Canadians!!! Wouldn't you buy E70s in the US?

[JCL]

Originally Posted by briandwlee

I've already checked the warranty policy of BMW NA and BMW Canada, and, as far as I know, BMW Canada is a subsidiary of BMW NA, and warranty is valid in both countries. If you drive your BMW to the US crossing the border and you have problems with you BMWs, you get warranty service in any dealer in the US. It applies to the US BMWs travelling in Canada, too. They get warranty service here. Only thing we/they cannot get in either country is free schedulled maintenance service. If we bring US BMW to Canada, that free schedulled maintenance service is void, but factory warranty is still valid.

AFAIK BMW CA is not a subsidiary of BMWNA. Both are subsidiaries of BMW AG.

Warranties are usually non-transferrable specifically because of grey-market imports. If you are a US tourist, broken down in Canada on your Niagara Falls vacation, BMW will be very happy to help you. If you import a car yourself and cut out the local distributor, they are likely to tell you to pay for the repair yourself, and try and get it reimbursed when you go back home. Good luck with that. It appears that dealers in Canada (or the US) cannot submit a warranty claim to the distributor providing the warranty if that distributor is in another country, they simply don't have any commercial arrangement to get reimbursed. I suspect that isn't true with the roadside assistance, they advertise that they cover both sides of the border.

I haven't broken down in another country with my BMW. I have had this experience with vehicles other than BMW. I have also read enough posts on here to know that it happens today. This is why I said "may" in my first response. You may have problems. If you don't, great. If you do, well, you won't be the first.

And for the record, I don't think we should pay so much more for Canadian versions of BMW vehicles. I just don't think that grey-market imports are without issues. Each individual has to decide for themselves what the hassle is worth. The market will eventually self-correct, so if it makes sense for any individual to import their own vehicle, please do so, it can only help the rest of us.