Right, well… Finally reached a resolution.
I started out saying I would not accept cash, that the car was flawed and on very steep hills it will be very difficult to not roll back. I started by asking BMW to provide a replacement 35i manual built to my spec, that had the feature. They offered a sizable cash contribution. I wrote a letter explaining, and they then told me they would do the swap, but I had to pay the difference in retail price.
Punchy and unaffordable for me.
An auto 20i was an option (dealer was going to cover cost of auto for me), but the issue is the finance and offers etc. Because you would be ending one agreement (which is on the specific spec of your car), you would have to start a new one, and BMW was unwilling to offer the previous terms which as we all know, are much better than the current.
So I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Started going back through my list of potential cars and thought really hard about a Lotus Elise SC again which had previously been thrown out on the basis of practicality. Then the dealer offered a bit more on top of BMW’s offer.
If you accepted £350, then you may wish to look away now. It’s quite a big number................. We agreed on the dealer changing the oil and oil filter (something I always intended to after 1-2k), fitting the black high gloss grilles, fitting aluminium pedals and a cheque for £2,700.
Pretty happy with the outcome but there is a piece of me that still thinks the car is slightly flawed. My final thoughts for anyone else going through this are these:
• BMW customer services made out like the £1,845 they are contributing was based on the spec I had selected (saying they would pay for the Comfort pack and Service pack), so it may not be the same for everyone
• BMW customer services (who the dealer dealt with) was not that helpful and quite slow
• My dealer, despite some initial issues around scratches to the car and late delivery, turned out to be an absolute super star in the end. I am no doubt very annoying, but he was great and I genuinely do not think I could ask any more of him.
• There are two good bits of news from this – Firstly, I get to drive the car I genuinely love driving (apart from on hills). And secondly, this makes the sensational deal many of us were able to benefit from, even more amazing.
Now I just need it to stop raining.
