Red Cog of death
Discussion
soooo, i've always waxed on about how reliable my high mileage M5 has been in the 2 years and 30k miles that I have had the car... well last week without warning I got the red cog while cruising on the M11.
The car was driving fine without any issues at all, no noise or warning... then a little bong and the red cog of death appeared on screen... the TV instructed me I had a transmission fault and to drive moderatly to the neared BMW dealer... it went on to say that once the engine was stopped it would not restart and that the next time the car came to a halt the engine would cut out.
Well this was a surpise as the car was still driving fine... so I pulled off at the next junction and true to its word as soon as I stopped at the roundabout it cut out and I was stranded... I pushed the car up the hill onto the side of the road and awaited recovery to my BMW specialist... missed my flight
Well the red cog of death is very apt in this case, basically the SMG pump has failed and its £2800, also Im on the original clutch so that would need replacing at another £1k... so £3,800 plus labour and other sundries... so at least £4.5k but probably more on a car worth £11-12k max!
So Im breaking the car... why? well Im building a car thats was having a BMW V12 that I was twin turboing, but I have decided to change to the V10 with twin turbos... however I needed a donor motor and couldnt justify buying one atm as they are £5k to buy... well now I have one, so my M5 will live on with twin turbos in a car half the weight
So I had a lot of fun with my M5 but its time for it to retire... RIP
The car was driving fine without any issues at all, no noise or warning... then a little bong and the red cog of death appeared on screen... the TV instructed me I had a transmission fault and to drive moderatly to the neared BMW dealer... it went on to say that once the engine was stopped it would not restart and that the next time the car came to a halt the engine would cut out.
Well this was a surpise as the car was still driving fine... so I pulled off at the next junction and true to its word as soon as I stopped at the roundabout it cut out and I was stranded... I pushed the car up the hill onto the side of the road and awaited recovery to my BMW specialist... missed my flight
Well the red cog of death is very apt in this case, basically the SMG pump has failed and its £2800, also Im on the original clutch so that would need replacing at another £1k... so £3,800 plus labour and other sundries... so at least £4.5k but probably more on a car worth £11-12k max!
So Im breaking the car... why? well Im building a car thats was having a BMW V12 that I was twin turboing, but I have decided to change to the V10 with twin turbos... however I needed a donor motor and couldnt justify buying one atm as they are £5k to buy... well now I have one, so my M5 will live on with twin turbos in a car half the weight
So I had a lot of fun with my M5 but its time for it to retire... RIP
contractor said:
sorry to hear about that. Did your car have the SMG pump recall mod done?
good question, although doesnt change the outcome.Car has done over 110k... car still felt like new, interior is mint (full leather top spec option with moving seat bulsters).
Just fitted brand new Michelins to the rear as well lol... going to be really hard to break as the car still looks almost mint.... but I really want the engine
Wow as you say Andy you have always been the one to talk about the warranty and it finally caught up with you buy you could argue that you would have spent about the same in those few years of ownership anyway which would negate any advantage. I am glad that you have made the most out of a pretty s
tty situation and also glad that you enjoyed ownership!
I can imagine it will be hard to break it down, maybe stick a 520d lump in it and mate it with that engine?
Would be one comfortable place to be that's for sure.
tty situation and also glad that you enjoyed ownership! I can imagine it will be hard to break it down, maybe stick a 520d lump in it and mate it with that engine?
Would be one comfortable place to be that's for sure.Indeed I have talked about not having a warranty... In truth I could fix it, I already have an as new clutch and flywheel lined up cheap and I could get a low mileage box with SMG for 1.5k so if I did the work myself I could fx for £2k.
However I want the engine... A good one is £5k and I know mine plus I have every conceivable bolt etc meaning installation will be easier... So the man maths mean I'm having it for the engine. :-)
Don't think it will be hard to sell parts, I only need to make 3k for it to be worth more in parts, the wheels have £750 of new rear rubber so I'm going to get well over 1k for them, the diff is worth quite a bit, then the interior, mirrors, lights etc etc...
Regardless it's a reminder that you must buy one of these with your eyes wide open... I've always said how reliable my car was given it was so cheap... And arguably the money I saved on purchase price plus the warrant would more than cover the repair cost.... But it's a gamble and I broke even in the long run lol
However I want the engine... A good one is £5k and I know mine plus I have every conceivable bolt etc meaning installation will be easier... So the man maths mean I'm having it for the engine. :-)
Don't think it will be hard to sell parts, I only need to make 3k for it to be worth more in parts, the wheels have £750 of new rear rubber so I'm going to get well over 1k for them, the diff is worth quite a bit, then the interior, mirrors, lights etc etc...
Regardless it's a reminder that you must buy one of these with your eyes wide open... I've always said how reliable my car was given it was so cheap... And arguably the money I saved on purchase price plus the warrant would more than cover the repair cost.... But it's a gamble and I broke even in the long run lol
I spoke to the independant specialist (who i took the car to) and they have had a number of attempts to use reconditioned SMG pumps and apparently every one failed to work and a new one was installed.
I was also surprised, but Im not that gutted as literally only the week previous I was wondering how I was going to get a V10 for the project.... I only sold the M3 a little over a month ago after owning for 8 years so Im now M less lol
I was also surprised, but Im not that gutted as literally only the week previous I was wondering how I was going to get a V10 for the project.... I only sold the M3 a little over a month ago after owning for 8 years so Im now M less lol
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