Ocean BMW & MINI Avis 150

2 x bad servicing experiences and the dealerships generally lacks the professionalism compared to other BMW dealerships.

Bought a brand new BMW ix 40 M Sport a few years back. That process was fine (a little too pushy) but the after care and servicing department is all over the place.

Never any courtesy cars available when you drop your car in for servicing. An added headache when you live 20 miles away.

First service, I got a call to say the car was ready - got a lift with a neighbour to collect it and hey ho they’d made a mistake and it wasn’t ready (!!!!) had to travel back home 35 minutes away and come back the following day. Even then I had to wait another 40 minutes until i could drive it home. Massive pain. No one seemed to care and just shrugged their shoulders. Not a great experience.

Second service booked in and was told over the phone it would be done and dusted in an hour. It took over 3 hours. Not a lot to do when killing time around the dealership. Drank 4 coffees over the road.

On the general “professionalism” front hate being called “mate” and it seems the whole team are trained to do that every other minute, “mate this, mate that”…I’m not expecting to be called sir - but my name might be nice! It’s just too over familiar and informal. AND finally , the TV in the dealership waiting area had GB News playing on a loop (WHAT!???) that was the final straw. Felt like I’d walked back into 1994.

Compared to other BMW dealerships Plymouth needs to grow up a bit. Way too relaxed and informal to it’s detriment.

I now go to “D Lovett” dealership in Bristol. Just cant face going back to Ocean, so the 6 hour round trip is worth it.

Poor communication and slow responses to WhatsApp enquiries. Communication could be significantly improved by providing more timely updates and responding to messages promptly.

I was initially contacted via WhatsApp to arrange an appointment and was advised that 23/06 was available. However, despite responding, I did not receive any confirmation or further communication regarding the booking. Due to the delay in receiving a reply, the earliest available appointment I can now secure is 03/07, despite my need for an urgent review.

This lack of timely communication has resulted in an unnecessary delay in accessing care and has been both frustrating and disappointing.

Having recently visited Ocean Plymouth to have front and rear brake pads and 2 front tyres replaced, had to return 2 weeks later as they did not have my tyre size in stock. Returned early today as they said that it should not take too long to replace the tyres. The gentleman that I saw on arrival was not welcoming with no mention as to how long I would be waiting...so far I have been waiting for 2 hours and had to ask if there was any idea of when the car would be ready, I was told it would be another hour or so...
Very disappointed on this occasion, will probably get work done elsewhere in the future.

I have been using Ocean Falmouth for my servicing needs since I bought my car 5 years ago, and for the most part have been happy with the service I received. However, over the past year or so I have noticed a steady decline in the level of service, and with my latest experience they have sunk to an all time low, and I will not be using them again.
Last winter my car developed a water leak inside on the passenger side footwell back and front. I took it in to Ocean in November and they replaced a gasket, however they either did not do this properly or they did not re-test for leaks afterwards as over the winter with all the heavy rains it leaked worse than ever, at one point filling the footwell right up to the door sill.
I took the car back to Ocean Falmouth, and because I had to go into hospital I left it with them for around 7 weeks. During this time, I received no feed-back from them, and when I contacted them I was totally shocked to find out they had ‘not had time’ to look at it! The excuse was shortage of staff and too many cars booked in; I found this quite appalling service and will not be using them again.

Went to purchase a mini and change of circumstances meant had to cancel the order after paying a deposit of thousands of pounds. I was told by the sales man that i would receive the refund within 14 days. ( NOT TRUE BMW MINI DID NOT HAVE MY BANK DETAILS) I was then told to contact BMW Mini direct. I did that and was told it would be a further 10 days to wait for my refund. To date i still have not received my deposit causing excessive stress financial hardship and anxiety as i recover from a year of serious ill illness. I feel seriously let down by this as I have spent a fortune over the years at this business.

Terrible service, dropped the car off for a simple transmission oil change at 0830 and was told the car needs one hour for the oil to cool down and then it’s a one hour job and should be ready for lunchtime. The service team were aware I was waiting for this to be done and at 1400 I was told the car has still not gone into the garage!! Terrible communication will not be coming back here again and would seriously advise people to think twice about buying a car here if this is normal aftercare!

Excellent Service from the BMW team at Falmouth. Very helpful & understanding of my situation. Can't fault the service at any stage. From the greeting at reception to the hand over at the end. Very professional & always with a smile.

BMW 1 SERIES 118I blue
In for MOT, Service, health check, program control recall and a complementary clean. Very pleased with the work carried out and the professional service from Richard 10/10 will definitely be returning in the future.

On Saturday (3rd January) we were in a desperate situation.
We were on holiday in Polperro and were driving our mini countryman- our 3rd bought directly from mini at silverlink in Newcastle.
A few days earlier we were experiencing a clunking issue from the back wheels- to cut a long story short we had been sold inferior tyres which were affecting the 4WD and we were advised to change asap and not drive, however our trip home is 500 miles.
We found this out on the Friday before and desperately tried to buy star rated tyres but no supplier had them in stock and needed to order in and the earliest delivery would be Monday afternoon.
We contacted Ocean mini Plymouth first thing on Saturday morning to discover they had the tyres in stock but since they were unable to fit refused to sell them to us as this was their policy.
Even though we have been a loyal mini buyer they would not help us out- we were then forced to leave our car behind with a tyre supplier , rent a hire car to get home and we will need to do 1000 mile trip next weekend to swap cars which will also require an overnight stay.
Thank you Ocean Mini for your hospitality!!
I hope you’re never in a desperate situation and need some kindness in the future.
We were desperate and needed a kind soul but you weren’t it.

I had a very small query and contacted Richard Marshall at Ocean by leaving a message at around 8.30 am. He had contacted me and sorted out my request before nine. That is what I call customer service. He also answered a few questions later when I saw him at the showroom and was exceedingly clear and helpful.I also found generally that other people in the showroom were helpful too.I was looked after very well ,Thank you ,it really is a pleasant place to be.

The aftersales and management are a dont care attitude bought car 11 months ago been back 7 times same issue not sorted warranty running out and saying I will have to pay after total disgrace by a dealer would avoid at all costs

I had a Mini Cooper bought for me 2023 reg. This is still under warranty. I was a little overwhelmed with all it could do. So I went to ocean Plymouth and was helped by Isaac Pearson.
He was sooo helpful and talked me through any issues I didn’t quite understand. He has contacted me by email and telephone to check how I am getting on. His customer service is excellent.
I would have no hesitation in contacting him in the future should I need to.
A real credit to the company.
Once again thankyou Isaac.

Just bought used approved 320D M SPORT in portimoa blue and I absolutely love it's a real quality motor and drives beautifully.

I dealt with Ben who was very professional, helpful and friendly and although he wasn't available to hand the car over to me on collection day he made sure I was left in the very capable hands of Ollie and Jasmine and also followed up with a call to see how I was getting on with the car when he returned to work.

Summary - lack lustre and complacent attitude. Now and then good service. Mainly so so service..

Pros - well laid out showroom, work office for when you need to wait (which is a LOT), courtesy cars.

Cons - complacent attitude, poor communication, the left hand never knows what the right is doing. last visit was terrible!

I've been taking my car to this garage for more than 6 years - there has been ups and downs. I won't bore you.. there are lots of smart people walking about and tapping on computers being busy (not so much they look stressed or are breaking sweat sadly) - lots of 'actual work' and communication are missing.

Switchboard and booking in is clumsy and antiquated - are we still in the 80s? Their app is useless.. Key drop off at entrance (I wonder which clever director thought of that waste of space and money?) don't use it as you need to always go over what the car is booked in for face to face, point by point if you want a chance of the work being done.

Last visit was a disaster - their job was to fit 2 new front tyres and investigate noise from the back (wheel bearing? balancing?). I was there for 8 hours hanging around Falmouth - got the car back at 5.30pm and the noise? still there. Had a 600 mile round trip coming up so took it to a local tyre place. Bulge in one of the rear tyres and dangerous - Ocean had not even looked at it! And I was there 8 hours!!

Had enough and not going back after that which is tantamount to negligence.

I’m very pleased with the service and dedication from James Smith the Motability specialist at Ocean Plymouth. He was very helpful in helping me choose the right car for my needs…well done 10/10

James looked after use well good communication really pleased with the car

Amazing experience while purchasing new car.They always go above and beyond.I wouldn't go anywhere else, just bmwocean

Awful service centre . I took my mini in to be fixed . It was covered under a warranty and the first conversation I had from ocean was ‘who is going to pay for this ?’ I advised them that this was in their one link system and they said ok . Couldn’t fix it and it went in for a second time for two days . I was told it was all fixed . Only to find out later that they hadn’t done a thing to the car. Apparently on the third visit everything was fixed . I advised Mini Uk but they didn’t care . Do not use unless you really have to . They lie and say whatever they need to cover themselves . The worst mini service garage I have ever been to . AVOID

Jasmin at BMW helped me over a period of a few weeks hone in on the car I was looking for.
I felt prioratised. And thanks to her, I drove away with my dream car.
Been very happy ever since.
I still feel looked after by her and her team at Ocean BMW.

Tayler, Ben and Andy from Ocean Plymouth made my buying experience there very pleasant and I did not feel unduly pressured in the decision making. The car was also delivered in a reasonable time-frame considering the difficult logistics.