Are BMWs ordered too much? It seems as though many dealers don't have cars that are anything close to what a lot of people want. I've looked at other car boards and it seems like many more BMWs are ordered than other cars.
I know the dealers I went to didn't have any cars (335i) with aluminum trim, comfort access or 6MT. I don't mean they didn't have any cars with all of those three options, I mean they didn't any cars with one of those three options. Navigation was also scarce. I'm sure many people will just buy what they have on the lot, but it seems like they are dictating what cars most people will buy and basically getting similar cars in to sell.
Wouldn't it be better (to enthusiasts at least) to have more of a variety on the lot?

I think most people agree with what you are saying. There are a couple of other heated threads about this issue. One is talking about how 95% of the BMWs on the lots in the US are Autos. I think BMW could bring over three times more manuals and sell every single one of them. If only BMWNA would get the message...

Yeah, I've been looking at that thread too. Since there are so many options, I think it would be better to have a variety on the lots. Who knows, I might have purchased a car off the lot if they had one that had some of the options I wanted. I think it is somewhat ridiculous that the only thing I can really find on the lot that I want is the car - a 335i - and a color - alpine. Other than those two things, the car would probably have tan leather, wood, no comfort access, no ipod adapter, no nav and no PDC. Come on!

You guys have to look at it from both perspectives, not just your own. First, a good CA will help you through this and it wont be a problem. Comfort Access is available on just about every car and just because it's not on the 3 series you wont, chances are it's on a 7, and they both work the same. Take a look at that. No Navi in the 3? Try a 5 with it. It's the same software and I'm sure they will have a car there with it, even if it's a sold car and you just want to see the interface. Aluminium trim is OK, but it dents easily and holds fingerprints, scratches easily... I know you've seen posts on that before. A dealer isn't going to want a car on the lot that has dented and scratched trim, so you are less likely to see it. Plus, it's just not as popular as the wood.

You have to remember dealers usually floor-plan, or finance these cars. So, that means they pay interest on these cars. Not everybody who comes into the dealer is an enthusiast, so a dealer cant keep cars around cars just for them and hope they come into buy it. It's easier to order a car for the enthusiast (who is more opt to wait to get what they want) and have "common" cars on the lot for the "common" people (who are more opt to not wait and look at the competition). It allows the dealer a greater chance to "spot" deliver a car right then and now.

You have to also rememner that these cars aren't mass produced like say Camry's, Accord's, etc. You're not going to go to the lot and find 100 different choices. You would be pretty lucky to go to the dealer and find exactly what you're looking for. Ordering from the factory is just how it is done. When you order, the car is built specifically for you. This is why, after a certain point, you can't change the options (the car coming down the line has your name on it). That being said...the wait sucks!

You guys have to look at it from both perspectives, not just your own. First, a good CA will help you through this and it wont be a problem. Comfort Access is available on just about every car and just because it's not on the 3 series you wont, chances are it's on a 7, and they both work the same. Take a look at that. No Navi in the 3? Try a 5 with it. It's the same software and I'm sure they will have a car there with it, even if it's a sold car and you just want to see the interface. Aluminium trim is OK, but it dents easily and holds fingerprints, scratches easily... I know you've seen posts on that before. A dealer isn't going to want a car on the lot that has dented and scratched trim, so you are less likely to see it. Plus, it's just not as popular as the wood.

You have to remember dealers usually floor-plan, or finance these cars. So, that means they pay interest on these cars. Not everybody who comes into the dealer is an enthusiast, so a dealer cant keep cars around cars just for them and hope they come into buy it. It's easier to order a car for the enthusiast (who is more opt to wait to get what they want) and have "common" cars on the lot for the "common" people (who are more opt to not wait and look at the competition). It allows the dealer a greater chance to "spot" deliver a car right then and now.

Hello "Zimmy1993":

Wait a moment here. We should purchase a "5" or "7" series to get the options we want? I just started to get rid of the leeches (read: KIDS). Why should I purchase a vehicle with less performance, at a higher price, when the same options are available on the 335 and I do not need the interior room?

The dealers determine the options on the cars they get. They will simply build the cars in the way they think they will sell the fastest. They have lots of sales history to tell them what sells. For my dealer that mean premium package on virtually all cars, add sport package on about half. Virtually all automatic transmissions. Probably half the driving population doesn't know how to drive a manual and the vast majority of the other half doesn't want to. We fanatics on bf.com are the exception not the rule.

The dealers determine the options on the cars they get. They will simply build the cars in the way they think they will sell the fastest. They have lots of sales history to tell them what sells. For my dealer that mean premium package on virtually all cars, add sport package on about half. Virtually all automatic transmissions. Probably half the driving population doesn't know how to drive a manual and the vast majority of the other half doesn't want to. We fanatics on bf.com are the exception not the rule.

Hello "Jhunter":

Gee, is your other cognomen "Carnac the Magnificent"? This is pretty close to the story my salesman told me.

Hello "Zimmy1993":

Wait a moment here. We should purchase a "5" or "7" series to get the options we want? I just started to get rid of the leeches (read: KIDS). Why should I purchase a vehicle with less performance, at a higher price, when the same options are available on the 335 and I do not need the interior room?


hi "nm335"

What I think he meant was try the features on another car to see if you actually like them.

Guys, I wasn't saying I want to see how the features function and the dealer didn't have them. I was saying there wasn't a car that was close to what I wanted and I chose to order.

I do worry about the aluminum denting and holding fingerprintes, but I guess that is the price of having the car. Some might not want to go that route, but I don't think I could go with a dark color - dark colors look great when they are clean...for 30 minutes unless you put them in the garage. I wish there was an option for carbon fiber, that would be my choice. Grey or black wood would be nice too (I ordered a sedan). I just don't care for wood all that much.

Hello "Zimmy1993":

Wait a moment here. We should purchase a "5" or "7" series to get the options we want? I just started to get rid of the leeches (read: KIDS). Why should I purchase a vehicle with less performance, at a higher price, when the same options are available on the 335 and I do not need the interior room?


Sorry. Maybe I should have been a little bit more clear. I said try a 5 or 7 series, not buy a 5 or 7 series. In other words, you can test these options out at the dealer as they work the same in the 3.

Sorry. Maybe I should have been a little bit more clear. I said try a 5 or 7 series, not buy a 5 or 7 series. In other words, you can test these options out at the dealer as they work the same in the 3.

I'm not talking about trying them out, I did that, I'm talking about having them in a 335 on the lot.

I know that... and I wish the cars we wanted were more readily available too. I know that my local dealers tend to be conservative with the cars they get, but not that long ago I spoke to a dealer in Hilton Head (don't know the name), and was told that they tend to load up the cars to the gills with the logic that since most are leased, if a person cant justify the extra $50 to $80 bucks a month for the car on the ground, then they should order what they want.