I'll miss "Otto" and all his handy, and mostly very well done, DIY YouTube videos.
Here's one for ya. Sachs shock last listed on BAV Auto $69 vs. ECS $91. I'll prolly pay tax at ECS as well. None at BAV.
Ok - to clarify, I don't love ECS. The point of my post wasn't to talk about how great they were, but to highlight ECS's advantage in the marketplace which is their large parts catalogue and aftermarket support. I've made maybe a handful of orders for them over the past years. FCP and Autohaus get 95% of my business.
I never said ECS was better priced than others. They aren't, that isn't their competitive advantage in the marketplace.
I also wasn't "hating" on BavAuto - I think you really missed the point of my post. Which was to highlight how they did not have a distinct place in the marketplace. A competitive advantage is a core component of a successful business. What do you offers that others don't? Rockauto has low pricing. ECS has aftermarket stuff and a large catalogue. FCP has a lifetime warranty and a good reputation for only selling quality parts. Autohaus to me is local and thus convenient (also tend to be a good value with pricing). The things that BavAuto offered were not unique enough, nor were they priced competitively enough, to continue to maintain profitability for the business. It is sad but from my perspective it made sense strictly from an objective, business-minded point of view.
It is of course sad seeing the ECS (who by extentsion also owns Turner and Pelican Parts) swallow another competitor and seeing the marketplace for available parts shrink. But at the same time it is not surprising to me...
Going into my TENTH YEAR of providing high quality reproduction BMW fabrics!
PRICE CUT on ALL FABRICS
Offering the best prices on the best quality reproduction fabrics!
BavAuto always seemed overpriced to me. One example: About 10 years ago I had to remove the door panels to lube the window tracks, so I bought some nice plastic pry bars from Harbor Freight for about $5 with a coupon. BavAuto sold the exact same Chinese tools (albeit with their name stamped into them) for something like $25. No thanks. I also bought a semi-useful Peake reset tool for far less than the BavAuto version. Their brake pads were 25 to 50% more costly than other sources. In my experience, there was not one thing they sold that I could not get elsewhere for a lot less.
Still, I liked that they existed and I used them as a research tool. Not so much in the last 5 years though, since there are more sites out there. Still, from time to time, I would look at their site to see what was “new”, then I would search elsewhere for a better deal. Companies need to recognize that a lot of shoppers act this way. You may have some nice “How To” videos and pleasant staff, but if your prices are much higher than elsewhere, you won’t be selling much. In my opinion, I think they relied too much on BMW owners being rich and careless with their money. They jacked up prices thinking BMW owners are all a bunch or USC alums...
I see the end of BavAuto as a good thing. Charge too much when the market will not bear it and you go out of business. Hopefully others will heed this tale.
Steve
'02 Z3 3.0i
"They jacked up prices thinking BMW owners are all a bunch or USC alums..."
I take offense at your USC aspersions
Last edited by Dakar Ole; 03-22-2019 at 12:38 PM.
Growing up in So CA, I used to see hundreds of USC license plate frames on 320 BMWs and BiTurbos - not to mention 911SCs. All of their drivers without exception, were jack holes. Of course, that was only my perception. I went to CSULB, so I have that against me... BTW - my first inclination was to type USC lawyers, but I changed it to alums, since this covers more jack holes. Lawyers are too easy a target!
BTW - take care and I hope you get something nice with your gift card. And I do recognize that not all USC graduates are degenerate ass-bandits. GO BEACH!
Steve
'02 Z3 3.0i
Bavarian Autosport Has Closed. Brand Legacy to Live on at ECS Tuning
Bavarian Autosport logo
Bavarian Autosport FAQ
Bavarian Autosport announced on March 8th, 2019 that it has closed its doors and will no longer be conducting business. This ends a highly successful 45-year run as one of the premier BMW parts houses in the world and as a standard bearer for our industry.
In the interest of looking after their customers and carrying on Bavarian Autosport's proud commitment to BMW and Mini enthusiasts, BavAuto reached out to ECS Tuning to see if we could lend a hand.
We at ECS have come up with a plan to help maintain BavAuto's legacy and assist BavAuto's customers during the transition by:
Honoring all BavAuto gift cards through April 30, 2019.
Providing warranty support for Bavarian Autosport branded merchandise
Maintaining BavAuto's longstanding support for BMW CCA chapters across the country
Continuing to stock Bavarian Autosport branded parts on ECS Tuning.com
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Haha, ain't ECS grand. Such good sports....
E36/8 2000 M Coupe Cosmos Black/Black
Shark, Conforti CAI, B&B Exhaust, H&R, Bilstein, AKG Subframe/Diff, UUC TME Red/Caps, Swapped Front Hats, Ice>Link.
================================================== =======================
Over 30 yrs of buying parts....
I oft looked at bavs site and almost always they were more expensive and almost always it wasn’t an ez site to navigate. And almost always I did not buy from them. There were some strange moments when they offered rock bottom prices on parts but that was few and far between
I did enjoy Otto
The times are changing. That’s for sure
I’m a self employed health care provider. It’s tough out there. Many of the “ rules “ have changed
Last edited by jrkoupe; 04-07-2019 at 12:21 PM.
It's a shame to see them go as they were local to me. They knew how to throw a party/car show too.
Your fault for not using the last seven of your VIN in www.realoem.com to validate part numbers before shopping on-line. BMWs ‘rolling’ introductions cause part ordering head aches all the time.
My 1999 E36 M3 does not exist on many vendor website ‘drill down’ vehicle part search selection lists.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I'm sorry, but if you select your vehicle and then it tells you a part is a guaranteed fit for your year make and model then thats on them for having a tool that "guarantees" the fit that is inaccurate. In your case where you can't select the vehicle its different because its not guaranteeing you anything, whereas in this case they gave him a part they guarantee and the guarantee was wrong
guar·an·tee
/ˌɡerənˈtē/
noun
noun: guarantee; plural noun: guarantees; noun: guaranty; plural noun: guaranties
1. a formal promise or assurance (typically in writing) that certain conditions will be fulfilled, especially that a product will be repaired or replaced if not of a specified quality and durability.
Are they saying you can't return the part? If not, then I don't follow your statement.
2002 M Roadster, Steel Gray Metailic, Gray Nappa Leather, Black Soft Top, Steel Gray Metailic Hard Top, TC Kline Double Adj Shocks with H&R Springs, Stromung Exhaust, SSR Type C Wheels. Looking for a new home.
2022 Z4 M40i, Misano Blue Metallic, Prem Pkg, Driver Assistance Pkg
2023 X5 M50, Phytonic Blue, Black Extended Merion Leather, Driving Asst Pro Pkg, Park Asst Pkg, Exec Pkg, Climate Comfort Pkg.
You'll understand why when I do my write up. There is a major part that is no longer available from BMW. I think I secured the last one off ebay, I'm just waiting for it to arrive before I write my post, just in case I need to source another. The one I sourced cost me a small fortune. ECS tuning didn't actually list the part number they supplied, they listed the bmw part number for it. After I realized the part was wrong, I pulled the bag the part came in out and found different numbers. When I ran those numbers, I then knew for sure the part was wrong because it came up as fitting z3 and 3 series bmws.
Last edited by tistan; 04-16-2019 at 09:09 PM.
I’m still getting a pop up ad for Bavarian Autosports on my ipad.
I usually go by what part number does the part have stamped/printed on it that I took out of the car, or I go on realoem. ECS Tuning and other websites' fitment guides are very often wrong.
Bookmarks