The Best BMW Auto Body Repair Centre

[sonic6]

Good afternoon all, hope all is well

I would like to identify the best BMW Auto Body Repair Centre or BMW Specialist Bodyshop in the general Johannesburg area to assist with repairs, I would very much appreciate referrals from your own personal experiences in order to make an informed decision and ensure the job will be completed perfectly the first time, and the vehicle is sorted 100%. Specifically looking for a shop that is excellent with suspension repairs.

I have visited ARC Sandton thus far but I have no idea if they are the best option, therefore hoping to get a few more referrals

With great thanks.

 

[AlexYannoulatos]

I recommend ABS / ARC Midrand

 

[E-Male]

I recommend ABS / ARC Midrand

Ditto!

 

[sonic6]

Thanks very much gentlemen, greatly appreciated.

 

[sonic6]

So I took the car to Auto Body Specialists in Midrand as recommended, and it turns out all my car needed was an alignment to factory specifications and she now drives absolutely perfectly. I was given a completely incorrect diagnosis about my car by an official BMW dealership who conducted the initial alignment job.

Super grateful for the recommendation guys, ABS were extremely professional and knowledgeable and sorted my car 100% the first time. I would also highly rate them and recommend them.

 

[GravityLee]

So I took the car to Auto Body Specialists in Midrand as recommended, and it turns out all my car needed was an alignment to factory specifications and she now drives absolutely perfectly. I was given a completely incorrect diagnosis about my car by an official BMW dealership who conducted the initial alignment job.

Super grateful for the recommendation guys, ABS were extremely professional and knowledgeable and sorted my car 100% the first time. I would also highly rate them and recommend them.

What was the problem, and what did the dealership tell you? Also, which one?

 

[sonic6]

What was the problem, and what did the dealership tell you? Also, which one?

I fitted 2 new front BMW spec Potenza S001 run flat tyres, took the car to BMW Sandton for wheel alignment, car is completely stock, out of plan, but low mileage. Got car back 8 hours later that afternoon and service advisor says cross caster is out, car most likely has suspension damage, possibly a bent shock. Get told to take car to a BMW approved auto body repair centre for further investigation.

Get alignment report, cross caster is out -0.45 degrees. Driving car home, the centre of my steering wheel is pointing 30 degrees to the left when holding the car in a straight line and when I let go of the steering wheel it pulls severely to the left.

Take car to ABS Midrand for further investigation, zero suspension damage confirmed and car is aligned perfectly, all measurements within spec, alignment report all green. and car is ready to collect in 3 hours. Drive car home and she tracks as straight as an arrow.

Asked for a refund from BMW Sandton, will update accordingly.

 

[GravityLee]

I fitted 2 new front BMW spec Potenza S001 run flat tyres, took the car to BMW Sandton for wheel alignment, car is completely stock, out of plan, but low mileage. Got car back 8 hours later that afternoon and service advisor says cross caster is out, car most likely has suspension damage, possibly a bent shock. Get told to take car to a BMW approved auto body repair centre for further investigation.

Get alignment report, cross caster is out -0.45 degrees. Driving car home, the centre of my steering wheel is pointing 30 degrees to the left when holding the car in a straight line and when I let go of the steering wheel it pulls severely to the left.

Take car to ABS Midrand for further investigation, zero suspension damage confirmed and car is aligned perfectly, all measurements within spec, alignment report all green. and car is ready to collect in 3 hours. Drive car home and she tracks as straight as an arrow.

Asked for a refund from BMW Sandton, will update accordingly.

The confidently incorrect diagnosis from the dealerships are mind boggling. Problem is that they can’t (won’t) refund your time which they’ve wasted through their incompetence.

 

[KPM3_30]

What did ABS Midrand charge for the suspension check?

Was part of the 120k km check on the X3, may as well do it before the new tyres get fitted.

 

[sonic6]

The confidently incorrect diagnosis from the dealerships are mind boggling. Problem is that they can’t (won’t) refund your time which they’ve wasted through their incompetence.

Agreed. Completely blown away with the whole experience and not in a good way, but this is the reality of most of the service sector in this country.

If you have a problem, it takes 2 - 5 attempts and additional costs that have to be absorbed by the client in order to resolve the problem to an acceptable level of satisfaction when it should have been resolved 100% the first time. Mediocrity is the norm and excellence is scarce when it is actually supposed to be the other way around.

 

[Yulz9081]

Did you by any chance collect your car yesterday afternoon? I went to collect mine and remember hearing the guys talking about this issue.

 

[modocrat]

Did you by any chance collect your car yesterday afternoon? I went to collect mine and remember hearing the guys talking about this issue.

You little nosey parker 🤪

 

[Yulz9081]

You little nosey parker 🤪

It's a very small waiting area

Just a note on ABS. I had minor cosmetic work done on my front bumper only.
They did a great job but also gave me the gift of a nasty ding on my left rear door that wasn't there previously which their check-in photos proved.

I was peeved but what's done is done. Anyway with no fuss or squabbles, they sent their PDR guy out to me now and sorted it out.
Still chuffed with them overall.

 

[AceRally]

I fitted 2 new front BMW spec Potenza S001 run flat tyres, took the car to BMW Sandton for wheel alignment, car is completely stock, out of plan, but low mileage. Got car back 8 hours later that afternoon and service advisor says cross caster is out, car most likely has suspension damage, possibly a bent shock. Get told to take car to a BMW approved auto body repair centre for further investigation.

Get alignment report, cross caster is out -0.45 degrees. Driving car home, the centre of my steering wheel is pointing 30 degrees to the left when holding the car in a straight line and when I let go of the steering wheel it pulls severely to the left.

Take car to ABS Midrand for further investigation, zero suspension damage confirmed and car is aligned perfectly, all measurements within spec, alignment report all green. and car is ready to collect in 3 hours. Drive car home and she tracks as straight as an arrow.

Asked for a refund from BMW Sandton, will update accordingly.

Sandton has been bad lately, I have stories too.

 

[sonic6]

Quick update. Service advisor referred to HOD for refund, got refused. I then sent an email to DP, also got refused.

Basically got told that it is my fault because I signed the approval forms for the work to be done, and the fact that I signed them in good faith while fully expecting the work to be carried out to a 100% acceptable standard means nothing.

Luckily BMW Sandton does not provide cardiology services because according to them, if one of their clients signs on the dotted line for a heart transplant and they perform the surgery which subsequently results in the client dying, they will blame the client for signing the transplant approval forms in good faith, and the death most certainly could not have occurred due to their negligence or complacency.

Lesson learned and school fees paid. These people will never see a cent of my business ever again and I will share this story with every single BMW owner that I know.

 

[333wez]

Maybe the title should be changed from “best” to “least worst” 😂

 

[Shamirk]

Sandton has been bad lately, I have stories too.

Yes, been servicing my F30 with them since 2017 and I won't go back. They seem to have lost the individual Customer Service and its all about the numbers through the door lately.
Getting feedback on the status of your vehicle when your service advisor is not available is also a nightmare.
very disappointing....

 

[TurboLlew]

Brain drain at some of the dealers is a real thing, with the competence either leaving the country or leaving to do their own things. Sandton has been a problem for many years now with many, many stories.

Speaking of brain drain, I experienced the same at Alfa where I had 3 different techs in 3 years, but at least a single service advisor... now that SA might end up emigrating leaving me having to build from scratch or move to an independent shop (which means no dealer FSH). The problem is that on a specialised car like the 4C which has a number of 'unique' service needs like bolt torquing, checking the subframes and carbon tub regularly, various adjustments... even just how to lift the thing, it means that those skills are totally gone from SA and it isn't like HQ will train more, neither will dealers be able to pass on the knowledge and tips/tricks that they come across over the years.

The reason for that story is that when a dealer is so perplexed by something as simple as wheel alignment that the ARC can get right in an afternoon, that, for me, speaks more to that loss of skill/know how on the ground that is not being replaced than anything else. The fact that they didn't think rectifying this was the right thing to do is the final nail in the coffin.

The techs are important but the SA is critical for me: be it Carlo when he was at JSN, Vashan at ABM etc. Heaven forbid these guys also move to greener pastures. I feel like this experience is going to become worse over time.

 

[Benji]

Sad to hear of the OPs experiences, this seems to be a ridiculously common experience in SA, not just limited to cars/workshops.

My experience with a Renault 1.6dCi which one morning suddenly had no power with no warning signs or deterioration of performance. Turbo left the chat - typically 3 months out of warranty. Anyway, took it in to Renault who said there was a boost pipe seal leak which they fixed free of charge. I was very doubtful, and sure enough, I did not even need to get to 2nd gear to tell that the car wasn't fixed. I mentioned to the tech that I was pretty sure it was a boost sensor or turbo actuator that was faulty, but was dismissed. They then took 2 weeks to diagnose that that turbo needed to be replaced at a cost of R77k! No thanks. Took the car home and cable-tied the turbo actuator in the closed position only to find the turbo was indeed working perfectly fine.

So we took the car to an independent workshop, again gave the tech the history and what I thought the problem was. He calls back a day later saying it is indeed the turbo actuator that is malfunctioning and they needed to remove the turbo to recon it. I heavily opposed this as I know the actuator is held on with 3 bolts and costs less that R1000 for the part. Anyway, he insisted, removed the turbo, reconditioned it and declared the car fixed after he test drove it and presented his R19k invoice. Duly paid, drove the vehicle to find that it is EXACTLY the same as it was before. FFS! Car is back there while they try do more diagnostics.

I am patiently waiting for them to discover a bad sensor or leaking vacuum pipe. At this point I am considering spending the bucks on the Nissan/Renault diagnostic software so that I can at least apply some thought to the process of diagnosing the vehicle instead of letting mechanics use my money to replace parts until the problem goes away.

Just makes you wonder how much extra we are paying for our new cars and warranties to cover the costs of the dealerships replacing R77k turbos when it could be something as simple as a R1000 actuator or R2000 sensor...