[SonRK]

Time to give a bit of backstory

The car, a 328i Sedan, was in an accident 4 months ago. It required $16,000 !!! worth of repairs (yay insurance), and it took about 6 weeks to finally get it back. I had the car towed to the dealership where I bought the car from (BMW of Bloomfield), and they handled which auto body shop to take it (that took my insurance)

When I got it back, I realized the back cabin lights, and the front visor lights didn't work. I didn't think too much of it, and while I was driving on route 17, I stopped by Park Ave BMW to get it looked at, and inquiry about squeaking noise when braking at high speeds. They fixed the lights problem (fuse), and they said my brakes were fine.

I keep on using the car, and then within last week, when slowing down to a complete stop, there is a noticeable sound from the left side of the car. The way I would describe it is *kluk kluk kluk* until it's finally 0. You really have to ride the brakes to hear it, otherwise if you're rough and decelerate fast, you get no sound.

Knowing that this was slightly more serious, I took it the dealership that I bought the car from to have it looked at. I was told that the reason for this was because a sensor was knocked out (despite nothing in my panels saying something was up) and that the only reason is a huge debris came underneath, or I hit a leftover piece of tire while driving or something. They're asking for $350 + tax for repairs. I'm 99.9% certain that I hit nothing huge, or something that would even go underneath the tire. I asked if potholes were possible cause of this, but the service rep said it wasn't. I asked if it could have been from the accident a few months ago, and they assure me that it's not at all, and that they looked into that stuff before calling me.

I'm waiting for a call back from the service rep, so I can be told again what was the problem, because I still find it hard to believe a sensor can be knocked out and the car's internal computer does not notify me, and have it cause squeaking, and eventually that hard sound that just developed within the last week. If someone here can tell me "No, you're wrong" then I will swallow my pride, and accept the charge, but I don't think I was at fault for this one, especially since I've only had the car back just a few weeks.

[yomama69]

Originally Posted by SonRK

Time to give a bit of backstory

The car, a 328i Sedan, was in an accident 4 months ago. It required $16,000 !!! worth of repairs (yay insurance), and it took about 6 weeks to finally get it back. I had the car towed to the dealership where I bought the car from (BMW of Bloomfield), and they handled which auto body shop to take it (that took my insurance)

When I got it back, I realized the back cabin lights, and the front visor lights didn't work. I didn't think too much of it, and while I was driving on route 17, I stopped by Park Ave BMW to get it looked at, and inquiry about squeaking noise when braking at high speeds. They fixed the lights problem (fuse), and they said my brakes were fine.

I keep on using the car, and then within last week, when slowing down to a complete stop, there is a noticeable sound from the left side of the car. The way I would describe it is *kluk kluk kluk* until it's finally 0. You really have to ride the brakes to hear it, otherwise if you're rough and decelerate fast, you get no sound.

Knowing that this was slightly more serious, I took it the dealership that I bought the car from to have it looked at. I was told that the reason for this was because a sensor was knocked out (despite nothing in my panels saying something was up) and that the only reason is a huge debris came underneath, or I hit a leftover piece of tire while driving or something. They're asking for $350 + tax for repairs. I'm 99.9% certain that I hit nothing huge, or something that would even go underneath the tire. I asked if potholes were possible cause of this, but the service rep said it wasn't. I asked if it could have been from the accident a few months ago, and they assure me that it's not at all, and that they looked into that stuff before calling me.

I'm waiting for a call back from the service rep, so I can be told again what was the problem, because I still find it hard to believe a sensor can be knocked out and the car's internal computer does not notify me, and have it cause squeaking, and eventually that hard sound that just developed within the last week. If someone here can tell me "No, you're wrong" then I will swallow my pride, and accept the charge, but I don't think I was at fault for this one, especially since I've only had the car back just a few weeks.

Brake sensor is very easy to replace and costs only 30 dollars. My recommendation is to just replace your pads and sensor on the front yourself. There's a "How to" in the DIY section.

[SonRK]

I guess I can bite the bullet now, and know for later that it's easily replaceable for a lot cheaper, but damn, BMW doesn't cover this within their 4 year warranty?

[SonRK]

I just got the car back with a $400 bill for replacing the cover underneath the car, which was apparently cracked, and replacing the brake sensor.

I drive it home, and the same sound is still there, when slowing down to a complete stop and braking slowly, I hear *kluk, kluk*, and they said that they test drove the car and heard NO sound effects after replacing the sensor. What a bunch of crap, looks like I'm going back to service tomorrow.

[MSPORTWORLD]

Originally Posted by SonRK

I just got the car back with a $400 bill for replacing the cover underneath the car, which was apparently cracked, and replacing the brake sensor.

I drive it home, and the same sound is still there, when slowing down to a complete stop and braking slowly, I hear *kluk, kluk*, and they said that they test drove the car and heard NO sound effects after replacing the sensor. What a bunch of crap, looks like I'm going back to service tomorrow.

Atleast now you shouldn't have to foot the bill for anything else since they already charged you but did not fix your problem.

Good luck!

[ENINTY]

Originally Posted by SonRK

I just got the car back with a $400 bill for replacing the cover underneath the car, which was apparently cracked, and replacing the brake sensor.

I drive it home, and the same sound is still there, when slowing down to a complete stop and braking slowly, I hear *kluk, kluk*, and they said that they test drove the car and heard NO sound effects after replacing the sensor. What a bunch of crap, looks like I'm going back to service tomorrow.

The front brake sensor is about $25 retail, tischer sells it for about $20. It snaps into the brake inside brake pad (why they couldn't resue the old one I don't know). The wire is tied to the suspension in several places and then connects on the inner fenderwell next to the strut inside a small plastic housing. To replace it takes 10 minutes at most. How something could have pulled it out of the brake pad and not rip half the the suspension apart is hard to believe. If something did do that, it probably would have taken the ride-height sensor along with it. If the sensor didn't get disconnected (or broken) it wouldn't trigger the light on the dash.

The belly pan under then engine is $70 and takes 5 minutes to install. Maybe more of the under panels were damaged. If they put a new sensor in an old pad it would have to wear down into place. Maybe that is the sound you hear. How much were the parts and how much was the labor?

[SonRK]

Got back from BMW Service and they said it's a problem with my suspension which is quite possibly linked to the original accident back in April. I got the car back Mid June, and had used it sparingly since I've gone out in vacation. In any case, BMW and my insurance are contacting each other for State Farm to supplement the repairs, if they deem it a fault from the original accident.

I'm still down $400 for their easy replacements....