2006 BMW 525i (N52) possible wide spread defect
This is the message I sent BMWNA 2 days ago. They have still not responded by email or telephone. Are there any other owners out there with low miles that had problems with their timing chains? I'll be contacting the BBB shortly and I assume this might be one of those hidden defects that the company does not want others to know.
I had a recent problem with our 525i. I was driving it and it lost power/died. The car would not restart and no error lights or messages were displayed on the IDrive. I had the car towed home. After the initial check of the vehicle, it showed the crank sensor fault. I noticed a bunch of metal throw off in the oil filter and the vehicle did not have compression in cylinder 2 and 6. I was thinking catastrophic engine failure.
Since I am very familiar with American/Japanese vehicles, I decided to look into the problem myself after getting no response from BMWNA. The car is out of warranty with 85K miles.
The metal throw off was due to the timing chain jumping off of the exhaust cam gear and grinding against the back of it. The cause of the problem was the two aluminum screws under the cam shaft gears. Both heads were broken off and one made its way up the chain getting caught in the chain and gear. These screws are aluminum. I don’t know if this is a common problem but for the bolts to break it would be due over torqued/tighten bolts or extreme pressure from expanding/contracting of the magnesium vs aluminum. I suspect over tightening. The other broken bolt head is still some where in the bottom of the oil pan. The exhaust cam gear was chewed up, but still serviceable. I re-timed the car and checked the compression. I got lucky and compression is good so no bent valves. I disassemble everything and now I patiently waiting for several parts. However, I'm still dealing with the broken head that is some where in the oil pan.
I re-contacted BMWNA and the customer service rep took down some information and stated there was nothing they could or would do for me. She noted my concerns to better service future customers and advised me to take the vehicle to the dealer. I asked to speak to some else and she stated she was only in customer service and no one there could assist me. I'm a bit surprised, because I have always had excellent dealings with BMW. I recall a time when BMWNA representative personally called me to rectify a warranty issue. The dealer did not want to cover the item under CPO. A person from corporate assisted me and earned my loyalty. This is the reason why we currently own 3 BMWs (05 325XI, 06 525i, and 07 335i). I understand car maintenance is a must, but when something is not the fault of the owner should I have to bear the entire cost of the repair. I’m not asking for anything other than consideration or a return call from anyone who has the authority assist me.
Sincerely
H. Chi
I had a recent problem with our 525i. I was driving it and it lost power/died. The car would not restart and no error lights or messages were displayed on the IDrive. I had the car towed home. After the initial check of the vehicle, it showed the crank sensor fault. I noticed a bunch of metal throw off in the oil filter and the vehicle did not have compression in cylinder 2 and 6. I was thinking catastrophic engine failure.
Since I am very familiar with American/Japanese vehicles, I decided to look into the problem myself after getting no response from BMWNA. The car is out of warranty with 85K miles.
The metal throw off was due to the timing chain jumping off of the exhaust cam gear and grinding against the back of it. The cause of the problem was the two aluminum screws under the cam shaft gears. Both heads were broken off and one made its way up the chain getting caught in the chain and gear. These screws are aluminum. I don’t know if this is a common problem but for the bolts to break it would be due over torqued/tighten bolts or extreme pressure from expanding/contracting of the magnesium vs aluminum. I suspect over tightening. The other broken bolt head is still some where in the bottom of the oil pan. The exhaust cam gear was chewed up, but still serviceable. I re-timed the car and checked the compression. I got lucky and compression is good so no bent valves. I disassemble everything and now I patiently waiting for several parts. However, I'm still dealing with the broken head that is some where in the oil pan.
I re-contacted BMWNA and the customer service rep took down some information and stated there was nothing they could or would do for me. She noted my concerns to better service future customers and advised me to take the vehicle to the dealer. I asked to speak to some else and she stated she was only in customer service and no one there could assist me. I'm a bit surprised, because I have always had excellent dealings with BMW. I recall a time when BMWNA representative personally called me to rectify a warranty issue. The dealer did not want to cover the item under CPO. A person from corporate assisted me and earned my loyalty. This is the reason why we currently own 3 BMWs (05 325XI, 06 525i, and 07 335i). I understand car maintenance is a must, but when something is not the fault of the owner should I have to bear the entire cost of the repair. I’m not asking for anything other than consideration or a return call from anyone who has the authority assist me.
Sincerely
H. Chi
0
Comments
I have a 2006 530 with the N52 engine. Last year, I had a severe oil leak in the front of the engine. The BMW dealer took a look and discovered a broken cylinder head bolt near the oil filter. The estimate to repair (a complete head gasket replacement) was about $3500. After being turned down for an out-of-warranty repair, I took a stab at replacing the broken bolt myself. That fixed the oil leak.
Fast forward to today - - I was replacing my valve cover gasket (another small oil leak) and noticed that there were three other bolts broken off in the same manner as the first one. Turns out there are 4 aluminum bolts that hold the front of the cylinder head to the block (around the valve train galley). One is external; the other three are under the valve cover.
I plan to contact BMWNA on Monday and would like to know if you has any luck.
Thanks,
Brown
I have completed the repairs and the car is fine. I ended up spending about $2,000 for specialty tools, parts, and a scanner. Others who are not so mechanic will have to spend a lot more. Let me know if you need any other assistance, but BMWNA was a waste!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :lemon:
Here is my gripe; BMW knows that this is a design problem (versus a maintenance issue) but refuses to repair. If repaired at a BMW dealer shop, it is a $3,000 to $4,000 repair. OUCH!!
Now you have experience as I do to do your own repairs. Glad you got it running!!!
I used to be one of BMW's biggest advocates. I use to talk about how much I love my BMW and recommended them to everyone. Now, I will never buy a BMW for the rest of my life, and will speak about my poor experience with them - how they makes defective engines that cannot last 6 years, 100K miles, and take NO responsibility for their flawed design. Don't pay a premium to receive a headache. BMW is a company that doesn't assume responsibility for their mistakes.
I guess I'm just going to have to eat the $4,500 cost. However, I will never buy a BMW again. I was saving up for a 6-series, but it looks like Audi just got a new customer. I'm 31 years old so a lot more cars in my future. BMW is idiotic for not taking responsibility for the mistakes, and losing a customer and advocate of their brand.
They have the authority to investigate if they feel it is warranted.
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Wichita Falls Texas BMW... Approximately July 2013, I experience the same issue of $4G 000.00
I was told that I had a couple broken head bolts in the bottom of my oil pan. I was experiencing a leak from the front of my engine. Witicha Falls BMW was not sure of where it was coming from and made a couple exploratory guesses at a significant cost of repair for each possibility. It is really great when you are the only BMW dealer in the region. Before my costly after warranty repairs, they act as though this was an isolated case. Completely mind boggling. Obviously this is a systematic problem and BMW should take ownership. $4000.00 is a lot of money to pay for a problem that the name of BMW should guard against. If there is a class action case, add the name of Carl English of Burkburnett Texas.
Reading these posts makes me realize that I may not want to buy out the car I am about to order at the end of the lease.