So, I allowed him to "upsell" me into replacing all the rubber lines with a third party provided, stainless steel set. I agree that exposure to UV, and rain, and what-not means that all the lines are equally old, and should be replaced. Plus, it will look cool.
I told him (Rick), that I had plans to to out of town on Thursday, the 1st of March. I told him that I had made these plans 2 months prior, and that I had non-refundable, pre-paid, hotel reservations, and so I was willing to pay the extra to have the parts shipped in overnight. I also told this to Greg, the parts manager.
So, then, I left the shop, without asking for a loaner motorcycle, because, well, I hate asking favors. Even the Salesman was a little shocked that the shop manager did not offer a loaner, and that he was allowing me to ride home (and all the rest of the time, until the parts came in) with "spongy" brakes. But, in the end, I left.
Sunday morning, and I REALLY wanted to get a taquito from Whataburger. So, I went to push the bike out, and when I pulled the brake lever, it went all the way to the handlebars, and She did not stop. I threw it on its side onto the side-stand, and then immediately, pulled right back into the garage.
Monday the 27th dawns, and I do the "work from home thing, because frankly, I was a little afraid to ride She that day. My plan was to call the shop on Tuesday, and make arrangements to get a loaner, and drop my bike off, thinking that the parts would have been there, because I had called Saturday morning, to check that the parts were ordered, and was told that they had been.
So, Tuesday, I called in, and Rick agreed to provide a loaner, and so, with much fear in my heart, I left my house for the 35 mile ride across town, on the freeway, in traffic. I made it there without much fanfare, which was good.
Having arrived, I immediately went to see Greg in parts, to inquire if they parts had made it into the shop. Unfortunately, I was told that they had not. I again explained that I had this trip that I was trying to go on, and that I had to have the bike repaired before Thursday.
They gave me a loaner, and made it very clear that I needed to bring it back Thursday morning, which worked for me, because I wanted to leave for Louisiana on Thursday morning.
Wednesday morning, I call into shop. No Parts.
Thursday morning, I took loaner back, thinking that, the parts that I asked the week before to have overnight-ed, would be there, and that the guys in the shop would be able to fix my bike, and I could get out of town, and still make the trip to Louisiana.
Arriving at the shop on Thursday morning, I walk back to service, and I do not see She in the shop at all. Fear gripped my heart. I then asked Rick if my parts had arrived, and he said no. Then I walked to parts, and asked Greg, and he said that no parts had arrived.
Now, I am in a bad spot. I have returned the loaner, and am 40 miles from home. She is in the shop, and so, hat in hand, I called and asked my daughter to come and get me and take me downtown so I could catch the bus home.
Then, I returned the keys to Bill, the salesman, who had helped me get the loaner. He said "I hope that this doesn't ruin your trip.", to which I replied, what trip, I cannot go, since I do not have a bike. Then I commented that I was, in fact going to have to ride the bus home because of this.
I spent the first day of my vacation sitting at home, and watching television.
Friday morning dawns, and after a lot of thought that if the parts arrived that day, I could still make Lafayette, without too much hassle. Sure, I lost that first night's hotel fee already, but, that is okay, some vacation I reasoned, was better than none. So, I waited until 10:30 to call into the shop to check on parts, because I knew they get their shipments early, only to be told that no shipments had yet been delivered. I bit my tongue, and said I would try back later, or, I suggested, they could call me.
Friday at 3:30, I still hadn't heard from them, so, I again called. Was told, yet again, that the parts that I had requested to be ordered, and offered to pay for overnight shipping an entire 7 days previously, STILL HAD NOT ARRIVED.
At this point, my frustration level was so high. I knew that my ability to see my friends over the weekend were completely out of reach, and, frustrated, asked Rick, the service manager for an explanation.
He couldn't (or wouldn't) give one. Then he commented that perhaps there was a demo bike on the showroom floor that they needed to put miles on that they could loan me for the weekend, that I could take on my long trip, without any hassle. He put me on hold, and after about 5 minutes came back and told me that they DID have a bike, and that they could loan it to me! W00T! Or, so I thought.
I was going to pick the bike up on Saturday morning, and at least I would be able to see the friends Saturday afternoon, before they headed back home...... But The Fates, they had other plans.
10 minutes later, I get a call from Bill, the salesman, who started the call with "I Am An Asshole.", to which I responded, huh? He said "This is Bill at Gulf Coast", I said okay, and he repeated the ....Asshole comment. My heart fell.
Apparently, they did not have a bike. Something about looking at the wrong VIN when Rick had asked him. 3 strikes, and you are out......
The rest of the weekend totally sucked. I didn't get to go anywhere like I planned. I didn't get to see my friends that came up from central Florida, partially to see me, and instead of being relaxed after a few days off, well, I was pissed.
Monday, for the first time in more than 5 years, I was forced to get up at 5:30 AM, and walk to the bus stop, ride a bus, then the train, then walk the mile to the front of Main Baylor, and finally, catch the BCM shuttle to take me to Nabisco building. Total distance traveled from home, 18 miles. Total time to travel that distance, 2 hours. Cost of fares $2.50, or a little more than what it costs to fill She's gas tank, Half-Way! Lucky for me, Bubba came to get me so I did not have to ride public transportation home.
Tuesday, I did the whole morning commute again. Same as Tuesday morning........ However, for the trip home, Bubba was not available to come pick me up, so, I had to ride home on the bus, and train.....
Called the shop, No parts again, and again, no explanation. THEN I LOST MY COOL. I turned into "that guy" on the phone, and just showed my ass. I demanded that Greg give me an explanation for what was taking so long, and he finally admitted that the supplier had contacted them to tell them that they had all the lines needed for the kit except for one, the one for the front brake, which is the one that I needed. And I FOUND OUT THAT THEY (Gulf Coast) KNEW THIS FROM THE VERY START! After a long conversation, Greg asked me if I needed a loaner bike, to which I replied that I had been told previously that they did not have one. He stated that he would find me one, and call me back. That was a 3:30. At 5:05, he called be back, and said that he had one, to which I truthfully replied that it was too late, I could not get there before they closed. She said, "we'll wait for you", which they did. So, Now I have a loaner.
Wednesday, and I had enough of the whole public transport thing, and asked for permission to work from home, and received the okay for that. It was, surprisingly, a good work from home day, as I got a lot of things accomplished.
Called the shop, only to be told that the parts were once again not there.
Thursday, I just called in sick. I did not feel like going in, was much too stressed, and whatever..... So, I stayed home and did nothing.
Didn't bother to call Gulf Coast, and received no calls from them.
Friday (today), I rode the loaner into work. It was raining. Always a fun day to ride in the rain. More fun to ride an unfamiliar bike.
We will see if they call about parts arriving today.
RANT ON: Now, as I finish this blog post, I am seething about the whole experience.
This is the second time in a row that getting repairs to the bike have gone badly. This first time, while they got the repair done, they left me with a bike covered in fork oil, and fingerprints on the top of the triple tree. It is true that I rarely, if ever wash my bike, but, for a repair shop to leave fork oil on the fork tubes, and fingerprints on the top of the triple tree's seems sloppy. I wrote an email detailing all of that to Cliff, the owner of Gulf Coast, explaining that I was not angry or upset, but, that I expected better. Three days later, I received a generic reply back that simply said "Thanks for the feedback."
Then there is this incident. If they had been honest with me on that Tuesday the 28th, when they knew there was a problem with the one part that I _DID_ need, and told me, I would have requested that they order the 100.00 hose from BMW, and replaced it, so that I could go on my trip. Then, when the parts did come in, bring it in, and let them replace the rubber lines with the stainless ones that were ordered. Yes, that would have been the more expensive option, but, frankly missing out on my trip was the most expensive option that I had, and they did not even give me any options.
RANT OFF.
So, now, I am on the hunt for a new shop to do repairs to my bike in the future, because I have lost faith/confidence in them. This is the sad, "moral of the story" that Gulf Coast will have to realize.
UPDATE #1 - Monday, 12 MAR 2012
So, Friday and Saturday rolled by and I have received no update of whether the parts came in. I still have the loaner, and I am grateful for that, but, was not able to take advantage of that because we had monsoon type rain all weekend. And, it was kind of cold....
I really hope that I get She back this week. The loaner is okay, and while it has two things that I wish She had, (namely the headlights, and the electric windscreen), it rides nothing like She.
UPDATE #2 - Wednesday 14 MAR 2012
So yesterday, at 3:10 PM, I received a call from Rick at Gulf Coast. The parts have finally arrived. While speaking to him, he mentioned that the front brakes were thin, and could replace them while the bike was apart, for just the cost of the parts. I figured they were like that, and in fact was going to have them replaced the next time I had the front tire replaced, so, other than adding 70.00 to the cost of repair, a pretty much no-brainer.
I am hopeful that today, I am going to get the bike back, but, am not holding my breath. Then there is the cost. I am hoping that it is manageable. We will see. If it is more than 700.00, I will not be able to pick it up until Friday.
UPDATE #3 - Wednesday 14 MAR 2012
Just heard from the shop! She is Finished. Picking her up today!
I am so very happy. I Miss My Motorcycle. :)
UPDATE #4 - Thursday 15 MAR 2012
So, I picked up the bike up yesterday. It was, as I imagined like seeing an old friend again. As I climbed on her, adjusted the seat, and the mirrors, and pulled on my gloves, and helmet, that smile that I often have, which is hidden from view popped back onto my face. Riding home was like, well, to borrow a line from Forrest Gump, "It was like old times, like Peas and Carrots.".
Interestingly, I am not sure how, but, I "think" that perhaps the fellows at GC found this blog post, because there was a lot of, well conversations about things that I type here. Going to write a letter today, and send it to them. I will post a copy as a blog post, for posterity. I hope that I haven't screwed up my ability to be their customer, going forward.
UPDATE - Last One - This is the letter that I sent to them today:
Dear Cliff, Bill, Rick and Greg,
I will start this letter the same way that I will end it. "I hope that I have not ruined my ability to be your customer in the future!"
As you all know, yesterday, I got to pick up my bike from you after it was in your shop for 3 weeks due to a part snafu.
I was a little surprised when Rick came out of the shop with the ticket, and attached to the ticket was a post-it with the names and addresses of other shops that do BMW motorcycle repair. When I asked why, Rick stated that he heard I was not happy, and might be looking for other places to do my future repairs, and that while he regretted that decision on my part, wanted to help me to find someone.
The reason I was surprised? Well, I did not know that I had actually said that to anyone. Then I remembered that last week, when I spoke to Greg that perhaps I had said it then.
So, let me just say this, What I said, then, was said "in the heat of the battle", or, in my case, while I was angry.
- Yes, I was upset with the fact that I missed out on my vacation, but, that was not on you.
- Yes, I was upset that the part did not come in, but that was not on you.
- Yes I was upset about the fact that you all knew pretty quickly after the part was ordered that the one line I needed was the one they had to make. and if given the choice to purchase the more expensive BMW part, and put it on so that I did not miss my vacation, I would have done it. (which means that I would have spent 1000ish on brake line repairs, instead of the 500ish, that I did spend, but, my reasoning was that I had non-refundable hotel tickets, and was meeting friends that I only get to see 3 times a year, at most, would make the situation a wash.)
But, as "they" say, time heals all wounds. I WAS upset, but, now am much better.
Cliff, you and your group there at Gulf Coast BMW are some of the greatest that I have ever dealt with before, and I have on the past, and will, going forward, recommend to anyone that asks me about purchasing a bike, or getting service from. Greg and Rick have always been very helpful in answering any of the questions that I might have, including, the stupid questions. Bill, has been great as well.
So, having said all that, I hope that you understand that while I was "upset" I was not upset at you or your group there at Gulf Coast.
And, as promised, I end this the way that I began it, "I hope that I have not ruined my ability to be your customer in the future!"
Sincerely,
This Saga Is Over. :)
Namaste, My Friends.
See You On The Other Side.