Heated Seats Burning - Page 3

e30mpower · #1 02-13-2009, 10:13 PM

I just bought a 2003 X5, and the same exact thing is happening to me. On the left side, towards the back. It physically burns me. And today I had it on, and the damn thing started burning through the leather. The whole car smelled like cows being branded, and then I got out and noticed that it had actually BURNED the leather, not all the way through, but it did leave what looks like a little cigarette burn or something. Highly pissed. It's only got 66k miles on it. How much is it to replace the seat? Or what really needs to be done? It's just out of it's certified pre-owned warranty (previous owner bought it CPO, had a 100k/2 year warranty), how do I get a BMW extended warranty? My bank was talking to me about it and thought for sure that it qualified, but couldn't tell me how to do it. Thanks y'all.

Benjamin K. Earle

M_Six · #2 02-14-2009, 01:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by e30mpower

I just bought a 2003 X5, and the same exact thing is happening to me. On the left side, towards the back. It physically burns me. And today I had it on, and the damn thing started burning through the leather. The whole car smelled like cows being branded, and then I got out and noticed that it had actually BURNED the leather, not all the way through, but it did leave what looks like a little cigarette burn or something. Highly pissed. It's only got 66k miles on it. How much is it to replace the seat? Or what really needs to be done? It's just out of it's certified pre-owned warranty (previous owner bought it CPO, had a 100k/2 year warranty), how do I get a BMW extended warranty? My bank was talking to me about it and thought for sure that it qualified, but couldn't tell me how to do it. Thanks y'all.

Benjamin K. Earle

Dealer quoted me $1175 for the new lower section of the seat. I won't be spending that much for heated seats. Maybe we need to all get together and submit safety reports to the NHTSA to get a recall rolling.

m5james · #3 12-10-2009, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by e30mpower

I just bought a 2003 X5, and the same exact thing is happening to me. On the left side, towards the back. It physically burns me. And today I had it on, and the damn thing started burning through the leather. The whole car smelled like cows being branded, and then I got out and noticed that it had actually BURNED the leather, not all the way through, but it did leave what looks like a little cigarette burn or something. Highly pissed. It's only got 66k miles on it. How much is it to replace the seat? Or what really needs to be done? It's just out of it's certified pre-owned warranty (previous owner bought it CPO, had a 100k/2 year warranty), how do I get a BMW extended warranty? My bank was talking to me about it and thought for sure that it qualified, but couldn't tell me how to do it. Thanks y'all.

Benjamin K. Earle

If you'd turned it on before and it got so hot, why would you continue to turn it on after the fact. I'm sorry, but sounds like this time you did it to yourself.

In reply to everyone else, I'd suggest doing what this guy did I have warm buns again!!. This is a writeup I found on www.e38.org.

X5 Meister · #4 02-14-2009, 02:13 AM

For some reason I seem to recall there was a BMW recall or bulletin discussing this issue.

M_Six · #5 02-14-2009, 02:28 AM

Only for the E60 so far, I believe.

X5 Meister · #6 02-14-2009, 04:45 PM

Personally if it happened to me I'd take it to the dealer and call BMW customer service about it to pay for the repair. How am I to know whether the burn hasn't damaged the airbag sensor in the seat which is most definitely a safety concern that can't just be turned off.

JCL · #7 02-14-2009, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgruber

Personally if it happened to me I'd take it to the dealer and call BMW customer service about it to pay for the repair. How am I to know whether the burn hasn't damaged the airbag sensor in the seat which is most definitely a safety concern that can't just be turned off.

If it is under warranty, then I agree completely. For a car that is up to 8 years old, I just don't see why BMW would be responsible. I am not saying that I would be happy as an owner with the heating pad failing, but let's be real here. They are used cars, and things break. That is why regular posters often advise people to get extended warranties, and that is why many of us trade these vehicles off at 4 years, so we don't have to deal with these issues.

If the suggestion is that a failed seat heater can result in an airbag not working, then I suppose the question would be as to how a hot spot on a driver's seat can impact the air bag. There is an airbag sensor on the passenger's seat to check if there is a passenger there. I think the air bag system assumes there is always a driver there, and doesn't check. I could be wrong on that, but I don't see an airbag sensor in the parts book. I did just check my year and model (2003 X5).

Essentially, these pads have been failing for years. It is a nuisance, and repairs are expensive. It tends to happen on the driver's seat bolster, where you sit, and where you slide in. Heavier drivers may make the problem worse, I am not sure. If the vehicle could have a fire, or the off switch doesn't work, then it is definitely a safety issue and should be fixed. Other than that, don't use it, fix it yourself, or get it fixed. It is a convenience feature, and not exactly essential for operation of the vehicle.

I just get a little frustrated with the entitlement attitude. When a part breaks on a vehicle that is several years out of warranty, and the assumption is that the manufacturer is responsible, it essentially means that I have to pay more for my new car because the same manufacturer is spending money on fixing old cars for people who want to sue them.

Just my $0.02

X5 Meister · #8 02-14-2009, 05:21 PM

Good note. However it's not an entitlement attitude. BMW just issued a recall letter on passenger seat airbag mats developing microcracks that could render them inoperable.

It's SIB 657506 Airbag Warning Lamp for OC3 Seat Mat Fault

They have extended the warranty on that recall/repair to 10 years, unlimited miles and it affects a lot of different models (E53, E60, E61, E63, E64, E65, E66, E83, E85, E90, E91). Given the complexity of the seats these days I have no idea where the heating pad is relative to the airbag pad relative to the massage pad relative to the cooling pad, etc. etc.! but it does sound like they are taking it seriously and presenting them with a burned seat I can only imagine would get you some extra help. You need to remember that just because there isn't currently a recall or SIB describing a problem doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist. It just hasn't been documented by enough dealers yet. That's the problem with taking an older car to an indy shop. The shop doesn't report their findings to BMW (for obvious reasons...they are not getting reimbursed) and so let's say a problem that arises only during the 5th year of ownership if it was documented enough times might yield an SIB or even a recall which could get a warranty covered repair to at least some extent.

JCL · #9 02-14-2009, 05:58 PM

For the airbag issue, BMW reported that they had over 20,000 warranty claims, and they voluntarily recalled the affected vehicles and extended the warranty to 10 years on the airbag system. That seems like an appropriate response to a potential problem in a safety system.

A recall will happen if there is a safety or emissions issue, areas that are covered by additional legislation, not if something wears out. If things wear out after 5 years, after the warranty is expired, and owners try to get BMW to pay for it (essentially, asking for a longer warranty at no charge) then that is the entitlement attitude that I am referring to.

X5 Meister · #10 02-25-2009, 10:57 PM

That really really sucks to hear about your wife getting burned literally, but glad the repair was covered. Did they cover it under the standard or extended warranty? I need to try to find the air bag SIB that discussed the recall and see what it says. I know BMW did send out a letter to owners.

Clearly BMW listens to problems and makes adjustments, as is evidenced by the oil separator problem now being covered under the extended CPO warranty where it wasn't before.