New Car Woes - Friend in Need - Wrong Specification!

[Engineer1]

AB said:

I'd ask them to swap the interior and throw in some nice freebies like a couple of umbrellas and some free servicing? It's a ball ache but we all make mistakes.

My parent's had similar with their new Toyota, wrong interior colour got guaranteed trade in price for their car and free servicing for 3years.

[mattcov]

Engineer1 said:

My parent's had similar with their new Toyota, wrong interior colour got guaranteed trade in price for their car and free servicing for 3years.

Depends if the lease is fully maintained or not. If it is, it doesnt benefit the driver.

[Engineer1]

True, but if Toyota screwed up a purchase and offered this surely on a lease they should have enough flexibility to give some good apology freebies, floor mats, first full tank of fuel, complementary tat from the BMW clothes/accessory range, hell a case of wine is an option all of which make someone feel a little better about the way the problem has been handled.

[C. Grimsley]

I actually quite like it.

Carl

[Kevin VRs]

As far as BIK goes I believe it is the date of delivery that applies so the 20% VAT and any price increase will hit him anyway....

I wait to be corrected by somebody who knows for sure, I am not certain.

[H_Kan]

If it is the colour in the pic, then I actually quite like it. But, not sure how it would go with black exterior.

I'd accept a dealer fit, on the condition that they get him a fresh one if he is not happy with it and loan car for the duration.

[yinujim]

Brown is nice. And its not light enough to get dirty like beige.

[Flintstone]

When I was a kid and inevitably mixed all the different colours of plasticine it ended up looking like this.



I'm not helping much, am I?

[Chucklehead]

I think the brown looks great

[Fun Bus]

OP, what's the exterior colour of the car?

[whoami]

Fun Bus said:

OP, what's the exterior colour of the car?

.

Tartan

[AB]

Fun Bus said:

OP, what's the exterior colour of the car?

Important question!

Something in my head said 'black' in which case the leather it came with will look OK.

[Pferdestarke]

Silver

[caterhamboy]

I like it, i'm sure they would do a service on his own car for free if he and paid for the parts.

He has a personal 320d coupé which he was due to sell imminently which needs new tyres and a "service"

[scooby jeff]

Flintstone said:

When I was a kid and inevitably mixed all the different colours of plasticine it ended up looking like this.

I'm not helping much, am I?

I often ate plasticine as a kid. It came back out a sort of Cinnamon Brown colour...

[Garlick]

Chucklehead said:

I think the brown looks great

Agreed. Not that bad at all, but still not what the chap wants.

It's a lease car, so use it and get it booked in for the offered interior swap. I bet that swap comes with a loan car too. Sorted.

[Fun Bus]

I it were me and a black car, I think I'd grin and bear it but on a silver car I'd have to have the black leather.

[Doniger]

Pferdestarke said:

Good afternoon PH'ers.

I have a friend who ordered a new 520d M-Sport three months ago prior to the VAT increase. He specced the 8-speed auto, Pro-Nav and Black Dakota leather amongst other niceties and was very much looking forward to today as the car was due.

Cue this morning and it is delivered to his home address. All was well until he opened the driver's door only to discover it had been delivered with Cinnamon Brown Dakota, or as we have quickly named it 'dog st dakota' leather. Understandably he was very frustrated but has a few considerations before making a decision on how to proceed.

• It is a lease car bought via his employer where he is 'topping up' with a personal monthly payment

• BMW have refused to give a loan vehicle if he was to refuse the new car

• He has a personal 320d coupé which he was due to sell imminently which needs new tyres and a service. He could run this but he has swapped the private plate on to the new car and three months' mileage would devalue this vehicle further.

• There has been a price increase and VAT hike since his order so he would pay more tax on the BIK value of the re-ordered vehicle

• BMW have offered to retro-fit the specified interior but this would involve taking the dashboard apart as well as the seats which isn't ideal

Before you all insist that he rejects it, please consider his position on his existing vehicle and BMW's stance on their loan car.

How to take the fun out of a new car purchase!!

As ever, your advice/comments are welcome and I'll forward the link to this thread over to him.

What action would you take?

Hello. I used to work in BMW fleet sales.

First things first. Is he SURE he ordered black? I know, it's an insulting question but it's not impossible he asked for the wrong option name or ticked the wrong box. If this is the case, it's his fault and tough tootles.

But if he IS sure, forget BMW, go back to the lease company and make them work for their money. They need to find out who fked up the order as it's their problem to rectify.

The blame and costs involved in rectifying the colour of the leather will land on whoever fked up the order (ie the lease co or BMW), but this guy is a customer of the lease company and THEY have to provide him with a car while they sort out the new one.
They will either hire one if it's their fault, or bully BMW into providing or hiring one if it's their fault - but either way it's the lease company's responsibility to keep their customer mobile and happy.

Do not drive the car at all. Don't put a single mile on it. If he does it will make it a much bigger fight to reject the car and he might not be able to. He needs to reject the car back to the lease company (not BMW - it belongs to the lease company) and insist that they sort it out for him.
They will probably go with the dealer-fit option...frankly, tell him to grow a pair on that issue as it's not a big deal and they'll only take the dash apart anyway the first time he whinges about something like his bluetooth not working - and if the interior IS falling apart by the end of the lease (it won't be), it's really not his car or his problem.

So yeah. Go back to the lease company and kick their asses into action.

[Pferdestarke]

Doniger said:

Hello. I used to work in BMW fleet sales.

So yeah. Go back to the lease company and kick their asses into action.

Thanks for the advice!

[AB]

Pferdestarke said:

Silver

Ouch