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Time from order until production begins?

14K views 112 replies 16 participants last post by  DavidM1975 
#1 ·
Hi,

I ordered my car on 12/26/12 and bmwusa.com still only shows "Order Documented" as of 1/14/13. Is this long of a wait usual? How long did yours take?

Thanks.
 
#2 ·
You have to get that information from your dealer. They know the moment you sign the paperwork when your car will go into production.

Each dealership is allocated an amount of 328i, 335i, and XDrives each month, and they know the production dates for each. Your dealer should have provided you with an allocation number and a production date at the time you did your deal a month ago.

Call him, ask him for that information. What has happened to me in the past is that I wasn't given an allocation number and my shady dealer gave my car to someone else who was more persistent and ordered a more optioned and expensive version of my 328i. So I was pushed back two weeks simply because I didn't know the game.

This happened to my friend a few months ago in SoCal, so I told him to call other dealers in the area, see who had newer allocation numbers and move the deal. He did. And saved some money in the process too.

BJ
 
#3 ·
when you ordered means almost nothing; your production allocation is what matters. if your dealer doesnt have a production allocation thats going into production soon, then the car can sit in the order bank for quite a while. i suspect that your car doesnt have a production week assigned to it yet.

ask your dealer for the production week. also, a south africa build adds another month to delivery time versus a germany build

alot of dealers will sell a production allocation that they dont have to take a buyer out of the market.

my dealer got me a germany prod allocation that flipped from scheduled for production to in production the next day-- the car was at the dealer about 5 weeks later.
 
#4 ·
Hmm... you guys got me thinking now. My CA did mention something about them having to buy the allocation from another dealership when he was placing my order but I did not realize the whole process was this complicated. I am in the same boat as the OP - my order was placed on 12/28/12 and so far I am seeing the same thing when I log in to bmwusa.com - the car hasn't entered production yet :-|
 
#5 ·
Thank you for your replies.

I did email my dealer last Friday as well as yesterday but haven't gotten a response yet. He's been a really good dealer for me and good at responding to emails promptly but doesn't answer phone calls that well. I think he's just super busy. He did tell me before that mine is a Germany built and the expected delivery date is early March though. With that knowledge, can you make a estimate as to when it will enter production?

Thanks.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I just checked my order on BMWUSA.com. I recall the site being pretty much useless, so I really didn't bother until today (and not actually until I saw this thread).

My order still says Order Documented too, but I just ordered on Friday, so I don't think it's a real big issue (at least not yet).

But the big problem for me is that the vehicle description says Estoril Blue. WTF!

kkapdolee, is your vehicle description right on BMWUSA.COM?
 
#7 ·
I just checked my order on BMWUSA.com. I recall the site being pretty much useless, so I really didn't bother until today (and actually until I saw this thread).

My order still says Order Documented too, but I just ordered on Friday, so I don't think it's a real big issue (at least not yet).

But the big problem for me is that the vehicle description says Estoril Blue. WTF!

kkapdolee, is your vehicle description right on BMWUSA.COM?
Yeah mine says its Alpine White! and I ordered Estoril Blue..

I just assumed it was because the production hasn't began yet and they would update the image once production starts. My dealer sent me the order sheet and everything on there is correct. It's probably just the website.. I hope..
 
#10 ·
Yeah..

I'm going to ask my CA about that today. I'll let you know what I find out.
 
#14 · (Edited)
It's not a website problem. The allocation process assigns a color to the car so that if it isn't allocated to a special order customer it gets built and shipped to the dealer that way. Think of it this way: you have intercepted a car that was supposed to be made differently. Your dealer has to input all of the new information to override what was already there for that particular allocation. Once your new detail is in the system it will update on the BMW website.

But big picture, know this: the BMW tracking website is awful. It's always behind, it lacks good detail. What you need is the BMW telephone number which you can call 24 hours a day and learn the true status of your build.

Call: (800) 831-1117 Say "Vehicle Production Status" when prompted.

BJ
 
#28 ·
AAAAAHHHH

I called this number, entered my production number and it said its scheduled for production with no set production date. I talked to a representative and he told me the same thing. The dealer hasn't responded to me yet... What should I do...
Call other dealers in your area immediately, see what allocation spots they currently have open.

If they can give you an allocation with a production of, say, next week at the same or lower price as your original deal, take it. You don't have any responsibility to your dealer at all until the car arrives from overseas. You don't lose any money here. If anything, finding another car at another dealer will give your current dealer the kick in the ass he needs to do right by you. The bigger the dealership, the more allocations they get. Perhaps you're with a small-time dealer and he's just pushing you out. You shouldn't stand for that.

My friend in SoCal that had this happen to him wound up having two of the identical car arrive from two different dealers two weeks apart. He took the one that came in first, cancelled the other order, done. When I ordered my E93 years back, my dealer had an allocation that was going into production the next day, literally took my order and sent it to Germany and within 20 hours my car was being assembled.

Waiting around for your dealer to get your car produced is wrong. Be aggressive, force the issue with him or another dealer. It's how it's played.

BJ
 
#29 ·
Call other dealers in your area immediately, see what allocation spots they currently have open.

If they can give you an allocation with a production of, say, next week at the same or lower price as your original deal, take it. You don't have any responsibility to your dealer at all until the car arrives from overseas. You don't lose any money here. If anything, finding another car at another dealer will give your current dealer the kick in the ass he needs to do right by you. The bigger the dealership, the more allocations they get. Perhaps you're with a small-time dealer and he's just pushing you out. You shouldn't stand for that.

My friend in SoCal that had this happen to him wound up having two of the identical car arrive from two different dealers two weeks apart. He took the one that came in first, cancelled the other order, done. When I ordered my E93 years back, my dealer had an allocation that was going into production the next day, literally took my order and sent it to Germany and within 20 hours my car was being assembled.

Waiting around for your dealer to get your car produced is wrong. Be aggressive, force the issue with him or another dealer. It's how it's played.

BJ
BJ,

Thank you very much for your helpful responses every time. I really appreciate it.

The dealer got back to me yesterday and confirmed that I'm scheduled for week 4 of January.

Unfortunately, there is no good local dealer to my knowledge. I was actually working with one prior to the current one and that dealership kept delaying my order, giving me bs that my order can't go through because of hurricane Sandy weeks after the day the CA said he'd order for me.

I have no problem being aggressive at dealerships. One guy at the finance department of the prior dealership kept giving me bs numbers for my lease so I confronted him with pen and paper that this is how I calculate the lease numbers. He couldn't disprove my numbers but the next time I went, the finance guy gave me phony numbers again so I literally told the him to go f*** himself.

The new dealer I found is an out of state bimmerfest sponsor. He has been extremely helpful. We've exchanged over 100 emails in a matter of few weeks and he has always promptly responded to my emails even on Friday nights and Sunday mornings. (He would usually respond within 15 minutes no matter what time of the week I send him an email.) I was planning on writing a good review of him on bimmerfest once we finalize the deal.

When I called the BMW number you gave me, the automated system said my vehicle didn't have a set schedule and the live representative told me the same thing. I demanded my dealer an answer as to why it's taking so long and to find out when the schedule is and he has responded to me yesterday evening that it is scheduled for week 4. I suspect it wasn't scheduled until yesterday and he had to call BMW to set one up. (Is that possible?)

Perhaps I've been less demanding of my production schedule than I should have been largely because I wasn't aware until you told me yesterday, that dealers actually have some control over and have knowledge of the allocation of production schedules. If you hadn't told me that yesterday, who knows, it could have been another month from now for my unscheduled vehicle to finally go into production. However, since you gave me such valuable information, I called my dealer and demanded a schedule so it seems to be all working out for now.

I will let you know if and when my car enters production (hopefully next week as the dealer told me). Thanks again.
 
#11 ·
Ditto on needing to get a production week from the dealer. I have seen them go into production a few days after ordering (like my last purchase), or it can take months. As far as the incorrect color showing up, it is fairly common. The likely explanation is that the dealer had an allocation order with those color choices. This far out they can change it at at any time, and the system takes a while to reflect the changes. If your order build sheet is right, you should get the right car.
 
#12 ·
I did see an order build sheet from my dealer but how do I know it's the "official" one or just one that dealer put together on his computer using excel or something?

I saw my order sheet with all the negotiated prices when the dealer first ordered the car but then when I asked him to port install a Sport grille later on, he sent me a new sheet with that additional order but with different pricing this time. The base price of the 3 series went up this year about $380. When I asked about the price increase, dealer said I will be price protected with the one I negotiated in the first place. But this makes me think the order sheet he was showing me wasn't set in stone official?

Any idea?
 
#16 ·
Krash, mine says Alpine White and I ordered Jet Black so I wouldn't worry about it - I spoke to my CA about it as soon as I saw it and he assured me the order is correct and the website will update that later.

BJ - thanks for the number. Calling now!
 
#18 ·
Krash, mine says Alpine White and I ordered Jet Black so I wouldn't worry about it - I spoke to my CA about it as soon as I saw it and he assured me the order is correct and the website will update that later.

BJ - thanks for the number. Calling now!
Great, thanks. I just talked to my CA too. He said the same thing. It's all good.
:)
 
#25 ·
Make sure you get the VIR, vehicle information report from your dealer. He can make a pdf of it and send it over. This and the production number will ensure you have the correct car built to your specs. A number of members on this forum and received cars with incorrect spec, such as auto instead of manual. It is very important you check the actual VIR before production begins. This will save you weeks if the wrong car is delivered and you have to do the whole process over.
 
#31 ·
This is what I can now see on bmwusa.com when I go to tracking. All info seems correct, do you think I should still get the VIR and window sticker from my CA? KK I hope your tracking screen will look like this soon too - it looks like you should expect to see this Tuesday/Wednesday next week. The website seems to have a day or two delay vs the phone system. One thing that makes me wonder is why it says Performance Summer Tires and All Season Tires below that. Am I getting two sets of tires? ;)

 
#32 ·
This is what I can now see on bmwusa.com when I go to tracking. All info seems correct, do you think I should still get the VIR and window sticker from my CA? KK I hope your tracking screen will look like this soon too - it looks like you should expect to see this Tuesday/Wednesday next week. The website seems to have a day or two delay vs the phone system. One thing that makes me wonder is why it says Performance Summer Tires and All Season Tires below that. Am I getting two sets of tires?
Congrats on getting this far, you're on your way.

Disregard everything on that tracking screen, close your browser for three weeks, add the BMW phone number to your Favorites, and keep hitting 'redial' every day at 5PM.

You need the VIR to confirm every option properly, so get it just for peace of mind. The VIR is "God". The BMW tracking site is "awful".

BJ
 
#38 ·
How do you put a signature btw? I want to put one..
 
#64 ·
wow another dealer just responded and said, " I would love to assist you however there are only 6 cars in the country with the options and equipment plus some that meet your criteria. From CA to VA and it would cost approx. $750-1000 to transport these vehicles cross country."
 
#74 ·
BJ
Thanks for your help. More dealers reponded to me today but none of them sound promising. Some just said we have a big inventory, come check it out. What time can u come today. Some said we have a similar car but cant sell it to u for that price. None of them said something along the lines of we have the exact car u want minus one small thing. We'll sell u for x amount less.

I think im like krash. I got a good deal with the right dealer and special ordered the exact car i want. I dont have an old lease running out or anything so no immediate need for the new car this weekend. I'm ok with the wait. Thanks a lot for your help though. I learned a lot in this thread that i can do better the next time i order. :)
 
#80 ·
I just called and was told the vehicle is "scheduled for daily production pack as of 1/6/13". My CA told me it was scheduled for production on week 7 but that it could move up since it's "sold" and considered priority. This is my first time ordering any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
#86 ·
Yes, there's an internal HD and according to some reports on this forum 12GB of it's space is available for music files. Any of the solutions you described will work with the BT trasfer being probably the lowest quality (although a lot of people here don't seem to mind it). I guess the best way is to test it out and see what works best for you.
 
#87 ·
Yeah, but I also read somewhere online that BT is supposed to have the same quality as USB (at least in theory). It's not like sending out radio signals which have the lowest quality. I have bluetooth music streaming in my current car and I can't tell the difference. But then again, I don't have a premium sound system in my car right now..
 
#94 ·
"Your vehicle is in the body shop with the estimated completion date of January 22" - YAY! Previously the system was giving me Jan 23 as the estimated completion date so I my built is now one day ahead of schedule! Where's the champagne!!!? :)
 
#96 · (Edited)
"Your vehicle is in the body shop with the estimated completion date of January 22" - YAY! Previously the system was giving me Jan 23 as the estimated completion date so I my built is now one day ahead of schedule! Where's the champagne!!!?
Don't get too excited because you're about to fall into BMW Shipping Black Hole #1 which is the infamous "your car has completed production and is awaiting transportation" stage.

There it will sit for over a week, maybe two, you'll get all pissed off, you'll make dozens of calls, you won't get anywhere. Then, suddenly, you'll get a call from your dealer who will tell you "you're on the Miranda, your car shipped a week ago" and then you will feel confused but happy.

And, best of all, when this Black Hole happens, you will come here and say something like "my car has been in 'production compete' status for over 10 days, is something wrong?" and we will act like we never told you about the Black Hole and convince you that something is very wrong, your car isn't ever going to make it, and that you lost your car to a Japanese cartel kingpin just to f-ck with you.

BJ
 
#98 ·
I went through this in 2009, basically, so I have some remembrance of what it was like to sit on pins and needles and not know exactly where everything in the process was until all of a sudden, boom, car was here.

March 1 is my date. I am not expecting it a day before that. Hopefully it doesn't get delayed for very long after that.
 
#99 ·
Hmm..

My dealer told me last week that I am scheduled for production on week 4 of January.
I must have called the 800 number (the one BJ posted) 10 times since last week. I just called again and it still tells me "your vehicle is scheduled for production with no confirmed production date yet".

krash and DavidM, what day of the week did you guys confirm the start of your productions?

I'm wondering if I should wait until the end of the week (Friday) or contact the dealer now..?

Also, does Performance Center Delivery take extra time??

Thanks.
 
#100 ·
krash and DavidM, what day of the week did you guys confirm the start of your productions?
Monday.

Also, does Performance Center Delivery take extra time??
I think it does take about extra two weeks although last time I spoke to my CA he was quite optimistic about scheduling it for early March. I would be happy if it takes place in mid March. So far no confirmation on that.
 
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