[SIZE=2] Hi All,
Just wanted to introduce myself. I am an avid BMW owner/enthiusiast and wifey owns an 04' cooper non S. This brings me to my regional forum inquiry.

Background:
Car was recently diagnosed with driver side mushrooming front strut tower at Global.
(long story short, I refuse to have the repair facilitated there)

Request:
Does anyone have experience getting this repair done in the north atlanta area?
(We are in East Cobb and willing to travel for a reputable shop)
Can anyone recommend a good shop to do the repair and install M7 or similar reinforcement plates?
Does anyone have experience doing this repair themselves, Any tips/advice?
(this is a consideration as I am no stranger to wrenching on my car)

Any and all feedback is welcome. The sooner the better.
I am glad to be part of this forum even though these are not the best circumstances to introduce myself.

Thanks in advance.
Chris [/SIZE]

 

Chris,

Way Motor Works ( http://www.waymotorworks.com/home.php ) is probably who you need to contact. He's quite the MINI guru and is in Atlanta. His contact info is: (317) 201-8670. The website has a gallery page and it shows maintenance being done to MINIs, but the extent I do not know.

All I ask is if you call please let him know you were referred by Middle Georgia MINIs. Not that we will get anything out of it, I just want him to know we are here in Georgia and a few of our members do get their MINI supplies solely from him.

I hope this helps. Keep us posted.

Shaun

 

I will def be in contact with them.
Thanks much Shaun

 

Hey Chris. I agree with Shaun... Way is the guy for you. Unfortunately, he's in Vegas right now at AMVIV and will not be back in town until next week at best (he drove the 2,000 miles there), but be patient, he really knows his stuff.

 

Please keep us posted as to how things turn out.

 

Hey guys,
I went for a consult at Harrison Motorsports (local and recommended via another local mini forum). I wanted to get this looked at ASAP

First let me say that Harrison is a quality shop with quality people.

Unfortunately, after un-hanging my front suspension, and giving it a few raps ala the 2x4 method (in an attempt to straighten them out enough to fiit the m7 plates), They didn't budge. Vince at Harrison was kind enough to try everything in his arsenal to know avail.

Eventually he disclosed to me that this is probably the worst case he has seen and that they will most likely require cutting and re-welding new shock mounts at some point.

At this point I have contacted Both the dealer who diagnosed the problem and BMW North America. I should have more info by wed, It will most likely include inspection from a BMWNA engineer. I will be fighting to have this issue resolved via the manufacturer parts warranty or along the basis of a good faith agreement for the following 2 reasons.

(A) The extent of the damage is equal on both left and right shock towers. (lending more evidence pointing to the fact that this is an inherent design flaw and under the responsibility of the manufacturer to resolve)

(B) Based on the fact that I have strictly adhered to the BMW/Mini service interval recommendation and have only had the car serviced via the mini dealership network, I feel it was the responsibility of my dealer/service dept to diagnose and recognize this problem at the earlier stages (When tapping out would have only required a few hundred dollar repair. Rather than waiting (in what I consider) their best interest for the damage to become so severe that it now requires welding in new mounts (A repair that I consider a serious chassis modification that will, in addition to cost me a considerable amount of money to facilitate also devalue my vehicle).

So there you have it. More info to come. I will keep you updated as to my progress,difficulties, etc.

Sorry for the rant!

 

Sorry to hear that sort of news concerning the strut towers. I would also check in with Way and see what he says as well, maybe he has some info/suggestions/advice that would aid in making your case with BMW/MINI. Don't forget to get MINI USA involved and let them know that this situation is getting some attention on the forum.

Hang in there and please do keep us informed. Can you send me some digital photos of what this looks like? If you do I can post it on our website to let everyone know what to look for.

Thanks.

 

I have already been in contact with Mini/BMW USA directly and we are trying to work out a solution

When Way returns from his trip I will be sure to speak directly with him.

I will try to post up pics (As I am now documenting the extent of damage)

I will post my pics when I get a chance. but you don't want to wait until they are this bad. You should check out this thread for more info/pics as well as this posting here

 

Update 4.2.07
Spoke to BMW NA rep. They have advised me that they have no news to report. The case is with management and they will contact me on Friday with more information.

 

Fri Update.

Denied without explanation or further recommended recourse.

Absolutely livid at this point. BMW NA customer reps were essentially uncooperative and/or borderline argumentative to my grievance. I was unable to have any information provided to me in regard to how this diagnosis is made by the dealer. And no explanation to why a BMW NA Technical engineer will not physically inspect the vehicle (contrary to what was told to me by Dealer Service Manager and the first BMW NA Sales rep.)

I have currently filed grievance with the dealership. I am in the process of writing a letter to The BMW NA President and will be cc'ing the following:
Better Business Bureau
American Automobile Manufacturers Association
State Attorney General
Local Department of Motor Vehicles
State Consumer Protection Office
Federal Trade Commission
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (The EPA is particularly interested in any evidence of a pattern failure)
The Bureau of Consumer Protections Office of Consumer & Business Education

I will be maintaining my mini in the garage until this is resolved/repaired for fear of exacerbation of the damage. BMW will have to have the vehicle towed to its service center for any further inspection.
In addition I have decided to sell my 2007 e92 BMW and will be selling the mini once the issue is resolved. I will not be buying BMW again.

I cannot in good conscience recommend the purchase of a used or new BMW mini cooper to anyone.

BMWNA handling of this and its dealer network diagnosis has been a disgrace and a letdown.
Not something I would expect to this point. But margins seem better than brand loyalty these days.

 

I am truly sorry to hear about your dealings with BMW NA. I would recommend contacting BMW main corporate office via e-mail as well.

It seems odd they do not want to try to resolve the a known issue, especially when the MINI isn't the first or only BMW product you have purchased.

Maybe the higher ups within BMW will step in, or I would hope that they do. I would let them know also that these forums are read by a lot of MINI and potential MINI owners.

Have you been back in touch with Way regarding this?

 

My sympathies Chris! How frustrating! Let us know if you get any type of satisfaction from your last letter.

 

April 22 Update

I just wanted to pop in and post a quick update as to my situation and repair progression.

First, I would like to give a huge thanks to Way @ Way Motorsports.
He is an extremely knowledgeable and overall my experience with his shop was a fantastic one.

Way was able to bang back my mushroomed tops as well as fit M7 plates.
(BTW, hows the hand treating ya Way?) I will be back. Maybe for Camber plates, Maybe for the Way Motorsports intake, Maybe for some performance goodies on a new r56.

I'm def gonna do my best to get to MOTD!


Now Back to BMW USA

So I have not given up on my fight with BMW/Mini/Dealer Who initially diagnosed the issue and quoted more than $2k for repair.

I called BMW NA and requested my repair order records as well as a written statement detailing the grounds for not covering my strut tower damage under the original manufacturer warranty.

I have been told that BMW NA does not customarily provide a written denial to claims and that my dealer records should have that info. The problem is, There is no mention of strut tower damage, frame separation or strut guide bushing damage with any of my RO's. (incidentally, these were all the reasons stated by BMW/Dealer for my denial of warranty claim)

So I am left with NO written warranty denial of non documented damage of a problem that I most certainly have. Interesting to say the least. Can you say, no accountability.

When I confronted the BMW NA customer Service Supervisor yesterday about these issues, she was sent scrambling to cover her *** and has promised to get back in touch with me no later than this afternoon. I'll let you know what they say.

One last thing, I will be re-addressing my initial letter to the new acting BMW NA chairman (as of yesterday), Jim O'Donnell. Hopefully he will have a better outlook/response to these types of claims/damage.

My overall goal in all of this is to either have my mini repaired as first suggested by the BMW Tech (weld in brand new mounts) or a complete refund of my vehicle purchase based upon manufacturer defect that has devalued the vehicle beyond satisfaction. At the very least, they will be reimbursing my current temporary fix.

 

[SIZE=2] Latest and greatest. Get this, Now I have been informed that the dealer service dept doesn't have the records of the repair recommendation. Basically BMW NA is telling me they can't provide written/email proof of a denial that doesn't have a diagnosis. So they are telling me to go back to the dealer and have the issue re-diagnosed.

Total BS coverup.

[/SIZE]

 

[SIZE=2]I see this as criminal action on the part of the dealership and essentially BMW NA is supporting this action.

I am still putting together my package for the now acting BMW NA chairman (Jim O'donnel) and it will include copies from a number of online resources as well as a written transcript of all conversations with names. I will be certain to make copies for the appropriate regulatory agencies in GA and NJ.

My next step is a visual inspection and documentation of mushroom strut tower damage at local mini dealership selling used mini's. I will be sure to forward the dealer written proof that the problem exists(with corresponding Vin #'s) and needs to be corrected before sale.
I will be opening another thread on NAM with a general letter/and guidelines for other mini enthusiasts to use in order to notify mini dealers if any cars in their used car inventory suffer from this damage.

I'm in for the long fight.
I guess I have too much free time on my hands. Or maybe they just picked the wrong "little guy" to pick on.
[/SIZE]

 

Wow. Sorry to hear about your experience with the local and national Mini people.

Any updates?

Thanks.

 

Hello:
I just had the $1,400 version of your experience at Roadshow Mini in Memphis, TN. Tried to talk to Mini USA about the problem, and was told that they do not discuss technical issues. I would strongly advise every Mini owner who has experienced "mushrooming" to file a complaint with the NHTSA.

 

I can confirm Waylan and Way Motor Works is AWESOME! At what he does. He'll set you up right.