Dealers Checking Valves on M Insp I?

[Swanicyouth]

My E85 M is due for inspection I. There seems to be some controversy on dealers checking and adjusting valves during this service. I have an 08 and it seems BMW removed it from the inspection I list in the manual after 06 or 07. I\'ve seen the list online that has \'check and adjust valves\' on it, bit who knows what the dealers are following. I\'m guessing it\'s the most abbreviated maintenance schedule possible since it\'s \"free\". What\'s your experience?

[Shipkiller]

Some dealers are just stupid....

Yes, the S54 requires a valve adjustment at inspection 1 and 2.

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...77&postcount=6

[Phishman]

Good luck is all I have to say. I'm getting mine done Wednesday and have a copy of the maintenance checklist and the valve adjustment sheets printed out to give them before they start so they know exactly what they're supposed to do. The reason I did this was I had originally scheduled it 3 weeks ago but when I picked it up and looked at the receipt it appeared they just walked around the car and "inspected it" (ie checked tire pressure, etc). That was after I sat down with service rep first and said "I am here to have Inspection I performed on my M/per the dash computer readout". This will hopefully be my last visit to Jake Sweeney BMW.

[Swanicyouth]

Are you kidding me? What a joke. My dealer has been pretty good so far. Looks like most people's experience is that dealer will do it, but only after prodding. I plan on asking them if it will be done prior. I think in reality handing the tech a worksheet and telling him it must be filled out is a bit much, and I'm hesitant to do that. I know if
I were him, I would think "you gotta be kidding me"

[arggg45]

Originally Posted by Swanicyouth

Are you kidding me? What a joke. My dealer has been pretty good so far. Looks like most people's experience is that dealer will do it, but only after prodding. I plan on asking them if it will be done prior. I think in reality handing the tech a worksheet and telling him it must be filled out is a bit much, and I'm hesitant to do that. I know if
I were him, I would think "you gotta be kidding me"

It's his JOB to do it and to do it properly. Getting the sheet filled out is the only way to ensure it was done, short of doing it yourself...

[Phishman]

Originally Posted by Swanicyouth

I think in reality handing the tech a worksheet and telling him it must be filled out is a bit much, and I'm hesitant to do that. I know if
I were him, I would think "you gotta be kidding me"

"You gotta be kidding me" was what I said to myself when I found out they didn't even realize why I was there after I sat down with one rep and talked to another on the phone twice (to schedule it). No way I'm going to take their word on adjusting the valves. Anyways, you don't talk to techs there but rather a couple guys in suits that relay the information to the techs. I'm sure if I talked to them this wouldn't have happened in the first place.

[Finnegan]

I've found a nice 12 pack of beer in the hatch area does wonders. Cheap and really goes a long way to making some friends. When you ask for some extra specific things in the service it doesn't hurt to say at the end: "BTW, there's a 12 pack of ____ in the back for you (the SA) and the techs to share after the job is done". Sure, you might be a PITA customer but you're a PITA customer with beer, and that moves you from PITA customer in most cases to "nice guy".

It really is necessary to go over these steps with the dealer because: a.) some dealers and techs are clueless; b.) given the smaller number of "M" Z4s, they may think it's just a Z4 and has Z4 specs; c.) BMW has different specs for just about everything--and their default position is to go with what they know; d.) not many "Ms" come in the door--so they don't have as much experience with it and may not be clear on it.

If it helps, you can tell them the maintenance requirements for valves are the same as the E46 M3 since it shares the same engine. They will have probably seen a lot more E46 M3 relative to Z4Ms....

I'd just to nice yet firm about it, and have my documentation ready in my back pocket if needed. At the end I'd tell the SA that you plan on keeping the car a long time, and are keeping meticulous records, and want the spec sheet for the valves to have a point of comparison over time. Oh, and then mention the beer!

BTW, they really should be asking you to drop off the car the night before. The job requires a cold engine, and the work itself is many hours in duration. If you were to bring the car in the AM it wouldn't have time to cool enough for them to complete the job by closing time. If they're not asking you to do this you should start to be concerned and take necessary steps--like remind them it has the same engine as an E46 M3, and needs a cold engine for performing Inspection I and valves.

[Shipkiller]

Finnegan is correct.

You really must drop your car off the day before. If they are going to do the job properly, then they will be keeping the car two days anyway...

I must really be lucky here with my dealer. My dealer has four dedicated ///M techs and they fight over who gets to work on the car when I bring it in...

I asked for a printout or sheet that had the valve clearances, before and after. It sits in my maintenance book... Hell, I keep my engine bay really clean, but it was cleaner after the service than before.

[pwrdbym]

I had to go through a lot of trouble to get mine adjusted. My dealer claimed that it wasn't included in inspection 1. So I printed the technician checklist for the car and took it in during my appt. They kept the car and then gave it back saying that "valves do not need adjustment at this time". When I prodded they admitted that they never looked at it. Finally after talking with the SM I got them to actually do it. Make sure that you talk to the tech that did it, and they give you some measurements about which ones were out of tolerance. They also need to replace the gasket at the same time. You should see some parts on your receipt.

[Endless619]

Are you guys sure?

I spoke with both of our large BMW dealers SM's here and they said there was an amendment and they showed it to me and it said "not included" via inspection 1. It is in inspection 2 though.

[arggg45]

Originally Posted by EndlessZ4M

Are you guys sure?

I spoke with both of our large BMW dealers SM's here and they said there was an amendment and they showed it to me and it said "not included" via inspection 1. It is in inspection 2 though.

Yes

It's on the third page.

EDIT: This list was published 08/07

[MIKe86]

I wonder if porsche service is this much of a hassle...

[OG_M3]

Originally Posted by MIKe86

I wonder if porsche service is this much of a hassle...

nope, but my 1st yearly oil change+basic inspection was about $285 or so. this year, they have to flush the brake fluid and change the oil, wonder how much thats gonna cost...

[Endless619]

Originally Posted by arggg45

Yes

It's on the third page.

EDIT: This list was published 08/07

I think it was a revision dated in 2008 that I saw. After this one.

Thanks for this though.

[chickdr]

Originally Posted by EndlessZ4M

I think it was a revision dated in 2008 that I saw. After this one.

Thanks for this though.

Is there actually a checklist which was released after the one above showing no valve adjustment needed at Ins I? Pretty sad if this is the case as many on the boards have needed significant adjustments at Insp I. I can easily see bean counters calling for its removal to save on included maintenance costs however...

[Finnegan]

Skelekitty had hers done at Inspection I February 2011.

Our SA gave us no push back on this, and had the correct maintenance schedule and print out right there in front of her all nice an laminated. She also pointed out "it's the same engine as the E46 M3...".

So as for the policy being "different now", that's a huge amount of There's no way our dealer was going to do this under the maintenance program if BMW were not going to reimburse them--no matter how much beer I may have had in the back of the car!

[Caddyshk]

Glad we did ours ourselves Ian

[Finnegan]

Originally Posted by Caddyshk

Glad we did ours ourselves Ian

Seriously. And you know the job was done right too.

I'd bet that beer somehow factored into this as well, leading me to believe that no good Inspection (I or II) can be done without the promise of beer at the end of the job!

[arggg45]

Originally Posted by Finnegan

Seriously. And you know the job was done right too.

I'd bet that beer somehow factored into this as well, leading me to believe that no good Inspection (I or II) can be done without the promise of beer at the end of the job!

The promise of beer at the end of a job ensures that the job gets done better.

[thekurgan]

Originally Posted by Caddyshk

Glad we did ours ourselves Ian

Seriously. Dealer "inspected", found nothing out of spec, I performed the adjustment, replaced 11 shims. Their feeler gauges are just not precise enough for me.

[Kgolf31]

Just took my car into service for Inspection I 2 Months ago.

Car was kept over the weekend to cool down and valve adjustment was done on that Monday (dropped the car off on Friday).

Talked to the service guy personally. Explained what valves were out of spec...I asked him how long it took him and he replied "8 Hours". I know it was done correctly.

[thekurgan]

^^^ 8 hours is a SERIOUSLY long time ...