SMGIII failure - again..
 

so guess what, SMGIII on my M5 failed again for the 4th time in the past 1.5 months. I have been having MAJOR issues with SMG. In the morning on startup. I put the car in Reverse, it shows (R). I step on the gas and it revs and doesn't do anything. You then hear a loud clunk and it pops back to neutral. Same thing with drive in which there is a HUGE delay even when it shows 1. It feels almost like a tranny with no oil in the gearbox or you're not clutching in and you are trying to force it into gear and it pops back out.

I have opened dialogues with BMWNA, my local dealer, the GM of my local dealer Donna Tafoya and at this moment, the only error they got was a SZL failure. (replaced 2x already) Other than that, no faults whatsoever so to them, it's a "GHOST" issue. PUMA case has also been created and the field rep will be out here on the 15th. In the meantime, I still do not have a car I can trust and this is my daily driver. What kind of 90+K car doesn't go into reverse or first? ridiculous IMO. This is my 12th BMW and if they don't do the right thing and buy it back or fix the problem, It will definitely be my last.

My next steps is to pursue this with a lemon law attorney, local TV stations, and Bureau of Automotive Repair. BMW SMGIII is not ready for primetime in my opinion and they need to step up to the plate when things do not work. I will keep you guys updated. In the meantime I will be sure to go through all my contact and put BMW front and center on the hot seat. There will be a price to pay.

Sorry to hear..what's an SZL failure? Why won't they replace the transmission?

cuz large ticket items are controlled by BMWNA and not the dealer. SZL the steering angle sensor which is notorious for failures in the E60's.

Seems like an easy lemon case if they won't don't handle this honorably..

Sorry to hear... But kinda expected faults from BMW especially for a first year production model...With so much software integrated in the controls of the car, not so surprised....

BMW should step up and recognize these issues coming from their first year production vehicles.

Demand that they buy it back from you just like they did to other customers...

all hell is about to break lose on them. Contacted a friend at NHTSA, ABC news, a lemon law attorney, and bureau of automotive repair. They are going to hear about this all right.

Use the Ferrari as a daily driver!;)

Sorry to hear about the M5....man, you have the worse luck with BMWs. Sounds like you need a Lexus!

Anyhow, good luck with fixing your M5.

FYI, 52K miles on the E46 M3 with no issue with the engine & SMG II so far....(knock on carbon fiber). The E46 M3 has been a great daily driver so far.

J, Sorry to read that...what a PIA, esp. in a car
of that cost/level.

I don't think I would want you on my case, :) .

Go get'em and I hope you get a new ride or,
at least a full re-do with lotsa perks tossed in,
as a result of your "pressure".
GL,mD

When you Lemon Law a car/truck etc, what happens?

do you get a new vehicle and owe the same as you did on your lemoned car?

do they just pay off what you owe and you walk away?

do they pay you fair market value for you car?

Not sure how it works after all the fighting is over.

Curtis

Sorry to hear I hope everything get resolved in you favor

full as paid value of the car usually and you walk away.

exactly what I am doing right now! I'm driving the Stradale more. :)

That sucks Josh. I hope they step up to the plate.

Damn dude...No playin' around, huh? Good on ya'. Its about time the big dogs' feet are held to the fire. Maybe they will take more time in their processes from now on -- instead of looking the other way...:rolleyes:

I think this will all work out great for you with some perserverance with BMWNA! Good luck!

Sorry to hear that BMW is not stepping up.
Did'nt they replace Steved's X5 4.8is?
Hope they listen soon. Good luck.

Yeah, Josh complains too much to BMW....:nanana:

I'm sure you know about this. But just in case you don't it has worked for us in the past. http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?sec...ide&id=3285272

This sucks! If I had been the person who sold you a $90,000 car and it had a major problem like that, I'd be bending over backwards to make everything right.. Good luck!

boy, that inspires confidence in the M5 and/or M6.

So, if it's a "ghost" issue, what do they do? Keep screwing around until it has catastrophic failure that they can then identify?

Good luck, keep us posted.

This is why a good ol' fashioned manual is sometimes just the ticket. (Although I've read the new M5 doesnt work quite as well with the 6MT).

I believe we have another member here(IFLYX5) getting a 2007 M5. Hope they have bugs out by then.

yup Peter is waiting for his. I contacted 7 on your side today along with NHTSA as this is a safety issue. BMWNA called me today and said there is nothing they can do. What a bunch of BS. If that's how they treat customers with highend cars and repeat buyer of over 12 BMWs, they are not worth going back to. Hell on fcars, if you have a problem and you complain, they fly a tech out from Italy to help you out.

BTW, the GM at East Bay is a fookin tool. I'll give you 70K for your car if you want to trade it in. The hell you will

WTF, you've gotta be kiddin me..that's pretty jacked up. Any progress on the other fronts?..lemon, etc

Did you also post on m5board and BF? I know BMW customer service is at BF.

Josh:
A couple of things. Any chance you can drive the M till it brakes? As you know Ghosts are a drag to find. Iv'e had to do that in the past and what a surprise for them when it happens. The other thing is if your concerned about safety why not get a cheap rental for a few weeks till it gets solved. I know you have thought about these things but just thought i would bring em up.

That sucks big time! At least that's higher than that dude that offered you $44k :rofl: I think you have to threaten to sue them under the lemon law!

I was in Sacramento today and Fresno yesterday. Having it break there is well.. a bad idea. Cheap rental won't do me any good. They are saying that there nothing they can do to fix it since it's a Ghost so they gave me back the car. So what's the point then? continue have a car sit at home and not using it while paying for it? It's not a ghost in my opinion as the first 2 times I brought it in, there were error codes.

Can you try another dealer perhaps?

nope. It's under a PUMA case right now. The dealers around are worst. Bottom line is there is no fix. Shit just doesn't work. There is a thread on M5board and over 50 individual votes of people having the SAME issue. They won't buy back the car so I am going force their hand at this point and give them a lot of negative press.

Dang, other people have the same issue. Have they received similar treatment from their dealers?

Drive it through the showroom window of the dealer you purchased it from, maybe they'll change their mind lol

What are they dragging their ass for. They stepped up to the plate with the 745 fiasco. Not only did they buy back my brothers, he got a 745Li with additional options for the same $ as the 745 they took back. They kissed his ass big time.

http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=72395

check this one out.

Wow San sorry to hear that! I have had issues with my Navi system not storing fault codes and the SA looked at me like I was lying about my DVD Navi shutting itself off all the time among other things, Good Luck on getting it fixed, and yes sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do :)

Sorry to hear about your troubles. It's stories like these that worried me prior to getting my X. Try parking it on the street of your dealer on a few weekends with a BIG "LEMON" sign on the windshield. That's perfectly legal, right?

Yep i believe it is but I don't believe there is parking out in front of this dealership on either side of the street.:rolleyes:

I heard a couple of weeks back that BMWNA will not CPO any E60 M5's and E63 M6's. Only the remaining factory warranty will provide any protection which is a major deviation from BMW's hallowed CPO program. I've heard this from one source - can anyone confirm this?