GBM - greater boston motorsports

[SwiftTone]

Wirelessly posted



It's a damn rip off. Those spark plugs are less than $10 dealer price. I think any business that sells significantly above MSRP is scummy and ill go elsewhere.

Thats like many things in the medical field. As an example, retail price on quality glasses lenses are roughly $300, they pay $5-$10 per lens. Thats a 15x markup on a set of lenses. Whats worse is that people think it's a DEAL when they go on sale for *only* $150

[CBR929RE]

$33.82

that's crazy. plugs for my bike from Honda for my bike were like $32 each for the Denso ones. I think they were $12 from that site. the NGKs under $10.

[Pigman]

Price out a Aprillia RS50 plug and then come CRY on my shoulder.......

[Awesome]

Just called GBM, they sell that plug for $21.99, so they are a little above retail. I'm just amazed that everyone keeps saying "obviously online is going to be a lot cheaper!", when the online site is also selling the part for above retail. If you came into our shop today and bought the plug it would be $19.72.

Yesterday it was $43.00

[SVRACER01]

Price out a Aprillia RS50 plug and then come CRY on my shoulder.......

i think i paid about $18 for a plug for the KabooM

[Awesome]

i think i paid about $18 for a plug for the KabooM

I don't care about the cost. This complaint is about the ripoff. If MSRP was $100 and they sold it for $100, I would have no issue.

[SVRACER01]

I don't care about the cost. This complaint is about the ripoff. If MSRP was $100 and they sold it for $100, I would have no issue.

i realize that.
shoulda told him you didnt want 2

[Degsy]

Wirelessly posted

I would have made that spark plug fit an orifice it wasn't designed for.

It's a damn rip off. Those spark plugs are less than $10 dealer price. I think any business that sells significantly above MSRP is scummy and ill go elsewhere.

I'll pay a dealer more than online price in order to get it right now. I also sympathies with their overheads, but 100% markup OVER MSRP say "fuck you mr customer", not "thank you, can I help you with anything else".

Where do you see dealer cost being less than $10? Dealer cost through Honda is about $14.00 and I don't see it being much less in an NGK plug even from another supplier...

Dealer cost through Honda and dealer cost through tucker rocky or PU are two different things ;-)

Do you buy spark plugs in the red Honda box? I never did. Buying from Honda already puts the price up 50%

[KnuckleBallz]

Never had a good experience at that store. Salesman thought he had a pretty slick bait and switch going on me last time. The incoming bike he was gonna sell me was "in transit" and "gonna be here tomorrow" for a week, all the while with him trying to sell me a floor room Ninja. Finally admitted the bike he "ordered" for me wasn't coming in after I told him I didn't want the Ninja for the 7th time. It wouldn't have pissed me off so much if he hadn't actually run the credit check through Suzuki in the meantime. Literally did all the possible paperwork with no intention of selling me the bike I wanted. "Oh, but I can get you the same financing on this EX"

[WinVT]

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Dealer cost through Honda and dealer cost through tucker rocky or PU are two different things ;-)

Do you buy spark plugs in the red Honda box? I never did. Buying from Honda already puts the price up 50%

Normally I would agree with you.... but actually if you look up this plug through PU or TR it retails for $43.95 or $45.55... Through honda it is $19 something. Strange.....

[scottieducati]

Just called GBM, they sell that plug for $21.99, so they are a little above retail. I'm just amazed that everyone keeps saying "obviously online is going to be a lot cheaper!", when the online site is also selling the part for above retail. If you came into our shop today and bought the plug it would be $19.72.

First off, you shoulda called me for the super secret handshake at GBM. I only get grief (sometimes) at the service counter. Can't say I've had a bad experience *ever* up there, but I know Billy well. Beyond that though, I have also been hanging out at the parts counter often and experience their customer service. A couple kids there try, but don't know shit yet. You really only ever want to talk with Bill.

[Awesome]

First off, you shoulda called me for the super secret handshake at GBM. I only get grief (sometimes) at the service counter. Can't say I've had a bad experience *ever* up there, but I know Billy well. Beyond that though, I have also been hanging out at the parts counter often and experience their customer service. A couple kids there try, but don't know shit yet. You really only ever want to talk with Bill.

Should I need a special introduction to get halfway decent service? Whoever 'helped' me was no kid. He did attempt to dazzle me with a bunch of bullshit about thread pitch, plug temp, electrode direction, torque, and so on.

[scottieducati]

What I buy from dealers:

OEM Brand Parts. Look up the info, write down a part number, email it in.

I can also get you NGK's in bulk...

[jwm2k3]

Never had a good experience at that store. Salesman thought he had a pretty slick bait and switch going on me last time. The incoming bike he was gonna sell me was "in transit" and "gonna be here tomorrow" for a week, all the while with him trying to sell me a floor room Ninja. Finally admitted the bike he "ordered" for me wasn't coming in after I told him I didn't want the Ninja for the 7th time. It wouldn't have pissed me off so much if he hadn't actually run the credit check through Suzuki in the meantime. Literally did all the possible paperwork with no intention of selling me the bike I wanted. "Oh, but I can get you the same financing on this EX"

Its a case of 5 stores with 6, 7 maybe 10 salesguys in each store all selling from the same inventory. So I'm sure he did try to get the exact bike you wanted, most likely purchased before you made a deposit. Or it might have been on a deposit already and the deal was languishing and when he tried to get it, original buyer stepped up for fear of losing it...

Really, know what you want and go and ask for it. Sometimes you do run into a not so good salesperson......go ahead, keep buying your shit online and dealers will keep hiring anyone to cover the sales floor or parts counter. Just warm bodies sometimes.

[Awesome]

Spark plug delivered this morning. Pretty pathetic I can live 3 miles from GBM and I have to buy my parts from California distributors.

[KnuckleBallz]

Really, know what you want and go and ask for it. Sometimes you do run into a not so good salesperson......go ahead, keep buying your shit online and dealers will keep hiring anyone to cover the sales floor or parts counter. Just warm bodies sometimes.

I did know what I wanted, and I did ask for it. And when he dropped the ball I went to 3A Motors in Chelmsford instead.

[scottieducati]

It is what it is. Remember all those sweet local shops with knowledgeable people? Yeah they all die off from ordering via the interwebz, then we bitch about no good shops nearby.... either support your local shop (if they're bad, find a manager, talk to them, let them know, and if you get good service, let them know that too). There are VERY few successful businesses in existence still who won't work with you, particularly if you're local and a serious rider. They need help identifying those types from the hoards of idiots they see every day too. It's a two way street guys.

[Awesome]

It is what it is. Remember all those sweet local shops with knowledgeable people? Yeah they all die off from ordering via the interwebz, then we bitch about no good shops nearby.... either support your local shop (if they're bad, find a manager, talk to them, let them know, and if you get good service, let them know that too). There are VERY few successful businesses in existence still who won't work with you, particularly if you're local and a serious rider. They need help identifying those types from the hoards of idiots they see every day too. It's a two way street guys.

$43 for a $20 spark plug. I need to talk to a manager about this and being spoken down to? I'm supposed to tell them how to properly run their business, and pay a premium for the bad service they're delivering on top of it?

It is a two way street, you run a good fair business and treat your customers right, and they'll support you. If you run it like GBM, they, like myself, will walk out, go home, and order it online, and not even bother to check with you next time they need something.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, and they'll tell the internet about the bad experience.

[scottieducati]

Nobody will ever make your experience right, but it also sounds like someone called in for the same thing and got a much lower quote. We can only guess what led them to quote you $43 for a $20 spark plug, but MY guess based on a decade of experience there doesn't lead me to believe they're price gouging. 99.9% sure there was SOME kind of honest mistake in there and you either felt jerked around and left or whatever, but it doesn't sound like any effort was made to say "hey, this MSRP is X, you're charging 2*X, is there a mistake here?" Maybe he had 2 in there for a quantity, who knows?

Point is, you clearly didn't try and resolve the issue in an intelligent way. If you did, well then I apologize, but it makes zero sense. None. Dealers that have been around that long just don't charge 2x for parts.

All I know is, every single time I (or any one I have sent there to go to the parts counter) have gone in there for an OEM Part (which that plug is, and on Ron Ayres it comes out to $22.) I have never seen a quote over MSRP. Ever.

Bikes, an entirely different story. I would never send someone there to buy a bike without accompanying them and skipping the BS.

[scottieducati]

Hmm, I was curious what happened when you went onto GBM's website, under parts finder, and entered the part number in question: 31911-KRN-731.

http://www.greaterbostonmotorsports.com/fiche_select.asp?mfg=Honda&partnumber=31911-KRN-731

$19.72

Yep, price gouging up the ass...

[Awesome]

I plainly said to him, I looked the part up, and asked him why they were charging $43 for it when MSRP is around $20, and he answered arrogantly, that MSRP is $43 not $20. To which I explained again, that I looked the part up, and came in to buy it from them to support a local business instead of ordering online. He wasn't at all interested. Obviously the price he looked up was a mistake, and so was his attitude. You can assume what you want as well, but I was pleasant and civil in explaining the situation.

[Awesome]

Maybe you could call that dude you know, and clear this up just like Barry cleared up the issues at Vanson with his good friend the owner. Wonder why he hasn't shown his face on the forum since that thread.

[scottieducati]

I plainly said to him, I looked the part up, and asked him why they were charging $43 for it when MSRP is around $20, and he answered arrogantly, that MSRP is $43 not $20. To which I explained again, that I looked the part up, and came in to buy it from them to support a local business instead of ordering online. He wasn't at all interested. Obviously the price he looked up was a mistake, and so was his attitude. You can assume what you want as well, but I was pleasant and civil in explaining the situation.

Maybe you could call that dude you know, and clear this up just like Barry cleared up the issues at Vanson with his good friend the owner. Wonder why he hasn't shown his face on the forum since that thread.

More than happy to head over there with you, but I guarantee there was some kind of mistake. Also, have you ever WORKED at a parts counter at a major multi-line dealer? The sheer volume of inane questions, multiple calls / price quotes / etc. is enough to make *anyone's* head spin.

My purely subjective guess is he was looking up alternatives, and accidentally ended up with a QTY of 2 instead of 1. But who knows, bottom line is they aren't trying to charge $43 for a $20 plug. Period.

What I wonder is why you don't order like the experienced person you are. Either order it thru their website, with a part number, or send an email. I never just walk in and ask for something, I always have a part number, and usually a print out with p/n and pricing from Ron Ayres or equivalent site. Hand it over, you will not be charged more (save for tax). End of story, happy customer, and a parts employee that doesn't have to deal with figuring anything out.

[Awesome]

So, I have to literally do every bit of their job for them? You never go to a business and tell them what you want to buy and expect them to get it for you from behind the counter at the price? He did not put QTY 2, because he didn't use the computer to look it up, or to ring up any parts.

Apparently the bad service and price was my fault, mostly because you know Bill, you're a regular at GBM, and you used to work there. Makes sense.

[scottieducati]

I worked there in college, 12 years ago. I left because I had ZERO interest in their sales system. I don't send friends there to buy bikes, unless they want new and have a good reason to go there (e.g.: they're local).

I do know Bill, and I've been there and seen how he deals with customers, yes. Do I give a shit beyond that? Not really. I would give a shit when someone who came to one of our track days, had some bad experience due to miscommunication, and then bitched online about it before talking with a manager or finding out what the problem is. Yes, that shit bothers me. I know Bill tries harder than any parts-dept. kid I've run into, at any dealer (and I worked at three). He generally knows his stuff, takes his time and explains things. But mistakes happen, and bitching over such a trivial thing as buying a spark plug speaks volumes about the customer more so than the dealer as I and a handful of people I know routinely buy parts there (not everyone knows Bill like I do either), and nobody's had so much as an issue, and if they did, he'd always make it right. You didn't afford him that chance by leaving and bitching about it on the interwebz.

Point is, there was clearly some kind of mistake. Your original post said they wanted $43 for a $20 plug. No dealer would do that, ever. Their own website even quotes a reasonable price. If you'd gone to checkout and gotten a receipt, you would have seen whatever error it was and been able to correct it. But yes, at any dealer I take my time, have ALL the part numbers I know I want in advance, and usually a very good idea of pricing.