Houston Speed Triple
06-20-2005, 10:20 PM
Who:
British USA (I think they may also be called Gulf Coast BMW)
1210 College Avenue
South Houston, TX 77587
Ph: 713-944-7951
http://www.british-usa.com/home.asp
What:
They sell new Triumphs, BMWs and Moto Guzzis. They also have an extremely impressive collection of used bikes.
Where:
Take 45 South out of Houston past UH and turn left on College Avenue. They are a cuople of blocks down on the right.
Comments:
They have some sweet used bikes and by sweet I mean old, rare and very well restored. I imagine they must have some really good guys working in their service shop. However, the sales staff is a bunch of incompetent a'holes. I had to get in an argument with the owner in front of his customers and staff in order to test drive a bike that I had every intention of buying - if it rode well (and it did). I had been promised a ride if I brought my helmet and motorcycle endorsement (the same test drive requirements I had met a week earlier at the Ducati, BMW and Buell dealerships) but they forgot to tell me to bring insurance...until I arrived to test it for the second time...after waiting two weeks for them to replace a bad oil sensor. They also told me up front the first time I tried to test drive it and several times later while I was waiting for them to fix it that they would sell it to me for MSRP. When they finally let me know that it was fixed I rushed straight out there, rode it, loved it and was told that the price had just gone up almost $1000. They told me that they had to raise the price because there was so much interest and because it was the only one in the Houston area. BS on both counts. They still have the same bike on their website back at MSRP more than two months later (I also saw it on cycletrader at MSRP) and it wasn't the only one in the area. I know because I bought the other one at MSRP (and got a $530 helmet for free to boot)...and the dealer that sold it to me has sold one more since. The salesman suggested that I tell my wife that it retails for $13,500 and that I talked the dealer down to $10,800 so I'd look like some kind of hero. That dumb*** met my wife a week earlier and told her he'd sell it to me for $9999. I hate being lied to, insulted and cheated. This probably was an isolated incident but they will never get any of my business. BTW, I wound up buying from Polaris West. They are a pretty typical big bike store but the owners are really nice and they took good care of me before and after the sale.
British USA (I think they may also be called Gulf Coast BMW)
1210 College Avenue
South Houston, TX 77587
Ph: 713-944-7951
http://www.british-usa.com/home.asp
What:
They sell new Triumphs, BMWs and Moto Guzzis. They also have an extremely impressive collection of used bikes.
Where:
Take 45 South out of Houston past UH and turn left on College Avenue. They are a cuople of blocks down on the right.
Comments:
They have some sweet used bikes and by sweet I mean old, rare and very well restored. I imagine they must have some really good guys working in their service shop. However, the sales staff is a bunch of incompetent a'holes. I had to get in an argument with the owner in front of his customers and staff in order to test drive a bike that I had every intention of buying - if it rode well (and it did). I had been promised a ride if I brought my helmet and motorcycle endorsement (the same test drive requirements I had met a week earlier at the Ducati, BMW and Buell dealerships) but they forgot to tell me to bring insurance...until I arrived to test it for the second time...after waiting two weeks for them to replace a bad oil sensor. They also told me up front the first time I tried to test drive it and several times later while I was waiting for them to fix it that they would sell it to me for MSRP. When they finally let me know that it was fixed I rushed straight out there, rode it, loved it and was told that the price had just gone up almost $1000. They told me that they had to raise the price because there was so much interest and because it was the only one in the Houston area. BS on both counts. They still have the same bike on their website back at MSRP more than two months later (I also saw it on cycletrader at MSRP) and it wasn't the only one in the area. I know because I bought the other one at MSRP (and got a $530 helmet for free to boot)...and the dealer that sold it to me has sold one more since. The salesman suggested that I tell my wife that it retails for $13,500 and that I talked the dealer down to $10,800 so I'd look like some kind of hero. That dumb*** met my wife a week earlier and told her he'd sell it to me for $9999. I hate being lied to, insulted and cheated. This probably was an isolated incident but they will never get any of my business. BTW, I wound up buying from Polaris West. They are a pretty typical big bike store but the owners are really nice and they took good care of me before and after the sale.