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BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

Virtual Tour of Mornington BMW

21 Oct 2020 3:33 PM | Anonymous


Event date: 20 October 2020

Last night's Zoom Meeting with BMW Mornington was great.  I did sneak out for 15 minutes to take some sunset photos, I'm a photography nut as well.

I live in Mornington and had been driving my 2008 Mazda 6 for 12 years, 253 000km on the clock and hadn't missed a beat.  I was going to drive it into the ground but I knew I was missing out on some of the whistles and bells the more modern cars had.

Eventually, I thought, damn it, I'm upgrading.  I drove a couple of Mercs.  A C65S - WOW! did that thing go, but too many $s.  I drove a C300 and used self-parking and nearly had a heart attack.  Very smart technology but scared the living daylights out of me giving up total control [that by the way is the title of a great song by The Motels], but it not only had located the parking spot, but placed it in the area with great flare and panache.

I then popped into Mornington BMW and took a 400 series for a spin.  I liked it.  I was then shown a 428i Gran Coupe but couldn't drive it because the dealership didn't own it at that stage.  Looked great.  They said they'd call me when it was available.

In the meantime, I came across a 2015 428i M Gran Coupe on Car Sales.  You shouldn't get behind the wheel of a car like that unless you're prepared to buy it.  Comfortable, super smooth, quick if needed and looks smoking hot.  That was in March this year; the car had 4 500km on the clock!  it was garaged AND covered, so the owner obviously loved the car but hardly ever got behind the wheel. I scratched my head and asked the owner, 'Why the low Ks?'

'I'm busy with my business, I just take it out at weekends.'

Really!

'Why did you buy it?'

'For the buying experience!'

That was a $100K buying experience.

Black, unblemished and practically brand new.  I probably paid a bit more than I should have, but it was too good to give up.  I've loved every km I've driven since.  Which hasn't been as many as I'd liked to have racked up, for obvious reasons.

Alex Rowell at Mornington BMW who gave me my first drive in a Beamer had told me that BMW was the best driving experience you'll have.  I strongly suspect he's right.

So I'd bought this beast, now I needed to insure it.  Went through the existing providers and then checked in with Tony Traikovski, the Business Manager and his price was competitive and if the worst happened, it would be rebuilt to original BMW build specs.  That I liked.  I knew that wouldn't happen with the run of the mill insurers and the price was very competitive.  Done!  

'I'll take it thanks Tony.'

Then my son-in-law who along with my daughter both drive German cars that start with A.  He suggested extended warranty wasn't a bad idea and put me in touch with a provider that he'd used.

I went through their options; a labourious task to put it mildly and a multitude of options to consider.  Plus, there was a 3 month waiting period before you'd be eligible to claim.  Really?  This is not health insurance and I'm unlikely to get pregnant.

That guy Tony and Mornington BMW did a good job on the insurance and we had discussed extended warranty earlier on but that was also provided by a third party.  So back to Tony I went.

To cut a long story short, once again the price was competitive and secondly there was no waiting period and Mornington could approve my car, even though it was purchased privately.  Done!

Another successful transaction, and I walked away with a 3 year extended warranty at a price I was very comfortable with.

One other experience that impressed me was when I purchased new wiper blades from Spare Parts.  Not only did they take my money, but they also had one of their apprentices come out to the car with me and fit them then and there.  

'Nice,' I thought.  They've gone that extra mile.  They did something they didn't have to do, but once again, it impressed me.

One thing that you don't come across very often these days is, GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE.  It's not rocket science, it's just common sense.

Do you think I'll be going anywhere else for my gorgeous 428i M's needs?  Nup.  They've done everything right so far.

They've got the customer service focus that everyone loves to experience, they're competitive and easy to deal with.

Graham Thomas | Member #534
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne



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