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I went for audio issue and they updated the software it wont boot.
Later they replaced the Computers 4 or 5 times and this week the engineer from BMW came and still no hope.
its CPO car and I took 6 year/100k extended warranty and I already paid 1.5k for one of the computer which was not covered
What are my options?
Can I demand a new car since the car drove fine except it had an audio issue
Thanks,
VV
Regarding rotation; if you have the same size wheels and tires front versus rear, then you can rotate your tires front to back as well without having to mess with unmounting and remounting the tires.
!
As far as I know, there is no "standard" what-so-ever which says RFTs cannot be patched. Do you know different?
This is what Pirelli says: http://www.pirelli.com/tire/us/en/car/genericPage/all_about_tyres.html
I know I read similar discussions for some other brands.
With the above said, I am not at all a fan of RFTs, and there is no way I'd have them on any car of mine. If I wind up with a new F30 328i in the next twelve to eighteen months, the odds are it will come from the factory with RFTs, and as soon as I get the car back here to the States (I'll likely do another European Delivery), the RFTs will come off and a set of GFTs will go in their place.
If anyone is inclined to expend the effort, they can find opinions "pro and con" on RFT repair. The fact of the matter seems to be that a qualified, competent tire dealer equipped with the proper RFT mounting equipment can indeed repair RFT's.
From the Continental site link a couple of postings back...
Continental advises that a repair to one of its tires invalidates the
manufacturer’s warranty.
Seems Continental is against any tire repair, RFT or GFT.
I would think that if you treated it like a normal tire, and stopped as soon as you noticed it was flat (although I had one boss that asked me what the 'crown' symbol on his panel mean, as it had been there for months), it should be safely repairable as long as it wasn't in the sidewall area, just like most any tire.
There are a lot of inept people out there that don't have a clue. Then, there's the enthusiast that notices the slightest change. Repair at your discretion, but they all advise it may not be safe. If you know you haven't overdriven it while flat, and it's in a safe spot to patch, I'd try to get one of mine patched.
I do agree with you, however, that, if the RFT performs as intended, it can be difficult for the untrained eye to make an adequate judgment on the tire. Still, to one with adequate experience, they can tell whether a RFT is worthy of repair.
Like Continental's warranty policy, I doubt any company would warrant a patched RFT... Which seems understandable and reasonable to me.
And, as Mr. Shiftright said... Warranties and such are written by lawyers, not engineers.
That, and I've had them refuse to repair GFTs because they were "too worn," even though the wear bars weren't making contact with the pavement at all, let alone clear across.
In short, they won't do what I request, and I can see the same thing happening with RFTs, particularly if the other option is to sell a $250-300 new tire.
I fear this is partly due to the flurry of lawsuits resulting from the Ford Exploder fiasco 10 or 15 years ago, combined with the desire to sell as many new tires as possible.
I have a CPO 5 series, 2007 530i which I love. It still has til JUN2012 on the warranty. I am finding that every 3,000 miles or so, I am adding one quart of oil. I've gotten the oil warning on the iDrive when this happens. I spoke to my tech rep whom I've known over the years and I trust her (she and her husband have a CPO 7 series 2006 so she put her money where her mouth is) and she tells me these newer engines (i used to have a 1996 3 series) this is typical useage of oil, that BMW specifies that it's normal to put a quart in every 1000 miles even. Nothing to worry about. The car is definitely not burning oil, but I don't remember adding oil to my 3 series. Otherwise I love the car, it has 40K miles and is beautiful.
update this morning: got into the car, all systems show normal on the iDrive. I didn't add the quart yet. I'm waiting to see what happens. But still why would that warning come on? And it has happened in the past. The last time I added was about 3000 miles ago.
If I were an RFT owner (not any longer, got rid of 'em) and I had a flat, I'd do whatever was possible and prudent to avoid buying another RFT, and if the other 3 RFTs on my car were say down to 4 to 6 / 32nds, I'd just ditch the 3 good tires and start over with normal tires, get the spare kit or whatever, and live happily ever after like I did. I have a better ride, better handling and oh, so much quieter.
I suspect there is more to this issue than we are seeing in your posting.
After all, there are a finite number of things that would keep any car from running...
A quick follow through of a web search of “ventilation odor” or other similar term produced hundreds of owners who have had smell issues with their BMW. My 3rd and likely final BMW due to this issue is a 2009 535xi. What a great car. This followed my X5 and along the way we picked up a Z4. All good. All fun. All solid.
Four months ago the 535 began to smell. As widely described on the internet, a smell when you turn the car on that passes. My fix was to turn the fan off until I drove it for 5-10 minutes, then turn the system on. Then the service department did the air freshener thing. Then they did a clean out. Well, things are a smidge better but still not tolerable. How bad is it? Please don’t judge me, but I have begun to prefer driving our Lexus 250hs over the 5-series. Sad but a glorified golf cart is winning out over a real car because of the smell.
Well, the lease is up and I took it in for one last shot at service. My service writer, who is tremendous, gave me the following word from on high, “Complaints of this nature are not caused by defects of material or workmanship, but rather by the environmental conditions in which the vehicle is operated. Consequently, there is no warranty reimbursement for labor or materials associated with the disinfection of the evaporator.” Much less replacing it, which is what is actually required to fix the issue. Bull feces, bull feces, bull feces.
Consequently I will dump old stinky on some unsuspecting soul and NEVER buy a BMW again.
My dealership has no jurisdiction to resolve this. Is there anyone out there who has contact data on the high level management people who handle BMW customer complaints? I would like to let them know why they lost a good customer.
Thanks
Thanks.
Here's two links you can check:
http://www.amsoil.com/lit/databulletins/g2808.pdf
http://www.amsoil.com/lit/databulletins/g1990.pdf
By the way when a product is a gimmic / snake oil product that company doesn't stay in business for over forty years and manage to become 100% debt free.
So next time your wanting to give free advice please have your facts correct. And if you want please visit the Federal Trade Commision web site and perform a search of cases against AMSOIL for fraud and misleading advertisment. Then check the other motor oil companies. After that judge for yourself.
You may want to read the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975 before giving out advice.
If you aren't a dealer, we have specific topics on oil such as SYNTHETIC MOTOR OIL and I'd invite you on behalf of your host, to talk about comparative qualities of oil in one of those topics.
here's another topic you might enjoy: FUEL AND OIL ADDITIVES
Let's keep this topic on target for BMW 5 Series Maintenance and Repair
I can't say, but was the oil shown in the PDF your post displayed available (with the same specs as in the PDF) in March 2009?
A lot can change in 3 years.
And, it's certainly not beyond the imagination to think that independent shops would recommend a product that is contrary to the manufacturer's recommendations...
Just sayin'...
One was Mobil 0W40, and the other was Castrol... At least, that's how I remember it.
Since I can buy BMW oil cheaper at my local dealer using my BMWCCA discount than I can buy Mobil 1 at Walmart, I didn't dig any deeper.
Here is what BMW currently states:
http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Content/Owner/SyntheticEngineOils.aspx
I don't believe either of the oils listed in the poster's PDF links are BMW LL-01, but are LL-04...
I have no idea if Eurpoean models have different recommendations.
Frankly, I couldn't tell you the difference between LL-01 and LL-04. I'm guessing the LL stands for "long lifetime"...
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Like tires, I understand sizes and tread patterns and usage indicators, but I wouldn't have a clue when the conversation moved to in-depth compound types.
I can identify a GFT from a RFT, as well as an actual flat tire.
The "LL" guess was a safe one...
Some people worry about a low value on a multiweight oil, like the zero in a 0-30w. All that figure means is that it can pour easier at a lower temperature...it has nothing to do with the ability to flow properly at design temperature. ALL oils are thicker at low temp that desired, but one with the smaller number in the beginning will tend to flow and start to lubricate when an oil pump might not be able to move one with a higher number. Synthetic oils tend to have less variation in temperature and flow better during startup, so that helps. But, nothing wrong with using a multigrade oil with a low first number in hot or cold climates - they all are in the order of 10x thicker than desired at operating temperature during a cold start, but your oil pressure and flow will improve, and most of the wear (when using the proper oil) is during cold starts...getting the oil where it needs to be faster and easier should be the goal and the better it can flow while cold (not at operating temps) does help.
The 'proper' grade of oil is the one that can maintain the desired design pressure at load...too thick, and the pressure goes up, flow goes down, heat goes up and some stuff doesn't get lubricated. Too thin, the pressure goes down, and you can't maintain the lubrication between the metal parts, and wear is excessive. BMW knows their engines - second guessing what is required is fraught with ignorance and folly. Without knowing what mix of characteristics and features an oil really needs to work properly in one of their engines, IMHO, you're foolish to not use one that has met their specs. What you think may be 'better' for your engine is going against millions of miles of test data and experience. Proceed at your own risk!
Really cheap insurance, and I don't have to worry about compatibility issues.
It's easy for me, because I pay the same at my local dealer as I would usually pay at an auto supply, due to my BMWCCA membership.
I don't mind using regular generic oils on my other cars, since they are generically designed... Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Versa and Altima (all 4 cylinders).
I do use full synthetic in every vehicle I own.
The 535 appears to be a good choice but I am hesitant to deal with its twin turbo...Didn't 2005-2007 have issues with Turbos. I know 2008-up are new engines, but any issues? I have never owned a turbo car. I know on time oil changes are a must, but do they rev themselves to destruction by 100K or that is not true?
How is the 550i engine and electrical reliability? How does the clutch hold up in this engine? how is the gas mileage if driven under 75 on the hwy. I had a 2001 MB E430 that got 28.8mpg on the hwy. That was the only V-8 I ever owned and were impressed with its smooth engine and seamless 5 speed auto.
Are there any real or on going nagging issues with any one them in 2008-2009 style to stay away from?
Thank you,
Joe
The way BMW does their turbos, they make an insane amount of torque at low rpm. Torque is what really moves the vehicle...generally, top speed is limited by max horsepower. In the USA, you can't legally drive anywhere near the top speed of the vehicle. 225Hp is a decent amount. I'd try it before I wrote it off as too little. There's something to be said about using a manual and the available horsepower - it takes more skill with a lower powered vehicle, but it can be quite fast.
BMW generally uses the computer to decide when the vehicle needs an oil change...it is not strictly a rigid mileage thing. It could be anywhere from in the order of 4K to 20K miles, or one year, whichever comes first. You'd want to use BMW's filter and one of their approved oils, but if you do, it should be reliable. The V8 tends to use more oil than the 6's (the 4 is realtively new to the states). My 535gt went about 11K in the first year and never used any, or at least the computer said it was still full. The computer said the oil change was still 7K miles off (i.e., at 18K) based on my driving, but the one year was up so they did it for free under the new vehicle service plan.
There are some people that have had issues with the head bolts on some models, but it didn't affect my model year or engine...you may wish to search on that.
There were no turbos in the 5 series until the 535 in 2008. If I remember correctly, the engine in the 525 from 2006-07 is the same as the 528 from '08 on (N52). The 530 preceded the 535 and it has 255 HP. Both the 525 and 530 were naturally aspirated. As far as the 535 goes, the big issue with them is the high pressure fuel pump (HPFP) and fuel injectors. BMW ended up recalling the HPFP because there were so many issues with them and I believe they are now covered for 6 years and 110K miles. Supposedly, 2008s are much more affected than the others. I also hear that some are having problems with the wastegate on the turbo. I don't think it necessitates replacement, but it still could be expensive. There's no doubt a 535 will cost more to maintain than a 528 because of the added complexity and heat generated by the turbos. Proper maintenance is a must for the 535.
The 550 is said to be very reliable. I have driven them a number of times and they are pretty thirsty - around 15-16 in town and 23-24 on the freeway. It's an amazing car, but I personally wouldn't be able to justify the fuel costs. That's just my opinion though...
Hope this helps!
Bryan