I understand what you're saying. Maybe if I bought a 75k M56 or a 90K LS460 sure a Corolla may be a slap in the face. But for my G37 or the FOB driving an IS250 meh.... I didn't buy this car for the perceived "luxury experience," I basically wanted a 4 door Z lol. Something fun, 4 doors for the dogs, auto for the wife, relatively affordable, safe, and reliable that's all.

 

When I had that Genesis 4.6 for six weeks (), it was in the shop three times. I was never offered a loaner; just a ride back to my office.

 

I personally love crappy loaner cars, makes me appreciate my car once i get back in it.


Took the Mazda3 into service for some steering pump recall and asked them for a loaner car...they looked at me funny.

 

Sometimes trends seem apparent that lots of people catch onto. Just because they don't have data doesn't mean they are wrong. Their intentions may be ill advised, but if the data comes back in their favor, they are still right. Of course, I realize they may be wrong too, regardless of the number of believers.

What I observe is that Japanese built Hondas, Acuras included, have less failures that affect the ability to DRIVE the car than BMWs. The 2G RL has numerous first year bugs that range from your A/C blowing hot air to a noise from the driveshaft, but you can always hit 90 MPH with VTEC in third gear. The car DRIVES away unaffected almost every time. That's where BMW gets a bad rep. Driving home with no A/C in 100 degrees is infinitely better than being stuck on the side of the road in 100.

That's just an observation I have made that I would be willing to bet the data backs up.

 

Yeah, I just never "expect" a loaner when my car is in service. I tell my service rep I can either wait, get a shuttle, or if my car will be down and I have errands to run, ask if a loaner is available?

However, when I had an Acura, they just put me in a car without me ever asking.

 

Although I'm strong biased in favor of the Japanese big three, one has to give BMW a little leeway as the F30 is still in its first model year....which is when chinks in many model generations crop up. (I still recall the MAF sensor issue with the 5.5G Maxima/I35, which resulted in my own "limp mode" experience.)

BMW will figure it out, resolve it as needed (recall/repairs) and then continue to provide years of driving enjoyment to its owners.

And with Knight re: loaner car; I'd be generally disappointed if I dropped off my MDX and received a Civic (or even ILX) as a loaner. It would cheapen the experience of owning the more premium brand.

 

Again, 2012 was the first year.

I understand every car has problems regardless the price. My G37's battery was replaced at 5k miles, S2000 clutch slave was out at 10k miles. blah blah.. no big deal.

I am fully aware of BMW's reliability when i bought it. However, i expected radio to be out, window trim falls off, Windows don't work, NOT LIMP MODE. You shouldn't expect ANY Manuf. to give you Limp mode, especially under 10k miles regardless the brand.

The frustration is THERE IS NO SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM.

It reminds me of my CL.... replacing a fuked up transmission with a transmission that soon to be fuked up.

 

Didn't the first two model years of the E46 M3 have engine failure issues, as well as the first couple of years for the E90/92 335 with its HPFP problems? (read: pattern)

 

I thought the E46 M3 was SMG, rear shock tower at least.

Can't recall if the double VANOS was a major issue.

 

I thought the E46 M3 was SMG, rear shock tower at least.

Can't recall if the double VANOS was a major issue.

 

The E9X M3 have been rock solid for the most part.

But yes, each model seems to have a known issue when they first come out.

E46 M3 had rod bearing issues and later on had rear subframe issues.

BMW tends to fix these problem but it seems to take them a year or two of trial and error. At least they do not deny it and say its normal.

 

Update:

Dealer called and fan needs to be replaced *Shocking, saw that coming on 5 days ago"

The problem is the fan is on national backorder, high demand. LOL

Earliest ETA for the fan is early July, 1 month away.

I guess i will be driving the 328 loaner for at least 1 month while making 335 payment.

 

This is where BMW is falling down on the job; they should be all over their part supplier to rush these items out to dealers and the dealers should be providing owners with comparable loaners.

 

What are the CA lemon laws like? I know some states say if a dealer has had the car for over one month it could qualify.

Just thinking aloud.

 

 

I'd put a call into BMWNA and let them know how you feel about about paying for that "loaner" car for a month or so.

I bet they compensate you in some way shape or form.
Even if it is a token gesture.

 

Are you leasing? I'd call BMW and ask them to waive your lease payment for 1 month. They've been known to do that in past when the car is out of service for a long time.

 

I believe it is bring in the car 3 times for the same problem and it has to be safety related.

or

30 days in the shop for the same problem.

I don't wanna go there yet. The dealer could simply return the 335 back to me to drive while waiting for the fan. I do not wanna experience it again.

Imagine you are merging onto the freeway and all of a sudden you cannot go over 45mph?

 

You live in SoCAl....45 mph on the freeway is a pipe dream.
You might hit 70 on the ramp, but you have to slow to 15-20 mph once you get into grid lock.

No worries...your car goes faster in limp mode than the flow of traffic.

 

I think they have heard enough from other people. I am ok with paying for the "loaner" car for 1 month.... 1 month is cool... 2 will not be.

as for as the loaner car, it is not technically a "loaner" car.

Originally the dealer will not give me any loaner car because it has to be booked 30 days in advance.

My sales guy went above and beyond and moved 1 of their barely used cars from the sales fleet for me to drive.

2013 E92 328 coupe Msport Sticker $51k
Red interior
Fully loaded
Autotragic
500 miles on the clock.







This thing is drinking gas compare to the F30 335, i think i am getting something like 18mpg right now. mixed city/highway

Even though it is a 328 but i can live with it for 1 month as long as they can fix the problem, which i am not so sure.

 

$51k sticker for a 328i?!

Good god.

I'm no Honda apologist but half the people here in Car Talk would shit themselves if their new Honda had to be in the dealership's shop for a whole month.

 

Any car owner should be upset about their brand new vehicle being in the shop for a month. BMWNA really needs to make this right; especially given the perception of the BMW brand being something special and worth paying a premium for.

 

arguing that it's OK for a car to be unreliable simply because of its cost is pretty ass backwards. It's never OK for a car to have an issue so quickly. The hype comes from somewhere.

 

Good grief, no one is arguing that "it's OK for a car to be unreliable simply because of its cost...."

 

and 51k for a 328 is ridiculous

 

we get it, you love your BMW.

 

Don't be an ass. Did you read any of what I said in this thread or did you just engage in an emotional reaction to the fact that I pointed out the silliness of your statement?

I'm very critical of how BMW is handling this situation. I've, historically, been very critical of how BMW continues to allow their cars to become more maintenance-heavy than their competitors. That being said, I refuse to be reactionary and fail to use decent critical thinking skills which requires nothing more than assuming a sample size of 1 is representative of the entire population. All new cars are more complex than they've ever been. The simple fact is this invites more problems (e.g. see systems theory).

 

That's one sweet loaner!

 

while you guys are arguing, let me give a brief review:

While this 328 being an autotragic, it is pretty quick off the line and the transmission shifts really fast. But the "throw you back to your seat" feeling only last for about 1-2 secs, where in the F30 335, you will have to grab onto your steering wheel tight the entire time or you will lose it.

MPG SUCKS!

I really really wish F30 Msport has this E92 suspension though. It is firm or maybe even harsh but it absorbs the bumps very well. It is more like you can feel it but you can't hear it.
Car feels very light and steering wheel feedback is good.

F30 in comparison feels like a bloated pig, suspension feels soft even in Sport mode and steering wheel is numb.

However, F30's interior is much better than E92 and Navi screen resolution is like comparing CRT vs LED. F30 feels more refined and i am not sure if that is a good thing.

In short, this E92 328 still feels like the ultimate driving machine but not enough power and interior does not belong to 2013.

F30 feels more like a cruiser now. It is got the power and the interior but doesn't have the "feel" anymore. I am not surprised that many magazines picked S4 over F30 335. However, there is something about BMW that will keep you as their loyal customer, even though you know the S4 is a better car overall.

The conclusion: S2000 > all

 

^^^^Since it's an E92, it has the Inline-6 instead of the turbo 4 on the F30 so the mileage won't be near as good. Does it have start/stop? When I've had F30 328 loaners, I have HATED the start/stop on the turbo 4...VERY unrefined. BMW needs to do some serious work on that "feature."

 

Yeah, the turbo 4 sucks. The dealership gave us a 2013 X3 M Sport (turbo 4) as a loaner last visit (we have the same car, but 2007) I actually missed our car. The power delivery of the I6, the "feel of the wheel", the sure-footedness... All that seems missing in the new car. And yes, we too hated the start/stop fieature. It should be OFF by default. What was BMW thinking?

edit: Oh, and the I4 sounds horrible. Clickity, clack, clickity, clack.

 

No shit. People on AZine bitch forward and backward about how the ILX is a $30k Civic, the RLX is over $50k...

When a compact car is running $51k and Fords are running $40k+, it's seems a little hypocritical; no?

 

I'm trying to wrap my head the following bundle (aka Premium Package) being $3,600:

•Auto-dimming interior and exterior mirrors
•Moonroof
•Interior mirror with compass
•Lumbar support
•Power front seats with driver seat memory
•Universal garage-door opener

 

Overpriced add-ons. Typical German lux car pricing strategy. IMO, all of that stuff should be standard on cars in this class.

 

BMW does not have a reputation for building reliable cars, and even if it is reliable, it will be complicated and expensive to maintain. IMO, German cars are not worth the up keep

 

And thus, the broad brush rises again.

 

The horror!!

My argument was always that im willing to put up with shop visits if the car itself is the most fun to drive in its segment.

However these newer BMWs seem to be getting pricier but not sportier. The competition is catching up fast as well.

 

Thank god it does not have start/stop. I had the dealer disabled that thing on my F30. The service guy said you are not going to get as good MPG, i said if i cared so much about MPG i would have gotten a Prius.

F30 328 sounds like diesel and at the end of the day it is still a 4 cylinder car so there are still a lot of 4 cylinder characteristics.

 

The main thing for premium package is the Dakota leather. Standard is leatherette on all 3 series. If you want red or Oyster interior, you will have to get premium package.

The premium package on 335 is much cheaper than 328 because there are a lot more standard equipment. So basically a loaded 328 = well equipped 335.
fully loaded 335 = well equipped 528. You see the pattern.

 

Who buys German cars because they are reliable and cheap to maintain?