My conversation with a BMW salesman

[MDinFL]

I was taking my wife's x5 for service and ran into a salesman I know. I told him I bought a tesla. He proceeded to tell me that superchargers cause fires and are dangerous. That the i8 charges overnight from a wall socket and it would take the tesla 3 days. That the batteries are the same as what you buy at the battery store. That tesla requires a non disclosure when the car is serviced. That tesla is slow to respond to service issues. That tesla is slow to repair vehicles. That the battery pack is prone to fires.

Ask I can say is wow. He said that they just had training to compare the i8 to the tesla. The info he was giving me he claimed to have been told at the BMW training. To hear him tell it, I just bought a deathtrap powered by flashlight batteries that could kill me at any time.

Needless to say I am disappointed that BMW seems to be getting misinformation to its sales force. It also appears that BMW is very concerned about tesla.

The weird part is that comparing the i8 to the MS is like apples to oranges. The i8 is an occasional car the tesla is a daily driver. One seats 2 Comfortably and 2 uncomfortably. The other seats 5 comfortably.

He also talked about the hybrid system being available in almost every body style. If I wanted a BMW hybrid I would have bought one. I like charging for distance in my garage. I like knowing the superchargers are there if I need them.

He really put me on the defensive and I was very surprised by his reaction. My service writer, otoh, has never seen one and asked me to bring it by.

Frankly, his reaction almost seemed desperate.

 

[kort677]

car salesmen, politicians, activists, lawyers all come from the same slime pit, just chalk it up as proof of their brand of lunacy

 

[hmmm]

It reminds me of the corporate spin I got from a Porsche sales guy who told me that the model s (who has decimated their Panamera sales) is just a "big plastic skateboard".

 

[RogerHScott]

When you have never seen your terrifying enemy he is always a child-eating ogre with warts and one leg shorter than the other.
The more terrified you are of him the more certain you are of these facts.

 

[Quesder]

Better not to show him the truth with your Tesla car. There will be conflicts in his brain and cause his brain to burn

 

[mikeash]

That the i8 charges overnight from a wall socket and it would take the tesla 3 days.

That is hilarious! I mean, it's totally accurate. The i8 really will get a full charge overnight from a standard wall socket, because it has a 7.1kWh battery. It's like saying that a smaller bucket is superior because you can fill it with water faster.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

Dey Took Orrr Jobs!

 

[Max*]

How can you tell when a <car salesman, politician, etc.> is lying?

His lips are moving.

 

[JohnSnowNW]

I wonder how they'll spin the Bolt when sales of the i3 start their precipitous drop. Granted, the ledge isn't very high.

 

[Park2670]

I worked for a BMW dealership for seven years. This means that I also have quite a few friends at the locations here. It was odd to chat with them after they went to the BMW training for i3/i8 and hear the very same thing. The Tesla is just a big giant off the shelf laptop battery that is not going to last, and the BMW batteries are way more advanced. I tried to tell them the battery casings are the only thing that are similar and the rest is all their own formula, etc... But they wouldn't have it. "The i3 is years more advanced than the Tesla, and there is just no reason to buy a Tesla over the BMW."

This all coming from friends that know I cannot afford a BMW again and just chatting cars... I found it weird.

 

[Vitold]

This is why Tesla insists on bypassing dealerships and selling direct.

That is hilarious! I mean, it's totally accurate. The i8 really will get a full charge overnight from a standard wall socket, because it has a 7.1kWh battery. It's like saying that a smaller bucket is superior because you can fill it with water faster.

When glass is half empty - use smaller glass.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

I was taking my wife's x5 for service and ran into a salesman I know. I told him I bought a tesla. He proceeded to tell me that superchargers cause fires and are dangerous. That the i8 charges overnight from a wall socket and it would take the tesla 3 days. That the batteries are the same as what you buy at the battery store. That tesla requires a non disclosure when the car is serviced. That tesla is slow to respond to service issues. That tesla is slow to repair vehicles. That the battery pack is prone to fires.

Ask I can say is wow. He said that they just had training to compare the i8 to the tesla. The info he was giving me he claimed to have been told at the BMW training. To hear him tell it, I just bought a deathtrap powered by flashlight batteries that could kill me at any time.

Needless to say I am disappointed that BMW seems to be getting misinformation to its sales force. It also appears that BMW is very concerned about tesla.

The weird part is that comparing the i8 to the MS is like apples to oranges. The i8 is an occasional car the tesla is a daily driver. One seats 2 Comfortably and 2 uncomfortably. The other seats 5 comfortably.

He also talked about the hybrid system being available in almost every body style. If I wanted a BMW hybrid I would have bought one. I like charging for distance in my garage. I like knowing the superchargers are there if I need them.

He really put me on the defensive and I was very surprised by his reaction. My service writer, otoh, has never seen one and asked me to bring it by.

Frankly, his reaction almost seemed desperate.

Did you give him the facts so that he would know the truth?

 

[STbreaker]

I went to price a 550 xdrive during my shopping period. When I mentioned they were in competition with Tesla, the salesmen didn't go derogatory at all. He just politely pointed out that BMW has been a company for 100 years and is an industry leader in performance, fit, and finish. Those things are all true and I think the 550 with M package had nicer seats, leather, stitching, etc than Tesla. In a world without a Model S, I probably would've bought one. (The Tesla center touch screen has no competition however.)

Maybe he hasn't been to said training?

 

[Piney999]

Time to sell your wife's X5. You can not support that kind of nonsense.

 

[Camera-Cruiser]

I would have fallen on the floor and flopped around like a dead fish. While laughing.

 

[aus]

Sales people are totally clueless. They're not car people and definitely not electric car people.
Having said that, the i3/i8 is more advanced than a Tesla in many ways with it's carbon fiber/aluminum construction. The interior pieces are also pretty renewable and/or recycled materials. The i3 is damn ugly and needs to double it's range and the i8 needs a real motor to be competitive with the likes of the NSX.

 

[MDinFL]

That is hilarious! I mean, it's totally accurate. The i8 really will get a full charge overnight from a standard wall socket, because it has a 7.1kWh battery. It's like saying that a smaller bucket is superior because you can fill it with water faster.

That's what I said to him.

 

[lklundin]

Did you give him the facts so that he would know the truth?

You can't explain something to people whose pay-check depends on them not understanding.

But you can learn a lot from them by listening.

 

[MDinFL]

Did you give him the facts so that he would know the truth?

I tried. Told him my P85 battery was 10X bigger. Told him that the batteries are the same size as a AA, but much different composition. He just wouldn't listen.

 

[MDinFL]

Time to sell your wife's X5. You can not support that kind of nonsense.

Only a year old. Model X is likely in her future.