Customer Service

[Stakker]

Hello, anybody from a US Motorrad dealership here?

I came back from a business trip back in early September and was about to go on my weekend ride but alas, I am getting the dreaded clicking sound even though the bike(2021 R18FE) have been on a tender. I trailer-ed my bike to my local BMW motorcycles shop on September 9(Saturday) and they have per-determined that it was a dead battery but will know for sure when their mechanic double check it. I approved the work order for a battery replacement and did mention that the bike is still under the 24-month battery replacement warranty. The team said they will give me a call for updates and so I went home . Friday came and no phone call..I gave their service team a call and they stated that their battery order have not arrived yet and will let me know..you know how this goes, every week I have to call and check on the status and same status of battery order have not arrived to the shipment is coming from Germany which I find hard to believe as the battery is supplied by EPM in Maryland US for our R18s here. I emailed their manager about the situation and I immediately got a call back from service that they are trying to expedite. I emailed BMW Motorrad corporate support and got a call from a case manager and he said he will contact the local dealer as this should not take this long for a battery replacement. This was 2 weeks ago. No phone calls or email for updates so I called the local dealer again today and they said they still have not received their battery order and in fact it is now marked as backordered across the board. I asked if they could at least try and check with other dealers that might have it in stock(to which why didnt they do this from the start?!) and service said they will check.

To somebody out here that works at a Motorrad delearship/service..is there really a backorder for the R18 batteries? Is this the current state of customer service? All I ask is to be updated, I never showed my frustration on the phone calls and even just try to joke about "they're killing me smalls" for it to be taking this long. You all would understand that my patience is running thin at this point as we are approaching two months for a battery replacement. YES, I could have ordered it online somewhere but I did not want to mess with potentially breaking warranty and do things right.

I miss riding, it is my escape. My saviour from depression.

I hope somebody can assist here. Thank you!

 

[Anibal]

It should not have taken this long. If it was me, I would have ordered a battery with the same specifications and tell the case manager that I would be sending the invoice to them for a refund or a reduction on service charges or any other way to compensate your expenses. All in writing so that you have a paper trail.

 

[Stakker]

It should not have taken this long. If it was me, I would have ordered a battery with the same specifications and tell the case manager that I would be sending the invoice to them for a refund or a reduction on service charges or any other way to compensate your expenses. All in writing so that you have a paper trail.

i'll stop by tomorrow and talk to their manager at the shop to get it in writing. I'm missing out on this awesome fall weather!

 

[Anibal]

i'll stop by tomorrow and talk to their manager at the shop to get it in writing. I'm missing out on this awesome fall weather!

Go for it, be firm and without hesitation. You are not being rude and I am sure the shop is trying to help but even themselves should recognise that 2 months and so much back and forth for a battery is simply unacceptable. We are not talking about a specific or unique to the model part, we are talking about a battery for god’s sake and by now they should have offered you an alternative way out after all this time.
If I treat my customers like you have been treated I would have gone out of business a long time ago.
Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[Rufus]

Go for it, be firm and without hesitation. You are not being rude and I am sure the shop is trying to help but even themselves should recognise that 2 months and so much back and forth for a battery is simply unacceptable. We are not talking about a specific or unique to the model part, we are talking about a battery for god’s sake and by now they should have offered you an alternative way out after all this time.
If I treat my customers like you have been treated I would have gone out of business a long time ago.
Good luck and keep us posted.

I can’t remember the exact circumstances but this has happened to me. Not with BMW I must add but another brand. I think sometimes, sadly, the parts ‘guy’ doesn’t give a shit and takes no interest in getting stuff done, getting calls made, doing updates, chasing up and all the rest of it. IMHO it’s often down to poor management. These individuals get away with it, do a whole lot of harm to reputations and need a kick up the backside. Best part is it’s all unnecessary and completely avoidable! I bet you can find the correct battery online, order it yourself with next day delivery.

 

[Anibal]

You are absolutely right Rufus. If the employee does no own or co own the shop, he may not give a monkey what happens to the poor customer waiting for the battery and indeed, it all comes down to poor management. These people are like a football, you kick them and they move but eventually they loose momentum so you have to kick them again and again until they get where they need to be.The manager may not be aware of these little things that are causing real problems (poor management) hence I say go straight to the manager for awareness which should be the highest ranking on the shop and in writing so that there is a paper trail.

I don’t use social media apart from this site and Instagram because I like photography and film but my GF uses Twitter every time she wants to flag a bad service or something similar and she gets amazing results.

 

[Scott Semone]

I'd consider the two following paths:

1. At this point, 2+ months of failed service; the dealership should take a battery out of an R18 sitting on the floor in order to correct this situation.

2. Purchase another brand battery and drop it off to be replaced ASAP.

If either of the two above options don't happen; have the bike towed or returned back to your home and perform Option 2 on your own and submit all out of pocket expenses and submit for warranty reimbursement. I wouldn't take dealership credit towards service, because they sound incompetent..

It's a battery replacement; I can't see any BMW warranty related issues as long as you replace with a like-for-like battery. You'll probably benefit battery warranty wise from the battery manufacturer if it fails prematurely, due to the offered battery manufacturer's warranty.

 

[Stakker]

Thank you all for the suggestions! I checked in the shop today and of course the GM no longer works there and the other person in management was in a meeting. I will try again next week and probably just pull out the bike from that dealership and do it myself after I get in contact with the BMW corporate case manager again.

 

[Stakker]

I called the shop yesterday to check in and said the same thing about battery orders still not in. I just said my usual just please keep me updated and hanged up. Got a call an hour after that my bike is ready so it sounds like they went ahead and pulled one off from their display bikes to get me going. They also honored the 24-month battery warranty so no charge on parts and labor. I still hope this is one isolated incident as I truly support anything local business and I root for these guys to keep going. I think it is just a leadership failure for not providing the proper tools to their teams. Thank you all again for the suggestions I got my bike back today.

 

[Randy Kahn]

Hello, anybody from a US Motorrad dealership here?

I came back from a business trip back in early September and was about to go on my weekend ride but alas, I am getting the dreaded clicking sound even though the bike(2021 R18FE) have been on a tender. I trailer-ed my bike to my local BMW motorcycles shop on September 9(Saturday) and they have per-determined that it was a dead battery but will know for sure when their mechanic double check it. I approved the work order for a battery replacement and did mention that the bike is still under the 24-month battery replacement warranty. The team said they will give me a call for updates and so I went home . Friday came and no phone call..I gave their service team a call and they stated that their battery order have not arrived yet and will let me know..you know how this goes, every week I have to call and check on the status and same status of battery order have not arrived to the shipment is coming from Germany which I find hard to believe as the battery is supplied by EPM in Maryland US for our R18s here. I emailed their manager about the situation and I immediately got a call back from service that they are trying to expedite. I emailed BMW Motorrad corporate support and got a call from a case manager and he said he will contact the local dealer as this should not take this long for a battery replacement. This was 2 weeks ago. No phone calls or email for updates so I called the local dealer again today and they said they still have not received their battery order and in fact it is now marked as backordered across the board. I asked if they could at least try and check with other dealers that might have it in stock(to which why didnt they do this from the start?!) and service said they will check.

To somebody out here that works at a Motorrad delearship/service..is there really a backorder for the R18 batteries? Is this the current state of customer service? All I ask is to be updated, I never showed my frustration on the phone calls and even just try to joke about "they're killing me smalls" for it to be taking this long. You all would understand that my patience is running thin at this point as we are approaching two months for a battery replacement. YES, I could have ordered it online somewhere but I did not want to mess with potentially breaking warranty and do things right.

I miss riding, it is my escape. My saviour from depression.

I hope somebody can assist here. Thank you!

Personally....I would go buy my own battery and have it delivered to the shop. Then ask for a service credit for the cost of the battery in the future. I had VERY good luck despite the terrible reviews with a Lithium battery in my Harley that had a Jims 120 motor in it. The Lithium had kick ass cranking power, never ran low, and it might be my imagination but I thought the bike ran better. I think it was a Lithium ion battery with about 400 or so CCRs.

If you want to ride, and time is a factor, get your bike done. Having them stroke you with bullshit is a waste of time....

Good luck.

 

[Keehn]

As others have said here, buy your own battery and install it. The applicable law here is the "Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act" which, if you've spent any amount of time around a vehicle forum, you've probably heard mentioned (like, right now).

The TL;dr that applies in this situation is AFTERMARKET products DON'T VOID WARRANTIES!!! So, when your dealer tries to scare you into thinking that BMW branded this or that MUST be used in order to keep your warranty intact, that is in fact, a bold-faced lie!

More to read here: https://automotiveaftermarket.org/magnuson-moss/magnuson-moss-warranty-act/

Further, per the website,

• "It’s illegal for an automobile dealer to deny warranty coverage just because routine maintenance or repairs were performed by another person or business. “Routine maintenance” generally includes things like an oil change, rotating tires, replacing belts, fluid checks and flushes, installing new brake pads and inspections."

Using a reasonable person standard, it is not unreasonable to argue that a person changing one's own battery doesn't also fall under "routine maintenance". Things that would fall outside the scope would include head gasket replacement, motor mount replacements, transmission/engine rebuilds.

While OP has already received his answer, hopefully this helps out anyone else who's confused or concerned about voiding warranties. This is NOT to be considered legal advice! If you have matters of a legal nature, please consult an attorney and have them properly advise you.

Mike

 

[Anibal]

I called the shop yesterday to check in and said the same thing about battery orders still not in. I just said my usual just please keep me updated and hanged up. Got a call an hour after that my bike is ready so it sounds like they went ahead and pulled one off from their display bikes to get me going. They also honored the 24-month battery warranty so no charge on parts and labor. I still hope this is one isolated incident as I truly support anything local business and I root for these guys to keep going. I think it is just a leadership failure for not providing the proper tools to their teams. Thank you all again for the suggestions I got my bike back today.

Glad you got her back.
Time to put the bad experience in a locker and enjoy your bike.

 

[Randy Kahn]

As others have said here, buy your own battery and install it. The applicable law here is the "Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act" which, if you've spent any amount of time around a vehicle forum, you've probably heard mentioned (like, right now).

The TL;dr that applies in this situation is AFTERMARKET products DON'T VOID WARRANTIES!!! So, when your dealer tries to scare you into thinking that BMW branded this or that MUST be used in order to keep your warranty intact, that is in fact, a bold-faced lie!

More to read here: https://automotiveaftermarket.org/magnuson-moss/magnuson-moss-warranty-act/

Further, per the website,

• "It’s illegal for an automobile dealer to deny warranty coverage just because routine maintenance or repairs were performed by another person or business. “Routine maintenance” generally includes things like an oil change, rotating tires, replacing belts, fluid checks and flushes, installing new brake pads and inspections."

Using a reasonable person standard, it is not unreasonable to argue that a person changing one's own battery doesn't also fall under "routine maintenance". Things that would fall outside the scope would include head gasket replacement, motor mount replacements, transmission/engine rebuilds.

While OP has already received his answer, hopefully this helps out anyone else who's confused or concerned about voiding warranties. This is NOT to be considered legal advice! If you have matters of a legal nature, please consult an attorney and have them properly advise you.

Mike

True, however IF a car manufacturer wanted to press the issue as far as a consumer not following standard maintenance requirements to adhere to the factory warranty, the stipulation would be that the shop performing that work was a licensed authorize facility, but necessarily a dealer. In addition, you would have to use a "like part" otherwise they could argue the car/ bike has been tampered with.
Manufacturers are obsessed with consumer feedback these days, they pester the shit out of you every time you buy or service your vehicle at a dealer for a very positive rating. A casual mention that you will be contacting the factory normally gets you a call 5 minutes later from the service manager....
I was a car dealer for 20 years....

 

[Keehn]

True, however IF a car manufacturer wanted to press the issue as far as a consumer not following standard maintenance requirements to adhere to the factory warranty, the stipulation would be that the shop performing that work was a licensed authorize facility, but necessarily a dealer. In addition, you would have to use a "like part" otherwise they could argue the car/ bike has been tampered with.
Manufacturers are obsessed with consumer feedback these days, they pester the shit out of you every time you buy or service your vehicle at a dealer for a very positive rating. A casual mention that you will be contacting the factory normally gets you a call 5 minutes later from the service manager....
I was a car dealer for 20 years....

This reminds me of us shade tree mechanics changing our own oil, which coincidentally, the website I linked to also addresses. Quote:

"Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act oil change facts
Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act oil changes do not void your warranty. The Act allows routine maintenance to be performed on your vehicle. “Routine maintenance” by definition of the FTC includes an oil change. The FTC has stated that it’s illegal for an automobile dealer or OEM to refuse your warranty coverage because someone else performed routine maintenance or repairs on your vehicle. Any independent auto technician, a chain service repair business, or even yourself in your driveway are allowed to do routine maintenance or repairs on your vehicle."

However, this is caveat'd with:

"According to the FTC you must still use proper oil specifications. Neglecting oil changes, neglecting maintenance or using oil that does not comply with factory-recommended specifications are completely separate issues from the Magnuson-Moss regulations."

For example, if we choose not to use the BMW-branded oil products, we MUST ensure that whatever we do use still complies with the SAE/ISO standards of said product(s) to not be in breach of warranty. Maintaining records is CRITICAL for any warranty. I like to use the manual that came with Alcina to keep record of what/when I did service, and then a separate binder to retain my receipts...which I'm sure everyone else here does something similar.

Mike