Bavarian Motors

I’ve had nightmares with previous mechanics. From used parts being installed to paying for jobs that never even happened– I’m quite hesitant to trust most independent mechanics. However, when I purchased my 328i I was especially hesitant knowing the anticipated price increase I would pay for repairs. My boyfriend was the guinea pig and took his 3 series to Bavarian Motors first since he is far more knowledgable in mechanics. He was satisfied. When the dreaded brake light sensor came on in my car, I followed suite. They quoted a fair price and even changed the oil and a couple other necessities. They had my car completed the next day! I was thrilled. Not to mention this is to date the first time I have left a mechanic and NOT had to return within a week for subsequent problems.

I blew out a tire on the way to work today, and literally rolled into Bavarian Motors. I was really only looking to stay there for a bit to arrange a tow, but the guy there put my spare on for me right away and only charged me a smile. It’s nice to be surprised by the real kindness of people when you need help. Thank you!

I have never written a bad review before. In fact, I’ve never written a review at all. I created an account on this website just so I can warn you about these guys.
Before I brought my car here I read a few terrible reviews and assumed that customers were just complaining because fixing BMWs cost money. After a month without my car and $ 3500 wasted I now know that I was mistaken.
The full story is below but you only need to read this: they are crooks, they are not a business, they don’t know how to fix simple car problems, they have zero customer service, when challenged, they act like children. DO NOT BRING YOUR CAR HERE.
I had a problem and brought my car into this place. It took them days to even tell me they were working on my car. Communication was abysmal. After a week and a half they said they figured it out and put in a $ 600 dollar part. This did not fix the problem and at this juncture I told them that if they do not know what’s going on, that I can pay them and just take the car to the BMW dealer. They insisted they were «master technicians» etc. So after two more weeks they put in an even more expensive part and said it was fixed. It was not fixed, (I learned this at 5 am after flying back into Cincinnati) and I burned through my spark plugs and other parts before realizing it. It cost me 200 dollars to tow it back into town.
At that point, I took it to the BMW dealer. BMW called me ON MY WAY HOME FROM THE STORE, as in, within 45 minutes of getting the car. Told me what the problem was, fixed it by the end of the day. My cars been fine ever since.
I am not unreasonable. I didn’t once assume that they had intentionally taken my money or tried to mislead me. UNTIL, I contacted them to talk about the incident. They avoided me for two weeks. When I confronted them in person they were rude and refused to admit that they did not fix the car in the first place. They refused to reimburse any of my money and threatened to call the cops on me when they had run out of excuses.
So let me be clear. I gave them every benefit of the doubt. I was patient for a month. I was even willing to pay for most of their mistakes. But they proved what many other reviewers already stated. THEY ARE CROOKS.

To start, I have a passionate love/​hate relationship with my Mini Cooper. Its freaking adorable… like really adorable. Sometimes I just stare at it when its parked and admire how cute it is. The downside: it requires a lot of attention from me, requires special parts made only for tiny little German vehicles that can only be installed with special tools by people who are specialized in working on them. Sound pretty special? yep… To put it bluntly its f*ing expensive and this is where Bavarian Motors comes in. It’s not the cheapest place to go but they seem to do really good work and appear to take pride in the work they do. Most importantly, its WAY cheaper than the dealership and unlike the BMW dealership I actually trust that I’m not being completely robbed blind by these guys. Lastly, AJ at the front desk is genuinely friendly, pleasant and comfortable. So comfortable that I occasionally forget I’m in the waiting room of an auto shop when I’m waiting on my car and probably say things I would only say to my old college buddies. I’d give them 5 stars but I’m still bitter about the money I spent there today to have my power steering replaced. Stupid Mini Cooper.

I brought my Mini Cooper s in a few months ago for an electrical issue and for them to fix a hood latch that had gone faulty after their first repair. I called and scheduled a thurs appointment. I called Thursday and they said there was no appointment but they would get to me, to make things short I called each day, my car sat in the parking lot untouched for a week.
The next Thursday I got a call from the owner saying they didn’t remember my car being in an accident but that the repair was simple enough they’d honor the warranty. (My car had been in an accident years before I had bought it).
They still hadn’t addressed the electric problem but would get to it. I gave them a few days and called back… soon they said. That week the owner returned my call and said your car is absolutely in pieces it doesn’t even look like a car! They had a quote ready which was very high and he explained it is a lot of work to diagnose electrical. I told him I might just have to hold off on it for now, he said ok well my guy has put a lot of time into it so $ 325 and we’ll put it back together. I told him to go ahead with it at that point I didn’t want to spend so much to have nothing resolved.
Then I waited and waited and called and called again, every day it dragged on. The communication was terrible an it seemed like my mini took the backseat to all of the other cars in there. After a month I got my car back. I was very relived to not have to deal with them again. I went to unlock my car and it wouldn’t unlock. The owner said that it was probably just interference with a radio tower and that if it wasn’t I’d have to come back to have them program my key. As I was driving away I noticed the headliner was hanging down from a repair they had made above the windshield, I’ve fixed it myself but it’s still noticeable.
Overall it was a very bad experience. The first time I went to then the hood latch repair took a long time but the owner seemed nice and they quoted me 900 on a repair BMW had quoted me 1200. A month on an electrical job with the poor communication and to have my car sitting there over a week before looking at it is very unprofessional. There are much better shops around.

AJ and the team at Bavarian are top notch! The same expertise you would expect at the dealer at a fraction of the cost. I don’t worry about my car or wallet when I’m in for service, I know I’m in good hands. They are extremely knowledgeable, friendly and make sure that my beloved 3 series is performing like it was meant to. What’s not to love?

I took my 2005 530i with 83,000 miles in and they did a nice job. The laundry list of things I needed extended the time away from my car but when it was said and done the work done was great and the price even better. The customer service was pretty good although it seems at times they are somewhat overwhelmed. If you have some time to be away from your car and you want a reliable BMW service shop then I highly recommend.

Occasionally tragedy will strike and when it struck my Mini Cooper I was in a major bind. I was about to leave work when one of my rear hatch hinges broke in half, leaving me dumbfounded and stranded. Luckily, I managed to remember this little shop’s name over by Eden Park and look up their number (at this point it was 5:50pm and the store was to close in ten minutes). Aj, a member of their staff, waited until I was able to get a tow over to their location to pull my car safely in their garage.
The point in sharing this story shows how Bavarian will go above and beyond to help a customer out. They were courteous, kind and kept me updated on my car’s progress. It took 3 days for my car to be finished but at the end of it I had a hatch that could both open and close, an ac that blew frosty and a backup light that worked. If you have a German car check these guys out; you’ll find that for the service the pricing can’t be beat.

I see why this auto repair garage has awards lining the walls. Very helpful and friendly, this place went beyond the norms of service to help me understand and deal with my car’s issues. They popped the hood and took time to show me the problems that needed attention. They also dropped me off at home while the car was worked on so I didn’t have to take a bus.
Slightly pricier than most auto repair services, both the excellent customer service and knowledge of German cars make this location worth the extra bucks.

I took my MINI here after I decided that the quotes for the repairs at the BMW store warranted my shopping the service around. They came in way less and did a fine job. The staff was super friendly.
The only complaint I have was that they had to keep my car overnight. They had originally told me I would have it that afternoon. This was definitely a hassle as I had to coordinate getting a ride etc. but luckily I am from the area and have family to fall back on. If I didn’t I am not too sure what I would have done, worked from home perhaps? Anyway, for the money I saved it was worth the extra bit of hassle. The BMW store does provide a free rental car service but essentially you pay for all the extra bells and whistles in what they charge for service.

Bavarian Motors and I got off to a bumpy start. This was my first time taking my car to an independent shop. I had a fairly significant engine issue with my 2006 330i and after a insanely expensive and vague repair quote from the BMW Store I gave Bavarian Motors a call for a second opinion. They were eager to help out. They looked at my car, researched the issue, gave me good advice and set out to complete the work for much less than what the dealer wanted.
We had some bumps along the way associated with parts and tool availability for this rather uncommon issue and I feel they did everything the could in the situation. I think we were all equally frustrated, however in the end the work was completed and my car is back to me and running great and outside of the unexpected delay the cost came in way under what the dealer had quoted.
I’d definitely give these guys a call if you’re in need of BMW service and are tired of paying an arm and a leg at the dealer.