[ProTech]

As is often the case... you just needed to find someone willing to help you.!

[originalgoods13]

The redesign of the inner barrel of the Style 225m should warrant a replacement whether the vehicle is with or without factory warranty.

I had to fight for a replacement and my car was still under warranty.

This picture shows the old wheel stamped Aug 2009 and the brand new replacement


You can obviously see that they created a "step" in the barrel and made the outside lip thicker.

I got the same runaround with BMW stating if the other wheels do not have a crack, we cannot replace them.

[Heinzy]

I had a huge case with this happening to me back in November

Unfortunately I was unaware of others having the wheel replaced for free as a good will gesture when my wheel cracked

Ended up forking out £600ish for a new wheel, then when I found out I went back to BMW to get my money back, but to no avail
Alot of backwards and forwards, them saying my wheel failed a run out test, me saying the crack caused the failure, them saying blah blah blah, me blah blah

Lesson to be learned?

Never do anything without checking with the internet first!!!

[ArsE92]

Another failure for me today on a rear 230 style wheel. Second time it's happened but this time the off-side.

Had to get recovered from North Wales as the tyre wouldn't hold any pressure for more than ten minutes. In to BMW on Monday then!

Will keep you posted.

[rofltron]

Collecting my 07 E92 335d M Sport on Friday afternoon (used approved), still debating buying the alloy wheel cover they said they'd sell me for £250 - covers 10 alloys in 3 years IIRC...

With all i've read on these alloys cracking, should i do it? I generally don't like buying the extra cover on bits, but i do live down a bumpy road, so wondering if it's worth doing, or are they likely to replace through warranty if i kick up enough of a fuss?

Would appreciate any input.

[gurpswoo1]

Originally Posted by roflrtron

Collecting my 07 E92 335d M Sport on Friday afternoon (used approved), still debating buying the alloy wheel cover they said they'd sell me for £250 - covers 10 alloys in 3 years IIRC...

With all i've read on these alloys cracking, should i do it? I generally don't like buying the extra cover on bits, but i do live down a bumpy road, so wondering if it's worth doing, or are they likely to replace through warranty if i kick up enough of a fuss?

Would appreciate any input.

I didn't even know you could get this cover, no one offered me this when I got my car. Will have to ask them now.

I would have thought they would be covered by the warranty but that is only 1 year and by the looks of this thread it's hit or miss that they will anyway.

Considering the alloy cracking issue I would have brought the price down in the negotiations, far better to spend on this than that waste of time Supaguard.

I guess it depends on the value of the car and if you intend to keep the 19" alloys.

If it was me I would think about it at £250, if I could bring the price down to below £200 i.e £65 a year I would most seriously consider that.

[rofltron]

Originally Posted by gurpswoo1

I didn't even know you could get this cover, no one offered me this when I got my car. Will have to ask them now.

I would have thought they would be covered by the warranty but that is only 1 year and by the looks of this thread it's hit or miss that they will anyway.

Considering the alloy cracking issue I would have brought the price down in the negotiations, far better to spend on this than that waste of time Supaguard.

I guess it depends on the value of the car and if you intend to keep the 19" alloys.

If it was me I would think about it at £250, if I could bring the price down to below £200 i.e £65 a year I would most seriously consider that.

It's part of the BMW Protect option: https://www.bmwprotect.co.uk/Static/AlloyWheelRepair

But having read into it, they class it as 'minor repairs' and I can't see them classing cracks as 'minor'.

I'm going to let them know if I want the cover on Friday, and i'll try and barter with them more, but at the end of the day, I mentioned the alloy wheel cracking issue to the salesperson, and he claimed to have never heard of it....

I guess i'll need them to clarify what they class as 'minor' before i make any decisions.

[gurpswoo1]

That looks like a complete waste of money, as far I know BMW hasn't repaired cracked alloys only replaced them (Hopefully another member can confirm this). That is £600 for one alloy. In other words you can only make one claim a year.

But more importantly are cracked alloys covered, like you I wouldn't consider it minor damaged.

If you do enquire about it let us know on what is included in the policy.

[gurpswoo1]

OK I rang them up because I couldn't wait.

It can only purchased from a BMW dealer.
Car must be brand new and within 120 days of purchase.
The term minor damage is effectively cosmetic damage.
Cover is only for any damage that can be repair by mobile repair.
The maximum damage size covered is less than 15cm
Tyres are not covered even if they are damaged due to damaged alloys.
No matter the damage no wheel is ever replaced only repaired.
Most importantly cracked wheels are most certainly NOT covered.

[rofltron]

Originally Posted by gurpswoo1

OK I rang them up because I couldn't wait.

It can only purchased from a BMW dealer.
Car must be brand new and within 120 days of purchase.
The term minor damage is effectively cosmetic damage.
Cover is only for any damage that can be repair by mobile repair.
The maximum damage size covered is less than 15cm
Tyres are not covered even if they are damaged due to damaged alloys.
No matter the damage no wheel is ever replaced only repaired.
Most importantly cracked wheels are most certainly NOT covered.

Thanks for letting us know. I think i'll pass!

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Originally Posted by jotty

We'll update on my problems,and I must stress that I don't question anyone else's advice on here so please don't take offence it my own experience.

As said the car had 3 cracked wheels, 2 rear 1 front. The dealer said I would have to pay for all three which was over £1500. I wasn't going to even consider this, so my task began following advice from this great site.

I rang BMW customer service, spoke to a lad who tried his best to fob me off and saying that as my dealer had found excessive wear to the inner edge of the tyres he couldn't help.
I went back to dealer and pointed out the wear was because of the wheels, and they came back with an offer to pay 50% -£800.
Rang BMW CS back and spoke to the same lad who tried to convince me to take the offer as the tyres had been the cause (yeh right!), so I firmly asked to speak to his supervisor. A young lady came on and said exactly the same thing. I demanded they speak to the service manager at my dealer as something wasn't right. They tried to say my car was to far out of warranty, I reminded them they had replaced the rear wheels 18 months ago so they where younger than the car. The girl even tried to question my service history as a reason.

By now I was about to explode, rang trading standards and the gov consumer advice line,to describe these as friggin useless is an understatement, the ca woman was more interested in the cars finance than the problem. My advice is don't bother with these clowns.

BMW CS rang back and said they had emailed the dealer and as far as they were concerned case closed. So again my advice is don't bother with these useless, pointless wasters unless you are in need of an address for your local sushi bar via the connect thingy.

So went back to dealer ready for a row, to my utter amazement the service manager was waiting for me. A pleasant chat about what he thought of the CS dept which wasn't much. As I was a decent previous customer he offered to intervene and get back to me, today he rang and said that that BMW had agreed to let me pay £360 (not sure how they worked that out) and that he would pay the £160 so I have 3 wheels for £200.

Now some will say I should have held out for nil, but I was getting nowhere and my 5 year old car was on a ramp waiting. So my experience is that they will no longer just replace unless in warranty, BMW CS and consumer advice are totally useless and that at the end of the day finding the right person to speak to is the only way.

Same on this side of the pond ... my case was 2 rear wheels on my brand new Z4 Sdrive 35i in 2011 what a fiasco on a long planned retirement road trip.

While on a US road trip during the summer of 2010 with my then new Z4 35i I experienced a flat on my rear driver site wheel. The flat was due to a crack on my wheel. I was told by this dealership: The US and Canadian Warranty are not the same (this turned out later not to be true) and I only have two options open to me, 1) Be towed to the nearest Canadian dealership by road side assistance or 2) Order a new wheel and have them ship the old one to Canada for warranty claims.

I opted to order a new wheel. Once the dealership received the new wheel (BMW Style 296) they said, sorry we don't change wheels this is done at the tire shop. So I followed the Parts Manager to the tire shop. He introduced me and then promptly left. The shop people there went to work on my old wheel using tire irons and actually damaged my wheel (BMW Canada later declared the wheel bend). While in this tire shop I asked all other wheels to be checked for cracks, this was done and the passenger rear wheel was also found having 2 hairline cracks. I decided to drive home very carefully (3000 KM) with the two hairline cracks.

All this dealership did for me is a) put air in my tires. b) order a new wheel. and c) gave me wrong information about the BMW warranty.

If you live near this dealership avoid it like the plague (I posted this originally here ---> Post No 26 on Page 2

The final "Resting Place" of the wheel that I had to drag all the way home in my then 2 seater now a $700- Garden Hose Holder can be seen below, keeping my winter cover company.

Edit ... added the wheel and the final resting placed ... Shame BMW

[dotmit]

Originally Posted by M3RD

$700- Garden Hose Holder

That is the coolest garden hose holder I've ever seen though

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Originally Posted by dotmit

That is the coolest garden hose holder I've ever seen though

At first I was going to make a chess table from it ... later I decided this would be more useful in my garage It must be the most expensive one on my street if not in little London town where I live

[apjames]

I've had my 2009 E92 in for MOT at BMW today and it failed on a cracked nearside rear 19 inch 225 (mv4?) alloy.

It's out of warranty and I've had it 3 years bought as an approved used from a different dealer.

I quoted the Watchdog and Internet articles and it was replaced free of charge. Despite the Watchdog article saying the 'run out' tests were not done anymore, mine was tested but luckily passed.

Dealer confirmed the replacement alloy is redesigned and stronger than the old one.

Just my experience to keep the thread alive and hopes up for those finding themselves in the same unfortunate position.

[jimpom23]

Originally Posted by apjames

I've had my 2009 E92 in for MOT at BMW today and it failed on a cracked nearside rear 19 inch 225 (mv4?) alloy.

It's out of warranty and I've had it 3 years bought as an approved used from a different dealer.

I quoted the Watchdog and Internet articles and it was replaced free of charge. Despite the Watchdog article saying the 'run out' tests were not done anymore, mine was tested but luckily passed.

Dealer confirmed the replacement alloy is redesigned and stronger than the old one.

Just my experience to keep the thread alive and hopes up for those finding themselves in the same unfortunate position.

I've mentioned the run out test still being done a few times on here - I'd really like BMW to explain why they are still doing it when they said quite clearly it would be scrapped in favour of a quick visual inspection

[Batts335d]

i have just been looking through the not sure if any one has used them but ws going to on my old e92 it has the 18 inch mv3 wheels i think they and one was cracked i spoke to

atomic wheels in milton keynes who scotthall bmw in milton keynes use and they said would repair the crack to my wheel buy rewelding it , which is completey safe for £45

and on top i wanted a colour change and was quoted £336+vat for 4 wheels painted and tires refitted , one crack repaired and a loan set of wheels when they did the work


atomic wheels
milton keynes

[C.J]

I have a set of 225's in the garage (for sale), I also have BMW extended warranty.

Is it worth me contacting them, and trying to get the two cracked rears replaced?

[Batts335d]

I would you got nothing too lose from it , then once fixed I might buy them lol

[Dirty Tool]

I picked up an 07 e92 335i a couple weeks ago, my mechanic who works for BMW looked at the car and informed my NSR alloy has a crack in it. Its not leaking air pressure at the moment, but the crack could get big enough to leak pressure at any moment.

I called Stephen James in Enfield, they told me a run-out test would be performed at a cost of £106 and I would have to pay for that. Then a good will gesture would be submitted to BMW UK. If its accepted then they will change the alloy, if not I will still have a cracked alloy and be £106 out of pocket.

Had to deal with BMW goodwill gestures in the past when the subframe collapsed on my E46 328ci...they gave me the run around then but fixed it in the end.

Wish me luck!

[330ivert]

Originally Posted by Dirty Tool

I picked up an 07 e92 335i a couple weeks ago, my mechanic who works for BMW looked at the car and informed my NSR alloy has a crack in it. Its not leaking air pressure at the moment, but the crack could get big enough to leak pressure at any moment.

I called Stephen James in Enfield, they told me a run-out test would be performed at a cost of £106 and I would have to pay for that. Then a good will gesture would be submitted to BMW UK. If its accepted then they will change the alloy, if not I will still have a cracked alloy and be £106 out of pocket.

Had to deal with BMW goodwill gestures in the past when the subframe collapsed on my E46 328ci...they gave me the run around then but fixed it in the end.

Wish me luck!

stephen james quoted me £106 as well !!!! when i informed them that sytner chigwell would do it for £25 or £30 cant remember exactly now but thats a huge difference i was only checking with them as they are closer to me they abruptly said well thats what we charge, as you can imagine the car went to sytner and i had two rear wheels replaced one was replaced easy enough the other took some shouting at their customer services but was eventually changed as well

how can BMW justify two dealerships charging completely different prices for the same (inaccurate test). DISGUSTING

[5hutupyouface]

Just to chime in here. I have the 225 19" alloys. In the last 1.8 years I've had about 5 alloys replaced due to cracking. All free of charge, but the car was under AUC warranty.

It isn't under the AUC anymore, and I took it in for it's major oil service to a different dealership than I usually go to (they were £100 cheaper for the oil service). Dealer came back and said I have a cracked alloy. I told them to do a run-out test and replace as appropriate. They said they cannot do that as the car has no warranty and that I need to buy a new one.

I have extended warranty (Mondial) and before purchasing it, I did ask them about the alloys, and it was a firm NO - they're not covered, despite the known issue.

So I didn't argue with the dealer and thought I'd get it repaired for now. I had just splashed out on 4 new rf tyres, paid an arm and a leg for the major oil service and bought a very expensive engagement ring - needless to say, my budget simply wouldn't stretch enough for a new alloy.

Unfortunately for me, my rear pad and discs needed replacing too. I decided to take it to my usual dealer as they agreed to price match the cheaper dealer. I got about £60 off.

They also reported the cracked alloy and took the time to email me a video of it which was nice of them. I asked them what my options are, and the lady politely told me that they can do the run out test and replace it foc.

They did the run out test, I passed - alloy replaced foc - no hassle - didn't have to pay for the run out test either. In fact, with my dealer, they have never charged me for a run out test and never charged me for any of the usual extras that some others do. On top of that, they got my service price wrong and it was cheaper by £10. I told them the price is wrong, they said it's OK and not to worry. They also told me not to worry about paying for the courtesy car either.

All in all, that is the service I expect from BMW and that is the service my usual dealer provides. Hope it stays that way.

But this brings an interesting point. And I must stress this is speculation only, but I'm thinking that BMW are in fact still replacing these alloys and that the dealerships that refuse and make you buy one will also do the run out test any way and get it replaced by BMW. So all in all, you've paid for an alloy and they get money for the alloy from BMW *as well*. So they make £1200 from the sale of a single alloy.

[TK - 421]

I had to replace one when i first got by 35d, had to pay for it as well, they stated that because they had been refurbed (done by BMW main dealer) it had invalidated the warranty?? they actually refurbed the wheels to make the car look pretty on the forecourt, of which i then bought it, thing is it must of been split when the refurb guy did the wheels! crazy!!