Judder problem on E63 M6 SORTED thanks to Leicester Sytner

[Johnky1990]

Hi,
Some of you may know that I had judder problems with my gearbox before.
I had some bad issues with my dealership regarding some services prior to my gearbox check.
However, the new principal at the dealer acted promptly regarding the problems I had with the service, he offered me a free inspection of gearbox. He also let me drive his personal car Alpina D5 (brand new) as courtesy while the car was in for the inspection.

The diagnose was faulty release bearing.
Since it's covered warranty, they said they'll change it asap but they told me that the clutch is nearly gone and they'd recommend to change to a new one together with the flywheel. When I asked the mechanic if the release bearing could have accelerated the wear on the clutch, he told me that the principal already contacted the BMW UK regarding the issue and is waiting for the reply.
Well, on the same day the principal sent me an e-mail saying that both the flywheel and clutch will be covered under warranty. I then asked him if it's possible to change the other parts such as guide bush, pins, rods and also the SMG fluid at my expense, the principal said no worries they'll get on with it asap.

The next day I went to return the Alpina and pick up my car, they had changed everything for me at free of charge.
No questions asked, no further bills to be paid. The principal even drove my car himself to bring it to the sales department for me.

Now, my case is a bit special because I had an incident with their employees regarding service but I hope this helps to some of you.
(Another reason I'm writing this thread is to appreciate the principal's effort and let people know that Leicester sytner isn't what it used to be anymore. Things are changing there and the new principal really knows what he's doing).

Sorry it got a bit side ways
So, just to sum up

- My E63 M6 had judder issue. The car judders seriously when accelerating from deadstop. This happened only when the transmission was heated to normal temp. I had no clutch slips. Sometimes I experienced massive 'BANG' from deadstop and this was clearly shown on the clutch.

- It turned out to be the release bearing at fault.

- BMW had made conclusion (probably with a bit of help from principal) that the clutch and flywheel experienced consequential damage from the faulty release bearing, hence the parts are also covered under comprehensive warranty.

- Happy to have my car back now, I've been driving it as gently as possible for the last 300miles since the new clutch/flywheel, will be doing so till I reach 1000miles. No judder, no clutch slips, smooth as silk.

- I would like to thank the principal Andy Crossan at Leicester Sytner BMW, who really put his effort into making this happen. He said to me "I want to make difference here but obviously it can't be done overnight. I'm just glad that we have another happy customer and made another step closer to our goal."

I defo recommend the shop especially if you're thinking about buying/servicing high-performance car such as M cars, then I can tell you this dealership is probably one of the best places to go for in the UK.


(I've written this thread purely on my own willingness. I had no such thing as deal or benefits regarding this with him whatsoever)

Thanks for reading and thanks for those of you who adviced me on how to deal with the judder problem,
Cheers

John

[King Eric]

Excellent news....at times like these you are glad you bought an M :-)

[Stedman]

I like this post. I also like the fact (i'm guessing though) that you're 22/23 years old

[Johnky1990]

King Eric said:

Excellent news....at times like these you are glad you bought an M :-)

certainly
i hope you enjoy your M car in good health too mate

Stedman said:

I like this post. I also like the fact (i'm guessing though) that you're 22/23 years old

I'm glad you like it mate,
I'm sure anyone would have posted the same stuff if he/she had the same experience as I did regardless to the age
cheers!

[ady702]

Very good John, did they say anything about yours mods? lol

[Johnky1990]

ady702 said:

Very good John, did they say anything about yours mods? lol

thanks,
no they didn't mention anything about my mods.
My car may look very modified but the only mechanical mod it has is the exhausts.

When I called Mondial to continue the warranty, I asked them if the mods would void the warranty,
they told me that as long as the mod hasn't contributed to the failure of an item that you're claiming then it should be fine.
They will make the calls on sensible way (eg;having modified exhausts wouldn't void your window warranty).

According to other forums that I'm part of, air intakes, exhausts, aeroparts, wheels, tyres are widely known as parts which you can change without causing any problems with warranty. Hope that helps

[ady702]

Good info that is mate, cheers.

[Stedman]

It was more the fact you are young with an M-V10

[rassi]

Well done on the warranty repair! I had mine done too 2 weeks ago under warranty. The judder in start/stop traffic is gone, as is the noticeable clunk when shifting at close to WOT.

Hope it will last a long time!

[contractor]

Glad you got it sorted. I too went through the clutch bearing wringer. In the end it comes down to finding a good dealer that will work with you and support your case etc. There are a lot of dealers around, some much much better than others. I've a good relationship with my dealer, Stephen James Blackheath, and that's the kind of thing that keeps you going back and getting another BMW.

[Bigglez]

contractor said:

Glad you got it sorted. I too went through the clutch bearing wringer. In the end it comes down to finding a good dealer that will work with you and support your case etc. There are a lot of dealers around, some much much better than others. I've a good relationship with my dealer, Stephen James Blackheath, and that's the kind of thing that keeps you going back and getting another BMW.

Hey contractor,

Who's a good person to deal with at Stephen James? I'm in the market or an E61 touring and they'd be the guys looking after it.

Cheers!

[contractor]

Bigglez said:

Hey contractor,

Who's a good person to deal with at Stephen James? I'm in the market or an E61 touring and they'd be the guys looking after it.

Cheers!

They are a small team down there; I've dealt with all of them and they are all OK.

I originally took my M6 to another dealer near Harold Wood who let me down badly in 2009. I spoke to Carla who was on the service desk at Blackheath at the time and they bent over backwards to get things sorted. In the end I had Vanos pump and feed pipe issues diagnosed and resolved, with a loaner thrown in while mine was being diagnosed. She kept me informed so I knew where I stood. Since then they've done my clutch release bearing and various other things (including getting goodwill) for my car and also the 225Ms on my other half's car.

She's now the service manager (deservedly so and not surprising given her approach etc.) and the rest of the team operate to the same standard. It's the kind of backup that you need when things go wrong and start getting stressful

[Johnky1990]

contractor said:

Glad you got it sorted. I too went through the clutch bearing wringer. In the end it comes down to finding a good dealer that will work with you and support your case etc. There are a lot of dealers around, some much much better than others. I've a good relationship with my dealer, Stephen James Blackheath, and that's the kind of thing that keeps you going back and getting another BMW.

Exactly!
Finding a good dealer who'd support your case is the most important part.
I'm glad you also got yours fixed too!

[Bigglez]

contractor said:

Bigglez said:

Hey contractor,

Who's a good person to deal with at Stephen James? I'm in the market or an E61 touring and they'd be the guys looking after it.

Cheers!

They are a small team down there; I've dealt with all of them and they are all OK.

I originally took my M6 to another dealer near Harold Wood who let me down badly in 2009. I spoke to Carla who was on the service desk at Blackheath at the time and they bent over backwards to get things sorted. In the end I had Vanos pump and feed pipe issues diagnosed and resolved, with a loaner thrown in while mine was being diagnosed. She kept me informed so I knew where I stood. Since then they've done my clutch release bearing and various other things (including getting goodwill) for my car and also the 225Ms on my other half's car.

She's now the service manager (deservedly so and not surprising given her approach etc.) and the rest of the team operate to the same standard. It's the kind of backup that you need when things go wrong and start getting stressful

Brilliant. Thanks contractor. I'll give her a call.

[bimmer_87]

Recently contacted Sytner Leicester regarding a missing stamp for an inspection 1 in my service book. They told me to post it and they would stamp and return it.

They also stamped a brake fluid change which i wasnt even aware of!

Recieved it in the post yesterday :-)

[ecain63]

It's a shame Sytner Mercedes in Northampton aren't as helpful. Not giving too much away yet but so far the switch to Merc has been painful. The car itself is amazing, so no issue there. It's the organic bits at the dealership that are causing concern.