# San Francisco Bay Area tip for good dealer and ED



## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

Hi All, just curious if anyone has any tips on a good dealer in the San Francisco bay area for doing ED?


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## chrischeung (Sep 1, 2002)

Jon Shafer - Santa Barbara. Excellent all around.

I like John Wolff East Bay BMW.


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## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

*Thank you*

Hi Chris, thanks for the info, I'll look into east bay and Jon (I have seen a bunch of posts from here (he is a moderator correct?), thanks again, I appreciate it, V/r, Tim.



chrischeung said:


> Jon Shafer - Santa Barbara. Excellent all around.
> 
> I like John Wolff East Bay BMW.


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## laser (Aug 2, 2004)

Popoemt said:


> Hi Chris, thanks for the info, I'll look into east bay and Jon (I have seen a bunch of posts from here (he is a moderator correct?), thanks again, I appreciate it, V/r, Tim.


I'll let Jon remain modest .... he created the awesome Bimmerfest Forums!


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## Rissei (Feb 27, 2012)

I did ED and am from San Francisco, and the Bay Area dealers I contacted weren't really willing to play ball.

I recommend going to a Southern California dealer, picking up the car on a weekday, and then driving on Hwy 1 back up north :angel:.


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## 3ismagic# (Mar 17, 2011)

Greg Poland at Pacific in Glendale. He's a pro.


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## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

*Cool*

Hi Rissei, good idea, I had a feeling the locals wouldn't be well versed in it, do you mind if I ask where you went to buy the car? V/r Tim.



Rissei said:


> I did ED and am from San Francisco, and the Bay Area dealers I contacted weren't really willing to play ball.
> 
> I recommend going to a Southern California dealer, picking up the car on a weekday, and then driving on Hwy 1 back up north :angel:.


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## MisterPeter (Jan 18, 2012)

3ismagic# said:


> Greg Poland at Pacific in Glendale. He's a pro.


+1. Just had my ED e92 redelivered from Greg at Pacific BMW this past saturday. Incredibly smooth process all around. Will definitely be going to Greg for my next one (whenever that will be). Can't recommend him enough. Very efficient, didn't jerk me around on price (I don't want to say what I paid, but I will say that the price he quoted me was lower than anyone else I spoke with, and I didn't even bother to haggle with him on it, even after comparing with bmwconfig.com). True professional. As a matter of fact, Greg was able to do everything over phone/email/FedEx (I was arranging from PA and AZ). The first time I met him was when I went in to pick it up, so you don't even have to go down to Glendale if you don't want to.


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## radims (May 12, 2007)

I live in San Francisco, leaving in a week for my 2nd ED and can also highly recommend Jon Shafer. 

Absolutely no-nonsence deal, all done via email/phone, zero hassle. Yes, he is in Santa Barbara, but with him you can be 100% sure of a VIP treatment and the weekend in SB when you go pick the car up, plus the fun drive back to the Bay area will be the perfect finish of your BMW ED experience ... just my two cents.

BTW I tried BMW SF, but based on my experience I would definitely stay away from that place ...


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## Boghopper (Aug 13, 2011)

I had a good experience with Jason Burger at East Bay BMW in Pleasanton. He knows all the little details of ED (even for a bimmerfester, and we're a pretty particular bunch) and can make sure the process goes smoothly. I'll be ordering another ED through him shortly, no better recommendation than that.

You can reach him at [email protected] or 925-251-7049.

And I forgot to add, the price was excellent (comparable to the other top CAs on this board).


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## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

Thanks, good info, I appreciate all the tips and advice, V/r, Tim.


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## Boraxo (Sep 6, 2005)

I have been pretty happy with the service dept at East Bay BMW but can't speak to sales (though they are owned by Hendrick, which also owns the Acura dealer across the street where I bought my MDX). Would not waste your time at SF - they apparently have plenty of walkups who pay full price so they don't negotiate. I did my ED with Jim Chang at Sonnen in Marin but I hear that Jim has retired, which is a shame as he was a pro and had been to the Welt several times himself. 

Assuming you find a dealer that knows the drill, the key question is where you can get the best price. You can drive back from Santa Barbara on a single tank of gas, so if the price is right...
There really isn't much benefit to purchasing locally, there is no follow up care  though Hendrick gives you a checkbook that essentially gets you 10% off service.


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## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

*100k+?*

Hi Boraxo, good info thanks, I am curious about not having any follow up care? I have read a few times on here about people who purchase the flagship BMW, and it seems like they don't exactly get treated like people who just bought a 100k+ car?



Boraxo said:


> I have been pretty happy with the service dept at East Bay BMW but can't speak to sales (though they are owned by Hendrick, which also owns the Acura dealer across the street where I bought my MDX). Would not waste your time at SF - they apparently have plenty of walkups who pay full price so they don't negotiate. I did my ED with Jim Chang at Sonnen in Marin but I hear that Jim has retired, which is a shame as he was a pro and had been to the Welt several times himself.
> 
> Assuming you find a dealer that knows the drill, the key question is where you can get the best price. You can drive back from Santa Barbara on a single tank of gas, so if the price is right...
> There really isn't much benefit to purchasing locally, there is no follow up care  though Hendrick gives you a checkbook that essentially gets you 10% off service.


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## chrischeung (Sep 1, 2002)

Popoemt said:


> and it seems like they don't exactly get treated like people who just bought a 100k+ car?


They treat you as if you bought a BMW - there is little differentiation between price points. They will back the car the same even if you bought a lowly 128 and top of the range 760. The big differentiation is between brands - you get treated differently at Mini, and at Rolls, not within a brand. When you pay more for a car, you're paying basically for the differentiation in product, and not the experience.

While your point has merit, the other side to look at it is that you have bought a BMW, and that should mean something, in a consistent manner. The entire BMW experience, from the website to the delivery at the Welt, to production methods, is the same for any BMW. Good or bad, that is how they manage the brand. Otherwise it would be very confusing, and be impossible to manage throughout the organization and dealership. For example, how differently do you treat someone who bought a base 640i for $80K, vs someone who bought a loaded 640i for $130K? And that is just 1 car - how many cars does BMW have across their range? Also look at other manufacturers - Lexus, Audi, Benz, Toyota, GM, Ford, Honda, Acura etc. - it's the same consistent experience approach there as well as far as I know.

When will it make a difference? When you're a good customer of the dealership. This means you've made more profit for them. So that means you either paid more for that 1 car, or you're a repeat customer. Then you will likely get a better sales experience than someone who just came in off the street (or web). Unfortunately, there is no way for a dealership to know that until you buy that first or second car. Shockingly, people sometimes lie (on both sides of the fence).

If you have a concern, bring it up with the dealership BEFORE you buy. Ask them what they do differently (if any), and tell them what your expectations are. More likely they'll tell you what they do for all their BMW customers. And if you don't like their response, then choose a different dealership that can accomodate your needs. Nothing wrong with that whatsoever.


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## Popoemt (Aug 9, 2012)

Hi Chris, thanks for the info, I appreciate the advice and the good idea of doing a "walk-thru" and talking it out with the dealer, V/r, Tim



chrischeung said:


> They treat you as if you bought a BMW - there is little differentiation between price points. They will back the car the same even if you bought a lowly 128 and top of the range 760. The big differentiation is between brands - you get treated differently at Mini, and at Rolls, not within a brand. When you pay more for a car, you're paying basically for the differentiation in product, and not the experience.
> 
> While your point has merit, the other side to look at it is that you have bought a BMW, and that should mean something, in a consistent manner. The entire BMW experience, from the website to the delivery at the Welt, to production methods, is the same for any BMW. Good or bad, that is how they manage the brand. Otherwise it would be very confusing, and be impossible to manage throughout the organization and dealership. For example, how differently do you treat someone who bought a base 640i for $80K, vs someone who bought a loaded 640i for $130K? And that is just 1 car - how many cars does BMW have across their range? Also look at other manufacturers - Lexus, Audi, Benz, Toyota, GM, Ford, Honda, Acura etc. - it's the same consistent experience approach there as well as far as I know.
> 
> ...


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## heyqqqq (Nov 14, 2013)

i pinged just about all the dealers in the SF bay area recently for quotes on my ED 3er. all of these gave me the same (very competitive) price: 

Sonnen 
Hendrick East Bay
BMW of Fremont
Steven's Creek BMW (initially came in higher but willing to match everyone else)

i ended up going with Fremont; picking up in FEB, can't wait. so far it's been smooth and my CA seems on top of all the details and questions i've asked. 

using points for the flight with global upgrades to business for 2 round trip united tickets  saved quite a bit with this ED deal. 

anyways, i couldn't find much recent info on bay area CAs for ED when i started my search. thought i'd revive the thread again. if anyone's searching PM me and i can share my contacts and details of my experience so far.


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## Arcane.Host (Sep 8, 2006)

Popoemt said:


> Hi All, just curious if anyone has any tips on a good dealer in the San Francisco bay area for doing ED?


BMW of Fremont. I have taken many cars from them for my family and have connected many friends and extended family members to them for successful deals. I know the GM there personally so get great pricing and VIP service. Can introduce you to him if you want.

PS: 6 of my referref friends have done ED and highly recommend BMW of Fremont.

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## Arcane.Host (Sep 8, 2006)

heyqqqq said:


> i pinged just about all the dealers in the SF bay area recently for quotes on my ED 3er. all of these gave me the same (very competitive) price:
> 
> Sonnen
> Hendrick East Bay
> ...


I am a big fan of BMW of Fremont myself. I took delivery of my Gran Coupe in Aug of this year and have a X5 on order for my family from them at this time. What did you get? Who was your PoC?

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## heyqqqq (Nov 14, 2013)

I went with Vi Quach at BMW of Fremont. Great working with him so far. 


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## Arcane.Host (Sep 8, 2006)

heyqqqq said:


> I went with Vi Quach at BMW of Fremont. Great working with him so far.
> 
> Sent from BimmerApp mobile app


PM sent

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