$650 for a door actuator?
 

to make a long story short, I took my car to the dealer becuase my passenger door won't open. not from remote, from inside, from outside. Once every other day it works out of the blue. I just got a call from the service dep and they say that the door actuator is weak and it must be replaced. $650. is that the going rate for a job like this? Geez..I cannot imagine having an engine problem. I should probably rob a bank to pay the bill. What should I do? And the guy says that I might need even more parts.

Your paying not only for the status of owning one of the most famously prestigious cars in the world, but also for the performance the BMW's are known for. Welcome to the club. :thumbup:....... :rofl:

Time to find a good independent service shop!!

I took it to a local shop a couple of days ago. 2 mechanics had no idea how to take off the panel with the door closed, tha's why I took it to dealer.

Try to find a good indy dealer who specializes in foreign cars. My local indy dealer is $90 an hour while the BMW dealer is $150.

Does anyone have a DIY for the door acuator? Have you searched the board for info on the actuator? have you looked it up on Real OEM??

This morning when I got the phone call with the magic price they said 650 to make the door work, and that we might need additional parts to have the window work from the driver switch. Because I wasn't able to take off the panel without opening the door I said "go ahead and fix it". Now I get a call saying that they "fixed" the door to be opened manually and the price is the same. I told the guy that I'm not paying for half job and to put everything together as it was before. Now I wait for the manager to call me.

what do you mean open the door manually?

hey who's your local? I went to the dealer for a drain and they told me 2hr avg to find it - i found a great indie dealer here in ft laud at 595 and university, and he found it in 15 min, actually told me what it probably was before he even looked at it.

As far as the door actuator - definitely do your research on pricing before you go into a dealer if you have to. if you're in new york city i used to live there and know a good shop that i took my x5 to, they are in the bronx.

you're right though, def dont pay the 650 for less work LOL.

I know that a door actuator is around $10. I used to change a couple to my previous car. The problem was taking off the panel.
I live in Bronx. I'd appreciate any info about a good shop in my area. BTW: I took the car in NJ.

What a mess! I cannot believe that I have to go thru this. I had the manager call me and he said that the car is "fixed" and that I should pay for the job. I told him that I was told 650 to fix the door lock so I can open it as before. He said he fixed the car so I can get in and out from it. I could have done that myself breaking the window for no charge. Anyway, he doesn't take half money for half job (I offered $320) so he will take the actuator out and I will pay for diagnostic ($135). Hopefully I will have everything as it was before and no sand or mud in the engine.