BMW and M Power Owners

Soldato
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Sunny Sussex
What are peoples thoughts on the 'Cosmetic and alloy wheel maintenance plan' offered by BMW. It's provided by a company called EMaC.

I would usually decline such policies but given the size of the BMW and the 20" diamond cut alloys - it may be worth it.

It's £699 for a three year policy which includes four quarterly inspections of the entire exterior of the vehicle any damage repaired within the below parameters:

Cosmetic: uptown 10 treatments per year for minor stone chips or other debris marks, surface scuffs, scrapes or scratches or other minor indentations.
Alloy Wheel: up to 4 treatments per year for debris marks, surface scuffs, scrapes, scratches or any other minor indentation

Full details and brochure if anyone is interested: https://www.sytner.co.uk/cosmetic-care

They tried to offer it heavily discounted to me when I was looking for a car


Personally think it would be worth it at £400 ish.
 
Soldato
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Sunny Sussex
Do you really think you'd do £700 of damage to your car in small bits of damage over 3 years?

Only takes a couple of curbed wheels + people opening door on your car to get close.


It’s an insurance product at the end of the day - you’re paying for peace of mind that if something does happen, you’re sorted.



It has a value, and for me it’s about £400. Wouldn’t want to pay any more.
 

TS7

TS7

Soldato
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East Mids
When did you buy yours, if you don't mind me asking?

As they're unwilling to budge at all on the cosmetic plan stating it's a third-party product and they don't have any discretion to reduce.

However they were willing to reduce the Gardx quite considerably but I'm not going for that.
 
Man of Honour
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Only takes a couple of curbed wheels + people opening door on your car to get close.

How much have you spent refurbishing wheels and fixing cosmetic damage in the last 3 years? Is it more or less than £400? I bet it's less.


It’s an insurance product at the end of the day - you’re paying for peace of mind that if something does happen, you’re sorted.



It has a value, and for me it’s about £400. Wouldn’t want to pay any more.

I would value it at £0 personally, it is not an insurance product I'd value. Who does the work? If the work was done at the dealerships on-site manufacturer approved bodywork centre then I'd perhaps have a different view but the last few policies like this dealerships have tried to sell me did not cover them to do the work, it was a third party smart repair service. No thanks. I've tried to work out who does the work on this particular policy but it doesn't say.
 
Soldato
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How much have you spent refurbishing wheels and fixing cosmetic damage in the last 3 years? Is it more or less than £400? I bet it's less.

Less, but that’s because the cost of doing so is excessive.

If I had insurance, I’d have had all of the little things sorted because I’d have paid it upfront.

I would value it at £0 personally, it is not an insurance product I'd value. Who does the work? If the work was done at the dealerships on-site manufacturer approved bodywork centre then I'd perhaps have a different view but the last few policies like this dealerships have tried to sell me did not cover them to do the work, it was a third party smart repair service. No thanks. I've tried to work out who does the work on this particular policy but it doesn't say.


When I was looking at a 320d with Sytner, I think they said it was done by them, as I had to take it to a Sytner garage to get it done.


I’ve seen others which use the local manufacturer approved body shop, which happens to be the same one Porsche Portsmouth use in Farnham.



Again, won’t be of value to everyone, but that’s why OP for people’s thoughts because they can then make a decision based upon the preferences he best aligns to.
 
Man of Honour
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I have never seen one of these policies where the manufacturer approved body centre does the work. They are usually third party policies administered and run by a third party.

I think it's fairly important to understand exactly who does the work before making the decision and in this case it isn't clear.

There are other ways to ensure your car doesn't pick up £700 of cosmetic damage in just 3 years :D
 
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Soldato
Soldato
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I took one of those policies. Had a small cut and a full alloy refurb done so far. You can buy it cheaper online though, there is no benefit to buying it via BMW directly

I also didn't pay £700, that is way too much
 
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Man of Honour
Joined
2 Jan 2009
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60,532
These smart repair schemes are largely crap. Let's say you have a silver car, they'll send out some guy in a van who will attempt to respray your door on the driveway. It won't work and will look a complete bodge.

They also make claiming a bit tricky, so a lot of people don't bother.

Avoid.
 
Soldato
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Essex
I’ll be a member of the club soon.

Test drove a 2019 630D GT xDrive today. Loved it. I’ve only had an Alfa Mito 1.4 and a Skoda Yeti, this thing was effortlessly fast while being supremely comfortable, it put a lot of smiles on my face. Reserved it, will sleep on it, but I’ll likely buy it tomorrow.

The dealer is an approved BMW Inchcape dealer. Has anyone bought their extended warranty? It’s approved used so comes with 12 months, but I’m tempted to buy an extra 36 months on top. It seems to be as comprehensive as the approved used one.
 
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Caporegime
Joined
17 Jul 2010
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25,920
I’ll be a member of the club soon.

Test drove a 2019 630D GT xDrive today. Loved it. I’ve only had an Alfa Mito 1.4 and a Skoda Yeti, this thing was effortlessly fast while being supremely comfortable, it put a lot of smiles on my face. Reserved it, will sleep on it, but I’ll likely buy it tomorrow.

The dealer is an approved BMW Inchcape dealer. Has anyone bought their extended warranty? It’s approved used so comes with 12 months, but I’m tempted to buy an extra 36 months on top. It seems to be as comprehensive as the approved used one.
Check who will be backing the extended warranty as it may not be the official BMW Extended one but a third party one.
 
Don
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Spalding, Lincolnshire
It seems to be as comprehensive as the approved used one.

Without seeing what is specifically excluded, it's very likely to not be as good based purely on this - majority could simply be the many things that aren't expensive :)

Covering the majority of mechanical and electrical component failure items

 
Soldato
Joined
18 Jun 2010
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6,607
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Essex
Without seeing what is specifically excluded, it's very likely to not be as good based purely on this - majority could simply be the many things that aren't expensive :)



Here it is... I'll take a look at the 'full booklet'.



edit: full doc seems to be here: https://inchcape-dealer.motor-admin.com/documents/inchcape/dealer/policy-document-warranty.pdf

reading through it now.
 
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Associate
Joined
26 Aug 2011
Posts
192
Anyone done some kind of driving tuition or skidpan work in their M? Any recommendations?

I got an M2 recently and am keen to push the limits in a safe environment to enable me to be a bit safer on the roads.
 
Soldato
Joined
30 May 2007
Posts
4,865
Location
Glasgow, Scotland
Hey all!

I was pretty much set on a M340i next year, but I just cant make it a viable purchase... even more so with the packs I want included. I think I need to drop that dream for a few years at least.

Besides, do I really need 374bhp for my 5 mile trip into work three times a week and other pottering about, lucky I do 4k miles! I think I'm more interested in the cabin and ride and infotainment, hence I've decided to expedite the purchase of a replacement of the M140i to now... or asap.

I'm sold on the G20, minimum is Technology and Comfort pack. Ideally visibility too, if possible (thanks Fox for planting that seed).

I've driven a 330e and a 320i and liked them both. 330i, I'm seeing less of near me. The 330e was xDrive too, which I thought might be nice in the poor weather.

Finally, input needed! Is xDrive a deal breaker, is it worth having or should I prioritise it? 330i's dont seem to have it, but some 320i's do.

Also, insane to go from 335bhp to 181bhp, it seems nippy enough, but I wonder if I would miss quite the drop. Actually, I still enjoy a wee trip in my wifes 1.2 Mk 7 fiesta... so might not miss 335 too much.

Argh! Any insight would be lovely!
 

mjt

mjt

Soldato
Joined
31 Aug 2007
Posts
20,106
Hey all!

I was pretty much set on a M340i next year, but I just cant make it a viable purchase... even more so with the packs I want included. I think I need to drop that dream for a few years at least.

Besides, do I really need 374bhp for my 5 mile trip into work three times a week and other pottering about, lucky I do 4k miles! I think I'm more interested in the cabin and ride and infotainment, hence I've decided to expedite the purchase of a replacement of the M140i to now... or asap.

I'm sold on the G20, minimum is Technology and Comfort pack. Ideally visibility too, if possible (thanks Fox for planting that seed).

I've driven a 330e and a 320i and liked them both. 330i, I'm seeing less of near me. The 330e was xDrive too, which I thought might be nice in the poor weather.

Finally, input needed! Is xDrive a deal breaker, is it worth having or should I prioritise it? 330i's dont seem to have it, but some 320i's do.

Also, insane to go from 335bhp to 181bhp, it seems nippy enough, but I wonder if I would miss quite the drop. Actually, I still enjoy a wee trip in my wifes 1.2 Mk 7 fiesta... so might not miss 335 too much.

Argh! Any insight would be lovely!
Honestly if you've got such a small commute just get the 330e.

As for xDrive, it's useful in snow and slippery conditions, but otherwise you're just lugging around some more weight. However, the batteries weigh as much as a small planet so you won't notice the extra 2wd weight ;)
 
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