I'm in france, coming to sheffield the following week. I need a steering rack gaitor. This is how it goes.

Google "bmw sheffield"
Find sytner.
Logon to their website.
No tab for mini.
Back to google and look for "bmw mini sheffield"
Logon to this website, same company, sytner, but different address.
I can book a brouchure, a test drive, breakfast, new socks, a service but not parts.
I complete a service booking for a valet and type in the comments box that I want a steering rack gaitor and not a service. I specify the year, model,  vin and reg number
I get a text a few minutes later confirming my booking.
Next day I get a text confirming they cannot do valet but I'm booked in friday for new steering rack gaitors to be fitted.
Whilst we're driving from portsmouth to sheffield lynne rings the mini dealership and asks for parts. The chap knows nothing about my order. We order the parts. He says they will be in wednesday (yesterday).
Yesterday, I was in my office and ask my son to ring the mini dealership to see if the parts are in. They are. So we leave the offices on the west side of the city, drive past the bmw dealership to get to the mini dealership on the east side.
They know nothing about my parts. I ask if I'm booked in for work on friday. No I'm not. They then decide as it's parts they will be at the bmw dealership, the one we drove past 20 minutes ago.
Back through the traffic to the bmw dealership. Parts man has it all ready. Pay.
Go to service reception. Take a seat in front of one of the three desks. A lady is being served at one, I'm at the second and the third is unmanned.
Two receptionists walk behind, past me and give me cursory glance. Then another comes diwn the steps. I've had enough and, in aloud voice ask "is this reception". He confirms and sits diwn. I ask am I booked in for friday. He asks me my registration number. " SR55XXU"
He looks up and has  a sort of sneer on his face. He asks what model.  "Mini cooper s 2005". Do you know how your face goes when you realise you've stepped in dog poo and it's all over your shoe and smells. Well that's that's the look that came over his face when I said "mini". He then asks me the reg number again and presses some keys and announces, "no, you're not booked in here, it'll be at our mini dealership.
I explain the whole saga.
Now, I do not tell lies. But at this point I feel I have to make a point.


Wait for it.......

Well, I announce in a loud voice, "if this is bmw service I'm not impressed. I don't have all this hassle when I order parts for my ferraris or my race cars."

I get up and leave. He is just sitting there with his mouth open.


So, are they all like this?

frenchblatter wrote:

Wait for it.......

Well, I announce in a loud voice, "if this is bmw service I'm not impressed. I don't have all this hassle when I order parts for my ferraris or my race cars."

ACTUAL

In my limited experience yes, sadly my two occasions dealing with my local stealers it's been sub par I'm afraid, and I was really trying to throw money around...

...I think unless you bought from them or are buying a new car you're a third class citizen - shame, I'll be in the market for a newer MINI one day

Or a £65,000 top-of-the-range bmw.

Wonder why audi are taking their market share?

In my experience, yes. I've been lied to on more than one occasion and also experienced the disdain from the BMW receptionist.

Receptionist where I go is fantastic, always greeted with a smile and by my name, although have had cause to go there many times so know wonder she remebers but she treats everyone the same as far as I can see and normally has a small gift for me, be it a key ring or a windscreen scraper

Last time mine was in I was told it would be a couple of weeks or so due to a back order of parts, after nearly 4 weeks I ring as surely it must be ready! So I ask for the guy who was dealing with my car to be told he'd left! Then told we think its ready we will check? it was and nobody had called......

I do think most service sides of the dealers are not up to scratch and need a kick up the ar*e .......

Cant say i have many problems myself, though i do tend to use the ones that aren't attached to bmw. They're FAR better than Mercedes but not a patch on land rover or jaguar.

bmw dealers aren't great, they seem to think they're better than you when you walk in. Not sure why as they just sell mass produced rep mobiles and 4x4s that are pathetic off road and in snow. Maybe they have an inferiority complex as they're more volume than ford, not as good as Mercedes or jaguar and have one of the worst paint finishes ive ever seen

The chap at Portsmouth wasn't too bad but didn't like it when I explained to the customer he was talking to that the CVT auto was an expanding drum and was developed by DAF.

He then served someone else who came in after me.

Their new greeter, a young girl who is Mini mad, had gone out to the car as she recognised that it was a 1st Gen, facelift model and she said they were so rare. Stood talking to Lynne for ages.

However, he was a bit sniffy. Not too bad and it may have been my imagination.

frenchblatter wrote:

Their new greeter, a young girl who is Mini mad, had gone out to the car as she recognised that it was a 1st Gen, facelift model and she said they were so rare. Stood talking to Lynne for ages.

Was that Sammiee by any chance? She's a member on here and has written many write ups of events for Modern Mini and has just started at Snows Portsmouth in the last week or so?

Phil, sounds like her. She was at Snows and has only just started there.

I'll look out for her.