Greg Poland / Pacific BMW

I've been in the BMW buying scene in Southern Cal long enough to have heard GP's name thrown around in a very positive light many a time, and I am sure he's one fine example of what a BMW CA should be.

Perhaps, the rub is when his name is mentioned in a model specific forum (rather than the Dealer Feedback one) by someone with very few post counts. It could sound like GP's new assistant This is compounded by the fact that the OP put GP's contact info, which could sound like an ad.

The bottom line is GP is a great asset to the bimmer community (with or without all his overzealous clients praising him publicly).

I've only heard good things about Greg and that goes back to before he was a forum sponsor.

Ignore this Yogi guy. Complete st--ge. Greg, you have a great reputation. I wish that I had known of you before I purchased my 550i from another local dealer. Going for a M5 or 991 in about 18 months and I will definitely be reaching out to you. Big thanks for the $10k you paid me to post this..

Originally Posted by SoCal550i

Ignore this Yogi guy. Complete st--ge. Greg, you have a great reputation. I wish that I had known of you before I purchased my 550i from another local dealer. Going for a M5 or 991 in about 18 months and I will definitely be reaching out to you. Big thanks for the $10k you paid me to post this..

Greg gives great DEALS on porsches too.
Im in

Originally Posted by enigma

Perhaps, the rub is when his name is mentioned in a model specific forum (rather than the Dealer Feedback one) by someone with very few post counts. It could sound like GP's new assistant This is compounded by the fact that the OP put GP's contact info, which could sound like an ad.

That's pretty much it... Nothing against a good salesman, in fact just the very opposite... But it sure did sound like advertising and that's probably not even allowed on this forum. Many of us had good salesmen I'm sure (I did) and if we all went around posting their names and contact info (and fax # for Pete's sake, what the hell is a fax anyway?), then such practice would quickly be banned by the moderator. Especially if the guy's name is being mentioned in the thread title, rather than... say.... model of the car....

Originally Posted by yogi799

This is yet another thread with that man's name that simply sounds like a very clever, disguised self-advertising.

Driving through several counties... why not get your local dealer to match another one's offer?

I don't know but the title of the thread is just odd. Also, why post specific information including his fax #? Some clever salesman I tell you.

The reason several of us post thank you recommendations for Greg on this forum is because he really goes above and beyond. Honestly, I've bought a lot of cars in my life and the sales experience with Greg is special. I had some really complex paperwork that most dealers would have refused to do and Greg took care of it without a sweat. I've heard stories of him delivering cars with roses to guys who buying the car as a gift for their wife.

In addition to myself, I know several guys from Florida who buy cars from Greg (who is in California)! And it's not inconvenient to pick up the car up in South Carolina - in fact the Performance Center Delivery is awesome and worth going across the borer for.

On the FAX thing, he might have just copy/pasted Greg's info from his signature in e-mail or something. I know that's what I'd do (laziness for the win!)

+1 for Greg. He is absolutely amazing. I had a great experience when I got my X5 earlier this year. I would strongly recommend him!!

Originally Posted by yogi799

My salesman was very nice too yet I don't go out promoting him.

Sounds like your salesperson is good but not great! You are absolutely right that it is unusual to write a post recommending a car salesman on the Internet. In fact it is astonishing given that car salesmen are among the most disliked category of sales people out there.

I never wrote a promotional post about a dealer until I met Greg. What made the experience special was this:
1) Quick simple deal (no games, asking manager for permission, etc.)
2) Great pricing
3) Extreme invoice price transparency (he emailed me the paperwork)
4) Superb communication throughout (he emailed me the order screen screenshots so I knew the right order was being placed in the system and know there are no mistakes or misunderstandings). I had better communication and transparency with a guy I never met than all the guys I bought cars from over the phone.
5) Status emails throughout the order process so I know when it goes into production, gets on the ship, etc.
6) Able to get special order done in less than a day that confuses the hell out of most dealers. People still PM me saying their dealer knows nothing about the leather dash and ask me what they should ask the dealer to do.
7) knowing to submit the PCD reservation at the time of ordering not the time of arrival at VPC which streamlined the time to delivery (many dealers don't know this)
8) Follow-up after the delivery to check I was happy

There are lots of car salesmen out there. I say, if one of them treats you fairly and make the experience "special" for you, then help them out by spreading the word and letting other people know about them. Purchasing a car for some people can be very traumatic. It's nice that there are salespeople who treat people like they themselves would want to be treated.

I get it! I don't know you, but thanks Greg for being one of those people!!!

WOW.....I had no idea that my post was going to have haters. I'm not advertising for GP nor am I anyones assistant. This is my very first purchase of a BMW and my first posting on any forum. I was just stating what great service GP provided and what an enjoyable experience it was to purchase a vehicle from him. Why can we just all get along? Whatever.....thanks GP.

Jose

Originally Posted by cowboyup333

WOW.....I had no idea that my post was going to have haters. I'm not advertising for GP nor am I anyones assistant. This is my very first purchase of a BMW and my first posting on any forum. I was just stating what great service GP provided and what an enjoyable experience it was to purchase a vehicle from him. Why can we just all get along? Whatever.....thanks GP.

Jose

Don't sweat it! I think most people here know what your intentions were. More importantly, you set out to do a good thing and you did it!

Welcome and congratulations on your new BMW! Hope you decide to hang around.

Greg and our fest founder Jon Shafer are two of the best -- covering all of CA so we are blessed on this CARB coast! Support your fest sponsors and you will not go wrong.

Thanks Leslierc and the rest of you. I was considering leaving this forum because I thought it was an avenue and tool to use when in need of help and advise covering BMWs. I was so surprised by that individuals remarks especially about the "clever salesman", "insane just to deal with a nicer guy" and the ultimate "what the hell is a fax anyway". But I thought about it and said I won't let a few haters dictate what I can say and offer to help others. Again thanks to all you non-haters.

I can't speak for others but I gave my local dealers every opportunity to get my business and they acted like a bunch of d!ldos.
Sent Greg and e-mail and in very short order made a great deal with no BS, no drama, and no hassles. Conducted the whole transaction over phone/email/fedex. He was a total pro to work with for ED.

Wow.....nice post Yogi. You have no actual facts to back up your theory, yet you feel compelled to negatively speculate about a forum sponsor that is well regarding around here for complete transparency and honest transactions.

I love how people how no qualms typing things on the Internet that they would never say in person. There is a word for that - coward.


On a side note - thanks to Greg Poland for my 2012 650i coupe and a great deal. Where's my 10k check?

YOGI
Seems to be MIA SINCE HIS INSULTING POST.
WOW Big Greg has the JUICE on BIMMERFEST.
John Shafer might want to make him CFO
You bad mouth GP and u get BLACKLISTED FROM PURCHASING BMW'S IN SOCAL...LOL
LOVE IT!

Greg visited me at the dealership today briefly in Santa Barbara.
I sent him off with a complete assortment of Bimmerfest schwag -- Bimmerfest t-shirt, side stickers, XL windshield decal, ...etc.



With all of the love that my colleague gets around here, maybe I should charge him a little more for advertising...



Great to see you Greg!

Well I'm certainly about to get in touch with him - my CA was all in contact with me until I suggested some of the things I learned here... now he's poofed. No reply by Tuesday and I hope to be another Greg Poland fan too!

Originally Posted by Ancient_Mariner

Well I'm certainly about to get in touch with him - my CA was all in contact with me until I suggested some of the things I learned here... now he's poofed. No reply by Tuesday and I hope to be another Greg Poland fan too!

You might want to send me an inquiry too. After all, I did start this site, and have been back selling BMWs exclusively to Bimmerfest members
for about a year now..

If you are anywhere in the SoCal area (or NorCal for that matter) and you don't give Jon and Greg a call you are missing a bet IMHO! They are the best and Santa Barbara is beautiful this time of year. Who knows Jon might even comp you a lunch at the Beachside Cafe -- or for 6 & 7 series purchasers - San Ysidro Ranch!

Originally Posted by Jon Shafer

You might want to send me an inquiry too. After all, I did start this site, and have been back selling BMWs exclusively to Bimmerfest members
for about a year now..

Greg is just a couple miles from my house, so it made sense for me to use him. But I give people on the forums both of your names - I'd never leave you out John!

Originally Posted by UncleJ

If you are anywhere in the SoCal area (or NorCal for that matter) and you don't give Jon and Greg a call you are missing a bet IMHO! They are the best and Santa Barbara is beautiful this time of year. Who knows Jon might even comp you a lunch at the Beachside Cafe -- or for 6 & 7 series purchasers - San Ysidro Ranch!

I couldn't agree more. On the West Coast we don't have a Performance Center Delivery Program. The Santa Barbara Delivery Program is the next best thing...

Originally Posted by jordanM3

Greg is just a couple miles from my house, so it made sense for me to use him. But I give people on the forums both of your names - I'd never leave you out John!

Greg's both a colleague and a good friend. I respect him a lot. The fact that he is also a site sponsor and a reputation of taking good care
of my Bimmerfest members, well, I can't argue with that!

Originally Posted by Jon Shafer

You might want to send me an inquiry too. After all, I did start this site, and have been back selling BMWs exclusively to Bimmerfest members
for about a year now..

As someone who bought his very first bimmer from Jon back in 2001, I can definitely say he's the standard which all the other CAs/Sales Managers are measured by

That's back when I got introduced to Cutter Motors from roadfly.com.

Greg helped me with my custom order for a 328i (4th BMW I've leased since 2003). He was quick and upfront with information. His price was fair and he never hid anything from me. When the manufacturer made an error, Greg quickly let me know and we found a great solution. Another issue arrived post-delivery and Greg go that handled quite quickly too.

I'll happily recommend Greg to others and will return to him when it's time to order another BMW.

You can't go wrong with Greg.

As a bonus if you're coming from the south, take the train to Glendale and it's a 1 mile ride to the dealership. Can't get much easier than that if you're coming from a great distance...