[ScrewedByBMW]

I purchased a used 2007 328XI from a BMW dealer in a different city than I live. The car recently developed an transmission leak. I took it in for warranty work (at Edmonton BMW) and they told me it is leaking in three places (pan, where wire probes enter, frost plug). I was told work had been done on the car and they would not cover it. I said the car is almost new with two registered owners (other BMW dealership and myself). Only work would have been performed by BMW. BMW records show no work was ever done. They still refuse to do the warranty. They told me they can tell when the pan was dropped by the markings on the screws. They are not saying that incorrect parts were used. Even in the highly unlikely event that someone did work on the pan (1) it would have been by BMW and (2) how come the other leaks are not covered by warranty.

This does not make sense to me as to why this car would not be covered under warranty - its crazy. By the way, Edmonton BMW says they have to replace the entire transmission because the "frost plug" is not a part available from BMW - it will cost me $14,000.

I was wondering if any others have had leaking transmissions in 2007 328XI (Automatic Trans)? Also has anyone ever heard about the frost plug leaking?

Thanks
Darryl

[David 12]

$14k!!!

Do you know a decent Attorney?

[itsbrokeagain]

sounds like you are getting conned by the dealer....id take it to another dealer and have it checked out.

[s420merc]

Hold up is the car not inspected prior to u buying from a BMW dealer its called Certified Pre Owned. I would take it up with that dealer and also take the car to a different dealer too. Your car is under warranty and unless you have mods its bs. IF the trans had mods done to it then u are in trouble cause there is no way to prove that you did not do those mods. Other then that u should be covered by BMW i would also call BMWNA and complain.
Ask for a regional tech to look at your car.
Be nice but pro active.

[Dr_Dirt]

I could be wrong but, what kind of transmission mods would anyone want to do to a 328xi???

[Jaws]

A few questions:
1) Where did you buy the car?
2) Was it certified?
3) Kind of fishy that it has two owners other than yourself considering it is an '07. Is it possible that the car was in an accident (eg car was driven off the road and sustained undercarriage damage)?
4) Do you have any history of its life?


I'd try taking it to Bavaria and failing that contact BMW especially if it is certified.

[dmboone25]

Originally Posted by itsbrokeagain

sounds like you are getting conned by the dealer....id take it to another dealer and have it checked out.

+1 Sounds fishy--I would just try somewhere else.

[ArmyBimmerDude]

Originally Posted by itsbrokeagain

sounds like you are getting conned by the dealer....id take it to another dealer and have it checked out.

+1 Is there a reason why a lot of BMW dealerships are screwing people? I thought they made money by taking warranty claims.

[ScrewedByBMW]

Thanks to everyone for the responses and general encouragement.

To answer the questions from Jaws

1) I bought the car from Barrington BMW in Chicago. Thus the dealer is too far away for me to go back to. I have been in contact with them and they tell me that they did no work on the car. They stated if they did any work (especially something like a leaking transmission), they would have put in a warranty claim with BMW to have costs covered. This makes sense to me, but maybe there is something I am missing.

2) The car was not certified. It did include remainder of factory warranty.

3) The only two registered owners are Barrington BMW and myself - no one else. I have documention proving this. I also have documentation showing that they bought the car directly from BMW in Germany.

4) I dont have any other history.

Soemthing does not add up. I have worked with BMW Canada and they have closed the issue. I agree with DrDirt, no one would do transmission mods on a 328XI. If there were mods or I was told that the gasket was replaced with a non-standard part, I would accept no warranty coverage.

But to simply state that someone had touched that transmission pan bolts and then not accept warranty work is not good enough. I dont know how you can be 100% positive that the evidence they saw did not occur at the factory. I think the only evidence they have stated is that the bolts are marked. I dont have a trained eye, but the bolts (that are not covered), have some black marks on them, but are not gouged as far as I can see.

I have been trying to give Edmonton BMW and BMW Canada a fair shake and not suggesting this is simply a pissing match because I bought the car in USA.

[Year's_End]

noob question: What exactly is a transmission leak? What's leaking?

[Garrett]

Originally Posted by ScrewedByBMW

I purchased a used 2007 328XI from a BMW dealer in a different city than I live. The car recently developed an transmission leak. I took it in for warranty work (at Edmonton BMW) and they told me it is leaking in three places (pan, where wire probes enter, frost plug). I was told work had been done on the car and they would not cover it. I said the car is almost new with two registered owners (other BMW dealership and myself). Only work would have been performed by BMW. BMW records show no work was ever done. They still refuse to do the warranty. They told me they can tell when the pan was dropped by the markings on the screws. They are not saying that incorrect parts were used. Even in the highly unlikely event that someone did work on the pan (1) it would have been by BMW and (2) how come the other leaks are not covered by warranty.

This does not make sense to me as to why this car would not be covered under warranty - its crazy. By the way, Edmonton BMW says they have to replace the entire transmission because the "frost plug" is not a part available from BMW - it will cost me $14,000.

I was wondering if any others have had leaking transmissions in 2007 328XI (Automatic Trans)? Also has anyone ever heard about the frost plug leaking?

Thanks
Darryl

LOL


Any dealer refusing to work on a car with a warranty are "crooks" and report them to BMWNA.

I wouldn't worry at all. Remind them that it's more likely that it could've come from the factory wrong, more than it was that you did work on it yourself... when the car was under warranty.






-Garrett

[Jaws]

Originally Posted by ScrewedByBMW

Thanks to everyone for the responses and general encouragement.

To answer the questions from Jaws

1) I bought the car from Barrington BMW in Chicago. Thus the dealer is too far away for me to go back to. I have been in contact with them and they tell me that they did no work on the car. They stated if they did any work (especially something like a leaking transmission), they would have put in a warranty claim with BMW to have costs covered. This makes sense to me, but maybe there is something I am missing.

2) The car was not certified. It did include remainder of factory warranty.

3) The only two registered owners are Barrington BMW and myself - no one else. I have documention proving this. I also have documentation showing that they bought the car directly from BMW in Germany.

4) I dont have any other history.

Soemthing does not add up. I have worked with BMW Canada and they have closed the issue. I agree with DrDirt, no one would do transmission mods on a 328XI. If there were mods or I was told that the gasket was replaced with a non-standard part, I would accept no warranty coverage.

But to simply state that someone had touched that transmission pan bolts and then not accept warranty work is not good enough. I dont know how you can be 100% positive that the evidence they saw did not occur at the factory. I think the only evidence they have stated is that the bolts are marked. I dont have a trained eye, but the bolts (that are not covered), have some black marks on them, but are not gouged as far as I can see.

I have been trying to give Edmonton BMW and BMW Canada a fair shake and not suggesting this is simply a pissing match because I bought the car in USA.

Interesting and disturbing. I was at Edm. BMW two weeks ago to "build" an '08 335. After pricing the car, I told the CA that I had no choice but to buy a slightly used one from the US. His response was that BMW Canada is looking at any possible excuse to deny warranty coverage for vehicles bought in the US. I suspect you're a victim of this unsavory tactic. Good luck.

[FotiosF90M5]

I think you might have to drive to chicago.something is really, really not right here.Regardless if it was certified or not you bought the car from them and its broken.14,000 dollars or go back to chicago and demand they rectify the problem.make them fix it or take the car back.f**kin assholes.

[sparkyg]

Skip BMW Edmonton for starters. Go to Barvaria for a second opinion. Better techs there and probably more experience.

Better yet go to Eurasia and have them take a look.

Can't comment on what BMW Canada is doing but none of it makes sense. GO up the ladder at BMW Canada and talk to someone else.

$14k is a blow off, simpe as that. They don't want your business. Take it else where. Some dealerships look at warranty work as a pain and lack the willingness or foresight to create a happy customer from a bad situation.

Not the first time I have heard about bad service there. Good to see them working on that image......

[sparkyg]

Maybe someone tried to add a block heater to it, found that they could not, and then put it together again. Maybe there was a deal in the books at the dealership that fell through. Would there be a history that that?

[ScrewedByBMW]

Thanks for all the responses.

Jaws, I sent you a PM with my personal information. I would really appreciate if I could talk to you regarding your post. I was hoping this was not BMW putting the screws to me because I bought the car in the US - nothing else makes sense.

I went under the car today to see what I could see and take some pictures. From what I can see ...

Leak 1 - Tranmission Pan. Definitely oil on the pan screws but I cannot tell where the oil is coming from. I looked very hard for signs the bolts had been tampered with. I could see black markings on some of the bolts. They did not appear to be "wear" markings. Some of the markings were in the middle of the bolt - not on the edge where you would expect. What was also interesting is that you can see the top of the bolt where it screws through the transmission. The threads show no sign of wear that you would expect if the bolts were removed. I looked for other signs of the pan being removed. The most obvious is the drain pan. It is an allen bolt, so difficult to see markings. I looked very hard and could see no signs that it was ever removed. You would have to drain the oil before dropping the pan.

Leak 2 - Wire housing. I could see the wire housing and it did appear to have oil around it. The housing is so far up in the transmission that you cannot even touch it with your fingers. The only way you could do something with it would be to drop the transmission. I looked for signs the transmission was dropped. There are many large bolts and covers that would have to be removed to drop the transmission. None of those bolts showed the slightest sign of wear. I am 100% positive the transmission was never dropped.

Leak 3 - Frost Plug. I could barely see and touch the plug with my fingers. I could tell that the plug was not in square. It is quite small (1/2" diameter), I do not know what it would ever be used for (not a block heater - there is not even one in the engine block). Again, you could never do anything to this plug without dropping the transmission. It is in a very tight place. You could not even put a tool on it to attempt to knock it out even if you wanted to.

From what I can see is the worst that could ever have happened to the tranmission is that someone tightened the bolts. It does not appear that the pan was ever taken off. The other two leaks had to come from the factory as you could never do anything with them without dropping the transmission.

From what I can see it is painfully obvious that Edmonton BMW and BMW Canada are punishing me because I bought the car in USA. It was ironic that on Friday, I recieved a welcome letter and package from BMW Canada with my service card. The same day they denied to honor warranty on the car.

On Monday I will go to a couple independant BMW shops and get their opinion.

Regards
Darryl

[txusa03]

GL Darryl, I thought this sort of practices by dealers only happens in the US (where one dealer get back at buyer for buying out of states).

[ScrewedByBMW]

I have some of the pictures I took. I am amazed how well they turned out, I used my camcorder. Now that I know they are so clear, I will take more. The frost plug and wire harness were taken with "night vision" on because they are up in a dark isolated area.

The pictures of the bolts are the ones "marked" the most. It is difficult to tell but the marks look closer to paint (although it does not rub off with my finger nail). Most bolts show no markings like in the pictures.

[David 12]

I am no expert, but looking at your pictures, it appears that the pan had been removed at some point.

The bolts actually look a little rounded as well.

[ScrewedByBMW]

Originally Posted by David 12

I am no expert, but looking at your pictures, it appears that the pan had been removed at some point.

The bolts actually look a little rounded as well.

I have always said that the bolts have marks on them. But I question the following:
1) The marks are not on all the bolts and are very inconsistant. Look at the size of the marks on the first picture. If those are wear marks, thats a lot of torque on a small bolt - just does not seem likely.

2) If there was that much torque on the bolt to make that much of a mark, I think you would be able to feel something on the bolt. You cannot feel anything on the bolts.

3) Difficult to tell from pictures, but the bolts dont feel "rounded". Also the marks dont look like wear more like paint (but I also am not an expert).

4) What signs do you see that the pan had been removed? If those are "wear" marks, could the bolts not have been tightened?

5) What do the other two leaks (wire housing and frost plug) have to do with the markings on the bolts?

6) Finally, I dont even care if the pan was removed as far as warranty is concerned. This is a new car with a leaking transmission pan - it is under warranty - it should be fixed.

If we start allowing BMW to get away with voiding warranty ONLY on the suspicion work was performed based on bolts that have marks on them - we are all screwed.

Regards
Darryl

[T Bone]

Subscribed....Good luck...

[LACA335i]

Originally Posted by ScrewedByBMW

I purchased a used 2007 328XI from a BMW dealer in a different city than I live. The car recently developed an transmission leak. I took it in for warranty work (at Edmonton BMW) and they told me it is leaking in three places (pan, where wire probes enter, frost plug). I was told work had been done on the car and they would not cover it. I said the car is almost new with two registered owners (other BMW dealership and myself). Only work would have been performed by BMW. BMW records show no work was ever done. They still refuse to do the warranty. They told me they can tell when the pan was dropped by the markings on the screws. They are not saying that incorrect parts were used. Even in the highly unlikely event that someone did work on the pan (1) it would have been by BMW and (2) how come the other leaks are not covered by warranty.

This does not make sense to me as to why this car would not be covered under warranty - its crazy. By the way, Edmonton BMW says they have to replace the entire transmission because the "frost plug" is not a part available from BMW - it will cost me $14,000.

I was wondering if any others have had leaking transmissions in 2007 328XI (Automatic Trans)? Also has anyone ever heard about the frost plug leaking?

Thanks
Darryl

i would take it to bmw of northern america.com. start bitch at them.. go get another dealership respective.