BMW X3, broke after 5 months. Dealer says they only give 3 months warranty

AdinUK

Hi All,

I am looking for advice on used car warranties and dealers statutory obligations.

I bought a 2007 BMW X3 from a small independent dealer in Leamington Spa. About 5 months after buying the car, a number of lights appeared on the dash (4x4, ABS, Brake Warning). At this point, the car was still driveable, however all of the essential safety features (anti-lock braking, stability control, 4x4 etc) stopped working. I consider that without any of these systems working that the car is not fit for purpose as transport for my wife and children.

I went back to the dealer and he told me that he only offers 3 months warranty, so I was on my own. But as gesture of good faith, he suggested I take it to his specialist BMW repairer. The repairer could not diagnose the fault and recommended I take it to the local BMW garage. The upshot is that the car needed a new Transfer Box as the old one had failed. I am out of pocket about £1,600 for the repair.

Given that the vehicle was fit for purpose (ie. all safety features were working) when it was bought, but 5 months later the transfer box failed and the vehicle then became 'not fit for purpose'... what is the dealers obligation?

Are they legally obliged to cover the whole cost of the repair?

Some websites refer to a 6 month warranty period but I'm not sure if this is a legal obligation on the dealer themselves... or more a guideline.

eg. adviceguide dot org dot uk has some pages that indicate 6 months warranty obligation for dealers.

I'm a new arrival to the UK so not totally sure where I should look for advice.

motorguy

AdinUK wrote: »

Hi All,

I am looking for advice on used car warranties and dealers statutory obligations.

I bought a 2007 BMW X3 from a small independent dealer in Leamington Spa. About 5 months after buying the car, a number of lights appeared on the dash (4x4, ABS, Brake Warning). At this point, the car was still driveable, however all of the essential safety features (anti-lock braking, stability control, 4x4 etc) stopped working. I consider that without any of these systems working that the car is not fit for purpose as transport for my wife and children.

I went back to the dealer and he told me that he only offers 3 months warranty, so I was on my own. But as gesture of good faith, he suggested I take it to his specialist BMW repairer. The repairer could not diagnose the fault and recommended I take it to the local BMW garage. The upshot is that the car needed a new Transfer Box as the old one had failed. I am out of pocket about £1,600 for the repair.

Given that the vehicle was fit for purpose (ie. all safety features were working) when it was bought, but 5 months later the transfer box failed and the vehicle then became 'not fit for purpose'... what is the dealers obligation?

Are they legally obliged to cover the whole cost of the repair?

Some websites refer to a 6 month warranty period but I'm not sure if this is a legal obligation on the dealer themselves... or more a guideline.

eg. adviceguide dot org dot uk has some pages that indicate 6 months warranty obligation for dealers.

I'm a new arrival to the UK so not totally sure where I should look for advice.

There is no such thing as a "6 month warranty" period. Its that for typically for six months the dealer MAY be liable for FAULTS that occur.

Its fair to say this is a fairly major fault and as such it would be up to the dealer to prove the fault was not there at the time of sale. He may well say that as the car was not showing warning lights or errors at the time of sale and that you have done successfully several thousand miles, then clearly it wasnt.

I would ring citizens advice and get their take on how to play it. You may well have to go to court to get this sorted, if the dealer does not want to play ball.

C_Mababejive

What did it say on your sale contract/agreement? I'm no expert but i suspect this would take precedence.

Also see this..

http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/cgi-bin/brighton-hove/con1item.cgi?file=*ADV0003-1011.txt

I see there is a good trade in new and recon transfer boxes for X3 on Ebay.

I wonder if its a common issue?

Either way i think it would pay to have a professional assessment of what the problem is and it would be worth paying a BMW dealership to provide a report/cost estimate.

Having said that,and from what i have heard,some BMW workshops are also a bit clueless.

I wonder if there is an independent BMW specialist in your area?

motorguy

C_Mababejive wrote: »

What did it say on your sale contract/agreement? I'm no expert but i suspect this would take precedence.

No it doesnt take precedence.

A dealer can write what he likes on the invoice but it doesnt change your rights under the SOGA

colino

Please don't go back to the Trader with a, "think of the children" argument. It's rubbish and you both know it. Why not suggest that if you find a real BMW indie to properly diagnose the fault, he makes a contribution to the repair?
I'd bet a pound to a penny that the plastic actuator wheel in the transfer box has stripped. Some owners don't even change the wheel, they turn it around so that a fresh set of teeth are in engagement.

darkmatter101

I don't really see why the dealer that you purchased the car from is obliged to sort out the car. Car broke down AFTER the warranty period. Before that, like you said, everything was fine. It's a second hand car, so there is always a risk of something happening, and considering its a BMW, which normally gets 'average' for reliability ratings, and are expensive to fix when something goes wrong, you can't be complaining about £1600 out of pocket expense. What do you expect, its a BMW out out warranty, if money is more important to you, get a second hard Japanese car that is more reliable and less expensive to fix.

Did you look at the service history before purchasing the car?

Iceweasel

AdinUK - I suggest you post about this problem on https://www.bmwland.co.uk

Then you'll find out if it's a common problem and how to fix it easily and cheaply if possible.

Being a BMW - I doubt it will be 'cheap' though.

Captaincodpiece

darkmatter101 wrote: »

I don't really see why the dealer that you purchased the car from is obliged to sort out the car. Car broke down AFTER the warranty period. Before that, like you said, everything was fine. It's a second hand car, so there is always a risk of something happening, and considering its a BMW, which normally gets 'average' for reliability ratings, and are expensive to fix when something goes wrong, you can't be complaining about £1600 out of pocket expense. What do you expect, its a BMW out out warranty, if money is more important to you, get a second hard Japanese car that is more reliable and less expensive to fix.

Did you look at the service history before purchasing the car?

So it's nothing to do with a purchase being fit for purpose then?

Can dealers give a boundary or on premises warranty? Once you drive away the warrant expires and the problem is yours.

darkmatter101

Captaincodpiece wrote: »

So it's nothing to do with a purchase being fit for purpose then?

Can dealers give a boundary or on premises warranty? Once you drive away the warrant expires and the problem is yours.

According to the OP the car was fit for purpose when bought and was okay for the first 5 months. If the OP decides to take the dealer to court I can't see the judge favoring him, unless he has evidence that the car was miss sold, i.e. false service history.

I find it weird that the dealer offered to have a look at the car at his so called 'specialist' BMW garage. He should have diagnosed the fault as real BMW specialists normally have the same diagnostic equipment as the BMW dealerships.

OP taking into account all the numerous problems and warning lights, on the outset, I think £1600 at a BMW dealership is actually quite cheap.

Captaincodpiece

darkmatter101 wrote: »

According to the OP the car was fit for purpose when bought and was okay for the first 5 months. If the OP decides to take the dealer to court I can't see the judge favoring him, unless he has evidence that the car was miss sold, i.e. false service history.

I find it weird that the dealer offered to have a look at the car at his so called 'specialist' BMW garage. He should have diagnosed the fault as real BMW specialists normally have the same diagnostic equipment as the BMW dealerships.

OP taking into account all the numerous problems and warning lights, on the outset, I think £1600 at a BMW dealership is actually quite cheap.

It's up to the dealer to prove the fault wasn't present when he sold it if you want to talk legally. Whilst on that subject you'll also know how stupid you were to bring up the worthless three month warranty period.

Another expensive German car fault, yet you having never owned a car will still rate.

sh0597

Don't think it's the trader's problem. It's not an unreasonable problem to occur on this car at this age. It's a big car with lots to go wrong and relatively expensive parts, OP would do best to simply try and find a more reasonable quote for repair.