[Evergreen24]

Who has the better service department, BMW of Austin (North), or BMW of South Austin?

BMW of Austin is nice enough but they did some crappy work for me that has left me without AC in the Texas summer. Yikes.

Could be because the shop wasn’t running well due to the virus, or it could be they are just bad no matter what.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: South Austin opened in 2018 so they never sold e90s new, which means they might not get a lot of them through their service department

Although I guess their techs had to come from somewhere, right?

[PerfectAce]

I can only speak to BMW of Austin (North) as the only service I've ever had done by the dealer was done there and it was recall work.

The good: very nice customer service. Gave me a loaner for the day even though the work only took a few hours, although I had to schedule it ahead of time. If you need to hang around, the amenities are great -- coffee, lounge, movie theater.

The bad: when i first bought my car, I stopped by the dealer to buy some parts and swung by the service dept to ask a few questions about possible future service, namely: carbon cleaning on the M57 diesel. I asked if they'd ever walnut blasted a diesel before, how much it would cost, etc. The service writer said he was never aware of them having done one, and was confident that because he'd never seen that service done it was unlikely my car needed it. I laughed.

If you don't mind me asking, do you have an extended warranty on your 335d? If not, your wallet would probably be better off finding a good independent shop. European Motorwerks at the Domain has a tech (or at least used to) that drove a 335d. Not that that means they'd be the best place to take your car, but it does mean that they at least have some familiarity with the platform, and more importantly, the M57 diesel.

IMO, you needn't be worried that a shop that services BMWs might baffled by the e90 platform -- mechanically, it's not really that different than what came before or after. Your worry should be finding a good tech that can service the oil burner under the hood.

[Evergreen24]

Originally Posted by PerfectAce

I can only speak to BMW of Austin (North) as the only service I've ever had done by the dealer was done there and it was recall work.

The good: very nice customer service. Gave me a loaner for the day even though the work only took a few hours, although I had to schedule it ahead of time. If you need to hang around, the amenities are great -- coffee, lounge, movie theater.

The bad: when i first bought my car, I stopped by the dealer to buy some parts and swung by the service dept to ask a few questions about possible future service, namely: carbon cleaning on the M57 diesel. I asked if they'd ever walnut blasted a diesel before, how much it would cost, etc. The service writer said he was never aware of them having done one, and was confident that because he'd never seen that service done it was unlikely my car needed it. I laughed.

If you don't mind me asking, do you have an extended warranty on your 335d? If not, your wallet would probably be better off finding a good independent shop. European Motorwerks at the Domain has a tech (or at least used to) that drove a 335d. Not that that means they'd be the best place to take your car, but it does mean that they at least have some familiarity with the platform, and more importantly, the M57 diesel.

IMO, you needn't be worried that a shop that services BMWs might baffled by the e90 platform -- mechanically, it's not really that different than what came before or after. Your worry should be finding a good tech that can service the oil burner under the hood.

I actually need work done on the ventilation system... so not M57 specific.

I do have an extended warranty. I talked to the shop foreman at BMW North and I liked him a lot, so I decided to let them have at it. I get very paranoid any time the dash comes out... well, paranoia validated.

I was considering Terry Sayther, have you had any experience with them?

[PerfectAce]

Originally Posted by Evergreen24

I actually need work done on the ventilation system... so not M57 specific.

I do have an extended warranty. I talked to the shop foreman at BMW North and I liked him a lot, so I decided to let them have at it. I get very paranoid any time the dash comes out... well, paranoia validated.

I was considering Terry Sayther, have you had any experience with them?

I don't have any experience with Terry Sayther as I live up north, but would not question his knowledge of BMWs -- he's been a mainstay in Austin for decades working solely on BMWs. I'd also trust Black Forest Werkshop. I've had work done there before. Lee Rector, the owner, used to work with (or for?) Sayther at one time, I believe. Both places charge more than smaller garages, but they both have forgotten more about BMWs than most of us will ever know.

[Evergreen24]

Did you have someone in town do your deletes for you?

[PerfectAce]

No, I took it to someone I know in Houston. PM me for details.