Another first timer question about buying an MCS: I'm considering buying a unit on the ground at Classic in Cleveland versus ordering what I want in Detroit which is closer to home. Any drawbacks to this such as how the Detroit dealership will treat me at service time if I didn't buy the car there? Any suggestions on snagging a one-way ride to Ohio in the next week or so? How about buying and shipping without even going to Ohio? Any input/advice is appreciated.

 

Depends on what you want. If the car in Cleveland is the one you want, get it. However, if you pay MSRP for a car that is close to what you want vs. MSRP for the EXACT car you want, I say order it. Either from Detroit or Cleveland.

Not sure where you're from, but Cleveland is only about 4 hours from The D. There shouldn't be any problem getting service at a dealership you didn't buy the car from.

Either way is good. But unless you get something on the car already on the lot (like some accessories or a slight discount), I say order the car you want.

 

I don't know if the Detroit dealers will be the same as California dealers... however, I bought my car out of state due to the severe mark-ups and/or wait times. Now when I go to a dealer they have "only if you bought your car from us" policies. Such as loaner cars, car washes, etc. Take a look at the complaint letter thread. Howard is having these types of problems.

I suggest giving the MI dealer a call and asking them their policy on loaner cars etc, especially for loaners before you buy. It may not seem like a big deal now, but if you have a service item that will take a few days or weeks, a loaner will be preferrable to a rental.

I don't agree that dealers should be exclusive - it's bad customer service - especially if they want me to purchase from them in the future. But it's their dealership.

 

That was the very first question I asked on the Michigan MINI Motor Club forums. I ended up ordering from Classic and, while I can't visit the alternate Universe where I purchased from MCM, I'm happy with my decision. Opinions seem to vary widely on MCM with people either thinking they're great or awful (there's a theory that how you are treated is largely a function of age), but I've yet to see anything but praise for Classic. If you order from Classic, ask for Julie. She's great! Even though she's not my MA (mine was out of town at the time), she took pictures of my MCS that just came in and emailed them to me. I'm heading down to Classic this week to pick up the car.

Mark

 

I ordered from Classic (I live only about 30 minutes from Global Imports in Atlanta) and I flew up and picked up the car. The price that Classic gave me was about $1200 cheaper than Global (some of Classic's cars are below MSRP which is unheard of), and the customer service was unbelievable. I bought a ticket from Atlanta to Cleveland for $79 on Airtran. I stepped off the plane and a silver MCS was waiting to pick me up at the curb. We drove for 30 minutes to the dealership, and my car was waiting in the showroom. I looked it over for 15 minutes and found no problems. I sat down handed them a check and got the car backed out of the showroom. The whole process from stepping into the showroom door to driving out of the parking lot took less than 45 minutes (it was a Friday evening and I didn't want to stay too long, when I know everyone loves to get home on time for the weekend). I drove for about 3 hours, stopped at a hotel for $39 and drove the rest of the way home on Saturday. The whole trip cost me about $160, including airplane, gas, food and hotel. Not bad for saving $1200, plus I got half way through my break-in period. Overall, the customer service at Classic was great, and I had absolutely no problems with them whatsoever.

I have not had any problems with Global for service. And I can't see a dealer refusing work on the car or treating you bad. First, because why would it matter where you bought it from? What if you had a job transfer and you moved to another state. It shouldn't matter where you bought it from. And secondly, they make good money servicing your car, with better markup rates than from a sale of a new car. As long as they have your car for service, they will most likely make more from the servicing than they ever did from the sale.

 

Thanks all for the input. Spoke with Julie at Classic last night about an MCS they have that is everything I want and more for less than if I ordered. Thinking about having it shipped unless MarkS could give me a ride!

 

squirlz, where do you live?

 

Okemos...it's near Lansing.

 

Squirlz, email me (mgscheue at io dot com). I'm working this around my wife's schedule but it shouldn't be a problem and Okemos isn't too much of a diversion from Grand Blanc since we're taking 23 down. Theresa says she hopes you don't mind listening to Christmas music all the way.

Mark

 

I e-mailed you Mark...

 

HEY! I'm from Okemos. Class of 87.

Don't live there anymore, but my parents still do.

 

wittle them down to china town.

seriously though. If i got mine (i ordered mine, not off the lot) for several hundred off MSRP back in april of 2003, you better get at least $600-800 off now. They want the bastids off the lot.

And your mich dealer should have nothing to say about the fact you bought somewhere else. Just dont tell them. Make sure the programming is all right on your car at classic though.

 

I have purchased one 04 through MCM and one 05 through Classic. Overall, I'd say each sale was very good, however, the sales person I worked with at MCM moved over the the BMW side. The sales crew at MCM is amoung the most un-friendly group of people I have ever met. When we were looking to buy the new one, we stopped in there and they wouldn't even help us. They assume you will buy it if you want it, and it doesn't matter what they do.

Classic, on the other hand, was very interested in my business and did a lot to make us feel wanted. In fact, our salesperson, Mike just emailed me the other day to ask how things are going.

Oh... Another point. This summer I took my 04 for it's 10,000 miles work and it sat there for 2.5 days without being worked on. I got my car, told them to give me everything necessary to do my own service, and left.

Two thumbs up for Classic, two thumbs down for MCM