South Bay BMW

I am the owner of a 2005 Mini Cooper. I have kept the car in excellent condition and have been very loyal in terms of bringing in the car for all its service needs. I recently took my Mini Cooper to South Bay Mini dealer for its 60,000 mile service and to have the brakes replaced.

I was charged over $4,000 and got a "clean bill of health". I was told that everything looked amazing and the car passed all its tests. A little over a month later, the car will not accelerate. I had it towed to the dealer and was told that it needed a new transmission and the cost would be over $9,000.

How does a car with only 60,000 miles need a new transmission? How do I get a clean bill of health and pay $4,000 dollars only to be told a month later, "we are sorry but we do not check the transmission during our inspection"?

What a scam! I was told that my warranty is done and there is nothing Mini can do, except maybe lower the price of the service for repair. What can I do? What resources do consumers have when this happens?

I complain the BMW car maker and service dealer. I touched Parking safety bump with BMW 550i (2009 model). I saw my car loosed driver side end of bumper holder and small piece screen of above center bumper (not brake). I know many car drivers touch safety bump like me. My wife visited BMW dealer for fix which is not damaged (just loose) to service man who is Sergio. He told to my wife we need check up into your car because maybe it is big problem with charge. I understand but I think he knows my car is not accident. They push customer and charge something first. I think it never get accident with this car. It just touched Parking safety bump. I explained I just touched Parking safety bump. I think this loosed problem is not my fault so I don't want pay for that. Many car driver touch safety bump but that is not loose. In conclusion, Car maker make very week holder for car.

When Southbay BMW sold me the extended warranty, they told me that it's bumper to bumper coverage but actually that's not how it is. I had a break light problem and took it in for repairs. For 3 times, they could not fix it and finally, they told me to just pick up the vehicle because they could not find the problem.

I'm outraged! They waste my time and money on a warranty that doesn't even cover simple repairs.

The following is a letter that I sent to the dealership:

"Issue #1 -- Shortly after purchasing the car, the yellow tire pressure light came on. I brought it in to your Service Dept. and was told a faulty and overly sensitive sensor in the right front tire was the cause and the repairman turned off the light. The tire light came back on almost immediately after leaving the lot. I took the car in a second time to have it examined and again Lino, service rep. told me there was not a problem with any of the tires. The repairman turned the light off and within a day, it came back on.

Shortly after my last appointment, the car felt strange to drive and I took it to the nearest tire repair shop and was told that the tire rim was bent due to low tire pressure and the tire was ruined. I had to replace the entire rim and tire at Stokes Tire in Santa Monica. This was clearly a problem I brought to your service department's attention several times and the repair should not be my obligation. My expectation is that your dealership will reimburse me for the bill that I have included of $637.22.

Issue #2 -- I purchased the car from you with 9,735 miles on it and at 17,735 miles I was told the clutch needed to be replaced entirely. During a routine service at Nick Alexander Imports, I asked about a new squeak when releasing the clutch from a stop. I was told the clutch was worn out completely and would cost $4K to replace. I took a "driving test" with their service manager to prove I could drive a manual transmission and upon telling him this was purchased as a "Brass Hat" from your store he said that changed everything and he would talk to Mini USA. I also reported this issue to Mini USA on Dec. 23, 2009 and opened a case. The result was that I ended up having to pay $959.10 for labor and Mini USA paid for the parts.

My understanding is because this car was used as a "Brass Hat" that there were expectations that the clutch would be in good working order when purchased, however, the new clutch I received felt entirely different than the clutch I had after purchasing the vehicle. It is my belief there was serious wear on the clutch when I purchased it from your dealership and this repair should not be my obligation. My expectation is that your dealership will reimburse me for the bill that I have included of $959.10. The total reimbursement that I am expecting from South Bay Mini is $1596.32 and to be paid no later than Feb. 15th, 2010."

We test drove the car; I thought the price was acceptable; we negotiated and I signed on the dotted line. Before going to the loan agent, Josh asked me for my cell phone so that he could synch up my phone to the cars Bluetooth. I handed him my iPhone and was whisked away to the loan agent. When I returned, Josh told me he was unfamiliar with iPhones and had not been able to synch the phone. No big deal, I thought, I would get one of my friends to help.

A few weeks later I asked a couple of my friends to help me synch up my phone to the cars blue tooth and they weren't able to get the command to function. I had left the user manual at home and we couldn't reference what the issue was. I wasn't in a huge hurry to get this task done and I figured I would get the one of the BMW dealers to help me next time I was in. 3 weeks ago, an engine light went on and I drove to the closest dealer to my work (Century West BMW) to see what the issue was. While I was there, I asked the service agent to help my synch up my phone. He took one look at my car and proceeded to tell me that my car did not come equipped with Bluetooth. He suggested I contact my sales agent. I was very upset.

I immediately called Josh and was sent to his voicemail. I received a call back within 24 hours, where he proceeded to tell me that my car was not equipped with the "Bluetooth package", that my car had the "sports package." I reminded him that I when I purchased the car I was specifically looking for Bluetooth and that he had taken my cell phone and had tried to synch my phone, and that he had lied when he said that he hadn't been able to figure it out. He said an after-market product would be a solution and that I should go buy one. I told him it wasn't the solution I was looking for, and that I had been lead to believe that I was purchasing a car with Bluetooth, and that the only solution I wanted was to have the car equipped with Bluetooth. He promised to call me back the following day. 3 weeks later, I've yet to hear back from him.