congrats on getting your order placed! I can't wait for the new Convertibles to arrive, the new F5x cars are fantastic.

So, as a MA - my daily routine involves dealing with a lot of requests, some realistic, but many can be unrealistic. (Providing an accurate trade value, sight unseen, is bordering on unrealistic, FYI.) And while I do try my best to handle everything, sometimes things do fall through the cracks despite my best efforts - at any given moment I could be busy with a delivery, or a test drive, or something else, and I miss a chance to get back to someone before closing time.

Given that he's probably new to the brand, I wouldn't be afraid to share your concerns with him, but also compliment him on what he's done well for you so far.

All that being said, I do greatly prefer when customers are up front and honest with me instead of playing 'the game' - bottom line is, I'm here to help you love the MINI brand as much as I do.

 

Being "up front" is a 2 way street. Every dealership is trying to maximize profit even if they're a little dishonest along the way and most buyers are trying to get the very best deal. The resulting adversarial relationship does not reward the buyer for being "up front".

 

Believe what you want - but I'm not here to steal your trade or make you pay full list. And I can't let you steal our car either.

It's all about reaching a mutually beneficial agreement.

Fighting the stereotype that all car salesmen are scumbags is one of the challenges I face every day. I'm not here to be a scumbag, I'm here to make the transaction as easy, pain free, and as fun as possible. If you choose to make it difficult, well, that's on you.

 

Can I ask which dealership you went with?

I worked with Classic a couple times on the service side, and they have been great. However, I get that doesn't necessarily translate to the sales side. Just curious. If you would prefer to PM, or not say at all, I totally get that too.

OH, we did have a decent guy from Classic last year when we went to test drive the F56S. Unfortunately he is gone I think, and we ended up finding a killer deal on a used 2015 at a non-Mini dealer.

 

Greetings!!! Sure!!, No issues with letting you and all know that I ended up purchasing from Airport Mini. The main issue I had with Classic is that they are the single dealer (out of 4) that offered me the least amount for my "potential" trade-in of our 2009 Mini. They offered $2000 - $2500 less than any of the other dealers that I spoke with. To add insult to injury, they added that if I did not take the stock Caribbean Aqua car they had at the port, I would have to deduct another $500 off the trade in value of my car considering the time devaluation of waiting for a custom ordered 2016 F57. While I fully understand depreciation, I did not like being penalized for ordering a custom Mini. There were several safety related items I wanted such as LED headlights & back up camera/sensors that I wanted that were not on the car coming in. Interesting no one discusses the "time depreciation" of a 2016 vehicle not arriving until April/May. The car model is nearly 1/2 year old which depreciates according to KBB, etc.. That is why many "new" 2015 Minis sitting on dealership lots are now being sold for $2500-$3000 off MSRP. (Note:Airport did try to sell me a "new" 2015 with the above discounts)

In regard to "Classic Service", I would rate them a 5 Star out of 5 Star. I have always been more than pleased with the service end of Classic Mini and would still go back today. I recently went to Classic for a routine oil change and the mechanic discovered an oil leak around the vacuum pump seal which was leaking onto the oxygen sensors. This is a common problem (Gen 2 R56 non-S) in which the oil leak can ruin the sensors. While they could have simply replaced the entire vacuum pump costing over $200, the mechanic replaced the seal and added some additional sealant costing only $80. I have also had their mechanic come out and speak with me personally about his efforts in troubleshooting a TPMS sensor issue I was having. He ended up cleaning some contacts in the fender well and only charged me the diagnostic fee. The problem was resolved and never returned.

My buying experience in 2009 from Classic was 5 Star.. Classic Mini (IMHO) is being adversely affected by the new competitor on the block which is Airport Mini. Airport Mini was at the Cleveland Auto show....passing out $500 coupons on top of any Mini discounts such as the $500 loyalty discount etc.. I was informed that Airport Mini sold approximately 40 cars last month while Classic sold less than 10. Note: I have no clue as to whether those values are accurate or valid. (Reference - MA at Airport). When I scheduled an oil change with Classic, every day was open for appointments. Mini is a unique brand which can only support so many dealers within a given radius. It is fortunate that Classic Mini is attached to their BMW dealership where they share buildings, parking lots, etc.. While on a tour of Airport Mini's service area, I was informed that several of the mechanics are from Classic. Again, not sure of the validity of those comments.

In regard to Airport Mini service.....based on my tour of their service area, I was very impressed with their operation and modern facilities. I was told that none of the mechanics have to have their own tools. All equipment is supplied by Mini and the dealership. Apparently they have won regional awards in least amount of "call backs" etc... Time will tell if they live up to what I experienced at Classic..

Congrats!!! btw on the purchase and deal of your 2015 from a non Mini dealer.

 

You appear to have all the qualities of salesman that I would enjoy dealing with. As an FYI, I approach everyone I deal with in a positive manner. For example, everyone starts with a A+ / 5 Star rating. It is what that person says, does, or does not do that detracts points from their starting perfect score of whether or not I want to deal with them.

 

Good (honest) Customer Service is everything. The really good dealerships know that.

 

I've bought and sold and traded enough cars in my lifetime (I've owned 8 different cars in the last 5 years) to know what customers want when they're purchasing a car - and getting jerked around is not something they want.

It's not rocket science.

The internet has only made it harder for old-school salesmen - it's made it easier for people like me. Honesty and transparency go a long way in today's marketplace.

 

In any business, profession or trade there's a good chance that half the people graduated in the bottom half of their class.

 

That crazy, I've never heard of penalizing someone's trade in that way for "time deprecation". They are buying a car from you for crying out loud. Guess I have never ordered a brand new car to be built, maybe that's a more common thing than I know about. still seems like bad business to me.

I would agree they have been adversely affected by Airport coming alone. Honestly I'm not sure the market in Cleveland is big enough to support 2 dealerships. Guess we will find out in short order. I have heard great things about Airport, but haven't made it over there yet to say hi. Live and work to close to Classic I guess.

Thanks, we were pumped to find one with only 1k miles on it for way less than sticker. Had a bunch of stuff we would have never bought at retail had we ordered new (JCW body kit, H/K system, etc), but its been a great car so far.

Thanks for the reply, I'm always interested in seeing what other's experiences are, and you obviously did a ton of homework!

 

Nice thread and enjoyed reading it.

First the trade in is a tough one and basing your dealer choice on only that is tough. Some dealers (high volume etc etc) may want your trade to clean up and sell themselves. They may give you a bit more than that dealer who has to just take it to auction because they don't have the means to sell it. Based case here is sell it yourself.

From a purchase stand point I totally agree with your comments. Unfortunately every sales person has to start somewhere and sell their first car sometime. Unfortunately I do not want that to be me. I also hate dealing with the typical "sales guy". I have found that reaching out directly for the GM or SM seems to work. If you are serious about buying a car and not just some jerk calling every dealer in town to get the lowest price, they will usually take care of you. I have found this to work, oh yeah plus using True Car to get at least a starting point for price.

 

Perhaps someday I will be able to actually order a custom MINI, but not for awhile, but I did want to chime in here and say that the best sales experience I have ever had was buying my MINI (which was used) from a Toyota dealer who also sells used vehicles. It was an internet sell. First one I ever did. There was no real haggling too much. I was upfront, he made some moves and I made some. Ended up driving of the lot with actual appreciable value since he sold me a pristine 2011 for 2500 less than the book value. In all honesty, I kinda felt like they didn't know a lot about MINI's in general. As a matter of fact, he straight up told me he had never sold one, driven one, and that I knew way more about them than he did. Was at the dealership maybe an hour total from test drive to signed papers.

The one thing that internet sales is doing though is that in order to stay competitive, the dealerships are truly listing the vehicles with no real negotiating room left at all. I am quite good at negotiating and was appalled at the complete lack of wanting a sale I ran into in my search for a new-to-me used vehicle. There is a large dealership right close to where I work and they had a nice 2013 Ford Focus ST that I was interested in. I called and talk to a sales guy and after a little chit chat started negotiating. For starters, they were asking about 4000 more than book value. The guy was a total moron and a huge jerk and tried to lecture me about how in VA used car sales are hot and this makes the prices reasonable, blah blah blah. Thanks but no thanks. Funny story...that car is still sitting in the same exact spot on their lot quite a few months later!

That being said, I am glad it worked out the way it did though. I freaking love my MINI and am so glad I bought it.