Big #1 Motorsports

Reviews 3

MA

Marty King

When anyone visits a place of business for the first time you always hope you will have a good experience. Sometimes it is good and other times you which you never walked through the doors. The first time I visited Big#1 I knew which bike I wanted to look at. I was told by another person that a fellow had traded his bike for a new ride. He had 4 bikes manufactured by the same company and wanted a new one so he traded. Keith Brooks, "Brooks", met me at the door, introduced himself and gave me the grand tour of the building since it was my first visit. One of the places was the service department which is usually a nasty dark place your vehicle is taken to and repaired. Let me tell you, if you dropped a piece of pizza on the floor in there you wouldnt think twice about picking it up and finishing it off. That area was spotless. The whole building was exceptionally clean. Brooks introduced me to, I believe, his immediate supervisor, Rick McVey. Rick is just like Brooks, outgoing, intelligent and upbeat about the business and everyone working there. Rick said that they operate the business on their word which has upheld them on their 42 years of service to the public. I told both Brooks and Rick that I would be back in a week and if the bike was still there I would buy it. Neither of them pressured me into making a snap decision. You know how some dealerships are. I did return in a week and bought the bike. I believe they never brought it out front to sell, they waited for my return. They sat on their profit and took me for my word. Now since I havent ridden a bike in a while I needed all new riding apparel. Brooks introduced me to Phil Bartlett, Parts Team Leader. Again I am going to complement the owner of Big#1 for his employee hiring skills. Phil is very knowledgeable about all of the riding gear and vehicle parts. First stop helmets. I explained what features I was looking for in a helmet he took a couple off of the display and I tried them on. He didnt say this is the one for you, the choice was mine. Next stop boots. Well I have big feet and not one pair fit. Phil said he would call the warehouse in Bessemer to check if they have larger sizes. They said they have 3 pair and will have someone immediately take them to the showroom. Gloves were next and I found a perfect pair. Last a good riding jacket which was hanging on the rack. I only waited a short time for the boots to arrive but during that time I was approached by several people I hadnt met on my first visit. To my amazement they knew my first name and asked if I needed any further help. The boots arrived and I have a pair that fits. The help and service the employees at Big#1 gave me is unparalleled. The warm welcome and the attention I received from all of the employees gave me some scary thoughts. I am retired and I actually considered applying to work there. If anyone is looking for motorcycles, scooters, ATVs or water vehicles go ahead and visit the other dealerships, I did and bought at Big#1. Unless the present owner turns the company over to an evil son, daughter or relative they have a customer for life. Not a lot of life because I am retired but what I have remaining Ill be doing business with them.

JA

Jake Jones

If youre shopping for a new motorcycle (or you need one serviced) and you live in Birmingham, you dont have much of a choice but to visit Big Number 1 Motorsports. I havent had the pleasure of dealing with their service department, but from a sales perspective, they certainly dont seem to be motivated to sell a bike to me. Ive now visited Big #1 on three separate, distant occasions and have overwhelmingly been met with disappointment. On two occasions, I had the same salesperson tell me no demo bikes were available. None. As in they didnt allow potential buyers to ride any of their bikes. For the record, they do; not any bike on the showroom floor, but many of them. On top of that, they were quite pushy. They made me sit down and tried to have me apply for financing on the spot. They also collected my contact information and wouldnt stop calling and texting. On the third occasion I went, a friend took me there trying to restore their reputation, thinking Id just had bad luck. Theyve added a concierge of sorts to greet you as you walk in (I dont remember this being there before), which I actually liked -- it makes you feel less like youre being sold on something and more like youre being helped. We ended up speaking to a pleasant salesperson who arranged a demo of one of the bikes Im looking at later in the week, a Ducati Multistrada 1200s (the other being a BMW R1200 GS). We show up the day of the demo to find that particular salesperson isnt there, but weve been handed off to one of the sales managers, which was fine considering it was organized to some degree. However, I was told the bike I was going to be demoing went to the service department for a checkup and a part was needed before it could be ridden. The frustrating part about that was no one had the foresight to have the bike serviced in the intervening time, and no one bothered to contact us to let us know the bike was no longer available for demo. Meanwhile, I had been willing to let slide the fact that only one of the two bikes I wanted to try was available. Instead of apologizing for the delay and/or lack of communication, both the sales manager and the salesperson who was going to accompany us on the ride (a different salesperson than the one with whom we had arranged the demo) kept telling us we wouldnt want to take a bike out that wasnt running like it should. Obviously. When we asked about the GS, they didnt have one to demo. They only had one on the showroom floor, and I guess that one wasnt registered and insured. The sales manager then said he could call me when the Multistrada was running again. I told him Id rather go somewhere else so I could ride both the GS and the Multistrada, which I didnt think was unreasonable or snarky. He began responding by saying, "If youre going to be like that..." At that point, I had nothing more to say to either of them, so I thanked them for their time and left, disappointed again by the service I received at Big #1. Ill conclude this lengthy review by saying that Ive both worked in the service industry and in retail, so Im a very patient person, especially when being helped by others. Do yourself a favor and head over the state line to a shop that treats you with respect and kindness.

DA

Daniel Cobb

I have been waiting for a while to review them to see how long after my purchase It would take me to get an accurate account of the dealership. Well, I bought my Indian Scout a month ago, and I am increasingly pleased with Big #1. So here is my honest evaluation from top to bottom. 1-Sales. This is the area I typically cant stand when buying a new vehicle. Most sales people are pushy and love to throw aaaall kinds of tricks at you. This wasnt the case here. Heather Woods was a down to earth person who was very knowledgable about the product. If she didnt know something, she found the answer and got back to me quickly. She was never pushy. I told her I needed to leave and think about the purchase and she never hassled me to stay and never bombarded me with phone calls. Heather Woods gets an A+ 2-Service. This is an area which makes or breaks a company in my opinion. Initially I met Phillip G. Again very straight forward and honest. I had questions and he pulled a technician to the front to help me . Very nice since I know how busy they were. I have also dealt with AJ and he is also a great guy. When I go to a service department I want them to lay my options out and give me their professional opinions. After all, isnt that why they are there? These guys seem to know that . Phillip and AJ get an a+ 3-Parts and Accessories. Without a doubt the best part of my big number 1 experience. Who doesnt love outfitting their new bike with stuff? Jamie Mac is a pro when it comes to helping people out. He is very in tune with what products are out there, as well as in tune with what the customer is looking for. Again, he is never pushy...he is just trying to make sure the customer gets what they want and they leave happy. Jamie has been very open with his experiences, his product knowlege , and his opinions about products. I pass by a dealership close to my house in bessemer just because I know Jamie is there to help me. You can buy equipment anywhere, but its the customer service that makes me drive the extra 20 minutes to Big #1. Jamie Mac gets an A+ 4-Lastly, I want to throw Paula in the mix. She is the sweet lady you get to talk to when you call the dealership. Super nice , and a great addition to a great experience. Like I said , you can buy a bike anywhere, you can get it serviced anywhere, and you can get accessories anywhere...but I suggest you go to a place where you know your needs will be met, and any issues after a sale will be handled. Big #1 seems to know how to put a team together. I give them A++ overall. I look forward to dealing with them for many years to come!