Herb Chambers Complaints or Commentary to the Herb Chambers Corporate Office

At The Herb Chambers Companies we sincerely value your personal experience at our dealerships. Whether you visit Herb Chambers to shop for & buy a vehicle, have your current one serviced or simply to pick up parts or accessories - we hope that you find Herb Chambers’ staff helpful, courteous and professional at all times.

Please use this form to provide feedback directly to the Herb Chambers Corporate Office regarding any aspect of your experience with any Herb Chambers dealership. We appreciate you taking the time to do so and you will receive a response promptly after completing this form.

I want you to know that we value feedback that compliments great service OR highlights areas in which we need to improve the service we provide to you, our valued customer.

Sincerely,

I used to frequent Foreign Motors West, and this was my first experience with Herb Chambers BMW Sudbury.  Your free drop-off/pick-up service is incredibly convenient, and a key reason that I will go back for future service.  The oil-change pricing was very reasonable as well.

I’d like to especially compliment Colleen, my BMW Service Advisor.  She was very helpful and easy to deal with, and she went out of her way to get me the parts that I needed.  It was a great experience all around.

Thank you.

Chris

October 28, 2010

Hi Herb,
You should know that your parts people at BMW of Sudbury are superb! I have several 3 series BMWs, including 2 E36 M3s and a 2010 M3. Your parts people (especially Joe McManus) have been keeping my BMWs running, & helping me with my sometimes unusual parts requests for >6years.
The parts people exemplify helpful, courteous & professional always.

regards,
Jim

July 30, 2010

To Whom it May Concern:

After writing about my exceptional sales experience last week, I find it only fitting to follow up by writing of my service experience this week.

This being my first BMW, there were a few things I was unfamiliar with and concerned about since the car is so intuitive. With this, I made a shopping list of questions and concerns I had about the car and called the service department. I dropped the car off on Tuesday and was pleasantly greeted by Colleen. Colleen was extremely patient and listened to all of my concerns. She was such a pleasure to deal with because of this. From the moment I walked into the service department from when I picked up my car, she kept me updated on the status and was courteous in doing so.

After my initial visit to service, Colleen set up a test ride with the shop foreman. He was also a pleasure to work with. Often times techs can be condescending if you raise questions that may seem obvious to them but not to the ordinary driver. He answered every question I had and best of all, explained “why?” in a manner that I could grasp and understand. I felt totally comfortable knowing that his expertise was going into the diagnosis.

Again, my hats off to the wonderful service I received at this dealership and I will refer anyone I know who is in the market for a BMW to BMW of Sudbury.

Thank you,
Michael

July 22, 2010

To Whom it May Concern:

I have just arrived home after taking delivery on a Certified Pre-Owned 2007 BMW 335xi. There is no better way to say it, but I am all smiles. Of course, this is not just because of the car, but because of the exceptional service I received at your dealership these last two days.

The experience began speaking with both Brian and Evan in vehicle information who were extremely courteous, helpful, knowledgeable, and patient. Upon arriving at the dealership, Brian put me in touch with Peter Vargo. Peter went above and beyond to help answer all of my questions. He knew every in and out about the car I was test driving, was patient, and did not pressure me into the sale at all. After the test drive, we both sat down with Pre-Owned Manager, Chris Rich, who followed the trend of excellence. You could instantly tell that he was a BMW enthusiast and helped me make my decision that this was in fact the car for me.

All in all, these gentlemen exemplified the ideal sales experience and I can only hope that they receive accolades for their terrific work.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Best Regards and Thank You Again!
Michael

07/06/10

Dear Mr. Chambers:

I hope you have the time to read this with your very busy schedule.

I recently walked into your BMW of Sudbury dealership late on a Saturday afternoon at approximately 4:30 p.m. and was promptly greeted by Mr. James Affannato of your sales team.  Although it was probably close to closing time, Mr. Affannato more than took the time to help me and allow me to drive the CPO vehicle which I had selected on-line.

Both my husband and I were very very skeptical about what our experience would be like at Herb Chambers BMW of Sudbury, as we had assorted experiences at other BMW dealerships, including in Florida, within the prior few weeks. 

Mr. Affannato also answered all my husband’s questions and my husband complimented him as a ‘very good sales man’.  My husband certainly does not hand out these compliments freely that I know of — and I should know, I am his top salesperson at Century 21 Travis (which my husband owns) of which my husband manages 20+ sales people daily.

Mr. Affannato not only took the time to allow me to drive the vehicle I selected on-line for a test drive, but also very patiently and expertly, answered all my husband’s questions on the features of the car.  Once we were done driving the vehicle, he brought us inside, answered even more questions, and one of the most important questions – what were the financing options for someone like myself with an 800 credit score.  We had been very very firm, that I was a serious Buyer, but would not be buying today (and probably not the next day either).

Well, the very next day, we decided I would purchase a brand new 2010 X3.  Our decision was based upon the cost per mile in conjunction with the exceptional financing for a new vehicle over a CPO vehicle.

The financing information was a key component in my decision and Mr. Affannato was the ONLY BMW salesperson ANYWHERE who took the time to get me the specific answers on the financing….can you believe it!  The usual answer was, ‘not sure, it depends on your background, our business office handles that area’ — vague at best.  Mr. Affannato took the time to get the answers, and his extra attention to detail, made the difference to both myself and my husband to feel comfortable.

Mr. Affannato also took the time to introduce me to other people at your dealership who met with me including Mr. Kosta Pappas, the General Manager and Mr. Mike Cerrone, the Business Manager, who were very knowledgeable, patient and exceptional with all their help as well.   Both of these men, along with Mr. Affannato, were very very kind to me and my husband, helping to make my sales experience a positive one. 

They both called me back with answers to all my questions and if they did not know a specific answer, said they would check and let me know….and they did.  In fact, I still hear from them to make sure that all is fine with my new car.  To this day, they all thank me for the business at your dealership whenever I speak with them.

In short, everyone was more than terrific to me.  Although, I was referred to specific contacts at other dealerships, my experience was so good at Herb Chambers BMW of Sudbury, that I finished up my sale at your dealership, thanks to the great team that you have. 

I have already recommended them to others, and love my new car and I hope you commend them for a job well done.

Thanks again and take care.

Maureen

June 7, 2010

This letter is to praise the truly outstanding service of Colleen
Silver at BMW of Sudbury. She is one of the best service representatives I
have ever dealt with. Over the course of the past ten years, she has
consistently provided fast response, thoughtful advice, and is honest and
friendly in all her interactions. She sets expectations well and then always
meets or exceeds them.

While the whole service and technical departments are excellent, you have a
true gem in Colleen Silver. You and we are lucky to have her!

Sincerely,

Throop

December 13, 2009

Dear Herb,

Just wanted you to know what an absolutely outstanding experience we had
buying our first BMW with Steve Shifman.   From our first meeting with Steve
he was knowledgeable about every detail of the operation of the car, he was
polite, efficient and made it the most enjoyable and fun experience buying a
car that I have ever had—–and I have bought quite a few cars in my life
as I will  be turning 59 this month!   I had been  a very happy Audi owner
in the past but Steve’s knowledge and willingness to go far beyond what
should be expected in buying a car  made my decision to buy from your
dealership a quick and  easy one.   In fact Audi just handed me my old
plates and told me to go turn them in at the registry!  I didn’t know how I
could fit that in as I am expecting a call to fly out to CO any day as my
daughter is expecting her second baby.  Anyway Steve kindly offered and took
care of not only getting those plates returned but the new ones ready and
waiting for us. 

It was such a fun experience—–I almost felt like a little kid at
Christmas time!   Anyway your dealership is beautiful and the extra touches
of Karma coffee and yummy pastries added to the best car shoppping
experience I can imagine.  I have already been spreading the word about how
wonderful BMW of Sudbury is and how people should ask for Steve.
Have a wonderful holiday season.
Wenda

12/12/09

Dear Mr. Chambers,

I have just purchased my first car from your organization and I want you to
know about all of the fabulous people on your team and the reasons why I
purchased from you rather than any of the other BMW area dealers.

Although I started out in your Sudbury store, Joe Conway in your Boston
store ultimately handled my purchase.

Joe is a superbly customer service oriented sales person. His personal style
and his attention to the many details involved with my CPO purchased car is
very impressive. Further, his product knowledge far surpassed the level of
other sales people I visited with as I shopped competitive brands and
non-Herb Chambers BMW dealers. I’m highly sensitive to sales technique
generally and have had many car salesperson interactions over the past 30
years. I can tell you that Joe Conway ranks in the top 1% of all of those
experiences. I’m not kidding here. If you don’t already know all the details
of how Joe works and what makes his approach work for customers, I suggest
you find out and use it as a template because it will drive competitive
advantage like nothing else.

I also want to point out how attuned the whole Herb Chambers BMW of Boston
team has been to me and my needs throughout this purchase. From my first
phone experience with the receptionist at the dealership (which was my first
contact) to the attention from the general manager (be sure to keep her!),
the sales manager and the finance person, I have felt just the right amount
of care from everyone. I have to assume that the person who processes the
registration had a role in my experience as well as I had an
out-of-the-usual request regarding that aspect of things and it was handled
above my expectations. It’s been a great team effort and one that solidifies
my positive impression of the Herb Chambers brand which is somewhat new to
me.

I also want to call to your attention the care I received from Chris Caputo
in the Sudbury dealership where I started this search. Since Chris sold me
my previous CPO BMW back before that store was part of Herb Chambers and it
was in Natick, I started out by visiting him and looking at the cars at that
location with the patient assistance of his sales team at your beautiful new
facility in Sudbury.

When I couldn’t find the exact combination of features I wanted there (in
terms of CPO stock available) I asked Chris if we could check with Boston.
This was on a Saturday at end of day. When Chris identified a vehicle in
Boston that seemed to meet all of my criteria, he offered to have it brought
out on the next available day which would have been Monday. At my own
election I decided to be at the Boston store the next day (Sunday) at
opening time because I didn’t want to risk losing the car to someone else.

In the meantime, I had called other MA BMW dealerships to inquire about what
they had just in case none of the stock available at Chambers met my needs.
I can tell you that while it seemed one of the dealers might have had a car
that fit my criteria, my previously positive experience with Chris in Natick
over several years was in stark positive contrast to the weak response I got
from the non-Herb Chambers dealer I spoke with. Those other dealers were
certainly very interested in my business, but their approach wasn’t even
close to the professionalism I was used to.

Overall, this has been a great experience for me, and I want you to know how
it worked. My long-standing experience with Chris Caputo in Natick and then
Sudbury is what initially brought me back to Herb Chambers when it was time
to get another car. My comparison of that experience to the initial phone
experience of other area BMW dealers, and  Chris’s quick identification of a
possible car at the Boston location, compelled me to take the trip into
Boston on a Sunday rather than to go to a BMW dealer outside of the Herb
Chambers family of dealerships. Then the experience I had overall in Boston
and most especially through the excellent responsiveness of Joe Conway
cinched the deal for me. I called the two other dealers from my cell phone
right from your showroom that day in Boston and told them I wasn’t
interested, left another message for Chris telling him we were taking the
car found at the Boston store, and then asked Joe to wrap it all up for me
which he did very well.

Please be sure to convey my high regard of all involved directly to them and
please do whatever you can to keep this kind of care a hallmark of your
operation. If you do, I will be very happy to recommend Herb Chambers BMW of
Sudbury and Boston to all of my friends for a long time to come.

November 28, 2009

Hi,
Herb I just want to let you know at how great your service dept at BMW of
Sudbury is. I think it is a great new dealership in a nice area.
Thanks,
Dane