My notorious door buzz problems have resurfaced. I drove 200 miles to Baton Rouge to have my cruise control diode replaced and while I was there, I had them check my door buzz. They went ahead and squirted slicone in all the door bezel joints but it didn't eliminate the problem. They pulled the door panel and was impressed at how I taped and felted the panel (which I learned from this Forum, BTW) so they didn't even bother to try it themselves. Dealer decided they would order me two new door panels. Here's the catch: they say I have to drive back to Baton Rouge to have them installed! Now mind you, I have pulled these panels numerous times so I can do it in about 3 minutes per panel. I asked them to ship the panels to me and I will ship back the old panels but they refused stating their technicians have to perform the install due to warranty issues. I'm not too keen on driving 400 miles round trip for a 6 minute job!

If I pushed hard enough, do you think they'll relent and ship me the panels?

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I'm growing older but not up. My metabolic rate is pleasantly stuck - J. Buffett

 

No. You are not paying for the panels, the factory is and the dealer has certain procedures that must be adhered to in order to get paid for the repairs.
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2003 Chili Red/White top and wheels MCS, black leather, anthracite dash, packages 2 & 3, DVD based Navigation w/OBC, PDC, HK, MFSW, rain sense wipers w/auto dim mirror. Ordered January 27, actual production date March 11, delivery date April 12 of 2003.

 

>>No.


Not what I wanted to hear

 

It's a bummer! But to answer your question, No I can't see them ever shipping you parts that they want the MINIUSA to pay for / exchange under the warranty. They will want to charge the install time to MINIUSA too. This is how they make money for their service dept without it being a cost to the customer.


Perhaps you can make it part of a better trip, like a night in New Orleans! Have the doors fixed in the morning and be in New Orleans that afternoon. You could spend one night, listen to some great music, eat some great food, it would be a fun time.

 

>>Perhaps you can make it part of a better trip, like a night in New Orleans! Have the doors fixed in the morning and be in New Orleans that afternoon. You could spend one night, listen to some great music, eat some great food, it would be a fun time.

I just moved to Laurel from Baton Rouge. The New Orleans thing is kinda old hat. So going to the Big Easy is not a motivator. Thanks for the try.

There has to be a way around this...

 

With 30 years of experience working in all phases of a BMW automobile dealership I can tell you that the dealer will want to install the panels themselves to insure getting reimbursed from the factory. There are certain procedures that must be adhered to in order to get paid and make it stick, that is not get charged back in the event of a warranty audit later on down the road. Sorry, but I am speaking from experience. Then again, your dealer may be willing to make an expectation, but I seriously doubt it.

 

I can't see a logical reason why they wouldn't ship them to you. When you only have 70 dealerships in the country you should be willing to make a few allowances for things like this. They have already inspected the car and determined what parts are needed. They know you have the ability to change them. It doesn't make sense! Are they that worried about losing the ability to charge MINIUSA for an hour of labor that takes them 10 minutes to complete? What if you had a defective shift ****? Would you have to drive back for that too!

Good luck!

 

ronvan, my point exactly!