Stephen James Enfield - £2200 Vanos
Discussion
I've had my M3 E36 convertible four months now. 50k on clock & full MainDealer service history. 5 Green lights on. It is magnificent.
Bit of a noise came from the engine the other day immediately after start up. So duely went to my local dealer Stephen James Enfield.
They identified the problem as the VANOS. They say it needs replacing- fine, no problem.
BMW have said 'No' to a GoodWill replacement of the vanos as it's a P reg- April 97 as I did ask!
Here's my question BMW Blackheath replaced the pins holing the VANOS in 2000 whyever they did that but didn't change the VANOS I don't think
Surely the cars due a replacement VANOS courtesy of them if everyother had a recall
Bit of a choker on such a beautiful baby bought for £7800 but I don't mind as I've wanted one since the mid 90's and rarely look at any other on the road and think 'oh I'd rather one of those'
Any ideas??
Bit of a noise came from the engine the other day immediately after start up. So duely went to my local dealer Stephen James Enfield.
They identified the problem as the VANOS. They say it needs replacing- fine, no problem.
BMW have said 'No' to a GoodWill replacement of the vanos as it's a P reg- April 97 as I did ask!
Here's my question BMW Blackheath replaced the pins holing the VANOS in 2000 whyever they did that but didn't change the VANOS I don't think
Surely the cars due a replacement VANOS courtesy of them if everyother had a recall
Bit of a choker on such a beautiful baby bought for £7800 but I don't mind as I've wanted one since the mid 90's and rarely look at any other on the road and think 'oh I'd rather one of those'
Any ideas??
LATEST(GOOD)NEWS
Spoke to a man at MMR Independent Chelmsford last night about the vanos and his thoughts. He said-
"Get it done. Your Pistons may get stuck in the Cam, if that happens it's 6k"
This left me slightly dejected. He did say to phone a bloke called STUART who's very in the know about VANOS issues, apparently, AND he is nearer to me in North London. Called Stuart up straight after. He asked a few questions talked about the problem and said pop in today he'll listen to it.
Woke up this morning went to AUDI WHETSTONE about the old dears A6 and the power steering fluid, which PETER the Main Technician in there topped up free of change. Good bloke. They wouldn't let me sit in the R7. Anyway got home & took my M3 for a blast this morning. No noise at start up, sounded fantastic, threw it round a few corners and popped into Highams Park Motor Company a specialist BMW near Walthamstow where this STUART bloke works.
As I pulled into the garage I saw an m3 E36 coupe N -REG in etoril similar to mine having work done to it and thought 'good sign they get a few older M3's in here'
Spoke to Stuart the owner, bloody nice lad who seems to talk straight, he stuck his head under the bonnet, listened carefully to the engine, pulled the throttle line a few times & gave his opinion.
He said "this sounds very quiet I really don't think you have a problem some of these make a racket but it's something that you need to monitor and obviously I can do it for you but I don't think there's anything wrong at this point in time, I charge 1400-1500" Felt relieved(ish)
Further to this he was gushing at my car saying it was prestine and I was looking forward to getting straight back in it to give it a blast again. Just before I left he took me over to the sick N-REG and showed me some more things about the engine.
Just home now. Thanks whoever gave me Phil's name as I'm going to buzz him and get another opinion from someone who knows and to the others for there advice & opinion, really appreciate it.
Of coarse I will update this if theres a need to
Quick question. The car was warmed up when STUART looked at it. Will this have be taken into account? I didn't ask him that.
Also Why did it sound like someone had thown a spanner in the works when I went up to BMW the other day?
Spoke to a man at MMR Independent Chelmsford last night about the vanos and his thoughts. He said-
"Get it done. Your Pistons may get stuck in the Cam, if that happens it's 6k"
This left me slightly dejected. He did say to phone a bloke called STUART who's very in the know about VANOS issues, apparently, AND he is nearer to me in North London. Called Stuart up straight after. He asked a few questions talked about the problem and said pop in today he'll listen to it.
Woke up this morning went to AUDI WHETSTONE about the old dears A6 and the power steering fluid, which PETER the Main Technician in there topped up free of change. Good bloke. They wouldn't let me sit in the R7. Anyway got home & took my M3 for a blast this morning. No noise at start up, sounded fantastic, threw it round a few corners and popped into Highams Park Motor Company a specialist BMW near Walthamstow where this STUART bloke works.
As I pulled into the garage I saw an m3 E36 coupe N -REG in etoril similar to mine having work done to it and thought 'good sign they get a few older M3's in here'
Spoke to Stuart the owner, bloody nice lad who seems to talk straight, he stuck his head under the bonnet, listened carefully to the engine, pulled the throttle line a few times & gave his opinion.
He said "this sounds very quiet I really don't think you have a problem some of these make a racket but it's something that you need to monitor and obviously I can do it for you but I don't think there's anything wrong at this point in time, I charge 1400-1500" Felt relieved(ish)
Further to this he was gushing at my car saying it was prestine and I was looking forward to getting straight back in it to give it a blast again. Just before I left he took me over to the sick N-REG and showed me some more things about the engine.
Just home now. Thanks whoever gave me Phil's name as I'm going to buzz him and get another opinion from someone who knows and to the others for there advice & opinion, really appreciate it.
Of coarse I will update this if theres a need to
Quick question. The car was warmed up when STUART looked at it. Will this have be taken into account? I didn't ask him that.
Also Why did it sound like someone had thown a spanner in the works when I went up to BMW the other day?
Phoned Phil and arranged to be at his garage tomorrow morning about 9am when he opens it. He said he's never had to change a vanos yet and BMW seem to have standard responses fo problems like this! Says he deal 90% with M Power Cars & yes I got the impression he's hard to pin down.
Will update tomorrow
Will update tomorrow
Finally got round to meeting Phil Crouch today. Phil has a place in Iver Heath (nr 10 O'Clock on the M25) an independent specialist who deals 90% M Power. Once I'd found his workshop I saw 3 M Powers up on the blocks, which was a good sign & one of them being Vixpy1's M5. He was also there! Good to meet you. The other two were an M3 E30 in mint condition and Z4M. Chatted with Phil and VIXPY1 and Phil listened to my engine. On off on off on off. He got out a sort of lap top ran a diagnostics check on my vanos and after 5 minutes confirmed there's pretty much nothing wrong with it, it's normal. At idle the engine needs something minor doing to it but not the VANOS. Hallelujah.
The noise I've been hearing for the past 3 weeks at start up is coming from BELOW the vanos unit and BELOW the fan belt. The plastic which STEPHEN JAMES had drilled up after I went up a curb and asked them to put back has been rubbing up against a belt drive!!! The main dealers did a shoddy job and then tell me it's something else tha costs 2.2k to replace!!
Boiling and fuming inside though I didn't show it at the time I left PHIL ad VIXPY1 and went straight to STEPHEN JAMES ENFIELD. They ramped it and said I'd need a new sump protector costing £60. I watched the young inexperienced technician fiddle with the bottom of my engine block while up on the ramp. After 20 seconds he went he got his coat like he was getting ready to go home and then return to my car to drive it back out into the yard. I walked into the middle of the workshop confronted him and I asked him about the rubbing noise. He said I need a new protector. I said no I don't I said it firstly needs a proper looking at and then taking down as it's probably been bolted up too tight. He said sort it out with the manager. He parked it parked outside and I was sort of shown the exit. I thought this was possibly the worst customer service I'd ever had. Then my key fob wouldn't work so I went in again and asked for my alarm to be sorted as since it's been in the workshop it's stopped working. A more experinced bloke then ramped it again after I asked about the rubbing niose under the fan belt. He looked at it with another techinician who looked like a foetus. Dressed in a suit he who took off the bottom plactic sum protector with a ratchet gun and out from under my bonnet came some alien bit of plastic which doesn't belong to my car!!! This had been wedged into the car to bolt up the bumper I think, by them the last time I went there. They fixed my protector like they should have done first time around and then I spent another hour there while they opened up my dash and sorted the alarm out which misteriously stopped working while in their possession. All in all I've a worrying experience with them. My only regret is giving them business in the past and questioning the diagnostic work they do. It's worrying that they seem to know so little about a car made by their company. There is no substitute to dealing with someone who knows I learnt a valuable lesson today. Sometimes the people who you think know, don't know!
The noise I've been hearing for the past 3 weeks at start up is coming from BELOW the vanos unit and BELOW the fan belt. The plastic which STEPHEN JAMES had drilled up after I went up a curb and asked them to put back has been rubbing up against a belt drive!!! The main dealers did a shoddy job and then tell me it's something else tha costs 2.2k to replace!!
Boiling and fuming inside though I didn't show it at the time I left PHIL ad VIXPY1 and went straight to STEPHEN JAMES ENFIELD. They ramped it and said I'd need a new sump protector costing £60. I watched the young inexperienced technician fiddle with the bottom of my engine block while up on the ramp. After 20 seconds he went he got his coat like he was getting ready to go home and then return to my car to drive it back out into the yard. I walked into the middle of the workshop confronted him and I asked him about the rubbing noise. He said I need a new protector. I said no I don't I said it firstly needs a proper looking at and then taking down as it's probably been bolted up too tight. He said sort it out with the manager. He parked it parked outside and I was sort of shown the exit. I thought this was possibly the worst customer service I'd ever had. Then my key fob wouldn't work so I went in again and asked for my alarm to be sorted as since it's been in the workshop it's stopped working. A more experinced bloke then ramped it again after I asked about the rubbing niose under the fan belt. He looked at it with another techinician who looked like a foetus. Dressed in a suit he who took off the bottom plactic sum protector with a ratchet gun and out from under my bonnet came some alien bit of plastic which doesn't belong to my car!!! This had been wedged into the car to bolt up the bumper I think, by them the last time I went there. They fixed my protector like they should have done first time around and then I spent another hour there while they opened up my dash and sorted the alarm out which misteriously stopped working while in their possession. All in all I've a worrying experience with them. My only regret is giving them business in the past and questioning the diagnostic work they do. It's worrying that they seem to know so little about a car made by their company. There is no substitute to dealing with someone who knows I learnt a valuable lesson today. Sometimes the people who you think know, don't know!
I haven't driven my car since going to Stephen James BMW last Wednesday (26th).
My tax was due to be renewed so I went to the glove box to get my insurance document and MOT yesterday morning, Monday 31st.
GUESS WHAT - They hadn't put my glove box light or wiring back after sorting the alarm, which they disturbed in the first place!! It was just lying there with the bulb shining having not been put back properly. 5 days shining away.
I'm totally dismayed at the way I've been treated and this thread must seem like a whingers forum to vent my anger but I'm past that now. I'm at the disbelieve stage.
I'm seriously thinking about a complaint
Only I'm not sure how seriously they take will take my complaint
My tax was due to be renewed so I went to the glove box to get my insurance document and MOT yesterday morning, Monday 31st.
GUESS WHAT - They hadn't put my glove box light or wiring back after sorting the alarm, which they disturbed in the first place!! It was just lying there with the bulb shining having not been put back properly. 5 days shining away.
I'm totally dismayed at the way I've been treated and this thread must seem like a whingers forum to vent my anger but I'm past that now. I'm at the disbelieve stage.
I'm seriously thinking about a complaint
Only I'm not sure how seriously they take will take my complaint
Update News.
Wrote a letter of complaint to BMW Bracknell as advised by couple of chaps on here. Received a prompt letter back from them, which was nice!
However, it only said that Stephen James ENFIELD are an independent subsidary of BMW & it would be up to them to investigate, sort out and that I was to expect a call from their service manager Bill.. well I knew what would happen then and sure enough it did.
Bill called me up a day later. I explained my letter verbally and my view on what had happened, sure that there would be his side to the story. He was not as precise and apologetic as I had hoped and instead he stated he was shocked that I hadn't been charged any money for the time I'd been in BMW. He dithered a bit then stated I should find another Dealer to take my car to. I could tell by the intonation of his voice this was the main aim of his phone call.
Oh well- I laughed and hung up as I knew I was being 'diddled'. I think the fact I told him that I didn't appreciate inexperienced 17-20 year old technicians, who don't know what they're doing, working on my car grated him a bit but nonetheless this is my view and I am entitled to it.
End of my story. At least I didn't spend 2k on a problem that wasn't there and I learned somethng from this experience.
Wrote a letter of complaint to BMW Bracknell as advised by couple of chaps on here. Received a prompt letter back from them, which was nice!
However, it only said that Stephen James ENFIELD are an independent subsidary of BMW & it would be up to them to investigate, sort out and that I was to expect a call from their service manager Bill.. well I knew what would happen then and sure enough it did.
Bill called me up a day later. I explained my letter verbally and my view on what had happened, sure that there would be his side to the story. He was not as precise and apologetic as I had hoped and instead he stated he was shocked that I hadn't been charged any money for the time I'd been in BMW. He dithered a bit then stated I should find another Dealer to take my car to. I could tell by the intonation of his voice this was the main aim of his phone call.
Oh well- I laughed and hung up as I knew I was being 'diddled'. I think the fact I told him that I didn't appreciate inexperienced 17-20 year old technicians, who don't know what they're doing, working on my car grated him a bit but nonetheless this is my view and I am entitled to it.
End of my story. At least I didn't spend 2k on a problem that wasn't there and I learned somethng from this experience.
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