BrummyGit

My December 2006 520d paid it's first visit to a UK BMW dealer today for it's first Oil Service. While it was there I'd asked them to look at a few other minor issues:

• Occaisional iDrive crashes using parking sensors - iDrive slows right down then reboots to front screen when using parking distance control. This caused an accident and insurance claim the first time when they didn't work and took me by surprise.
• Intermittent Power Windows Anti-Trap Failure warnings for the last week.
• Automatic Headlights far too sensitive coming on and off regularly, and also on in summer sunshine sometimes.

For the Headlights they called me and said that they had upgraded the iDrive software for the other problems, but a seperate software update would cure my headlight issue. HOWEVER - they are working as designed which means it is not a fault and so it would cost me ?42 to have it applied!! I was really mad at what sounded like BS and told the dealer that unless the leasing company would pay they could forget it. Amazingly the leasing company has paid for this work, but I really can't believe that BMW UK wanted me to pay to adjust a feature that is not really working properly. I've had other drivers get mad at me for keep turning my lights on and off all the time, thinking I'm trying to annoy them. I know I can use the manual light switches, but when the car has a feature surely it should work properly.

I can't believe BMW's attitude, and find it hard to believe that it really needs a software update to fix it - and not just a setting tweak.

s4iscool

something sounds odd, you def should not have paid....unless the UK has other warranty procedures

Russ1974

You need to be clear here. Did they say "a seperate software update would cure my headlight issue". Or did they say "They have to perform a software update to alter your settings to meet your preference".

If there is a service bulletin which says to update the software to "cure" it, then you should not pay. If it is an optional update which is customer preference and not a "cure for a problem", then you would need to pay.

joelk01

Even so, if your preferences are simply to have the lights do what they are supposed to do, then you shouldnt have been charged.

MacSid

Did they give you any more detail on what the software fix would be (or what the bug is) in relation to the headlamps? Mine have been behaving erraticaly for a while now (see http://forums.e60.net/index.php?showtopic=...p;#entry466553) and it would be nice to have a little more detail to present to my service guys when the car goes in for its service and lmy list of bugs later this month. [In the mean time, I've been running with my DRLs on as we are, after all, firmly back to grey days out here]

JStraw

that's essentially what I was told by my SA today - It's working normally and they might charge me for changing the setting from Normal to Sensitive. I am still trying to push to get it changed for free.

Russ1974

I disagree. It's like saying you want the indicator to have quad-turn instead of triple-turn, or you don't want the interior lights to come on when you unlock the car. It is doing what it is meant to. You want it "customised to your preference". A fee seems perfectly reasonable, and to be honest, for the sake of ?42, is it worth even moaning about