Red Cog of Death and Stratstone Derby Experiences

[TVR newbie]

Hi all

Unfort on Sunday i had the dreaded red cog of death on my 57 plate 33k miles M5. Wife went to use it, pressed button and got the red cog with an error regarding take to nearest dealer or if engine off it won't restart. Couldn't then shift the gear selector before all that appeared as an upside down exclamation mark on the dash.

Having BMW emergency cover as well as full AUC warranty i called them out and they sent a specialist over who after playing with a few relays came to the conclusion it needed a dealer to sort it as was stuck in gear despite selecting N (he thinks the gear pump may have gone which ties in with my thoughts as there was no priming noise as per usual when she went to start the car. Either that or battery issues is my other guess). Flat bed arrived and it's now been taken to Stratstone Derby for the work as that was local to the location where this happened. Being from Essex i know nothing of this dealer so wondered if anyone had any experiences of dealing with them?

From what i have read, getting the warranty to pay isn't always a black and white case and very dependent on the dealer you using. Hence i'm a little nervous not knowhing who i am dealing with. So if anyone can shed some light (good or bad) i'd appreciate it.

By the way, BMW Emergency Cover was fantastic as on top of taking my car etc they also got me a rental delivered to the address I was staying at and then arranged for it be picked up once I was back in Essex and no longer needing it. Definitely recommend the cover.

Let's hope the warranty turns out to be as worthwhile too

Cheers guys

Dan

[mondie]

What a pain in the arse. Its what l fear will happen to me one day, the M5 is such a complex car it just seems like the law of probability will kick in at some point. There are a couple of versions of the BMW warranty l have read on here, do you know who underwrites yours? Good luck in getting it sorted, l know what you mean about wondering if the warranty will kick in for you, there is always a lingering doubt

Cheers
Simon

[groucho]

I had the RCOD. It was the clutch positioning sensor. Sorted by warranty.

[CSLchappie]

I had a similar experience about 10 months ago, only I got about 100 yards from by front door before the cog flashed up, as I live only a few miles away from Stratstone in Derby I drove straight over and had it fixed within the day - my problem was a software issue, believe it or not! I had a full system update and after three years of ownership the car has never felt better (drivetrain-wise that is)

[TVR newbie]

They rang me back today. New gear box and load of wiring that had got damaged somehow. They are still investigating but said a new gear box was around 2.5k so luckily I had the warranty. So all good so far. Impressed with Tom from services at Stratstone so far so hopefully I'll still be saying that come next week when I get her back!

Mind you he has managed to get some service work out of me that was due in 400miles but I'll let him off that

Cheers for the replies. As has been said many times, as long as you buy that warranty, owning a M5 is genuinely a privileged experience

[mondie]

Good result, must be a relief. 2.5k for a gearbox seems 'cheap'

[TVR newbie]

Well he said "at least 2.5k" and I'm assuming that is pre VAT so I'd have thought nearer 3k mark.

But since.....what do I care!

[TVR newbie]

^since covered...

[MMT]

Theres a guy on M3cutters just had a problem with his M3 gearbox and BMW quoted £7,500 for a new one.

[AndyBrew]

I found Derby Stratstone exceptional after my M3 developed an issue after 30 miles of ownership, the car was repaired quickly and they pulled out all the stops to get the car back to me for the weekend, they also lent me a 640i convertible for the few days it was away even though BMW had authorised a rental stbox

A new gearbox for my GT-R was £25k not that I needed one thank god!!!