This was the single worst car purchase experience of my life. Some time ago I purchased a new 3 series from Chapman BMW. When I received the warranty wallet card in the mail I noticed the "in service" date was wrong, and was dated 6 months prior to my purchase. I called BMW to correct what I thought was a simple clerical problem, and was informed that my dealer had "punched" the car as in-service 6 months before I purchased it and that the warranty period would run from that date. As a result of that action I didn't receive the well advertised full duration warranty and included maintenance...I received 6 months less. Every page of the purchase documents were marked as a new car purchase, not a "Demo" and not a "Used" car. The salesman even went to great lengths to tout the warranty and maintenance during the test drive.
After endless letters to the dealer and escalating this to BMW of America there was no satisfactory resolution. BMW North America refused to stand up for the full warranty period and simply shoved me back to the dealer. After much back and forth, Chapman sent me a letter promising they would honor the remaining 6 months warranty and maintenance. When I asked what would happen if I moved out of state, they simply repeated that they would cover the warranty for 6 months, but could not extend that to other dealers.
After some research on the internet I learned that some less ethical dealers (like Chapman) "punch" cars to record them as in service (even though they have never been sold) so that they can collect dealer rebates from BMW.
Altogether a horrific buying experience. I have since bought 2 additional BMW vehicles (an X5 and Z4), but from BMW North Scottsdale, where the sales process is honest and straightforward.