I picked up my S from the service department last week. On my way out my SA says "Mini will be calling to follow up with you and we really need 5's"
What happened to earning a high mark?

 

mine use to do the same thing but now I am out of warrenty.

But they did always take good care of everything and really quick. So I have no problem helping them. Now if they were screwing it up then sure I would have been all over him and not giving the 5's.

So when he says that, "reassure" him you expect all 5's from his service dept. and you will return the favor.

thats what I do.....did

 

My MA did mention that good marks helps him get paid, but I took it as that he was making a joke - I don't think he was being serious. Anyway, they did earn all 5's, but I'll definetly change my opinion if their service goes downhill.

 

A few weeks after I picked up my MINI, I got a survey which I completed for my saleslady. I gave one 3 (average) and the rest were 4s and 5s. I thought it was a fair and pretty good evaluation. My saleslady e-mailed back the following:

...I wanted to apologize that your experience with me and our dealership was so unpleasant. Please let me know what you feel I did wrong so I can make sure I do not do that again...

At first I felt guilty, thinking I misinterpreted the scoring system. I told her so and offered to redo the survey. Then I got this response:

You did indeed give a 3 and the rest 4's and 5's which you would think is pretty good however they are pretty strict on grading so a 5 is an A and a 4 is a C-. Fortunately most of my surveys come back with high marks so this will not affect my manager's opinion on my work...

So a 5 is an A and a 4 is a C-? What, no Bs allowed? My guilt went away really quickly.

 

Dont fall for the BS give them a fair mark based on the experience.Thats what I did when the pdi was half assed.When BMW called I complemented them everywhere except that area.Same guilt reaction.

 

If Its Not Perfect They Dont Get A 5
So, If 4 Is A C-, What Is A 2?
I Have Gived High Marks And Very Low Marks, Like When Im Told The Next Aval, Appt. Is Over 1 Month Away????

 

My SA doesnt push it but then again they deserve the 5 stars

 

My wife bought a new 98 528I in California when we lived out there. From day one, when ever service was involved, they always reminded us that they needed a 5 if we got a call from some service check people.

We did get some calls, almost always gave em a 5, but once we gave em a 4. The service advisor called and let me know that next time, give them a chance to make all 5,s before we rat on em with a 4

 

I don't know what happenned, but my last service at Global Imports in Atlanta that was fully deserving of 1's across the board never made it into the survey system. I sure would like to take the survey though. . . .

Fortunately for both myself and that dealer, we will never have to deal with each other again!

 

if not deserving, i will not give high marks.

it's unfair to other that do a great job.

 

The dealers are all looking for high marks because it adds to their yearly rating that increases the value of the dealer incentives from the manufacturer. It's puts more money in their pocket. This is typical of many car manufacturers.

 

My SA has never, ever mentioned this at all, but he's been recognized nationally as one of the best. Got a trip to the UK and an MCS out of the deal, and, imo, he totally deserves it. Truly an awesome SA and human being!

 

Just got my MINI back from service, and they corrected 1 of the 4 problems I took it in for. The rest were "unable to duplicate". Think I'll get a survey?
Oh yeah, alignment has been off since delivery and they told me alignment is not covered under warranty. What happened to "bumper to bumper"?

 

All 1,s

 

Depending on what computer system they use, there is probably an option somewhere to not survey the customer. We used to do this when I worked at Saturn if we knew someone was going to give a bad review or if people asked to not be surveyed. I had a bad service experience with my first MINI, and waited with baited breath for the survey to come so I could hammer into them. It never came, I am sure it was intentional.

 

OK, I am glad I am not the only one who hears this...

 

Fortunately my Mini dealer always deserved their 5's. My Audi dealer (before I sold it) was a different story. On my last visit (which eventually caused the sale) they lied, misdiagnosed the car, tried to overcharge me for the work that was supposed to be done under warranty and threatened to kick my a$$. When I told him that he pretty much can count on all 1's, he said he will make sure that I will never get called. Good thing I DO know how to use a phone so I actually called Audi corporate on my own. Didn't do any good, of course, but at least I got to make some one else's day miserable in return.

As I said, the Audi is gone now. A new Mini to replace it should be here in a few weeks.

 

Threatened to kick your a$$????? What was that all about! Ya gotta give more details! I can't believe that it got so bad that some guy threatend bodily harm!

 

The guy quoted me some ridiculous price on a brake job (keep in mind the car had 18k miles on it and is under bumper to bumper warranty, brakes included). When I called him on the price and the necessity of what they were trying to do he asked me if I am accusing him of trying to rip me off. To which I replied that that is exactly what I am accusing him off. His reply to me was that I was welcome to stop by the dealership and we can work it out man to man in the back alley. While I would have liked to take him up on his offer at this point, here in the Kalifornia Republic, I am pretty sure they would frown on an irate customer beating the crap out of a service advisor. So for a change, I let my better judgment prevail.

 

I will hardly EVER give 5's or 10's whatever.....I believe there is always room for improvement everywhere, everyplace.....If I am pleased I will give 9's or 4's.

But if my MA EVER asked me to give 5's I would give them 1's.

 

Absolutely. They say that anything less than a 5 is failing... and that if they don't get all 5s then they won't be paid... that they'll get in trouble with their manager... and that the only acceptable score is a 5

After my last service visit the woman called for my review like FIFTY TIMES! NO JOKE! She called Every. Single. Day... for over a month. I also Never. Picked. Up...for over a month. If she had done some critical thinking maybe she would have realized that I was at work.. thus, not picking up the phone. She finally called one day while I was driving home in a snow storm. She went into her whole spiel and I finally just said to give them 5s across the board so I could go back to my driving.

 

The way I undersand it, and I don't remember where I got this little piece of knowledge, is their service department scores actually affect the new vehicle allocations. I.E. dealerships with better customer satisfaction ratings across the board get better (read more desirable) vehicle models, colors, options, etc.

I thinks I actually heard that several years ago from a Toyota Service Manager that I had a business relationship with.

 

I agree that the survey is a bad idea and has no value the way that it is being implemented currently. If anything less that a 5 is failing, then the survey should be pass/fail and not have other options. MINI/BMW is just fooling themselves if they think the surveys have any statistical meaning.

Sorry someone had a bad experinece at Global in Atlanta. I go there so as well, but have not had a problem yet. I hope my luck keeps up.

 

When I bought my first MINI, I dragged my husband off the job (I figured if I saw something right then and there, I would need another driver.) I was dressed like a typical yuppie, he was dressed like a dirt bag in holey pants with paint and cement on them and a filthy tee shirt . I walked around the dealership while my husband stayed outside to finish his cigarette. I walked around and around, I looked over and under the cars . There was a group of salesmen standing in the corner, coffee cup in hand, laughing and talking. One of them "eyeballed me" and I saw him "dismiss" me and not one of them asked me of they could assist me. When hubby finished his smoke, he headed in...his foot hadn't even touched the tile when the gaggle of salesmen were on him like bees to honey. I imploded ...I had been there for almost 15 minutes trying to find someone to sell me a car without sucess and then he gets instantly mobbed as soon as he opened the door...? I, using a very loud command voice, instructed the gaggle that if they wanted to sell a car, they will deal with me because my husband was there strictly as a second driver and not as a customer. I guess I kicked up enough sand that another salesman came running from around the corner and "rescued" the gaggle from the verbal slaughter being rained down upon them.. He immediately asked me if he could help me and from that point on, he has been the only person I will ever do business with. When I went up to buy my second MINI, I had a similar experience and, once again, this salesman was there to rescue the gaggle.:impatient

When I sent in my survey, I let the dealership know if that one particular salesman were not there, I would not buy anything from them . If he moved to another dealership that sold MINIs I would go to that dealership...if he stopped selling MINIs, I would go to the next dealership, even if it meant driving another hour out of my way to get there...but I would not do business with them. I gave the salesman 5's, I gave the dealership a 2...

The moral of the story is don't judge a customer by their gender...

...and I now give that salesman notice when I will be visiting so I don't have to put up with their male bias sales tactics (and it saves their collective hide...) Flora Blue

 

Flora Blue: Great story. I generally take the "Pretty Woman" aproach to any shopping. My wife's rear end is the one that needs to be kissed. She is also the financial wizard so she will be looking at all the paperwork. Once I have her seal of approval, that is when I sign the papers. So far, I've yet to have a salesperson not be clear on the concept.