View Full Version : new BMW horror story. holy smokes!!
fastbmw
05-31-2004, 05:14 PM
http://www2.autospies.com/article/index.asp?articleId=2964&categoryId=1
VtwinVince
05-31-2004, 06:09 PM
Good God, what a nightmare. I guess that's why we drive "reliable" old Bimmers, eh? I wonder why that guy went back to that same crappy dealership after getting jerked around the first time?
FrustratedMunky
06-01-2004, 12:21 AM
My goodness... I've heard of new BMW's having constant maintenance problems, but nothing ever like this... There goes my ideas of "sticking with BMW at a later age".
I'm sorry, but does a couple bad experiences really throw you off that much? Think of the hundreds of thousands of happy transactions they make. Do you realize how many people have issues with other companies? My father's '99 F250 chucked it's engine in 25k miles... but you have never heard about that... there are hundreds of stories out there, nothing is perfect. I just get rubbed the wrong way when people totally give up on a company because of one bad experience, regardless of how terrible it was. I know all the dealerships I've been to haven't seemed to be contracted with the devil... I'm not willing to swear off a company that has produced such great cars throughout history. Also, remember that you're getting a very-one-sided view of the situation, who knows, maybe this guy was off his rocker and now is pissed at the company so has exploited his ill-fortune.
...phew. Where did that come from? Carry on everyone.
FrustratedMunky
06-01-2004, 09:30 PM
I'm sorry, but does a couple bad experiences really throw you off that much? Think of the hundreds of thousands of happy transactions they make. Do you realize how many people have issues with other companies? My father's '99 F250 chucked it's engine in 25k miles... but you have never heard about that... there are hundreds of stories out there, nothing is perfect. I just get rubbed the wrong way when people totally give up on a company because of one bad experience, regardless of how terrible it was. I know all the dealerships I've been to haven't seemed to be contracted with the devil... I'm not willing to swear off a company that has produced such great cars throughout history. Also, remember that you're getting a very-one-sided view of the situation, who knows, maybe this guy was off his rocker and now is pissed at the company so has exploited his ill-fortune.
...phew. Where did that come from? Carry on everyone.
LOL, how true... I think I was just harsh disgusted by the story. I talked to my dad about it and he said, "What? That's bullshit", so I take it back. He said the only person he knows of having BMW problems is one guy who drove down to seattle and his engine on a mid 90's 540 blew up, hahaha. But otherwise, no complaints from anyone he's spoken to. So now I'm back to the plan of stickin' to BMW :D LOL...
However, I did hear that BMW's require constant mechanical maintenance for lots of small things, is this true? I haven't owned my E30 long enough to encounter such things.
What I've found with BMW's is that they are some of the most reliable and well built cars I've run across, hands down. HOWEVER, usually every model has one or two things that you KNOW the designer, after seeing it produced, went "shit, shouldn't have done that." As long as you know what these problems are, and stay on top of them, there's no issue that is comparable to the self-destruct syndrome of many other cars.
The trick is to replace things before they break. Most things have a service interval, as long as you beat the part to the punch, so to speak, then you're set. I wouldn't say it's a lot of little things, but like your fluids, ignition stuff, bushings, etc. -- obvious stuff. A rubber bushing isn't going to last 15yrs on ANY car.
A car can only be as good as it's owner, give an Enzo to a random 18yr old from my town and let's see what happens. My money says it is toast within 6 months - with or with out an accident. Neglect is horrible for cars.
That said, I'll admit that something probably did go tragically wrong with his car, and he probably did have a string of poor communications. Unfortunate, yes - reflect the entire company? NO. I don't even like some of the things BMW is doing right now, through their design, financing, and other operations, but that doesn't mean I'm going to jump ship to KIA ... or even a domestic ;) ... though I do own a Jeep, and love my dad's Ford, despite it's driveline issues. Not a fan of my mothers Volvo 850 though, what a timebomb - that's why we bought the 525i !!
-steps off soap box-