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New Dealer In Long Beach

Allan

Tuned and Synch'ed
Joined
Oct 28, 2008
Messages
53
Location
Long Beach, California
I stopped by Vespa of Long Beach. They are located right downtown on Long Beach Boulevard. It is on a corner lot with good parking and a large store front. Immediately you understand that the prime reason for this dealership is scooter sales. The large picture window is dominated by scooters - probably a hundred of them.

Nicely displayed in the interior of the store was a Stevio and a Norge. That was it for Guzzi's. There was at least one each of the Aprilia models, even their sweet 125 'track-day' toy with lights. There were some Guzzi T-shirst but that was it as far as accessories. I walked around the store for about 10-minutes and no one said a word to me. There were five or six employees on the floor and only one customer so this didin't exactly garner favor from me.

I walked around to the service department and spoke with the 'Service Manager.' He was pleasant and seemed truthful in that he said that both he and his mechanic had "Moto Guzzi training" but neither had experience on the bikes. There was only one lift and the place looked a work in progress.

I returned to the showroom, walked around some more - still no one seemed to care I might be interested in buying something, so I left. As I was preparing to mount my bike the General Manager, Givorg Simon, came out, apologized and asked me to come back in. He told me they want to get bikes on the road. He said he didn't care at this point in time if he made anything on the bikes; he just wants to get them out there. He said he would sell me an Aprilia or Moto Guzzi at his cost. He told me he would give me store credit if I brought someone in to buy a bike. He also offered sponsorship to the SoCal Guzzi Club. What he means by sponsorship I couldn't tell you.

The fact is that this dealership is 10-minutes from my home and the next closest dealer is 70-miles, and they to are a Vespa store. I would never take my bike here for service; certainly not until I knew they hired a guy with a positive reputation as a mechanic. I would buy a bike from them, and if the 1200 Sport 8V arrives stateside I will sell my 4-valve'r or possibly a Griso 8V is in the cards. Buying aftermarket parts and accessories I have always dealt with two or three long time dealers (out of state) who have always provided excellent customer service - that probably won't change. There simply are no good dealers in souther California so I am willing to give these folks a chance.
 
Hey TO Dave just picked up Sherman Oaks Vespa.
If these guys don't do well, Dave can keep building the empire.
Today Vespa, tomorrow the world!
 
Well, if you want to have Service as well as Moto Guzzis, Aprilias, and Vespas come to Santa Barbara. Just bought a Stelvio and had the cam recall performed. You will be working with a knowledgeable service department . It is worth the drive.
 
If you are in Long Beach, why wouldn't you get service at Moto Guzzi Classics? Those guys are terrific. I've got 2 Guzzis now and wouldn't take them anywhere else.
 
Cronkite wrote:
If you are in Long Beach, why wouldn't you get service at Moto Guzzi Classics? Those guys are terrific. I've got 2 Guzzis now and wouldn't take them anywhere else.

Agreed.......
 
If your bike is out of warranty, absolutely MGC. Especially if an older bike new dealer probably doesn't want to deal with anyway. If in warranty, that option isn't really available-unless you just want to eat the cost for warranty repairs. Also the consideration, do you want there to be actual Guzzi dealers? Won't be if no one supports them.
 
Dave H wrote:
Well, if you want to have Service as well as Moto Guzzis, Aprilias, and Vespas come to Santa Barbara. Just bought a Stelvio and had the cam recall performed. You will be working with a knowledgeable service department . It is worth the drive.

Which dealer in Santa Barbara are you refering to? And what exactly is the extent of their Guzzi service experience? Just wondering.
 
I was at the dealership yesterday and was treated nicely by the sales staff, the service guys, and the owner. It seems to be unusual to be allowed a test ride, but they allowed one. I followed one of their service guys on a short loop. Nice to be able to try a Norge before dropping a bunch of money on one.

I have also been to TO and walked away very unimpressed. They really did not seem that interested in taking my money.

Also, the service guy at Long Beach pointed me to MG Classics for additional information. They admit they are not that familiar with the bike. Oh yes, they just got in a California as well.

I hope they do well and get comfortable with the bikes.

jdg
 
jdgretz wrote:
I was at the dealership yesterday and was treated nicely by the sales staff, the service guys, and the owner. It seems to be unusual to be allowed a test ride, but they allowed one. I followed one of their service guys on a short loop. Nice to be able to try a Norge before dropping a bunch of money on one.



jdg

Sounds right to me. I wouldn't have married my wife if......never mind. If they recognize MGC as an established Guzzi Cathedral they do believe. IMHO, I wish we could rid Tucson of this ass here and get a real Guzzi dealer.
 
MG Classics is great, I love them, but they are not a dealer & can't do warranty work, unless something has changed.
 
Cronkite wrote:
If you are in Long Beach, why wouldn't you get service at Moto Guzzi Classics? Those guys are terrific. I've got 2 Guzzis now and wouldn't take them anywhere else.

My 1200 Sport is still under warranty. I do the basic services including throttle body balancing and TPS check but 'Classic' are not able to do warranty work. I have been using 'Mickey Cohen Motorsports' in Placentia for any work I am not willing to do myself. He knows the bike, has the latest DynoJet dyno and has a good contact for quick parts.
 
MG Classics is great, I love them, but they are not a dealer & can't do warranty work, unless something has changed.

What he told me was he can do all the service work, but if it was a warranty issue, I would have to go to a dealer. He has all the latest software to do the diagnostics, etc., he just is not a dealer (shame, he certainly knows the bikes).

jdg
 
Mark was a dealer and MGNA screwed him over too many times and he pulled the plug on them. It is too bad that MGNA does such a crummy job of supporting their dealers because it reflects a negative shadow on the bikes. Great bikes, lousy management. Also the "still going out of business" attitude is similar to Chrysler. Not really to good for selling your product.
 
All true Larry. However I feel we as Guzzisti also have to do our part in trying to find a dealer we can support to at least some extent, and perhaps do our best to guide a new dealer in how best to move forward, when appropriate. I realize you have a dealer you are very unhappy with, and perhaps justifiably & permanently so. I send my venerable Tontis to MGC to support him (& cause no new dealer can possibly have their depth of knowledge on these bikes-my 1000S is there as we speak) & my Norge to a local dealer I want to keep in business, in part because he has gone out of his way to be good to me just as I have gone out of may way to be helpful to him (by copying favorable press reports for him & by talking to potential buyers who have questions I can answer) because if I need warranty work I don't want to have to do it long range unless I really have no other choice-and because when I find other riders interested in Guzzi I don't want to try to get them to buy only used or from someplace hundreds of miles away-that's a hard sell, & not conducive to the brand surviving in the US-or at all.
 
Bob,
We support the same dealer. I pick up the Norge Saturday. It's about 155 miles each way for me, but I go anyway.
What the heck, just a short commute. Right? :silly:
 
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