urbo73

My 05 530i is now listed on the Owner's Circle as "Scheduled for Production". It has a VIN and all the options listed. My question is how long does this part typically take? When will it go to "Awaiting Transportation"? My dealer told me I should have it before Christmas, but that seems rather fast no? Is he lying?

How long do these cycles "Scheduled for Production", "Awaiting Transportation", "En Route", etc. on average take?

JDN

I think your dealer is about right.

urbo73

I hope you're right. It just seems short - 4-5 weeks. And from searching and reading here it looks like it took more like 7-8.

Also how can I know more precicely the build start date, etc.?

kscarrol

Mine was a couple of days shy of 8 weeks, from order to taking delivery. East Coast is faster than West Coast. Car production slots are allocated based on previous sales. You may have gotten lucky in that the dealer already had a 530 slotted for production where they could simply add the options you wanted. Your salesperson is the best source of more detailed info on the true status of your car. They can tell you when production has started and finished. I found the Owner's Circle to have quite a lag in updating. Also search for the 800 number to call, they were more up to date in my case. In fact the OC said my car was Awaiting Transport the day it arrived at my dealer. One note, once BMW delivers the car to the port, they effectively lose track of it and can't track it until it arrives at the VPC. So once they deliver it to port, it can be up to 10-14 days before it ships out. It can also be sooner, but since the car is now in the hands of the shipper, all the OC will say is Awaiting transport. It will seem to take forever, no matter how quickly they get it here. In time for Christmas would be great, good luck!

clived

Not quite the same, but might give you an insight:

I ordered / fixed the spec on my car on Nov 9th - this was a car that the dealer had pre-ordered and was due to "go to production" within 1 or 2 days. The dealer expects to have the car by Dec 7th. Obviously not so far for it to travel though!

JDN

Your dealer knows the build date. Sometimes they do not volunteer this info, but they have the entire schedule including delivery. My dealer had my build date as 3/5/04 and a BMW rep later told me it was finished on 3/8/04. I picked it up at the dealers on 4/10/04. That was to Dallas. Since you are in Mass, Christmas is a reasonable expectation to me. Mine was built during a heavy order time period when the E60 business was really good for BMW. I sure hope yours comes close to my schedule. I think Rudy's beat mine because he got out of a different port on another ship. Mine came out of Hamburg vs Bremerhaven. I will be pulling for you as will the rest of the fellows who have been through this.

realtyman

From order to my dealer in no more than 5 weeks. Actually came earlier than I wanted.
Got mine 2 days before you, JDN

speedracerF4i

The actual production process from sheet metal to finished car ready to be loaded to a truck is only about 3 days.

I had the opportunity to attend the Dingolfing factory tour last week, and was amazed on how BMW puts together our cars.

P.S. Did you guys know that the front side panels and the rear trunk of 645i are made from thermo-rasin plastic?

urbo73

Thanks for the replies. Obviously, as with most things we covet, waiting IS the hardest part. Let's hope it get's here as promised. I feel more confident now If it does, I have the week of 12/28 off, so it would be perfect to drive it around (praying we don't get much or any snow).

Bokke

Your dealer knows the build date. Sometimes they do not volunteer this info, but they have the entire schedule including delivery. My dealer had my build date as 3/5/04 and a BMW rep later told me it was finished on 3/8/04. I picked it up at the dealers on 4/10/04. That was to Dallas. Since you are in Mass, Christmas is a reasonable expectation to me. Mine was built during a heavy order time period when the E60 business was really good for BMW. I sure hope yours comes close to my schedule. I think Rudy's beat mine because he got out of a different port on another ship. Mine came out of Hamburg vs Bremerhaven. I will be pulling for you as will the rest of the fellows who have been through this.
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JDN - which dealer in Dallas? Mine is coming from BMW of Dallas. It just got to the German port on Monday - that took a whole week. I am hoping is only a couple more weeks.