Has your dealership closed?

Topics related to the ownership, maintenance, equipping, operation, and riding of the R1150R.

Moderator: Moderators

philm35
Basic User
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2005 6:25 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Contact:

Has your dealership closed?

Post by philm35 »

I'm compiling a list of all of the BMW motorcycle dealerships that have closed in recent years. Please post the names of dealerships in your area that have closed, and the approximate date of closure. Also if you would, note if a new dealership opened in your area to replace the closed one.


Thanks,

--Phil
2004 R1150RA (Silver)
User avatar
Biff's R
Double Lifer
Posts: 2384
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 4:55 pm
Donating Member #: 289
Location: Newark, OH

Post by Biff's R »

The only dealer in my area that has closed is BMW Tri-State, and they were a 2.5 hour ride away. I have 5 dealers that are closer than the one in Cincy was. Holt in Athens, OH, BMW Motorcycles of Columbus(new), Honda Northwest BMW in Columbus, Mathias in Dover, OH, and All Seasons in Wooster, OH.

I have no idea what led to the demise of TriState. Do you? There is a new repair shop tht is opening in Cincy Miami Cycle Works.
http://www.miamicycleworks.com
Jeff (lifer #289)
'17 F800GSA
'04 R1150R
There ain't no education in the second kick of a mule!
Slipstream
Basic User
Posts: 89
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2005 1:54 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Cedarville, OH
Contact:

Post by Slipstream »

phlem35 :lol:,
Well, since you're in Cincy, I'll not mention Tri-State--but you need to ensure that the Indy dealer that went the way of the dinosaur is included on your compilation.

FWIW, the eastside Columbus dealership mentioned that it can hardly keep up with the increase in the demand for service on BMWs since Tri-State BMW closed. They can hardly support the BMWs bought there in Columbus!

--Slipstream
God, Family, Country, BMW...in that order.
2003 R1150R in Piedmont Red
Slipstream
Basic User
Posts: 89
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2005 1:54 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Cedarville, OH
Contact:

Post by Slipstream »

Biff's R wrote:The only dealer in my area that has closed is BMW Tri-State, and they were a 2.5 hour ride away. I have 5 dealers that are closer than the one in Cincy was. Holt in Athens, OH, BMW Motorcycles of Columbus(new), Honda Northwest BMW in Columbus, Mathias in Dover, OH, and All Seasons in Wooster, OH.

I have no idea what led to the demise of TriState. Do you? There is a new repair shop tht is opening in Cincy Miami Cycle Works.
http://www.miamicycleworks.com
I heard that the Cincy dealership's demise was tied to a rather nasty divorce case......
God, Family, Country, BMW...in that order.
2003 R1150R in Piedmont Red
philm35
Basic User
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2005 6:25 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Contact:

Post by philm35 »

I had to have my fork seals replaced under warranty... I had to wait over a month to get an appointment at the Columbus dealership. They are overwhelmed with customers both from Cincinnati, and from Indy, where another dealership has closed their doors.

A friend of mine with an R1200C cruiser under warranty with engine problems was told he needed to wait until mid-August to get service in Columbus. He's taking his bike down to Louisville instead... their wait was only three weeks.

I don't have any idea why Tristate closed. Miami Cycle Works is moving into their old space this week.

I just read in the latest BMW ON that a dealership in St. Louis closed.

--Phil

2004 R1150RA (Silver)
User avatar
yjleesvrr
Member
Posts: 1803
Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2005 5:23 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Blacksburg and Haymarket, VA/Basking Ridge, NJ

Post by yjleesvrr »

None in the state of Virginia has closed in recent years, but to my knowledge there are only 3 in my entire state. We have 7.5 million people, with median household income ranked 4th in the country as of 2004 stats by the census bureau. 3 seems an awful low number for a reasonable sized market with money to spend.
Member #93, June 2002
'14 BMW R1200RT "Wethead"
'77 BMW R100/7 "Airhead"
User avatar
rock712
Lifer
Posts: 103
Joined: Tue Jul 12, 2005 9:18 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Morristown, NJ
Contact:

Post by rock712 »

Garden State BMW has closed
You think chicks dig guys who look like road-grimed astronauts and have interesting x-rays?
Mclintoc
Basic User
Posts: 23
Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2006 10:29 am
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Champaign, Illinois

Post by Mclintoc »

The dealership in St. Louis closed last summer. I remember the sign on the door read "because of poor treatment of their customers another BMW dealer has closed."
R1150R Rockster
User avatar
Biff's R
Double Lifer
Posts: 2384
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 4:55 pm
Donating Member #: 289
Location: Newark, OH

Post by Biff's R »

philm35 wrote:I had to have my fork seals replaced under warranty... I had to wait over a month to get an appointment at the Columbus dealership. They are overwhelmed with customers both from Cincinnati, and from Indy, where another dealership has closed their doors.

A friend of mine with an R1200C cruiser under warranty with engine problems was told he needed to wait until mid-August to get service in Columbus. He's taking his bike down to Louisville instead... their wait was only three weeks.

I don't have any idea why Tristate closed. Miami Cycle Works is moving into their old space this week.

I just read in the latest BMW ON that a dealership in St. Louis closed.

--Phil

2004 R1150RA (Silver)
Phil,
Have you guys tried Holt in Athens? Maybe you can get in faster.
Jeff (lifer #289)
'17 F800GSA
'04 R1150R
There ain't no education in the second kick of a mule!
DK
Basic User
Posts: 99
Joined: Thu Sep 22, 2005 9:37 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Northern Illinois

Post by DK »

We had a dealership in Rockford, IL close the end of 2005. I'm lucky, I have 2 dealers within 30 miles, Tag Sport and Cycle Werks. And about 45 miles away is Chicago BMW.

My parents live in Ohio and they heard the same thing about Tri-State; partly a divorce thing.


Dwayne
'04 R1150R Black
Airman
Basic User
Posts: 1109
Joined: Thu Mar 17, 2005 11:47 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: South of Seattle

Post by Airman »

Cascade BMW in the Seattle WA area closed about 3 years ago. They were moving to a new location, but never opened. There was talk that the franchise was pulled.

Tacoma BMW - This francise was sold to the guy that owns Ride West in Seattle. It is believed the sale was forced by BMWNA because the Tacoma dealership did not meet their "image" standards. Was reopened as South Sound BMW in Fife WA. Can't say I would complain about the change except for the vastly higher service prices. It's a pretty nice dealership otherwise.
User avatar
R4R&R
Basic User
Posts: 1696
Joined: Thu Mar 17, 2005 4:59 pm
Donating Member #: 293
Location: Springfield, VA

Post by R4R&R »

philm35 wrote:I had to wait over a month to get an appointment at the Columbus dealership. They are overwhelmed with customers both from Cincinnati, and from Indy, where another dealership has closed their doors.
I have three good dealers in the DC/Baltimore area, which I doubt will be closing anytime soon. But, I know my 'home' dealer typically has a backlog for service this time of year. If I were to call them, I would expect a 3~4 week wait for my appointment. They are just hurting to keep a full staff of techs.
John
Member 293 (I think)
'17 Triumph Tiger 1200 XRX
hotzuk
Member
Posts: 368
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 5:12 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Central NY

Response to Rock

Post by hotzuk »

Hey Rock,

I use to live in NJ about two years ago. I am now in Central NY state around Syracuse. I use to get my bike serviced at Garden State BMW. What makes their closing sad is that NJ is the most densely populated state in the USA and they were located in a pretty wealthy area. Now my closest dealer is 84 miles away from my house.
User avatar
rdsmith3
Lifer
Posts: 2632
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 9:53 am
Donating Member #: 74
Location: Flanders, NJ

Re: Response to Rock

Post by rdsmith3 »

hotzuk wrote:Hey Rock,

I use to live in NJ about two years ago. I am now in Central NY state around Syracuse. I use to get my bike serviced at Garden State BMW. What makes their closing sad is that NJ is the most densely populated state in the USA and they were located in a pretty wealthy area. Now my closest dealer is 84 miles away from my house.
They were 2 miles from me, and my son worked there. It does not get any better than that. It is very unfortunate that they closed.

Garden State BMW in Ledgewood, NJ closed August, 2005.
Bob
2002 Atlanta Blue
Lifetime Member #74
User avatar
yjleesvrr
Member
Posts: 1803
Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2005 5:23 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Blacksburg and Haymarket, VA/Basking Ridge, NJ

Post by yjleesvrr »

Hey Bob - New Jersey is THE wealthiest state in the union. Of course, it is also the most crowded! So riding a motorcycle isn't as convenient as it is in some other states. Still, with NYC being right there, I'm amazed that a dealership would close.
Member #93, June 2002
'14 BMW R1200RT "Wethead"
'77 BMW R100/7 "Airhead"
User avatar
rdsmith3
Lifer
Posts: 2632
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 9:53 am
Donating Member #: 74
Location: Flanders, NJ

Post by rdsmith3 »

yjleesvrr wrote:Hey Bob - New Jersey is THE wealthiest state in the union. Of course, it is also the most crowded! So riding a motorcycle isn't as convenient as it is in some other states. Still, with NYC being right there, I'm amazed that a dealership would close.
Within 10 miles of my house is a dealer for virtually every brand of motorcycle you could imagine, including some small brands like Triumph, Ducati, Aprilia and KTM, in addition to all the major Japanese brands (2 Honda and Yamaha dealers) and a big Harley dealer. The market is definitely there. Also, BMW's North American HQ is in northern NJ, yet they do not have a dealer here.
Bob
2002 Atlanta Blue
Lifetime Member #74
Motorrad
Basic User
Posts: 38
Joined: Fri Jun 16, 2006 1:55 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: NY

Post by Motorrad »

BMW HQ in NJ has a workshop for training engineers, but not for servicing bikes. The bike repairs used to be handled out of Westchester BMW in White Plains, NY, until a couple years ago. Now, unless you want to dodge pot-holes and taxi cabs in NYC, or take your chances on the Long Island Expressway, your best bet is Cherry Hill, NJ or Connecticut.
Steve

Yellow-Jacket
scottybooj
Lifer
Posts: 1336
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 12:16 am
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Long Island, NY

Post by scottybooj »

BMWNY in Huntington is now deceased. Not a good dealer anyway.

On ALL of Long Island, which has more people than most states, there is only ONE BMW cycle dealer. This is Precision BMW in Lynbrook. I've heard good things about this dealer except that he is very slow and a very small shop. Good and bad. In our populated area...bad.

I had to bring the bike to BMW Manhattan for the last service. Pain in the arse.
Scott
Black '50R
Long Island, NY
double-secret probationary lifetime member #311
CWH
Basic User
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2006 5:51 am
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Hampshire, England

Post by CWH »

Forgive me for asking this but ... why do you want to know?
Acpantera
Lifer
Posts: 360
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 3:26 pm
Donating Member #: 0
Location: Western New York

Post by Acpantera »

Imperial was the name of the multi line bike dealer in the Buffalo area. They were treated poorly by BMW for years before they closed up around 2003. Now it's a 75+mile trip to the closest dealer in rochester, Country Rode is a nice place with good people but its too far away!
You would think that they would like to sell more bikes by being more available to the people. Why can't they use the car dealers as locations for smaller markets? I have ordered filters at the local car dealer, what would it take to add a motorcycle salesrep and a service tech to a car dealer???????COME ON BMW WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ASK WHY
Post Reply