BMW Dealer concealing fault for sale
Discussion
Shortly after buying my Z4 from a main dealer I noticed that the front passenger tyre was fitted with the "INSIDE ONLY" notice facing on the outside, no biggie I thought, disappointing that this was not checked during their pre-sale 5 million point safety check but never mind..quick phone call to the service department and it is booked in to change it round.
One hour wait later I am met by a mechanic telling me to follow him to inspect that car and that I am likely to be very disappointed with the result...the OUTSIDE tyre side wall is absolutely covered in holes - chunks of rubber missing the size of your thumb. I count 6 LARGE chunks and a further 3 small ones. To make it worse, BMW refused to replace the tyre as it would not fail an MOT.
Now the cynic in me can't help but feel that perhaps the car was taken as Part-ex but rather than fix the tyre they decided to swap it round to hide the damage?
After a discussion with a sales manager they have "reluctantly" agreed to replace the front tyre.
I am not after compensation or any freebies but I DO want this matter explained. I already have a formal complaint open due to another issue and will contact BMW customer services to comment. Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the best course of action would be?
One hour wait later I am met by a mechanic telling me to follow him to inspect that car and that I am likely to be very disappointed with the result...the OUTSIDE tyre side wall is absolutely covered in holes - chunks of rubber missing the size of your thumb. I count 6 LARGE chunks and a further 3 small ones. To make it worse, BMW refused to replace the tyre as it would not fail an MOT.
Now the cynic in me can't help but feel that perhaps the car was taken as Part-ex but rather than fix the tyre they decided to swap it round to hide the damage?
After a discussion with a sales manager they have "reluctantly" agreed to replace the front tyre.
I am not after compensation or any freebies but I DO want this matter explained. I already have a formal complaint open due to another issue and will contact BMW customer services to comment. Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the best course of action would be?
how new was the car?
could have been a lease being returned and the owner had it done to cover it up
what condition is the wheel in?
chances are if it's not battered it's been reconditioned, in which case the tyre was probably put back on by the wheel re furbishers who might have done it on their own initiative not realising it was directional so thought it would be the best thing to do or on someone's instructions
could have been a lease being returned and the owner had it done to cover it up
what condition is the wheel in?
chances are if it's not battered it's been reconditioned, in which case the tyre was probably put back on by the wheel re furbishers who might have done it on their own initiative not realising it was directional so thought it would be the best thing to do or on someone's instructions
rockford22 said:
I am not after compensation or any freebies but I DO want this matter explained. I already have a formal complaint open due to another issue and will contact BMW customer services to comment. Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the best course of action would be?
Yes, accept the tyre and move on. You don't have rights to have anything "explained" about internal process and procedure - it's a private company, not a public body. You have rights that you have asserted and they have fixed it with a new tyre.
Even if you go all angry on them, the best you might get is a "members of the service department deviated from our strict quality guidelines and we have taken internal measures to resolve; thank you for bringing this to our attention"...
...what do you actually want ? Someone fired? A personal humbling apology?
tenpenceshort said:
Short of expressing your dissatisfaction, I'm not sure what course of action would mean in this respect? You haven't lost out, from what you've said. Why shouldn't that be the end the matter as far as you're concerned?
I think you are right...at the end of the day the tyre will now be repaired and short of a total pain in the bum and me never dealing with them in the future I guess it is an open/shut case.Another great 'missed by the AUC' checks thread. I had something similar with my car which had two near bald inside edges at the rear. I didn't check this when buying the car as it was just under a year old and I figured BMW would have checked this among all their other claimed checks. Only when I suffered a deflation due to a rear rim cracking badly within the first few months of ownership was the tyre situation discovered. They missed the bald insides and cracks in the rims as part of their extensive checks. The cracks were small and causing slow deflation of the tyres. Not enough for the TPMS to go off and the tyres being run flats looked fine. Only they were low and causing severe inside wear. When I complained I was told the wheel cracking 'they'd never seen before' and I should have checked the tyre pressures more regularly. They replaced the wheel (2 in the end) but told me the tyres were my fault. Nice. £280 a corner.
Lesson learned. A) AUC Checks don't get done properly and B) Don't trust a car salesman, check everything yourself, though you shouldn't have to, no matter the brand.
Lesson learned. A) AUC Checks don't get done properly and B) Don't trust a car salesman, check everything yourself, though you shouldn't have to, no matter the brand.
Edited by ManiacGT on Monday 11th August 13:28
rockford22 said:
tenpenceshort said:
Short of expressing your dissatisfaction, I'm not sure what course of action would mean in this respect? You haven't lost out, from what you've said. Why shouldn't that be the end the matter as far as you're concerned?
I think you are right...at the end of the day the tyre will now be repaired and short of a total pain in the bum and me never dealing with them in the future I guess it is an open/shut case.Another thing to consider (as I think has been mentioned above), it's equally likely the person trading the car in did the deed and the dealer missed it on their inspection. Not great service, granted, but a small mistake in the grand scheme of things. I imagine one of the staff has got a b
king from it if it's cost them a new tyre.We had a very similar problem when we bought a 4 year old E61 530d a couple of years ago.
One tyre had only 2mm left. We discovered it when we got home (too excited at the dealership to notice, lesson learned) and immediately called them and their defence was that it was legal. My OH only got them to agree to pay for new tyre when he asked the salesman if he would be happy putting his family in a car with that little tread.
We went to change the tyre at independent tyre place (the branch we bought the car from was a fair way away) the fitter noticed that two tyres were run flats but two were not. We were new to the run flat arena and had no opinion but knew they had to be all the same especially as we had noticed the lack of spare tyre at the dealers (we did do some cursory checks) and discussed run flats at length. The dealer then said our tyre fitter did not know what he was talking about and they are really difficult to tell if they are run flats.
We asked the to come and inspect the tyres as we still had them and they immediately admitted they knew. This meant they knew they lied and this angered me more than anything.
To balance this, the branch nearest to us of the same dealer franchise has been excellent and we are delighted with the service.
One tyre had only 2mm left. We discovered it when we got home (too excited at the dealership to notice, lesson learned) and immediately called them and their defence was that it was legal. My OH only got them to agree to pay for new tyre when he asked the salesman if he would be happy putting his family in a car with that little tread.
We went to change the tyre at independent tyre place (the branch we bought the car from was a fair way away) the fitter noticed that two tyres were run flats but two were not. We were new to the run flat arena and had no opinion but knew they had to be all the same especially as we had noticed the lack of spare tyre at the dealers (we did do some cursory checks) and discussed run flats at length. The dealer then said our tyre fitter did not know what he was talking about and they are really difficult to tell if they are run flats.
We asked the to come and inspect the tyres as we still had them and they immediately admitted they knew. This meant they knew they lied and this angered me more than anything.
To balance this, the branch nearest to us of the same dealer franchise has been excellent and we are delighted with the service.
Just wait for them to replace it and go and see the manager.
Just tell him not to take the piss in the future as you expect it from a dodgy second hand car dealer but not a main dealer. Only way for them to stop behaviour like this is to put them on the spot.
Most people just take it up the tailpipe and will be talked into buying a new one as "They all do that" or " you must of done it without noticing!"
One of the reasons I no longer own a BMW.
Just tell him not to take the piss in the future as you expect it from a dodgy second hand car dealer but not a main dealer. Only way for them to stop behaviour like this is to put them on the spot.
Most people just take it up the tailpipe and will be talked into buying a new one as "They all do that" or " you must of done it without noticing!"
One of the reasons I no longer own a BMW.
rockford22 said:
Shortly after buying my Z4 from a main dealer I noticed that the front passenger tyre was fitted with the "INSIDE ONLY" notice facing on the outside, no biggie I thought, disappointing that this was not checked during their pre-sale 5 million point safety check but never mind..quick phone call to the service department and it is booked in to change it round.
One hour wait later I am met by a mechanic telling me to follow him to inspect that car and that I am likely to be very disappointed with the result...the OUTSIDE tyre side wall is absolutely covered in holes - chunks of rubber missing the size of your thumb. I count 6 LARGE chunks and a further 3 small ones. To make it worse, BMW refused to replace the tyre as it would not fail an MOT.
Now the cynic in me can't help but feel that perhaps the car was taken as Part-ex but rather than fix the tyre they decided to swap it round to hide the damage?
After a discussion with a sales manager they have "reluctantly" agreed to replace the front tyre.
I am not after compensation or any freebies but I DO want this matter explained. I already have a formal complaint open due to another issue and will contact BMW customer services to comment. Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the best course of action would be?
I've had a far bigger issue recently and a few nicely worded emails got me what I wanted and as far as I'm concerned that's the matter closed. I'll probably go elsewhere for my next car & bike, but that's my choice and may well have done so anyway. One hour wait later I am met by a mechanic telling me to follow him to inspect that car and that I am likely to be very disappointed with the result...the OUTSIDE tyre side wall is absolutely covered in holes - chunks of rubber missing the size of your thumb. I count 6 LARGE chunks and a further 3 small ones. To make it worse, BMW refused to replace the tyre as it would not fail an MOT.
Now the cynic in me can't help but feel that perhaps the car was taken as Part-ex but rather than fix the tyre they decided to swap it round to hide the damage?
After a discussion with a sales manager they have "reluctantly" agreed to replace the front tyre.
I am not after compensation or any freebies but I DO want this matter explained. I already have a formal complaint open due to another issue and will contact BMW customer services to comment. Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the best course of action would be?
Why the need to make more of this when you've got what you wanted? A tyre is a consumable and one that might even need replacing again shortly if it has a puncture.
panholio said:
Is there really any point in saying "I won't own a beemer" though?
They are all the same. Every single one of them.
+1They are all the same. Every single one of them.
There are good and bad dealerships for every manufacturer!
With Four Litre's attitude, he'd better invest in some stout walking shoes and bus and train time-tables!
The thing is the OP has evidence, which the dealer has now accepted, that the PDI / AUC check was not done properly in one area, which should not have been that hard to carry out. What confidence does the OP have that the rest of the PDI / AUC was done properly, if at all? What was missed and how important is that? Brake pads & discs anyone?
If it was me I would be firmly but politely demanding (a) a new PDI / AUC check is done by the service manager, preferably with me in attendance, (b) recognition of my time & effort in pointing out their process failure,(c) confirmation that any other defects found would be fixed at no cost to me even though I had driven it and (d) the associated warranty dated from the date of the good inspection. I would also be involving BMW UK as well.
If it was me I would be firmly but politely demanding (a) a new PDI / AUC check is done by the service manager, preferably with me in attendance, (b) recognition of my time & effort in pointing out their process failure,(c) confirmation that any other defects found would be fixed at no cost to me even though I had driven it and (d) the associated warranty dated from the date of the good inspection. I would also be involving BMW UK as well.
LoonR1 said:
I've had a far bigger issue recently and a few nicely worded emails got me what I wanted and as far as I'm concerned that's the matter closed. I'll probably go elsewhere for my next car & bike, but that's my choice and may well have done so anyway.
Why the need to make more of this when you've got what you wanted? A tyre is a consumable and one that might even need replacing again shortly if it has a puncture.
What is your view from an insurers perspective, on the dealer fitting a tyre in such a way as to make the car unroadworthy?Why the need to make more of this when you've got what you wanted? A tyre is a consumable and one that might even need replacing again shortly if it has a puncture.
You need to hold them to their own standards when buying an AUC. They make very clear what is acceptable for tyres - depth and damage and lumps missing/2mm remaining depth wouldn't pass muster. Any issues take it to BMW GB Customer services with a complaint that the dealer is not abiding by the AUC requirements. Never had a problem with this myself and I've bought a few form them.
mcford said:
What is your view from an insurers perspective, on the dealer fitting a tyre in such a way as to make the car unroadworthy?
It wouldn't matter in terms of us paying out. It's unlikely that we'd pursue the dealer for recovery of our outlay, as it'd be a tough one to definitely connect them. His insurance wouldn't be invalid though, no matter what the naysayers on here would try to have you believe.
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