I bought my MCS last year (and might I add I love driving it), but I had one minor complaint - it pulled slightly to the right. I didn't notice immediately because I bought it in an area of town I wasn't familiar with and I thought with the wider tires I might be feeling more variations in road grade than my last car. I asked them to check the alignment when I brought it in for some dealer options at my next visit. They claim to have done the alignment, but again after a few days I was convinced that it still needed work. I told them it wasn't right, but because it was minor we agreed that they could just look at it again at 10k and I should watch the tire wear. No problem. FYI this is BMW of N Scottsdale.
I just brought it back for the 10k and I am now hearing all sorts of things that make me cringe. They say there are dents on on the inside of two of the rims, and that was probably the reason the car was pulling. The service manager aslo claimed that the stress of one of the dents has worn out a control arm bushing that must be replaced. I never felt any shimmy or vibration so I was surprised to hear anything of these issues.
I pointed out to them that the car was pulling right from the day I got it and I have not noticed any change in the ride even after their so-called alignment. The story then changed to say that I had probably hit a pothole just after the alignment and the condition "just seemed" to have always been present.
Of course I have hit potholes and the like, but I don't live in an are prone to them so others must have hit more than me. The car has hardly been off pavement except for a few dirt roads out to trailheads taken slow. I don't do much other than enjoy the occasional quick corner or have a little lead foot at the green lights.
The questions I have are these:
1) Should I have been able to dent 2 rims without a serious bone-jarring event?
2) Since I always felt the pull, could the rims have been damaged in shipping or on the line?
3) Should damage to a rim wear out a control arm bushing?
4) Should repairing a control arm bushing be $600?
5) Is it worth pushing on the dealers - do they ever negotiate?
6) Is moving the dented rims to the back a bad idea
Thaks all for your input!

 

My 2 cents worth:
1. Depends on the quality of the roads in your neck of the woods. A couple of potholes and you could easily have dented rims. Whether you "felt" the potholes or not, is another matter.
2. Possible. But since you did not immediately check to see what was causing the pull, the ability to claim that the rims were damaged in shipping/production is a bit of a stretch. Especially after 10,000 miles.
3. Possible.
4. That seems a bit on the steep side. What is the labor rate they are wanting? $250/hour?
5. There is nothing that says that you have to use the dealer for the repair if it is not going to be covered as a warranty repair. If you have an independent suspension shop that you could use, I would imagine they will do the repair for less than the $600 number. That (no obligation to use the dealer for a non-warranty repair) is the essence of your push-back on the dealer's quote.
6. Yes, moving the dented rims to the back is a bad idea. Do you want to have problems on the rear in addition to the problems you presently have on the front?

One other idea occurred to me - see if your automobile insurance policy covers the damage as a road hazard (Collision or Comprehensive coverage section). If it does cover the damage and there would be no increased premium for the claim, you may have an ability to lessen the hit for the repair. You would still have to pay the deductible, but depending on how high your deductible is, you may get some relief from the total cost of the repair.