Driving the 2013 328xi is easy. This is one of those cars where it doesn’t take a lot of finesse to get into the car, make some mirror and seat adjustments and off you go. The driver seat is comfortable with enough adjustments to find a comfortable setting and a memory button to remember where everything is. Like in previous models, the side mirror adjustments are also saved to the memory button. I continue to ask for this - it would be nice to have a rearview mirror setting that can be saved as well; especially when there are multiple drivers of one vehicle (my wife and I). The key fob can remain in your pocket, depress the brake pedal, push the engine start button and the engine is up and running smoothly and quietly. The automatic gear shift requires a touch to go into drive and the transmission shifts gears smoothly and concisely. The electronic steering system is just right with not too much effort required to make the car go in the direction you need it. When it comes to braking, this car offers a comfortable stop. This model is equipped with a function that turns the engine off when at a full stop to conserve fuel – efficient dynamics. Very cool feature but also ery for the first few times. Picture this, you come to a stop and the engine turns off and so does the ventilation system. If the radio is off it is a very quiet few seconds or minutes. The only issue I have is the day I drove this vehicle it was cold out so the heating was turned off when the efficient dynamics system kicked in – so it got a bit chilly in the car. The good news is you can over ride the system with a push of a button whenever you like or on very cold or hot days. When I first experienced the engine turning off with my wife in the car, it was dead silent, and we looked at each other and laughed as we could hear ourselves breathing.

The true test of this sedan for me is will it be a good vehicle to pick up and drop off the kids in. The car seat anchors in the back are easily accessible and do not take a lot of effort to clip the car seats into. There is still a decent amount of room between the rear car seats and the front seats. The kids jump into their seats and my 5 year old daughter and 2 year old son are comfortably in. The window and door handles are easily reached by them so using the child locks and window lock switches is required – just for their safety and my peace of mind. My wife, Joanna, gets into her passenger seat and immediately comments that she loves the red. Off we go! My daughter remarks “It’s like a sports car!” This vehicle passes my test for being able to easily get the kids in comfortably with still enough room so they are not kicking the front seats. Even if we didn’t have kids this would be a great car for the two of us since it has enough room for 3 adults in the back.

This vehicle does offer some great features that are unique and different to its competitors such as the Mercedes C or Audi A4. The iDrive system allows the driver easy interaction with the audio, navigation and phone systems but also gives you access to an electronic owners manual. In my opinion, this is an amazing feature since you can look up what you need from the comfort of your seat rather than thumbing through an old fashioned owners manual. Also, this interactive owners manual offers some basic videos so you can see how certain features of the car work.

The vehicle I tested had a basic audio system which had decent highs, mids and lows.  At peak volume, the system didn't show any distortion but it also wasn't heart thumping bass.  During this review, I listened to Juelz Santana 's God Will'n album which I have to say was good for bopping my head to.

When it comes to maintaining this vehicle it does come with a 4 year service package from BMW but I always like to know what it would cost to maintain without this package. Oil changes (including filters) are performed once a year and brake and other fluid services every 2 years (if required) based on average driving habits and conditions. BMW does offer very straightforward maintenance pricing so you should check with your local dealership to understand what your cost of ownership would be if you kept the vehicle beyond the 4 year covered maintenance. Typical owner maintenance by you will include checking tire pressure which is monitored via the TPMS system, topping up washer fluid and washing the vehicle. The hood is easy to open and does not require any fumbling to find the hood latch which is a nice feature. Fuelling the vehicle is fairly painless since it just requires you to push the gas tank door with your hand to open. You will not encounter any issues washing this vehicle since it will fit into any car wash or if you’re doing it by hand there are no awkward angles to reach.

The downsides I found with this vehicle are it does take premium fuel which has to be factored into your overall operating costs. When cold, the engine did sound a bit noisy until it reached operating temperature. Lastly, the road noise was noticeable and a bit loud at times.

Overall, I would buy this vehicle because it fits nicely into our family and it’s easy to switch between my wife and I. It also doesn’t hurt that the vehicle has an aggressive look and will turn heads including your own each time you walk away from it.

*Average Oil Change $110 (includes synthetic oil and filter) performed once a year or every 24000km/15000mi

*The gas tank is 15.8 gallons or 60L which will require premium fuel.  Check out this fuel consumption guide link provided by Natural Resources Canada.

Audio System

**

Technology

***

Drivability

***

Fuel Economy

****

Overall

***

Written by Ronald Rameshnauth

On Wednesday I made a phone call to reserve a conference room at a hotel that most of us are familiar with.   The woman who answered the phone, Amanda, was able to accommodate my request - overall, a pleasant experience.  The following day, I had to cancel my meeting because it needed to be held at a more central location to accommodate my group.  When I called the hotel, Amanda was unavailable so I was put in touch with Kim who would handle cancelling the booking.

Kim was able to handle my request.  However, not once did she ask why I was cancelling the booking or if I would like to re-schedule for another date or another location.  In fact, she made it clear to me based on her tone and quick dialogue that she was in a rush.  Interestingly enough, after getting off the phone I didn't feel upset but I did feel rushed and most importantly I would have to call back to re-book.

For me, this interaction has lots of opportunity to ensure a customer is satisfied.  The first thing I would address is working with staff to smile when they answer the phone.  Although a simple trick, it can set the tone for a positive interaction.  Secondly, the staff member can dictate the pace and tone of the conversation to feel calm and unrushed.  The goal of interacting with a customer is to assist them.  Although Kim assisted me in cancelling my booking, she did not assist me in re-booking or trying to understand why I cancelled.  Interestingly enough, I did re-book my conference room at another location with the same hotel chain.  However, I may not be as inclined to use the original hotel in the future based on my interaction with Kim.

The lesson here for shops is to ensure as much emphasis is placed on interacting with phone customers as it is placed on face to face interactions.  Simple tips such as smiling and setting the tone and pace will help create a positive discussion.  As well, you will need to establish what the customer need is and ask pertinent follow-up questions.  In this case, "Is there a reason for your cancellation?" which would have helped to lay the groundwork for the rest of the discussion.

What would you do to improve this interaction?

The 2013 Escape is offered in a gasoline model.  The engine oil will require service when the CHANGE OIL light comes on.  Follow these steps to reset this light:

1. Press the start/stop button once (do not start the engine).

2. Press both the accelerator and brake pedals at the same time.

3. Keep both pedals fully pressed.

4. After three seconds, the Service: Oil reset in prog. message will be displayed.

5. After 25 seconds, the Service: Oil reset complete message will be displayed.

6. Release both the accelerator and brake pedals.

7. The Service: Oil reset complete message will no longer be displayed.

8. Turn the ignition off and start the engine to verify the indicator has been reset.

When doing the oil change and topping up fluids you will need to use the following specifications:

Engine Size	2.5L	2.0L	1.6L
Motor Oil	5W20 Synthetic	5W30 Synthetic	5W20 Synthetic Blend
Oil Capacity	5.7 qt. (5.4L)	5.7 qt. (5.4L)	4.3 qt. (4.1L)
Brake Fluid	High Performance Dot 4	High Performance Dot 4	High Performance Dot 4
Engine Coolant	Motorcraft Orange Coolant Prediluted	Motorcraft Orange Coolant Prediluted	Motorcraft Orange Coolant Prediluted
Automatic Transmission	MERCON LV ATF	MERCON LV ATF	MERCON LV ATF
Rear Differential	80W90	80W90	80W90
Transfer Case	75W140 Synthetic	75W140 Synthetic	75W140 Synthetic

You can cross reference the following Purolator filter numbers for your own application:

Engine Size	2.5L	2.0L	1.6L
Oil Filter	L10241	L10241	L10241
Air Filter	A26199	A36149	A36149
Cabin Filter	C36174	C36174	C36174

It's Saturday evening and we've just finished a family dinner out.  We decide to head over to the grocery store to save us time and a trip in the morning.  We enter the grocery store at 7:57PM and notice the store is bustling with staff but hardly any customers.  A man standing at the front of the store (presumably the manager) is asked by my wife what's happening.  He says that the store is closing.  We apologize and say we can come back tomorrow at which time he says its ok and to go ahead and do our shopping.  We have a sense of guilt but also a sense of relief that we can do our shopping.  It's amazing how quickly you can shop when there are no other customers to contend with and the feeling that you really shouldn't squeeze every orange since you've been granted a special privilege.

We get to the cash and have a great conversation with the cashier who lets us know that its ok we're there after 8PM.  It's now 8:12PM and we're at our car unloading the groceries.  What a great feeling to have accomplished our grocery shopping in 15 minutes but to have received a special experience!

The lesson for any shop here is this: you may have a closing time posted on your window but it's probably not likely that your closing will be completed at exactly the time posted.  This means you may have employees dedicated to closing and others who maybe on standby to help last minute customers.

As a courtesy we would always close our shop 15 minutes after the posted time to give any last minute customers an opportunity to do an oil change.  Even with a few oil changes in these closing minutes this would not put us behind leaving at a reasonable time since other members of our staff would be focused strictly on closing duties.  Interestingly enough, these last minute customers would often become our most loyal customers since they appreciated us staying open just for them (even though we would have still been there performing our closing duties).  That's one of the secrets to my success in customer service on how to to make a customer feel special.

 

The 2013 C-MAX is offered in a hybrid or plug in electric model.  The gasoline engine will require service when the CHANGE OIL light comes on.  Follow these steps to reset this light:

1. Press the start/stop button once (do not start the engine).

2. Press both the accelerator and brake pedals at the same time.

3. Keep both pedals fully pressed.

4. After three seconds, the Service: Oil reset in prog. message will be displayed.

5. After 25 seconds, the Service: Oil reset complete message will be displayed.

6. Release both the accelerator and brake pedals.

7. The Service: Oil reset complete message will no longer be displayed.

8. Turn the ignition off and start the engine to verify the indicator has been reset.

When doing the oil change and topping up fluids you will need to use the following specifications:

Engine Oil - 5W20 Synthetic (4.3L)

2.0L Engine

Brake Fluid - Dot 4 LV High Performance Brake Fluid

Engine Coolant - Motorcraft Orange Antifreeze/Coolant Prediluted

Automatic Transmission Fluid - Mercon LV ATF

You can cross reference the following Purolator filter numbers for your own application:

Oil Filter - L10241

Air Filter - Dealer Part (at the time of publication)

Cabin Filter - Dealer Part (at the time of publication)

With this information you should be well equipped to service the 2013 Ford C-MAX.

The 2013 BMW 3 series maintenance light reset should be performed with each oil change (once a year or every 24000km/15000mi).  To do the reset please follow these steps:

1) Close the hood, trunk and all doors.
2) Press the START/STOP button once (do not start the engine).
3) Press and hold the TRIP/RESET button until the service message screen appears.  Once the message appears release the TRIP/RESET button.
4) Press the TRIP/RESET button repeatedly to access different service options (Engine Oil, Front Brake Pads...)
5) Once the Engine OIl service is displayed press and hold the TRIP/RESET button until Reset appears.  Release TRIP/RESET button.
6) With Reset showing, press and hold the TRIP/RESET button to begin the reset.
7) Reset Successful will be displayed.
8) Turn the ignition off.  Start the engine to verify the reset is complete.

When performing the oil change the 2013 BMW 328i gasoline engine recommends the following fluids which for the most part are BMW approved fluids obtained through BMW:

Engine Oil - BMW approved synthetic motor oil meeting Longlife 01 or Longlife 01 LF

Brake Fluid - BMW Approved Brake Fluid

Engine Coolant - BMW Longlife Coolant

Automatic/Manual Transmission Fluid - BMW Approved Transmission Fluid

Driveline - BMW Approved Driveline Fluid

At the time of this printing, the filters required to service the 4 cylinder engine are not readily available and should be obtained through BMW (oil and air).  However, for the 6 cylinder engine the filters (oil,air and cabin) are readily available from major filter manufacturers.

You can also view this reset procedure on our YouTube channel.