Shopping for Euro Delivery in Dallas Area

[rwnilsen3]

Hey all, I'm currently shopping for a Euro Delivery of a 325Ci in the Dallas area.

So far, I've had a pretty lackluster experience with the Dallas area dealers.

At John Roberts I had a salesman (Neal Brown) that was pretty much a jerk, he used all kinds of stupid techniques to try to convince me that I need to pay MSRP. He *refused* to give me "his best price" and pretty much told me that he didn't expect that I could find the car for less than MSRP, and to come back later when i'd done more research.

At Moritz I received good service from Kevin Lozano, but the guy wouldnt move on price. He said that if I brought him a written quote, he'd take it to his sales manager, but he emphasized that they "walk away" from a deal that was low

I called Classic twice and they told me, without my even mentioning price, that they wouldn't go below MSRP.... I was amazed. I had heard from BMW NA Euro Delivery that they don't do too many Euro Deliveries out of Classic, and now I know why. Also, the salesman there said he needed 15% down payment on the car... as opposed to the $500 - $1000 that every other dealer mentioned. When I asked what's up with that, he said "Well, that's BMW policy"... I called bull**** on that, and he said he'd have to check on it. :)

I've yet to call Autobahn in Ft. Worth.

So then I called Sandra Nieberding at Garlyn Shelton in Temple. She was *very* helpful, she was the most informed salesperson that I talked to and was very courteous. In fact, she was the only salesperson that I talked to that didn't disappoint me. I asked for her best deal on the car and she came back with $1200 below MSRP.... that made me pretty happy.

So, what should I do? Do you think I can get the Dallas dealers to compete with this figure? They *should*... but that doesn't mean that they *will*... right?

Has anyone here ever saved off MSRP on a euro delivery in dallas?

[DaveN323i]

I think you can actually do Euro delivery with a dealer outside Texas and have the car shipped to a dealer in Texas (maybe you need to pay a fee for dealer prep). That should allow you more dealers to deal with.

Ask Jon. I think he did this once upon a time.

[uter]

I found a fellow a few states away in upstate NY who said,
"Sure, I do pleany of Euro deliveries. Let's do $1500 over Euro Del invoice". Sounded fair to me and worth the 4-hr drive for the lack of hassle.

So, be sure you're starting with the Euro Delivery invoice price.
It's posted at Eurobuyers.com.

[Stevarino]

I wonder what dealer it was in upstate N.Y.? I am from Glens Falls and am getting ready to order a 330 for Euro. delivery.
Thanks,

[rwnilsen3]

Update on the car search:

I ended up faxing a "5% over" offer to all four Dallas-area dealers, here's what I got back:

Classic: Counter-offered MSRP
Moritz: Counter-offered MSRP
Autobahn: Claimed I had the wrong "Dealer Cost"
JR: Accepted offer

I called back Sandy at Garlyn Shelton, she beat the JR deal and was so much nicer over the phone and came so highly recommended by others on bimmer.org that I felt better going with her as my salesperson, despite her being 150 miles away...

[Cruzer]

Good job doing your research and drawing some blood. Garlyn Shelton in Temple is truly a pleasure to do business with...I'm driving up from Houston for delivery. No bull, great service, and very nice people... As far as I'm concerned, the only BMW dealer in Texas is Garlyn Shelton, Temple, all others own the title of "stealers"

:thumb:

[AlisaKay]

Hi rwnilsen3,

I guess it's a 2002 that you're ordering for ED? How soon can you pick it up in Munich? I have read that they need 3 months notice.

I'll be going to Germany in November, so I was thinking of ordering a 2003 325Ci for ED then.

[rwnilsen3]

Yes, I've ordered a 2002. I was told that it would likely be built in july before the plant shuts down in august and will wait for me until my Sept 2nd delivery date.

They claim to need 90 days, but I believe it can be done with less notice, though i've no idea what the shortest possible notice is. When you order the car, they submit a "pre-reservation" form to euro-delivery. As far as I know, they check to see if they can build the car in time, and they just let you know. that process is supposed to be pretty quick, so after telling the dealer "it's go time" you should know quickly (within a week?) if the car can actually be delivered or not.

I've heard that the specs on the 2003 may be available as soon as July, and if you're going in november you wouldn't have to order the car until sometime in august, so you've got loads of time.

good luck,

Bob

[AlisaKay]

Bob,

I'm so glad you started this thread. I too had been getting NOWHERE with the North Texas & North Louisiana dealers on discounting ED -- they kept insisting that ED MSRP was cast in stone. So, I sent this thread to my husband, who then called Sandy at Garlyn Shelton and talked things over. Very pleasant to deal with. They said they would give us a price quote now on a 2003, and then make any adjustments for BMW price increases or equipment option changes when that information comes out later in the summer. I wonder if you would mind emailing me the deal they offered you? It would be nice to have an idea of what to expect...

Alisa

[rwnilsen3]

I'm really glad that my story helped you.

Sorry, but I don't feel right about disclosing the final numbers on my deal. If you check the numbers found at http://www.bariaur.com/e39/EDsavings.html and eurobuyers.com, you should be able to arrive at a fair price.

Bob

[AlisaKay]

Bob,

No problem. That is certainly understandable. Your prior posts have already helped immensely.

Alisa

[jrubens]

Alisa: which dealers did you try in N. Louisiana? I'm going to start my negotiating early next year.... from what I've seen here, though, it looks like its better to buy in Texas.

[Bruce]

FYI- leave Autobahn out of this rant as I have no direct experience with them, but have heard good things about them

Problem 1..******s departments at all Dallas area BMW dealers SUCK....with Classic the least "sucky" of the 3, JR is the WORST by far. The know they pretty much have a monopoly and Dallas people aren't willing to go anywhere or dicker on price...they just accept.

Problem 2....service departments in the area aren't any better. Makes me VERY wary of buying a BMW while living in Dallas. I would hate to have to bring it in to any of them.

Try Ron Elms at Garylyn in Bryan. He'll shoot you a fair deal.

Bruce