Have you ever been so mad

[Track rat]

About 2.5 years ago. I purchased a CPO 2011 135i msport w/49000 km.It's been a fantastic time with the car w/no problems.

So not too long ago I had the option of extending the warranty. I figured if I set aside some cash month to month I would be ahead and save $3200 over the extended warranty price. At this point I had 88000km and planned on keeping the car maybe 2-3 more years.

It all came apart this month. A good friend of mine that I race Chumpcar with, and also just happened to be a BMW mechanic moved a pretty good distance away. He did most of my little maintenance things in exchange for me doing electrical work for him. Life was beautiful.

Like a bad dream the radio of all things started to develop the "white noise" or fax machine static or buzz. I argued tooth and nail to have it covered in some way or another and me pay for the labour or vice versa. In the end the dealer wasn't budging. Citing if I was perhaps a more frequent customer they would extended more goodwill. It was $1400 for the BMW professional radio.

Two days later the water pump goes. This I fixed myself.

My question is I used to look at my car and smile, now I look at it and there is a certain amount of hate lol. If you were ever in this spot how did you break out of it?

I tried to go for a drive to the country but it didn't work as planned as I hit some construction traffic. To pass the time I turned on the radio and got instantly pissed as I remembered it was $1400!

[desertman123]

I complained to my friend when I was doing my valve cover about how much I hate my car (at the moment) and he just told me, "German cars are the epitome of a love/hate relationship". Rings very true.

His credibility: he drove, loved and continuously maintained a Passat W8 until it fatally died (cam adjusters).

[Cavpilot2k]

Well, water pump is a known weak point and is expected to fail before 100k.
That seems ridiculous about the radio - I'd have shopped around dealerships if that was an option, but alas, it is what it is.

How to get around it:
Get a tune or new exhaust or something you will see/hear/feel on a daily basis to help you fall in love all over again.

[The Wind Breezes]

Solution for anyone who reads this in the future, just take out the stock sound system and replace with a high end setup, you would have an amazing setup for $1400 or you could spend less and still have killer audio.

[Tommm]

I would write letter to BMWNA about the radio. They will probably give you the same answer GM and Ford gave their customers years ago, but then again, if the dealer actually said they would do something if you were a better customer (sounds like graft to me) they may treat you like a real customer.

[mr.fabulous]

Originally Posted by The Wind Breezes

Solution for anyone who reads this in the future, just take out the stock sound system and replace with a high end setup, you would have an amazing setup for $1400 or you could spend less and still have killer audio.

With so much management of other car features, I'm not sure how it would be possible to replace the factory unit with something aftermarket? Has anybody here ever done that?

As to the OP... I, too, sometimes suffer the same feelings about my car (i.e., just waiting for the next mega-expensive thing to fail). I very recently asked my dealer about extending my warranty (which just expired), but they don't seem terribly interested in having that conversation. Perhaps tossing $100+/mo into a dedicated savings account is the best way to manage this?

Lately I think about going back to an older (M54-ish) car... something I will casually do in the background until I get over it or actually do go back... we'll see what happens.

This is one awesome little car, though, I do absolutely love driving the thing.

[Track rat]

Since I started driving non-beater type cars. I put aside money for future repairs myself or friends could not handle. It has saved me quite a few times. I truly get the love/hate thing. The radio is pisser as I have a hard time seeing the value that BMW charges for it. If that same bill was for something powertrain related I would get it.

I knew the water pump would go. I planned on doing the repair over the winter as time allowed. Because the car would be stored away. But karma stepped in I guess.

[mr.fabulous]

You want to fall (back) in love with your car, leave it sit for a few days and rent/drive a big shitbox Dodge... like I did when my car was in the shop over last weekend. Got back in my car on Tuesday, and HOLY CRAP does that feel *nice*.

[davis449]

I had a warranty, albeit a high deductible one, my coolant tank let go on me right before a week long road trip. I got it fixed (all out of pocket as it was the total was below my deductible), went on said road trip, came home, and less than a month later I have a new car.

[Yeineken]

Its a love hate thing with these cars outside of warranty. I personally love working on it and maintaining it even tho it can be a pain. I use to DD it and now that it just sits in the garage, I've found myself loving it more. When I do take it out now it feels special to me; sort of like smoking a cuban once a year feeling.

I would recommend trying to change your perspective on the car. Instead of thinking about the expensive bill to fix the radio think about actually having a functioning radio and that you were able to afford that fix!

[doublevanosrc]

$1400 for the radio?? Should have got one off eBay or a junkyard, paid the dealer to program it and boom done. The trick with these cars once the warranty is up is to avoid the stealership at all cost. With the internet it's easy to find indy shops and parts at discount prices than it was 20 years ago when the BMW center was your only option. For example, I replaced the side markers on my car with some new ones, went to the dealer and they wanted like $52/piece!! I was like thats higher than the list price they just looked at me and shrugged. Went online and got them for $21 piece, huge difference. I understand they have overhead but charging 200%+ is just ridiculously in any business.

[Esteban]

Just get a nice sounding exhaust and roll the windows down.

[lowbudgethero]

TIL the bmw radio costs as much as a flywheel, 550i clutch, pp, and throwout bearing