South Bay BMW — Attraction in Torrance

There’s a lot to say about South Bay BMW but I want to start off by first saying this is the second BMW I’ve stepped into and the first through the South Bay branch. My mother purchased her dream car from Mr. Stephen Green in 2022 and I wrote my first review about how he went above and beyond the line of duty. He spent nearly 8 1/2 hours with her to make sure she was comfortable and got a deal she not only loves, but a vehicle she adores every single day.

From my perspective I was just running out on my last lease and contacted Mr. Green to see if he could help me the way he helped my mother. He never sold me fake smiles, or inauthentic promises. What he said he would do, he did, and when I pressed for more? He patiently listened and acquiesced within reason. Lo and behold he helped me find an absolute dream of a car.

Let me start out by thanking a few people before I get back to Mr. Green. When you walk into South Bay BMW you’re greeted by a reception by the name of Sharon. She spoke about her passion for being kind to others, and how she loves what she does so much that she came out of retirement to work for this dealership and the family who owns it. She gave me sage advice about “pursuing your passions until YOU are ready to stop. Not just because age tells you to.”

Mr. Mo Ali. I had a bunch of what I would call inane questions about the ending of a lease. What I needed to do and what I needed to bring. “Do I need to fill the tank up? Should I wash it again? I have all the manuals do I need them in a specific area.” Mo not only answered all of my questions but I called him three separate times to ask them he never displayed any amount of frustration towards the questions and encouraged me to ask more and told me how grateful he was that I took the lease of my car so seriously.

Crystal was the member of the team I handed my lease into. She gave me a bunch of helpful notes, made me laugh consistently with quips about how serious Mr. Green is, and how well I took care of my car. Helped me get my new car set up with the crazy amount of tech involved. And answered about 100 redundant questions with the same level of enthusiasm and patience.

Alex handled my financial and contractual pieces and spent time encouraging me as I was signing the documents to take advantage of my youth and fledgling career to travel and see the world too.

Truly everyone here is really wonderful and even moreso, they made this entire process really easy.

Finally, again, to Mr. Stephen Green. Look, I’m under no auspices. A dealership has to make money and will do what they can to put you into a car so they can get commission. I’m not naive and I don’t think anyone else who reads these reviews are as well. But Mr. Green is different than every dealer I’ve ever interacted with either for test drives, or for actually getting a car. He is a straight shooter with a military background and a strong faith in God Almighty. And he lives by those values. He is honest, never once was I surprised by anything he said or did. Everything he promised, he followed through with. Everything he said would happen? It happened. He didn’t over promise or over guarantee. He spoke plainly and anytime I ran into a question he answered with kindness and with the pattern of speech that comes from the conviction of an honest man of faith.

I work in psychology and will be opening a new business soon, Mr. Green spent nearly an hour of time while financial contracts were getting drafted or the car was getting detailed to provide the same advice he provided to his children. Remarks of being careful not to confuse generosity and pro bono work with compromising boundaries, being honest and humble at work, and keeping an open and loving heart to help a world that is struggling.

To conclude: why should you choose South Bay BMW over other places? The people. Mr. Green is tantamount to family to myself and my mother. And in a world that’s constantly trying to wring money and be in authentic with you. This is a place that defies...

Editing my review after a bit over a month of ownership and having a chance to reflect some more. My original review for Kyle still stands, he was still great to deal with and I would definitely recommend him and he gets 5 stars.

The reason I'm reducing the rating for them is due to their/BMWs certified pre-owned process. I've purchased used cars before and have always done a pre-purchase inspection beforehand. It's helped me with my decision making and know more about the car I'm purchasing. This time around, I specifically sought out a CPO vehicle because they're already doing an inspection on the vehicle, replacing anything needed with OEM parts, and also providing an additional year warranty.

What I also expected, would be pointing out any external damage/repainting, like I've had with previous pre-purchase inspections. I mean, they did provide a vehicle inspection checklist showing that someone checked off that the body meets BMW guidelines and standards. So I took that at face value that all is good and there was no damage/resprayed areas. I looked over the car the best I could at that time and everything did look good to me and with the report confirming everything looked good to them, I was happy to sign.

About a week later, I ended up taking off the front license plate to fill the holes with bumper plugs and this is when I could now clearly see that the front bumper was repainted and not really done very well. The color hides it pretty well, but you can tell that there's a clear line where it was repainted because they were too lazy to take off the front plate to blend the respray. It also has a lot of orange peel in the resprayed area compared to the original paint.

About another week later after washing the car, I discover some more damage to the wheels. Three out of four of the wheels had curb damage that was repaired, with one of them being repaired pretty carelessly with paint drips. They even tried to sell me a wheel/tire package that would replace the wheels if they were curbed, which in hindsight, I probably should have taken because I could've just turned around and got new wheels.

Lastly, the alignment of the steering wheel. It shows that they completed an alignment on the car before selling it and the car does track straight, but they did not straighten the steering wheel right at noon. It's just very slightly to the left, which is annoying.

Now, whether or not it was the previous owner that got this respray done or it was the dealership that did the respray, it should have been caught/notated in their report for me to see, in my opinion at least. They don't hold that same opinion I guess. I've had previous pre-purchase inspections that pointed out better resprays that this, so someone that inspects cars all day long, should have caught it/notated it, which almost leads me to believe that the dealership themselves did the respray because the wheels would have been certainly caught because they put brand new tires on it. Doesn't matter really, either they were not competent enough to see it at inspection and notate it or they were not competent enough to do a better job on the respray.

With all that said, this is average dealership stuff, so they get an average rating. I'm not surprised by it and should have known better. Ultimately, the car is still fun and I'm going to enjoy it regardless, but I would not have purchased this vehicle had I known. I do not expect perfection from a used car, but since I was not in a rush to purchase, I would have let this one pass and waited for another one had I known upfront about the respray. So lesson learned for me but hopefully this helps others. Get a pre-purchase inspection, even...

The BMW i5 eDrive40, a vehicle I had never considered, unexpectedly captivated me among all the EVs I've tested. Despite my lack of experience with BMW, I've had the opportunity to test-drive various other EVs, including Tesla, Lexus, Cadillac, Mercedes, Genesis, Nissan, Fisker, Ford, VW, KIA, and Lucid Air. Each of these vehicles had their unique features that catered to my preferences. But it was the i5 eDrive40 that surprised me with its standout performance and features. Although I had yet to meet Mr. Green before my BMW experience, I firmly believed he would guide me through the leasing process with care. His gracious and honest approach, which I sincerely appreciated, never pressured me. His exceptional personality, genuine smile, and warm-hearted, straightforward attitude significantly influenced my decision to choose the BMW i5 eDrive40. Mr. Green helped me place a factory order at BMW in Germany. I was determined to lease an EV even though EV popularity has declined in the US. In the past, I drove Hybrid and Fuel Cell Hydrogen vehicles. Of all the other EVs I test-drove, the i5 eDrive40 offered comfortable luxury ride quality, an ultra-quiet cabin, and many hi-tech safety features and cutting-edge driving functions. Another EV that was as attractive as the i5 eDrive40 was the Mercedes EQE sedan. However, EQE was much more expensive in its same class as eDrive40. EVs are undoubtedly practical for living in Los Angeles's beautiful weather is perfect. I never returned to gas or hydrogen stations, stayed home and charged overnight, or received a two-year free public charging service from BMW. I am a widow; life should be easier and less hassle. Surprisingly, I discovered that electric charging costs at home were far less than gas or hydrogen. Yes, I invested nearly $2,000 in the installation cost of 150 bolts in my garage. I highly NOT recommend using BMW's Merit charging port installation in your garage because it is costly, nearly $5,000.

The i5 eDrive40 can travel nearly 300 miles on a single charge. However, as recommended by Mr. Green, I only charge 80%, so the driving range is 260ish miles. Charging at home takes about 6 hours, charging at the Electrify America charging station takes about 30 minutes, and BMW pays for it. Frankly, charging at Electrify America is easy, but there is always a long waiting line due to sharing it with other EV brands. (Well, this is where Tesla does well.) Additionally, this EV could easily travel beyond 300 miles on a 100% charge. In the end, how did I decide to lease a BMW? It was all about Mr. Green.

Back to about Mr. Green. I am older than him, but he treated me like a family member, and I felt the same way about him. When I grew up in Japan, our traditional customs always emphasized that the authentic, trustworthy relationship between sales/lease managers and clients began after the vehicle was delivered. He has been doing that to me since I drove off a new factory order, i5 eDrive40. He has always been there for me, more than before I signed a lease contract. My relationship with South Bay BMW began, and I look forward to a long, delightful future. However, my true bond with Mr. Green is in my life, and it gives me pleasure to have the prepossessing and state-of-the-art tech EV BMW i5 eDrive40. Mr. Green never asked me to write my comment on any review site. Also, I wouldn't say I like writing about my views and experiences with people or stores because people are often not truthful and criticize others. But Mr. Green deserves my gratitude and the trustworthy care he has given me. Thus, I posted my feedback and praise about Mr. Green and 15 eDrive40. I will be forever grateful for his...