Stratstone BMW Tunbridge Wells - Tunbridge Wells

Luke Bessell

Really good experience, and made to feel welcome. Very polite and helpful staff. Great deal done over the phone. Car was exactly as described when collected. Thanks Sam!

Craig Bragger

Picked up a new to me X3 car today from Arden Tunbridge. Cassidy was absolutely fantastic, the service from Arden has been nothing but 1st class from start to finish. The attention to detail and willingness to help has been fantastic and I'll definitely be back to buy another when the time is right!

Lynne Templeton

Our experience with Arden Tunbridge Wells has been appalling. I bought a new car in 2021 and initially tried to do this through Tunbridge Wells. After 4 weeks of struggling to get straight answers of what was included (due to chip shortages at the time, several standard inclusions were not available) and being told contradictory incorrect information, I went to Maidstone instead and insisted the commission be transferred. I should have realised then that this was just the beginning of the incompetence from BMW.

When we received the car, it did not come with a full tank of petrol as had been promised and agreed as part of the sale. This was conceded by the salesman, who agreed to compensate us appropriately. We continue to await this compensation.

Later down the line, we attempted to buy the service package prior to the first service being carried out. We would have bought this at the same time as buying the car but gave up due to the difficulty we had. Having had such a poor experience with Arden Tunbridge Wells and Maidstone, we tried a different group - Group 1 Hailsham. They were no better. BMW make it clear you must agree to the Ts&Cs of the package, yet refused to actually provide them. BMW said the Group should be providing the Ts&Cs, Group said BMW should be providing them. After months of them arguing back and forth between themselves, and Arden Tunbridge Wells also being unable to help, our car became very overdue for service so we gave up. Thank goodness we did.

At the beginning of March, a several things failed in our car. It sprung a leak in the roof that soaked the inside. The windscreen blowers stopped functioning correctly and now obscures the windscreen with fog without being able to clear it - extremely dangerous while driving. The headlights gathered condensation. The car was not much more than 2 years old and within warranty, so the car was recovered and taken to Arden Tunbridge Wells for repair.

It is now almost the end of May. After 10 weeks of our car being in for repair, it still has issues. Not only have they not been able to repair it, they have caused extraordinary damage to the car whilst in their care.

There are scratches, scuffs and chips to the paintwork that they have accepted were caused by them. They attempted to have them buffed out but now we have been left with not only the same scratches but now additional circular buff marks left by someone not skilled or experienced at buffing out scratches. Whilst replacing the seats into our car, they dropped the seat on the driver’s ledge and put a dent in it. The leather interior has been ripped, scuffed, dented and stained. They got a leather expert to repair it, who seems to have done so by cutting off the rips and leaving it, and then painting over the scuffs with a paint a slightly darker colour to the leather so it looks like we have grease stains.

They also attempted to return the car to us in a filthy state, having been left open and carpets taken out and hung outside to dry for weeks, so the car was returned dirty, muddy, cobwebbed, and with dark stains on the seats.

We continue to have issues with condensation, which implies the leak still hasn’t been fixed, and nothing has been done to the windscreen blowers as they claim there’s no issue with it. If there is no issue with it, then the system is not fit for purpose and could potentially be lethal.

I have never had a new car in my life before buying this one. My mother died a few years before buying it and I chose to use the money to treat our family to what was meant to be a luxury and our pride and joy. It has been destroyed by the complete incompetence and negligence of Arden. I understand Arden are in the process of being bought and they are unwilling to spend any money. The shortcuts and cost cutting being taken are evident.

The only person I found helpful in any of this is service manager Chris Hawker. Despite his best efforts to rectify this fiasco (as he describes it), this continues to be an horrendous and devastating experience.

Don’t touch them with a barge pole.

Andrew Meredith

I recently purchased a new BMW X5 and my brother a new BMW 1 series from this dealership. The service I received from initial enquiry to collection and post has been faultless. We were looked after by Cassidy Roberts who was very patient and worked so hard to make the deals work and the cars available. Collection was an amazing experience. Cassidy is a huge credit to the dealership and the BMW brand. Thank you, the cars are amazing.

steffi mcconnell

I am very happy with the way Sam sold me the car.
He was very professional and gave me reassurance when purchasing my BMW.
His customer care was outstanding, and the whole sales process was an enjoyable experience at ARDEN BMW.
Thanks Sam ?

Krishna REDDY

Good morning,

I am happy with the fantastic service I received from Mr. Stephen Brand from Arden Tunbridge wells. The service work was meticulous, and my car now drives like new. His expertise and attention to detail have renewed my faith in the BMW brand. I am even more excited about the prospect of purchasing my first new BMW car in 2025. Please convey my regards to your team.

Keep up the good work

Regards,
Krishna Reddy

Kieran Beauchamp

Avoid this place at all costs. Do yourself a favour and buy an Audi instead. 1 star is way too generous for this shambles of a dealership.

Where to start...

My car goes into this dealership for an indicator fault find. I was told by two separate individuals that I would not pay if the fault was not diagnosed.

On the day it goes into the garage, I receive a call saying that the turbo has blown up whilst on the ramp and it is going to cost £4k to replace! Within 30 minutes of the call I receive an invoice for the repair work, I hadn't even had time to process my thoughts.

I refuse under the premise that it was running fine prior to going into the garage and broken whilst under the supervision of the dealership and I have no way of proving that it wasn't damaged whilst under their care.

These guys don't budge an inch so I escalate it to BMW UK, needless to say that was a waste of time, I never received the confirmation email that it has been escalated.

I manage to speak to someone at this dealership who informs me that they will raise the issue with BMW and submit a goodwill request.

I am then informed that because of the age of the vehicle and the lack of BMW service history that the request has been denied and I am fully liable for the cost (the car is on a 2018 plate and has full BMW service history at this dealership! I'm not sure where they keep their data but I'm guessing they are as clumsy with this as they are with their customers cars).

Whilst all of this is going on I manage to find a BMW specialist who will source a turbo and fit it for half the price with a two year warranty (not surprising given how expensive this dealership is).

I arrange for the car to be collected from BMW by the other garage I have contacted and on the day of collection I get a call saying that this dealership is essentially holding my car ransom until I pay the outstanding balance on the indicator fault find (I still haven't had confirmation if the indicator fault has been diagnosed so the saga may well continue although needless to say I will never visit this place again).

This dealership has forgotten the art of customer service. They showed absolutely no remorse or compassion in the situation. If only they were as keen to resolve the situation as they were to shove a £4k invoice in my face things may have turned out differently. In all fairness to them, they did say that I could visit the garage to watch the cctv of my car blowing up on the ramp but what's to say they haven't thrown it around on the industrial estate before putting it in the garage.

This whole experience has put me off of BMW completely, not just the dealership but the brand as a whole. As soon as my car is repaired it will be going on the market and I will be buying a different brand. I will continue to tell people about my shocking experience with BMW in the hope that it saves someone else the misery of dealing with these guys. I hope this review encourages people to think twice about buying a BMW or dealing with this dealership.

jacob

Took my car in for a recall job for multiple things, not expecting much as I hadn't paid for anything and it was mandatory work they can't have been happy about it either.

I was being looked after by Molly who was fantastic and called me multiple times throughout the day to update me on progress.

When I picked up the car Molly came to greet me, handed my keys and the car was spotless, cleaned, waxed, wheels scrubbed , inside was shiny and hoovered , felt like a full valet as well as other BMW goodies in there.

Molly provided a great service and should be commended also.