[embassyrow]

Hi everyone, first time poster and first time BMW owner.

I leased a ex-loaner BMW 430i Convertible last week. After working out the deal, the sales agent had one of the younger employees take us out to show us features of the vehicle (they told us the car had features we later discovered it didn’t, but that’s a separate matter).

During this tour, we saw some "minor" damage (scratches, cosmetic damage to center console, water damage at base of retractable roof). We mentioned this to him and he said he'd discuss with the sales agent and then took us straight into the finance room where we were asked to start signing agreements, etc.

When we mentioned the damage to the finance rep, he got angry and said we should have mentioned to sales rep. We explained he was the first person we were seeing since becoming aware of the damage. He stormed out of the room, and then some time later the sales rep returned and said that it wasn't "damage" and that they'd repair one of the scratches and assured us that everything else was within the parameters of wear and tear and we would not be charged upon lease return.

I asked if we could make note of it in the contract and he said there was nowhere to make such notes. I probably should have insisted but based on past lease returns in our family it did seem that the damage would be considered acceptable and I wanted to just get done with the deal (I know, I am kicking myself).

On the drive home (because of random circumstance the dealer is 400 miles away) we discovered that there was a crack in the windshield. We were 99% sure that it hadn’t happened during the drive but since we couldn’t be absolutely positive, we had a windshield specialist come out and without prompting he immediately informed us that the crack had been repaired (poorly) already and that there really wasn’t much he could do but add a little more glue to the top.

We hadn’t noticed the crack at the dealer because the car was in a shaded area.

Unlike the other damage, a cracked windshield tends to get bigger over time, especially over the 3 years of the lease and I hate to think we’ll have to replace the windshield upon return. We’ve reached out to the dealer and are not receiving a response.

Does anyone have experience leasing loaner vehicles? What’s the correct process to handle existing damage? Is there anything we can do now after the sign-off?

Thanks, this is the first time I've handled negotiations with a dealer and it's been quite a learning experience to say the least.

[tracer bullet]

Originally Posted by embassyrow

Is there anything we can do now after the sign-off?

Legally speaking I do not think there is. A lot of people seem to think there's a rule that you can return a car within a certain amount of time but I'm quite sure that rule doesn't actually exist. You own the car.

It's a bit late of course to say all the things you should have done. You know those things now.

At this point you have to go back to the dealership and try to escalate to the next level. Write down everything you remember everyone telling you. Be respectful but of course be serious as well.

Have in mind what you are looking to get accomplished so that you can have something to ask for and an idea of what you will accept (repairs made to certain things, being willing to ignore certain things, whatever it is).

Good luck -

[MmmmmM2]

Sounds like a real shitty dealership to me. I would have canceled the deal the minute the finance manager stormed out of the room.

[exE36M3]

If I remember right there is either a cooling off period or a returns period where you are given 48 hours to return a car for whatever reason and pay a small fee.

Do a quick google search and give a quick read of the dealer website.

[sspade]

Since when can you lease a used car?

Sounds whack.

[rak299]

Originally Posted by percychow

If I remember right there is either a cooling off period or a returns period where you are given 48 hours to return a car for whatever reason and pay a small fee.

Do a quick google search and give a quick read of the dealer website.

In general, there is no right of rescission on car purchases. I believe that in California, the dealer is supposed to offer you the chance to buy some sort of insurance that lets you return a car used for whatever reason for 48 hours

[capt_slow]

Did you take any photos of the car prior to delivery? This will help any (if at all) disputes with BMWFS in the future.

I had a similar situation on my i3, with damage found after delivery. Turns out I had a photo of the damage while the car was in the showroom and BMW took care of repair. At the very least, make a service visit to at least put the discrepancy on paper. But do it at a better dealer. If the damage is plausible, the the SA may work with you to fix it under warranty. YMMV though.

[M3PGH]

never buy a loaner that is not local to you and you are ready to walk away after inspecting the car before signing any papers
loaner cars get abused all the time by customers and dealers patch them up
and they feel that since we are discounting the car more than a new car , it can have some minor issues
i just spent 2 months looking before i picked a 440 drive
locally looked for loaners
out of town only new cars

[embassyrow]

Thanks for your thoughts and suggestions everyone.

It took some time and persistence but I've arrived at what should be a satisfactory resolution and I'll try to be as detailed as possible in case someone can benefit reading this in the future.

I had taken a few photos (though I was not nearly as thorough as I would be in the future) and that definitely helped, especially because nowadays mobile phones tag photos with both time and GPS location (i.e., the dealership in this case).

After not receiving a response from the original Sales Rep, I called the dealership a few times and a thankfully diligent Rep promised to escalate the matter to a Sales Manager, who did eventually call me back. I explained the situation and mentioned that I had photos.

He remembered the transaction and recalled conveying to the Sales Rep that they wouldn't be fixing any damage (supposedly because we had negotiated such a good deal). The Sales Rep took this to mean that they wouldn't be willing to even document damage, though evidently they wouldn't have had an issue in doing so (why then the Finance Mgr also objected when we asked, who knows). In any case, I emailed the details of the damage and supporting photos, and it took 3-4 weeks of following up every few days, but I did finally receive an acknowledgement today that the damage was pre-existing and that we should not be charged on lease return.

I think/hope this should be enough for BMW Financial.

I've actually leased another BMW last week from another dealer, and there were some scratches to the undercarriage which they did write into the agreement after a little persistence.

I also learned that you can ask to attach a "Statement of Fact" to a lease agreement for something like this if the Finance Manager claims there's nowhere for them to write in damage.

[Gen13 F36]

This is why you need to do a thorough inspection of the vehicle ... if your new to BMW bring your BMW expert friend to inspection the car.

I always do thorough inspection. I made them fixed the car before I sign any papers. If they can't fix it right there. I want it written that they will fix it some other time. That if the problem is fixable and not complicated.

Back to the vehicle you bought, you mention minor damage "water damage on the convertible part is NOT MINOR damage.. this has to be inspected alot more that usual.... shit convertible parts are expensive.

[rak299]

water damage on the inside is NEVER minor