"M For All" Business Idea
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I like your idea. As you realize, the BMW enthusiast community revolves mostly around the E30 chassis. With that being said, why stop at M cars? An E30 can be had for a fraction of the price and you get more fun per dollar spent.
I like the idea of having a consultation service to help first time BMW buyers make the right decision for them. However, this information is easily attainable on all the forums out there. What is your idea exactly? It sounds interesting, but more information is needed for an opinion weather or not it would be relevant.
I think his target audience is not the enthusiast but more the casual consumer that has an expendable budget and is more concerned with the imagery associated with the BMW M name. This is a generalization of course and exceptions would exist.
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@rampelsauce - I like your suggestion of going beyond just M cars. All BMWs, especially E30s, provide a lot of fun on four wheels. As you mentioned, it would be a consultation service of sorts with the assumption that the buyer doesn't have the time/energy to do the research themselves. Instead, people like you and me would be empowered (and paid) to do the legwork.
@patsbimmer1 - Good call about my choice of words when talking about the PPI. Instead of "raising the standard" it should say something along the lines of "put the PPI in the hands of an expert". The idea (I think) would be that a buyer expresses interest in a specific car and without having to leave their desk a well-sorted BMW would show up at their front door. It would rely heavily on trusting the service, but that would be the foundation of the business.
Thanks for the quick feedback. Other opinions welcome!
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My crappy input:
"The general population is scared of the technical knowhow, maintenance and costs associated with owning one."
I can kind of relate this as me vs. my dad.
My dad shops for older BMWs looking for something with a clean title, nice paint and interior, and no major repairs needed.
My dad would buy such a car, wouldn't replace the brakes unless they were noisy, wouldnt replace the fluids as preventative maintenance, wouldn't replace any suspension bushings or do a valve adjustment, hoses, or any other items that weren't in poor working order.So, he is like a lot of used car owners, in that he just wants to enjoy a clean car without losing money on it by the time he goes to sell it.
Me on the other hand, I will perform a full mechanical rehabilitation on a car, not really caring about aesthetics, and focusing purely on driving enjoyment and performance.
I would think that an M car owner could fall into either subset (although they should opt for an audi or benz if they aren't bat**** crazy about driving dynamics)
what I am bringing up, is the cost of ownership for my dad is limited to oil changes, wear items, and things that break.
cost of ownership for me is much more.
Something to consider for possibly making different categories of ownership cost based on what level of mechanical / aesthetic OCD the owner may have.
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http://www.automatchconsulting.com/
Here's a guy that posts on Jalopnik that does what you want to start doing in a sense.
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I could see this working if services were provided through out the time of ownership. Example: Customer buys car, and when car hits a service interval you pick up the vehicle, perform work, then return it. This would make sense for the people with more dollars than sense.
E91 328xi - F15 X5 40e - Hopes and dreams of eventually having a cool car
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I could see this working if services were provided through out the time of ownership. Example: Customer buys car, and when car hits a service interval you pick up the vehicle, perform work, then return it. This would make sense for the people with more dollars than sense.
A couple years ago I was in the process of putting something together similar to what you are describing but on the body/collision side of the business. The logistics are horrendous but the technology is out there to make it a simple text/phone call situation. A network of private shops are best for this idea because they have more to gain rather than the dealership that has the means to do it on there own. The hard part is making the shop understand your value to bring them customers.
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@patsbimmer1 - Good call about my choice of words when talking about the PPI. Instead of "raising the standard" it should say something along the lines of "put the PPI in the hands of an expert". The idea (I think) would be that a buyer expresses interest in a specific car and without having to leave their desk a well-sorted BMW would show up at their front door. It would rely heavily on trusting the service, but that would be the foundation of the business.
Thanks for the quick feedback. Other opinions welcome!
It sounds to me as though you're thinking about essentially being a broker for the purchase of cars, sight unseen by the buyer other than pictures, and using only your service for the purchase.
This type of business case could be successful, but, you have to understand that it's only real chance of survival will be based on whatever reputation you eventually build, and that it will take a long time to build that reputation, as in potentially years. That reputation would have to come from uncompromising service which you will need to completely dedicate yourself to, and demand from any employees you may take on as your business grows. If you're willing to do that, you may be on to something.
I agree with the other comments about not limiting yourself to M cars. You may be able to do that as a prestige feature of the business, but it may be limited for a period of time until you get yourself and reputation truly established.
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I'm confused by this.
What exactly are you thinking of doing?
He is talking about starting a consulting business to help people who would like to own a BMW but are concerned about the cost of ownership or don't have enough knowledge of the brand to make a decision. He would start by determining a customers needs and then finding the vehicle for the customer as well as educating them on BMW models. This would include setting up a network of shops to provide quality pre-purchase inspections to ease any concerns and provide a trusted source for post purchase repairs.
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I know what he means but the business would be hard to startup. I suppose once you got customers and connections it would be smooth sailing from there Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I agree with that. I am sure there is a need for it but it's such a niche market that it would be difficult to make it.
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A complete PPI, that includes a complete scan of the car ( every module gets scanned and printed with codes),CBS, and complete inspection of every component on the vehicle cost $100 at my work, I don't know if you can beat that price with only doing PPI cause a basic autologic cost over 10,000 think about how many PPI it would take to pay that off or even on the cheap TIS is 3000 a year to have access to Bmw info, plus the cost of rent for the building heating and electricity, it doesn't pay unless your fixing the car too just my 2 cents
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Your idea is cool, but not everyone wants an m car. Therefore your limited in clients. Its a darn good start and can be expanded upon though. Idk, just my thought.
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I don't have much advice for the business idea, other than it would be hard to build without trust/reputation. It'd have to start as very low-cost or free consultations that eventually build your reputation.
That being said, it probably would have helped me out ~3 years ago when I was buying my '98 328i. I absolutely love my car but at the time I overpaid for a car with near-blown (or blown) suspension, the usual dumping-fluid power steering system, and a leaky radiator. I don't regret it one bit, but had the car started in nicer condition, I wouldn't have minded
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