[jctang]

I own a '16 535i msport, and never had an issue with service with bmw in Houston,TX. I am currently in San Antonio, TX and had to get some work done on it, but have been having a horrible experience with them. I'm having some rattling/squeaking noises fixed, rim repair, and oil change done.

I made an appointment weeks in advance, and had to follow up with the service advisor myself after 2 days of no contact for him to tell me my car has been in inspection for one full day, and today is being worked on. He then tells me they couldn't replicate the noises, so I told them I'm going down to replicate it for them before my meeting. Once I get there he tells me they replicated it (what a waste of time and poor communication) and all jobs will be done either the end of the day or the next day. I followed up with him on my own, again, and had him tell me it will be tomorrow. The next day I had to follow up with him on my own, again, only for him to tell me it's going to be tomorrow. I wait another day and now I'm being told by the service manager it's going to be possibly next week.

Something feels off...What's the longest bmw has delayed your vehicle? And is this common?

[mko9]

I was pretty underwhelmed by the BMW dealer in San Antonio. When I bought my used 535i and I brought it in for service, they failed to tell me about or fix a outstanding recall on the VANOS. Getting a loaner from them seems to be nigh on impossible. Plus, it is kind of a pain in the ass to get there.

Once you are out of warranty, RhineWest gets really good recommendations on various BMW forums. They did work on both my 535i, and my e46 300i when I lived down there.

[Ickdeep]

I kinda had the same experience but I was advised before hand that this could take a while. I went in for an oil leak. The first day was just them checking out. In the end it took them a week but they had given a loaner so I wasn't really complaining.

[claykin]

Pray you don't get your car back with more problems than it went in with....

[lsturbointeg]

i've been lucky so far. the BMW dealership here in Toledo i've always had great customer service, always had a loaner vehicle to use and had my vehicle picked up at whatever promised time they gave me. even when they finished early they always gave me a courtesy call to let me know my car is ready ahead of schedule and if i want i could go in and pick it up or if i was too busy i could pick it up at the end of business day.

in your case sounds like bad management and communication between them and the technicians. i've worked in the automotive industry and we always strived to keep the customer's in constant communication with latest updates and issues that may arise vs the total opposite of what you're getting. i highly suggest trying to use another dealership for future services if at all possible

[hawkjr1]

I kind of had the same experience. Took my 2013 535i in or an A/C issue, tapping noise from the engine compartment and a whining noise when backing the car up. Dropped the car off on a Monday and heard from them on Wednesday. Was told that the mechanic that worked on my car Monday went on vacation and he will be back the following Monday. Friday morning they texted me and said they put someone else on my car and they found a leak in the A/C lines and had to replace the seals at the lines connectors. When I asked about the noise coming from the transmission when backing they said they couldn’t figure it out. They said they never heard that noise before. To make this long story short they end up replacing the HPFP, the main belt and a pulley. They never could find out why the transmission whines when backing up. They said a rep from BMW headquarter will be coming by the dealership and they will call me and have me bring the car back and have the BMW rep figure out what is the problem. Never heard again from anyone and it still whine when backing up.

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by claykin

Pray you don't get your car back with more problems than it went in with....

I think your point here is key. Here is my advice:

1. Always wait one (1) year before having a BMW tech fix a rattle in the dash. Or, a squeak from inside the cabin. Now, I am only referring to minor rattles and squeaks not tied to anything mechanical or critical.

2. Really? You're going to have some junior tech dig around in your robot built, hi tech, super buggy?

3. Gee, what can possibly go wrong with reporting a squeak or rattle for immediate repair?

O Not all screws or panel adapters will be properly replaced.
O A new problem can arise.
O Your car will be driven hard by the tech.
O Your car will get dinged.
O The tech will spray foam inside the panel causing your car to smell like dead fish
O The universe and your car is constantly transitioning from order to disorder. The junior tech will only speed up this process.
O When you get time, pull your new bimmer into the garage and study it with the hood opened. Examine the hardware. Examine the wiring harness. Open the fuse box panel in the trunk. Examine the wiring. Now, imagine you're a tech from 1950 and this is the first time you've seen a late model bimmer. You would think it were a spacecraft.
O Some well meaning, but uninitiated bloke is going use some dirty wash rag to wipe down the inside of your car and end up scratching your cluster and idrive screen.
O Some SAs treat customers reporting rattles and squeaks as if you reported a UFO or saw Bigfoot. They have no time for this nonsense and retaliate by holding on to the car exponentially longer after each report. (Hmmm, sound familiar?)

So, don't risk it. Just give it a year and see if the rattle settles down on its own. But, for goodness sake, don't let anyone rip apart your beautiful new bimmer.

It just isn't worth it.

Listen to me. Trust me.

Stop obsessing over the rattle and go drive your new BMW!

[TTG]

You need to pick your battles.

My local dealership that I have been using since 2004 has been great to me.

But usually by the time my car goes in, I am SUPER specific about what I want and they usually do it.

I don't mess around with bunch of guestimate work. No one has time for that but they will gladly charge for it.