Gearbox & Warranty

louism

I bought a BMW 520d 64 UK plate (manufacture date dec 2014) at the beginning of 2016
It still had the BMW warranty on it and I extended this by 2 years (3rd party)
The car has been looked after, fully serviced by BMW & driven conservatively by myself and has just hit 70k miles.
Without warning (it's been running perfectly), it stopped the other day with a drivetrain error. Had to get it lifted to BMW as it was stuck in Park.
Anyway, long and short of it... BMW says "Gearbox has gone" and want £9k for replacement.
3rd party warranty coughed a bit at that and want it taken to an automatic transmission repair garage to strip it down and assess the damage.
My only concern is the warranty company are going to try and get out of things by claiming "wear & tear" which I think is a little rich seeing as the car has only just hit 70k.
I've also emailed BMW to majke them aware that I'm gobsmacked that a gearbox on a BMW can just pack up at 70k without warning.

EdGasketTheSecond

You would be better off seeking advice on a BMW forum about this; they might be able to tell you if it is a 'known' problem or whether it is repairable.

louism

It's not a known problem and is rare on that sort of mileage and as stated, there was no warning of this whatsoever. So, I'm convinced it is a mechanical failure but my concern is that even if there is a little bit of wear and tear (in line with a 4 year old gearbox which has done 70k), the warranty company will try and use this as an excuse to get out of the repair.

Richard53

Wear and tear refers (or should refer) to consumable items like brakes and clutch. Most people would think of a gearbox (especially an auto) as something which should pretty much last the life of the car. 70k miles on a modern car is nothing. An auto box isn't like a clutch, where bad driving habits can cause rapid wear and failure. It's all electronically controlled, and there isn't much you could do to harm it if you tried. Perhaps failing to change the oil ... do you have a documented service history?

louism

Yes, the whole service history has been done within the BMW network and is recorded electronically. I'd also imagine that the gearbox should last too. It has only been myself driving it and it hasn't been driven harshly (getting an average 45 MPG which is phenomenal for a car of it's size/weight)

AdrianC

louism wrote: »

I bought a BMW 520d 64 UK plate (manufacture date dec 2014) at the beginning of 2016

Never mind manufacture date, when was it first registered? That's when the three year manufacturer warranty would have started from. 64-plate, so the end of February 2015 at the latest. Which means the original warranty ran out at the end of February 2018 at the latest. Damn near 18 months ago.

Anyway, long and short of it... BMW says "Gearbox has gone" and want £9k for replacement.
3rd party warranty coughed a bit at that

No surprise there!

What's the claim limit on the warranty?

I've also emailed BMW to majke them aware that I'm gobsmacked that a gearbox on a BMW can just pack up at 70k without warning.

Your chances of a goodwill contribution are not that high, a year and a half after the manufacturer warranty ended. If you do get something, it'll probably be a contribution towards parts, with dealer labour at your cost - so it'd probably work out cheaper to get the work done outside the dealer chain with no contribution...

louism wrote: »

it hasn't been driven harshly (getting an average 45 MPG which is phenomenal for a car of it's size/weight)

The official combined economy for your car is slightly over 60mpg, depending on precise spec.

louism

No, the warranty starts from the minute the car was purchased/registered which was December 2014, hence why the extended warranty doesn't run out until the end of December this year. The mistake I made was not being aware that BMW would offer an extended warranty at the time of purchase. About a month before the original warranty ran out, BMW offered the extended warranty. Too late, I'd already took out a 3rd party warranty.
60MPG combined?? Not sure where they would get those figures from and I'd challenge anybody to try and get them too. It took me months to get it from 42MPG to 45MPG.
I'm just little concerned about "wear and tear" eg them having 4 years old gearbox = 20% wear & tear

AdrianC

louism wrote: »

No, the warranty starts from the minute the car was purchased, hence why the extended warranty doesn't run out until the end of December this year.

Yes, but the warranty for years 4 and 5 is not a BMW warranty - it's a third party. BMW will not care about that. So the car was registered in December 2014, not built then. If you're expecting any goodwill contribution from BMW, then you need to remember that their warranty ran out in December 2017.

So how much is the claim limit on this third party warranty?

60MPG combined?? Not sure where they would get those figures from

Like I said, depending on precise spec. Even the thirstiest precise spec is north of 60 - the least thirsty is nearer 70mpg.*

They are the official figures, arrived at by the manufacturer through the official NEDC test cycles, the same ones as the emissions. It'd be illegal for anybody selling the car to quote any other figures.

Whether they're realistic in daily use is another question - but an average 45mpg is not "phenomenal", nor is it an indication of anything at all.

Edit:
* - My bad - they're the extra-urban figures. Combined ranges from 62.8mpg (68.9 extra urban, 119g/km CO2) for a saloon on 225/55 17 tyres to 53.3mpg (58.9 extra-urban, 139g/km CO2) for an estate on 245/40 19. The precise spec may vary from that still further - for example any heavy options, like a panoramic roof. What CO2 figure does your V5C give?
https://carfueldata.vehicle-certification-agency.gov.uk/search-new-or-used-cars.aspx?vid=798239
https://carfueldata.vehicle-certification-agency.gov.uk/search-new-or-used-cars.aspx?vid=804415

louism

CO2 109G/KM is on the V11. Tax is £20 a year.
3rd Party warranty limit is £2k a claim (15k in total)
The auto-transmission garage has said on a bad day, the total replacement might be £4.5k but they won't know until they look at it.
So, I'm not holding out much hope from BMW and hoping that it might be something minor.
I think my only choice at this time is to get it delivered to the auto-transmission repair garage and get them to open it to see exactly what has happened. Perhaps get BMW to waive the diagnostics cost?

AdrianC

louism wrote: »

CO2 109G/KM is on the V11.

So the official combined for yours is going to be higher even than the 62.8/119...

3rd Party warranty limit is £2k a claim

That's the only figure you need to know, then...

The auto-transmission garage has said on a bad day, the total replacement might be £4.5k but they won't know until they look at it.

Which will be £2k from warranty, £2,500 from you.

Perhaps get BMW to waive the diagnostics cost?

You want the dealer to work for free to diagnose something they won't even be repairing? I admire your optimism...

louism

Well I'm hoping. I think the dealer knows it's a bit bad ie auto gearbox completely going, so I'm hoping they are sympathetic to it.
So I'll get the car transported and keep in contact with the auto-transmission repair company (who are meant to be good and just around the corner from me too)
As they've stated, on a bad day it could be £4.5k but it could be much less, depending on what they find.
What I don't want is for the warranty company inspector to turn up and say repair is say £2k and they are knocking off 20% for wear and tear or it's not covered due to wear and tear and I have to front the bill myself.