[bluecrabby]

if BMW charges $1395 for PDI in Canada, what do they charge in the US?

I looked at the paperwork that the dealer provided after the order was placed, there was no PDI fee listed. Besides the cost of the X1, there are only the usual destination fee, taxes, registration/title fee, and a $599 dealer "administration" fee.

Of course, they also had two options on the paperwork: $529 front window tint to match rear factory window tinted windows... and also $199 Nitrogen Air for Four Tires... (both of which we declined, of course) At least they didn't try to offer $999 for LoJack(which my Mercedes dealer tried to sell me several years ago).

[50ShadesOfGrey]

Don’t mean to be ignorant, but what is PDI? Not sure if that’s a term used in the US

[Rags2Rags]

PDI is "Pre-Delivery Inspection"

It's getting the car ready for you when it comes off the truck. So making sure it's clean, taken out of travel mode, checking to make sure it came with everything, etc.

[Rags2Rags]

Originally Posted by bluecrabby

if BMW charges $1395 for PDI in Canada, what do they charge in the US?

I assume they just add it to the cost of the cars. Less "transparent" but also less aggravating to see yet another line item.

We pay way too much for vehicles up here compared to you guys even with exchange rate. Same with cell/internet plans but what's a whole other conversation. :-)

[harris06]

Originally Posted by bluecrabby

if BMW charges $1395 for PDI in Canada, what do they charge in the US?

I looked at the paperwork that the dealer provided after the order was placed, there was no PDI fee listed. Besides the cost of the X1, there are only the usual destination fee, taxes, registration/title fee, and a $599 dealer "administration" fee.

Of course, they also had two options on the paperwork: $529 front window tint to match rear factory window tinted windows... and also $199 Nitrogen Air for Four Tires... (both of which we declined, of course) At least they didn't try to offer $999 for LoJack(which my Mercedes dealer tried to sell me several years ago).

For my car - The destination fee is a flat $995 for any ‘23 X1 charged by bmw which is surprisingly at the lower end of the spectrum. Other than tax title and license , there was a $150 doc fee and a vehicle inventory fee of around $90 (this is an optional fee being pushed as a mandatory fee). Price was msrp with zero credits.There were other dealerships which were not charging this inventory fee but I thought it was a small price to pay because this was the only dealer in the area who had a modifiable allocation and was ready to give me a production number on the same day.

They gave me a bunch of tint and other options which I refused.

[bluecrabby]

Originally Posted by harris06

They gave me a bunch of tint and other options which I refused.

I just remember that they also offered "lifetime dent removal" for $799(or $699). They guarantee that if the dents cannot be removed, their BMW-certified bodyshop will repair and repaint that panel for free. (some of the exclusions are: the dents have to be actual dents, not scratches or bullet holes, and smaller than 2" in diameter"... also excludes acts of god, like hail or fallen tree branches)

[Rags2Rags]

Originally Posted by bluecrabby

I just remember that they also offered "lifetime dent removal" for $799(or $699). They guarantee that if the dents cannot be removed, their BMW-certified bodyshop will repair and repaint that panel for free. (some of the exclusions are: the dents have to be actual dents, not scratches or bullet holes, and smaller than 2" in diameter"... also excludes acts of god, like hail or fallen tree branches)

As a Canadian, I couldn't help but laugh at the "excludes bullets". :-)

Given how many assholes smash their doors into the side of vehicles, $799 to get one of those dings fixed seems cheap. I've had those types of dents happen on my last 2 cars.

I plan to park really far away all the time with the BMW. :-)

[bluecrabby]

Originally Posted by Rags2Rags

I plan to park really far away all the time with the BMW. :-)

that may not always work.... my friend who owns a 20-year-old Corvette in mint condition(like it just came out of the factory) always parks at the far end of the parking lot with no cars... he told me that some idiot always chose to park next to him(some time two idiots, one on each side) for no reason.

[saws]

From my knowledge (based on watching several youtubers with the info) in the US, manufacturers (like BMW here) pay the dealer a fee for PDI which ranges from $100 to $150. PDI is where they simply do an "x" point inspection/check. It is also here that dealers add unneeded dealer installed options like edge guards, nitro for tires etc. but of course charge consumers exorbitant prices for them ($500 for nitrogen in tires etc.)

In this crazy market in US, some crappy dealers were trying to charge consumers several thousand dollar for PDI also (now I see they were inspired by Canadian dealers :-). I am assuming these were the same crappy US dealers that were marking up prices by thousands of dollars also.

From what I understand, in US, you are not required to pay any PDI fee as car manufacturer is paying this already.

[Rags2Rags]

Originally Posted by saws

From my knowledge (based on watching several youtubers with the info) in the US, manufacturers (like BMW here) pay the dealer a fee for PDI which ranges from $100 to $150. PDI is where they simply do an "x" point inspection/check. It is also here that dealers add unneeded dealer installed options like edge guards, nitro for tires etc. but of course charge consumers exorbitant prices for them ($500 for nitrogen in tires etc.)

In this crazy market in US, some crappy dealers were trying to charge consumers several thousand dollar for PDI also (now I see they were inspired by Canadian dealers :-). I am assuming these were the same crappy US dealers that were marking up prices by thousands of dollars also.

From what I understand, in US, you are not required to pay any PDI fee as car manufacturer is paying this already.

I've always considered PDI as a way for them to force us to pay more because every dealer makes it non-negotiable.

Some dealerships are better about it and keep the amount reasonable (like Mazda) but this most recent purchase with BMW has really left a shitty taste in my mouth about the whole thing. I guess that's the joy of buying a brand new model when the waits are 3-6 months (for the X1) across the industry. Thankfully ours was already in production and has now been handed over for load assignment so it shouldn't be too much longer (overall).

I do have concerns that the dealer will try to pull that last minute "dealer adjustment" garbage on us when we go in to finalize everything once it gets here.

There's a recent story out of another province where a guy waited 4 months for his KIA SUV and when he went in to sign the final agreements they wanted an extra $2400 (CAD). He had put a $1000 deposit and everything. They are using a loophole in the industry regulations that allows them to do that even if you have a signed agreement. The guy walked away from the deal and they sold the SUV to someone else for the higher price later that week.

It's total crap. In our case if it shows up on time it will have been about 2 months. So thankfully not that long.

Apparently that's "dealer adjustment" is something that's been happening a lot in the US, especially with trucks that are in high demand. People are being told to pay 10-15K more or else they walk away from the deal.

[BMWZ4]

I doubt your dealer will mark it up further when you pick-up. If they do, report them to BMW in Toronto. As for their 'markup' on PDI & Freight...call them out. As noted, a $1295 freight charge is reasonable to me given how far this particular vehicle has travelled and jibes with the U.S. charge of $995(US). If they're charging you more, bring it up before you sign. As for your $2000 PDI charge, ask why are they charging (nearly) double when compared to someone you know in Ontario (me!)....good luck. Even I don't agree with the $1395 PDI charge, but it is non-negotiable...always has been. Honestly, half that would be acceptable.

EDIT: just checked Subaru & Toyota (Canada) site. Both are around $1900 for delivery, but no mention of PDI inspection charges.

[tex2670]

Is PDI a standardized BMW charge in the US? Isn't this just dealer to dealer? Like hiding the charge as "doc prep" or other BS charges?

[Rags2Rags]

Originally Posted by BMWZ4

I doubt your dealer will mark it up further when you pick-up. If they do, report them to BMW in Toronto. As for their 'markup' on PDI & Freight...call them out. As noted, a $1295 freight charge is reasonable to me given how far this particular vehicle has travelled and jibes with the U.S. charge of $995(US). If they're charging you more, bring it up before you sign. As for your $2000 PDI charge, ask why are they charging (nearly) double when compared to someone you know in Ontario (me!)....good luck. Even I don't agree with the $1395 PDI charge, but it is non-negotiable...always has been. Honestly, half that would be acceptable.

EDIT: just checked Subaru & Toyota (Canada) site. Both are around $1900 for delivery, but no mention of PDI inspection charges.

Thanks for that extra info. I'll certainly ask about the Freight and PDI costs when we go back in to sign everything.

I checked today and we purchased a non-BMW SUV early in 2021 and ended up paying $2000 for freight. I don't see a charge for PDI on the bill of sales so I don't know if that was $2000 for both or if they just included the PDI into that.

As you've said, knowing it's coming from Germany, I'm more accepting of the freight charge. I know "everything" has gone up substantially (out of whack to be honest) in the last year so shipping must be costing them more. It's more the over the top charge in PDI that bothers me. As I said, I will ask them about while expecting some fluff off story. Anyways, I'm done complaining about it. :-)

Our sales rep has been awesome since we signed the original agreement. He always gets back to me quickly with whatever questions I might have and keeps be aware of the expected ETA. It's always the back office guys I end up not liking.

[igott]

Originally Posted by tex2670

Is PDI a standardized BMW charge in the US? Isn't this just dealer to dealer? Like hiding the charge as "doc prep" or other BS charges?

I've only ever worked at one dealer so this may not be across the board, but in the US, BMW pays us(service) for doing a PDI as it is "warranty work". Dealers having the customer pay to PDI sounds weird, as it's double dipping. And it being over $1k seems bonkers. But, Canada is different than the US, so maybe there's more to it, or they don't get paid by BMW to complete a PDI?

[BMWZ4]

Originally Posted by igott

I've only ever worked at one dealer so this may not be across the board, but in the US, BMW pays us(service) for doing a PDI as it is "warranty work". Dealers having the customer pay to PDI sounds weird, as it's double dipping. And it being over $1k seems bonkers. But, Canada is different than the US, so maybe there's more to it, or they don't get paid by BMW to complete a PDI?

I'm 99% certain BMW Canada isn't paying the dealer back.