It's official - My Dealer is closing

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sjbmw
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It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by sjbmw »

Confirming a swirling rumor, I got my letter yesterday.

DeSimone Powersports in South Jersey will be closing their doors for good on November 25th.

Along with BMW, the Victory, Ducati, and Triumph lines will be gone too....



I'm bummed. I was happy with my dealer.....


Time to make a checklists list of self service tools, links and other necessary gizmos.... fire away.

(all I own is a ratchets and allen wrenches..)
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by boxermania »

Sorry to hear that, obviously you were pleased with their service. May I ask why are they closing their doors, inquiring minds want to know.
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sjbmw
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by sjbmw »

Lack of sales.

The letter said they would not survive the winter off season.
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MattPie
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by MattPie »

sjbmw wrote:Lack of sales.

The letter said they would not survive the winter off season.
Damn. I bought a pair of boots there last year, I guess that wasn't enough. :) Hermy's in Port Clinton, PA may be your next closer dealer, although it's a bit of a hike from NJ.

Hey SJ, you a MAC-PAC'r?
Go Sabres!
sjbmw
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by sjbmw »

No, the MAC-PAC are on the other side of the river from me.

I have met a few of them, they are a most righteous crew.
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jrsndman
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by jrsndman »

Wow! This means there isn't a BMW motorcycle dealer within 50 miles of Philadelphia. I'll have to check today's mail. I didn't receive a letter yet.
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jfslater98
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by jfslater98 »

That is a bummer. Same thing happened to me when Garden State BMW closed near me. Hardened my resolve to do my own servicing. Here's what you'll need

Torque Wrench, maybe two. The rear wheel nuts are torqued to 105NM, so make sure at least one goes that high.
Feeler guages, for checking the valves
You may want to get the Jim Von Baden maintenance DVDs, depends on if you've seen these services in person, or if you have experienced folks nearby
Torx and allen sockets
Water manometer or Twinmax for syncing TBs
ABS? Then you'll want one of these. Or bribe me with food/beer and I'll ride down and help you get through the bleeding process :D
You'll also need 8 and 7mm wrenches to finish that service.
You may need a heat gun, if the clutch "bung" hasn't been removed, for when you flush that part.

I'm probably missing a few things, so I would check out the Hall Of Wisdom over at ADVrider, print out the 1150 maintenance items and check on the tool list.

Hope that helped.
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towerworker
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by towerworker »

Need two quarts of antifreeze too. Prestone works well for me. :lol:
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by jfslater98 »

towerworker wrote:Need two quarts of antifreeze too. Prestone works well for me. :lol:
Doh! Towerworker "Rick-rolls" us again. :lol:
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by Marty2 »

Sounds like we need to get some tech days started in the North East.
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iowabeakster
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by iowabeakster »

Bad news for the customers...awful news for the employees...devastating to the owners. That really sucks.

Here is a great resource that I've had bookmarked forever...
Maintenance schedules...how to's...
http://home.mindspring.com/~jabrooks/

Here's a maintenance manual from Macx...
http://www.mediafire.com/?jlhu2wzujzy

We've got ya covered for all the questions you might have.
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MattPie
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by MattPie »

sjbmw wrote:No, the MAC-PAC are on the other side of the river from me.

I have met a few of them, they are a most righteous crew.
We have a few NJ guys, all are welcome! :)


Rumor has it that Montgomeryville Cycle Center (http://www.montgomeryvillecc.com/) is going to become a BMW dealer next year. I'll also put a plug in for Tom Cutter at http://www.rubberchickenracinggarage.com/ in Yardley, PA (on US1 across from Trenton). Long-time BMW guy (he gives airhead seminars at the MOA rally) and does good work. (He's also a friend; full-disclosure and all that)
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challey
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by challey »

It's pretty incredible that the 5th largest metro area in the country can't support even one BMW dealer. The choices for Philly riders now are Hermy's in Port Clinton (about 85 miles from Center City), Cross Country in Metuchen, NJ (78 miles) or Bob's in Maryland (100 miles).

There are at least 4 if not 5 Harley Dealers in the area, probably at least that many metric bike dealers and even at least one Italian bike place (I think Fast by Feracci in Willow Grove, just north of town sells Ducati, Guzzi and MV Agusta).

So there is obviously a market for bikes in Philly - just not BMW's. Don't know if that says more about the town or about the marque.

And Herb, if you need a hand with maintenance or (simple) repair, you know how to get in touch with me.

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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by Arbee »

That will teach 'em to open a bike shop in an Amish Town... :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by PhillyScott »

sjbmw wrote:Confirming a swirling rumor, I got my letter yesterday.

DeSimone Powersports in South Jersey will be closing their doors for good on November 25th.

Along with BMW, the Victory, Ducati, and Triumph lines will be gone too....



I'm bummed. I was happy with my dealer.....


Time to make a checklists list of self service tools, links and other necessary gizmos.... fire away.

(all I own is a ratchets and allen wrenches..)
Yeah, I was aware they were going to close for some time and I was saddened when I finally received my letter. All staff in the showroom, parts counter and service desk were A1. They were an excellent dealership and they will be missed! :(

As far as dealers go, if your bike doesn't need warranty work, Roland at The Spare Parts Company works on all BMW's and is excellent. If it's warranty work you need done then Hermy's is the place to go. They are a bit far, but an excellent dealership.

The Spare Parts Company
406 Vine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215.922.2214

Hermy's Cycle
Route 61
Port Clinton, PA 19549
610.562.7303
http://www.hermys.com

Ride safe,
Scott Seiber
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sjbmw
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by sjbmw »

And the sun rose again! Email I received....


Great news SJ BMW, Ducati and Triumph owners!
Our good friend Rob Kiviat "RK" has joined forces with Norman Garrett and the Eckenhoff family to open up and run Eckenhoff Motorcycles of Cherry Hill.

This new shop will be located at 919 Church Road, Cherry Hill, NJ (on the site of the old Eckenhoff Buick dealership) near the Cherry Hill Mall.
Rob will be running the shop of course, masterfully operating on whatever comes through the doors especially those 1972 - current BMW's. Word has it that Rob is even going to have a dyno in the shop!Cool! Norman (also a BMW Master Mechanic) specializes in the Ducatis. Triumphs owners will be welcome too as both these master mechanics can handle the British bikes too. Plans call for a V-Twin specialist, Gary Delfico, to join up in the near future to keep our HD/Victory friends happy. Although the shop will primarily be focussing on maintanance and repair - Alan, (from the old DeSimone store) will be handling parts and accessories so that will be available and in good hands. Labor rates are going to be REASONABLE which we all appreciate.

This new venture is scheduled to open the week of March 8th - just in time for the spring riding season.
You can call Eckenhoff Motorcycles at 856-482-5300 or check out their website (which should be up soon...) [email protected]
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by challey »

Apparently, Montgomery Cycle in Hatfield, PA (Montco - maybe 15 miles northwest of CC Phila) is now also a BMW dealer. So, the 5th largest metro area in the US has now swung from zero BMW dealers to 2 in an matter of months.

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Royal Tiger
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by Royal Tiger »

Shame about DeSimmone. I grew up in Camden County and used to window shop and dream there back in the day. Hermy's isn't that far from me though. Eurosports in Coopersburg sells Ducati/aprilia/Triumph, and there are at least 4 Japanese dealers very close to me. The Valley seems to have more places then Philly/South Jersey, even with far less people.
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sjbmw
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by sjbmw »

Eckenhoff Cycles wins.

RK the mechanic, the best around...


24 K service on my R1150R.
New Battery.
Synthetic fluids all around.
K&N filters.
Test ride and a bath.

$542 with my local club discount....

Beat the old dealer price by a lot....
Freedom is dangerous. Those in power that steal freedom are more dangerous.
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Re: It's official - My Dealer is closing

Post by duckdave »

Same thing here in Little Rock. Our dealer up and closed about a month ago. Little Rock BMW Motorcycles, Ducati, Triumph, &Vespa. I'm totally bummed, no place to hang out on Saturdays, friends missing… A couple of you have written nice things about them---Gypsy said they were the best dealer she ever visited (or similar) a couple years back. :( :( :(
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