I HAD dinner with Spencer Yu recently in the company of several of my distinguished colleagues and guess what I had dug up. Two stupendous BMW bonanzas that should both whet the appetite of BMW owners and BMW dreamers alike.
Spencer, of course, is the youthful president of SMC Asia Car Distributors Corp., the official importer and distributor of BMW in the Philippines.
Since Ramon S. Ang, the San Miguel Corp. CEO/president, appointed him as top BMW honcho in the country, Spencer had been going great guns, transforming, rather quickly, the German muscle into a brand much preferred, once more, by the segment used to owning top-selling automobiles the world over.
The twin torpedoes start today, February 21, and ends on Sunday, February 23.
Dubbed the “BMW Joyfest 2020,” the virtual festival at the Activity Center of Bonifacio Global City in Taguig is a three-day celebration of “sheer driving pleasure,” allowing customers and aspiring BMW owners to enjoy the BMW brand experience with some exclusive activities and offers.
A splendid highlight to this is the simultaneous launch of BMW’s most accessible models in the market—the BMW 1 Series and BMW X1.
The all-new BMW 1 Series gets its most dramatic update yet, offering a new platform for performance and versatility, while the new BMW X1 continues the story of its successful compact Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) legacy.
Aside from these new product introductions, guests will also savor BMW’s iconic lineup—the BMW 5 Series, BMW 6 Series, BMW 7 Series and BMW X2.
Also in store are:
Special pricing on the most coveted BMW automobiles
Test drives for select models in the BMW range
Limited-time offers on BMW Lifestyle merchandise
The second part of the weekend package is the BMW extended warranty program that practically reassures customers a worry-free ownership.
“The BMW Extended Warranty Program allows the coverage of eligible vehicles to be extended to the new five-year standard,” said Spencer. Every brand-new BMW vehicle from 2019 onward, bought from any official BMW dealership nationwide, will enjoy a five-year or 200,000-kilometer warranty.
“This warranty begins when the car is registered under its first owner, and remains with the vehicle, meaning it is transferrable as long as the warranty is still valid,” Spencer said.
“The BMW Five-Year Warranty covers major and minor components necessary to the safe and optimum operation of the vehicle,” added Spencer. “However, it does not cover normal wear and tear items, such as brake pads, filters and consumables.”
Plus, the BMW Five-Year Warranty also entitles BMW customers to five years of the BMW Assistance program, partnering with IBERO Asistencia, S.A to provide vehicle roadside assistance whenever necessary, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, in all major cities nationwide.
Spencer’s complete package:
“For existing customers who have purchased their BMW vehicles in the year 2018 and with their original two-year warranties about to expire, the BMW Extended Warranty Program will allow eligible vehicles to extend their coverage by an additional three years and now follows warranty mileage cap of 200,000 kilometers. This extends to the BMW Assistance program, as well, allowing customers to further enjoy its benefits.
“As the first to introduce the longest and most comprehensive warranty package in the premium car segment, BMW affirms its commitment to the discerning market and their vehicles. We want all BMW owners in the Philippines to know that we stand by our products and are always willing to make sure that we keep their cars in perfect condition for many years to come.”
Lexus discovery in US
I share to you what I told Lexus Manila President Raymond T. Rodriguez recently: In the United States, many car dealerships, if not all, accept all brands of vehicles for servicing.
One example is the Lexus dealership in Pleasanton, a charming city not far from San Francisco, California, USA.
This Lexus branch, so huge it can accommodate 60 cars for servicing astonishingly all at once, services mostly all kinds of brands.
I should know. I was at Pleasanton Lexus recently as a guest of Dondon Juvida, my wife’s nephew who’s been working there for almost 10 years now.
“Besides making our services personnel virtual experts of different brands of vehicles, the platform also ensures added profits for the company,” Dondon has said to me, with pride pinned on his lips.
Can that system not be adopted here?
I mean, a Toyota dealership accepting, say, a Nissan or a BMW, for servicing?
It’d make for an easier, more convenient form of extending extra help and comfort to our car owners.
It can happen that you own a vehicle whose brand is not carried by the dealership nearest you in the neighborhood. So, instead of going to your mother dealership that might be situated quite far from home, why not bring it to the dealership nearby? Saves you time and money.
PEE STOP The Lexus Invitational Cup fires off today, February 21, at Sta. Elena, its traditional home since the tournament’s birth in 2011. Through the years, the tournament has afforded Lexus loyalists the luxury to renew ties, as only in a golf tournament that this lofty tradition could happily happen. It is but fitting, therefore, that my natural flightmate would be my first inviter, Danny “Sir John” Isla, the first Lexus president, who traveled from Auckland, New Zealand, his base the last three years or so since his retirement, solely to participate in the tournament he had helped found with Lexus Chairman Alfred Ty almost a decade ago. Time flies, indeed.