I'm going to order a MCS sometime in March (from either South Bay or Long Beach) and I was wondering if anybody could suggest a MA. I've read good things about Freddie form South Bay, but haven't heard much about any MAs from Long Beach.

 

Freddie and Jennifer helped us at South Bay. Be sure to get cell phone numbers, emails, and fax numbers for when you want to change something about your order

 

I dealt with Freddie a little, but the bulk of my contact with South Bay has been with Jennifer Osborne. I would recommend them both, but since Jennifer is the Motoring Manager, she's really the one that is in the best position to give you ideas on production date availability.

 

Not to burst anyone's bubble, but I had a bad experience there, with people not returning my calls and price/payment changes...anyways, good luck!

 

chris yuseco is at south bay and a good guy as well

 

russ fowler was good at sb

 

At south bay they are all pretty good, A new name for the list is AMANDA....that is my daughter. She is the motoring ambasador and assistant to Jenifer. She doesnt actually do "sales" but can help you with placing an order or whever you may need.

 

I was less than impressed with the salesman handling my order at south bay (he was from the bmw side, and I noticed on the big board that he only had one sale while nobody else had less than 3 and most had 5-10) so I cancelled and took it to Long Beach. Andrea took my order. She was really nice. She knew her stuff, told me what to expect, and answered every question I had. Later on in the process, I talked to Tony a couple times on the phone, and again, I was really impressed. He was very thorough. The paperwork and financing were handled by Matt and Mark, and they were quick and very friendly. The sales manager called me a few days after I picked up the car, and he also left a good impression.

But anyway, if you can talk with Tony or Andrea, or the sales manager (Bobby, I think) at Long Beach, I'm sure they'll take really good care of you.

 

yeah thats a bummer if you got a BMW person, they have a completly different aproach. Wait till you need to get your car serviced, Long beach Leaves A LOT to be desired. We bought our first mini there and their service went from decent to awfull. South bay has been top notch for us ever since they opened and before there was any connection with them. We have had both minis serviced there with no hassels and great service and we didnt buy either car there....and they will give you a loaner if you make an apointment.

 

Brian, when was the last time you had your MINI serviced at Long Beach MINI? They made major changes last year, and now you go to the MINI side, only, for both sales and service. I was really pleased with my last service experiences there. I waited while they worked on Wanda and they kept me informed of what was being done as well as explained all the work afterward. It was really thorough and professional.

As for MAs, Matt Limburg and Tony Lage work as a sales team with a nice group of people assisting them. I've bought both my MINIs from them and they were the best car-purchasing experiences I've ever had. I really recommend them. They've been on-board at Long Beach since the dealership opened in March 2002, so I think that speaks volumes. Plus, they both own MINIs, too.

 

Its been quite a while, we were 100% happy with the purchase from them but after the last crappy service we never went back. Good to hear they made some changes and are doing a better job.

Thanks for the update, the more good dealers the better ! I am astill partial to South bay for a few reasons, 1. We have built a strong relationship with them now, 2. Amanda works there :-) and 3. they are 10 min or less from my house.

 

Amanda works there? WOW!!! That's fantastic, sweetie!

I think we are so lucky in SoCal...we have many MINI dealerships to choose from...unlike many friends who must travel hundreds of miles to their nearest MINI dealerships.

 

My vote is for Southbay MINI all the way! Jennifer and Freddie are the best hands down!

 

I'm going to follow Clo's lead on this one...Matt Limburg assisted me through the super-quick process and it was the easiest car purchase I've ever had. He's also super enthusiastic and energized to be delivering new MINIs to their owners...and not in that "more $$ in my paycheck" kind of way (or at least that was my perception.)

I'm going in for my first scheduled maintenance on Saturday, so I'll update then..although since I don't have any equipment complaints or anything irregular I doubt I'll have much to talk about. Good luck!

 

Thanks everyone! you guys have been a great help. I think I might go with south bay. i called both and south bay was way more helpful/informative/friendly, answered all my question and offered to set up an appointment for me to meet with a sales vp of some sort to go more in depth about the ordering process. When I called long beach, all they did was try to sell me a car that was on the lot. I'm sure both dealership are great, but you know what they say about first impressions.

 

Hey, best of luck to you in your MINI-buying experience. You may want to visit both dealerships, too. Sometimes the phone doesn't provide an accurate picture.

 

South Bay Rocks...Jen is awsome and everyone there I have met has benn great...and totally helpful...you will glad you went with them!

 

Dealt w/ both Matt and Tony at Long Beach- both were superb.

Would recommend anyone to deal with either one of them, best car buying experience I've ever had, the one right before this was so painful that I made the dealer by two friends (my ride there) and I dinner from Chili's while they LAGGED on paperwork.

NOT the case w/ LB Mini. I've also had great luck w/ everyone there AFTER the sale with both questions and subsequent purchases.

Stand-up operation!

 

south bay doesn't charge for doc+licensing fees, right? The person I talked to (I can't remember her name) said, just msrp+tax. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

Ok this is what I got. My Service Advisor @ LB Mini. Aubrey. Very cool.
Knows whats going on very friendly. Have to make an appointment. But otherwise great service. Offered me a loaner But didn't need it. I work Next door as a Factory Mercedes benz Tech @ long beach Mercedes. But I know alot of great things about Southbay. I have alot of my personal friends that run the show there. From the top all the way down to tech's.
I could go both ways but since I only have a 2 minute walk I stay @ LBC even though our sister store is Irvine which I purchase the car from. Everywhere I went. They wanted a 6 months waiting list or 3 months and pay 2500 over. Well I settle for neither, and scored a great deal @ our sister store. But thats neither here or there.

Also. Great Mini Tech @ long Beach who takes care of my MCS. Chris very cool and knowledgable.


Guido's gone!

 

Amanda was good.. you'd be proud to hear that I was her first sale and I gave her 5's across the board for her service. She and Freddie helped us and they were great.

 

I bought my 2003 MCS from Long Beach MINI and Tony was my MA. Easiest car buying experience ever. 2 years later I bought my 2005 MCSa from So. Bay MINI and it was an OK experience. Didn't feel the enthusiasm for the product so much. Not as knowledgable about the car. Maybe because the dealership was a new MINI dealer. Had great experiences at both dealers for service. My second MINI had a problem with the airbag (wiring in the seat bottom) and it took 3-4 trips to So. Bay to fix it. BUT they did fix it and gave me loaner cars every time.
just my 2 pence.

 

back in 2003 i was put on the waiting list at LB mini
waited for 5 months never heard from them
so i went bought a lexus IS300

still no word from them

last year i saw a billboard for so bay mini
went down there and ordered a MC fron colin
took 3 months
but very painless
would highly recommend

 

Thats excellent to hear, thanks for posting it!

 

Chris Yuseco at South Bay has been great for me so far. I'm picking up my MINI this Saturday. Earlier this week, he told me that he wouldn't be in this weekend, and Amanda would help me. But now it looks like he will be there when we take delivery.