skidster

Let's get something started.

Face it - BMW has scr~wed us over and then said "Tough luck. Enjoy your car."

Not only do we have a climate control that is not, by the definition of ANY executive-class saloon manufacturer, Automatic.

It just is not!

Auto A/C means I pick a number and then... I do NOTHING. That is why they call it automatic.
...and with this car I have to play with it quite a bit to control my 'automatic' system

and, with such basic climate control, the RESALE value suffers hugely... and I am stuck with, frankly, the nicest piece of crap that I've ever driven but because of the AC it is not the car I wanted - or was told that I was getting, by dealers and website and brochure.

So, let's do something... if there are, say 20 of us that tell the Board of BMW by direct letter to headquarters, that, for each and every one of us, this is the LAST BMW that any one of us will ever buy, if something is not done to fix the AC.

Someone will read the letter - and that someone will call their boss... they will have to look into it from a different perspective because, despite all the contra-indications, I cannot believe that senior BMW management will simply ignore or say 'go away' again to a group (and if they do, well, better to have tried than not)

Surely 20 lost customers, in one fell swoop, would provide some indication that the issue should, perhaps, be looked at again... since if we 20 feel that way then perhaps some others might as well.

We could each send the exact same letter or we could send one letter with all the names, whichever approach - but something rather than just sitting here completely pi~~ed off!

I don't want monetary compensation - I want it to be bloody Automatic.

all of the other stuff is, in comparison, irrelevant.

anyway, I am looking for ideas - to add to mine, to change mine, whatever - I mean what do we have to lose other than some time?

GarryF

I'm game, not sure of how many of us on here have the basic system though, probably only a handfull.

BMW525UK

I fully agree with your views about the basic AC, but am not sure what 20 individual letters can do

Let's write en-mass when we find out how many individuals on this or other sites are stuck with a similar problem

PhilS

Sounds good to me, the more we can do to raise awareness within BMW of how customers feel about this issue, the more likely they are to do something about it.

I've already written to BMW once on this matter - only to be told that they are sorry but my car is functioning as designed.

I am absolutely disgusted with BMW's attitude towards this issue.

I will be writing to them again over the next few days.

pennetta

In the US we have a fully automatic system. In I-Drive you can even select one of three stages of agressiveness programs that alters the HVAC programing to your liking.
Is this system available to you as an option?

das

I believe that the standard climate control in the US is the equivalent of "Advanced Air Conditioning" in other markets.

skidster

the difference over here is that they DID NOT TELL US that the basic AC was not fully automatic -- in fact, they told us that it was fully automatic.

now they say it wasn't.
and that they have 'the right to change the spec'
which should read as: the right to make false promises and publish misleading adverts and promotional material.

but the new ones are fully automatic
so that doesn't really seem to me to be changing the spec
just screwing the customer
and we are just supposed to take it.

think that that is fair?


as far as what can 20 letters do... if you think about 20 car owners, average age 40.
if 1 new car each 4 years then that is about 5-6-7 cars per owner
which is 100 cars, minimum

100 cars that they will not sell.

that SHOULD matter.

Doctor Diesel

How about a quick poll?....I'll organise it

DD

KariFi

Hi folks

I must have missed something here... can't understand all the hassle w/ the auto / semi-auto climate control. I have automatic climate control in my current 525dT E39 -97, and from the very beginning i was aware that if i want to retain the individual temp. adjustment and autom. fan speed in the new car, i'm obliged to choose that "Automatic air conditioning w/ advanced functionality" and pay 1 430? for it. None of the brochures i red claimed that basic func. got auto fan... even if the name was "automatic". It's got the automatic temperature adjustment tho, no-one told othervise.

Who told? I red all those brochures i ever could find, and i haven't seen anyone telling so. An individual salesperson can tell anything, everybody should know that most of them don't know what they are talking about, and they are not responsible for what they have happened to tell... at least in here. They just sell cars and collect the ?/?/$'s. You got to clarify all details by yourself, and you won't get more than what you've paid for. I'd also like to get this and lots of other things for free (like 535d engine for example ), but i don't think i will.....


Waited for e61 one year now and still got a long way to go before August and delivery... well at least i've got time enough to focus on all the details... got lots of valuable information here, thank you all for it.....
Kari

skidster

I'm glad that you were aware, and had a good dealer who told you. For all of us, the dealers did not know so they couldn't tell us- and we end up out of luck.

First off, you have ordered it and won't have the problem.

Every single automobile that I have purchased, since 1991, has had 'automatic air conditioning', even a Nissan Patrol offroad 4x4

Every single one of them included fan control.
Otherwise they wouldn't have been called automatic.

Now, can you please tell me in what possible stretch of the imagination and by which definition of the word is the "Automatic Air Conditioning" (and those are BMW's exact words) where does that NOT include fan? How can it be automatic?

For example, I entered my car, which had been in the sun - the temp set at 20c, the fan at pos1, the little snowflake button turned on & auto turned on

it was kind of hot, so i had to increase the fan speed to get the temperature down

after some minutes (can't be sure when) it must have hit been lowered to 20c

but the fan kept blowing at pos 3 and the fan stayed on

i switched the fan way down below 1 - otherwise it would have gotten too cold in the car

a little later it was feeling warm again and i had to raise the fan button to just above 1... and so on




-----------------

Is that an Automatic Air conditioning system?

Did the previous 5 have an auto A/C?
yes.
did it have an advanced version?
not sure, think so
did the basic version control the fan?
yes

So, basically, I cannot begin to understand your question.
and
since you don't even own the car yet and, when it arrives it'll be adv.AC it is not your worry