BMW Dealer wants £1000 and 2 weeks to fix broken Glowplugs -

Raven8472 · 7 Apr 2009 at 15:35

BMW dealer was trying to replace some diesel glow plugs on my 2003 330D , they say that two were very badly corroded and have snapped, Head needs to come off and repaired and will take till end of next week.

They want £1000 on top of my existing bill. I have checked around and removing glowplugs on diesels can be a knightmare but i took my car to a main dealer and expected them to do the job without breaking anything, they currently will not admit any liability saying it was a pre exisiting condition of the glow plugs and not there attempts to remove them.

Have spoken to BMW customer services who were slightly sympathetic but did not fill me with confidence. Any advise as i really dont think i should be paying the whole amount for possibly dealer mistake. I was not made aware the risk involved with the glowplugs when i authorized the work.

Raven8472 · 7 Apr 2009 at 16:09

All major services done at a main dealer, inspection 2 at main dealer last year. The car does not have any bmw warranty but has a 3rd party one with "Warranty Direct" and Sytner BMW dealer said they would try to speak to them. But i feel they should be footing the bill though.

The fact they want my car for 2 weeks when i expected it back in a day , they have given me a loaner mini one but not really a patch on my 330D. Should i wait for them to call, speak to someone independant, Consumer Direct etc.

Raven8472 · 7 Apr 2009 at 16:28

Cant prove easily if they broke them or pre existing fault when they recieved the car.

Raven8472 · 7 Apr 2009 at 18:30

Thanks for the comments folks

The car was struggling to start on very cold days including decent amount of smoke. BMW said they would do a quick diagnostics and that resulted in finding that most of them were faulty so the garage suggested that all should be replaced as it has 6.

Raven8472 · 8 Apr 2009 at 10:32

Spoken to the dealer today, the glowplugs are actually stuck in the head, asked them why cant they get them out without removing the head.

They mentioned that if the head needs to come off its a good few hours work on my engine. so the cost is mostly labour. The warranty company want a few scans of the documents which i will provide but still why cant BMW actually be able to fix it by thinking outside the box a little.

How would you remove stuck glowplugs without removing and damaging the head, what sort of tools are available to do the job.

Raven8472 · 1 May 2009 at 08:02

Just to finish up

I have recieved the car back 3 weeks of waiting while driving a mini one ( kept asking for a 4 door and they said the didnt have one). Overall i am about £200 out of pocket as the dealer ( service rep) got me a what they say is the best discount available and my warranty company is paying a decent chunk of the additional costs. The overall expereince wasnt good as i had to keep chasing them for updates , leaving messages, emails etc. They waited over a week for a so called expert to show up to try and get the glow plugs out and he failed so they took the head off sent it away and put it back on. They didnt even wash the car as its dirty.

Now at work when i popped the hood the engine cover ( large removable one has a nice crack in the plastics, looks like someone forced it wrong or stepped on it ) and im noticing that the steering seem decent amount heavier. ( are steering components removed, adjusted while removing the head) I sent a email and will call the service rep but i really dont want a lot to do with this dealer anymore.

Thanks for all your advice.

Raven8472 · 1 May 2009 at 12:47

The steering could be my weak arms getting used to the Mini's steering but yes its only a plastic cover but im paying a premium for them to touch my car and even in the past i have removed Bmw engine covers without breaking, snapping or stepping on them.