Warranty Valid if you do Own Maintenance?

JTBMW1 · 09-19-2012, 01:23 PM

Does anyone know if BMW will honor the warranty if you do your own maintenance? I have my own shop and am very meticulous with maintenance and working on cars in general. All of the cars I have purchased over the years almost never go to the dealership unless it is a major and costly issue covered under warranty. (And so far I have only had issues for a bad transmission once, alternator and AC condensor- never problems with internals of an engine).

So for oil changes which are so easy for me to do myself- and I would prefer to do myself and know it's done right- will BMW still honor the basic warranty if something goes wrong? I keep all maintenance records, what was done and at what mileage. Also record the weight/brand oil and filter used, etc. Normally I do not keep the receipts although I can make a point to in this case if it's required.

And I know the limited maintenance they do while under warranty is free and I can do oil changes in between- although with my 11 hour a day work schedule it's tough to find time to go to the dealer at all when I can do my own work at 11 PM or 5 AM, or weekends when I do have free time.

Dackelone · 09-19-2012, 01:31 PM

As long as you keep good receipts and use BMW approved fluids and parts - you should be fine. The burden is on BMW in the states to prove why the car/part broke, when making a warranty claim.

Why not write BMW NA an old fashioned letter. Send it registered mail - that will get their attention! That way you have something in writing down the road should you encounter any trouble with your dealer/BMW NA.

Most people here do not do their own services. But I do. We aren't BMW's typical customer. For me its not worth the hassle or lost time to go into the dealer. I do buy most of my parts from them though. I also don't like going into the dealer for fear of damaging my car. Something always seems to occur. When I do my own maintenance, I know it was done right and no damage was done to my car.

pinmagic · 09-19-2012, 05:16 PM

Hmmm....you'd better do some research on that. I know they can't ding you for doing your own when there's a charge, but if they offer you free services (as BMW does), then I seem to recall hearing that you may have to use those to maintain a valid warranty. Not sure.

Venom · 09-19-2012, 07:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dackelone

As long as you keep good receipts and use BMW approved fluids and parts - you should be fine. The burden is on BMW in the states to prove why the car/part broke, when making a warranty claim.

Why not write BMW NA an old fashioned letter. Send it registered mail - that will get their attention! That way you have something in writing down the road should you encounter any trouble with your dealer/BMW NA.

Most people here do not do their own services. But I do. We aren't BMW's typical customer. For me its not worth the hassle or lost time to go into the dealer. I do buy most of my parts from them though. I also don't like going into the dealer for fear of damaging my car. Something always seems to occur. When I do my own maintenance, I know it was done right and no damage was done to my car.

I can't agree with this enough, there have been engine replacements because of dealer hiccups. They had to repaint my front bumper because they put the tabs on wrong... and ended up breaking them.

JTBMW1 · 09-20-2012, 06:53 AM

I have had issues at the dealers that they did not fix the issue or fixed it incorrectly, etc. that I have had to fix the issues on my own. Once I get a car, new or used and I go through it and once get it on my maintenance schedule, I very rarely have a problem- and the cars perform very well all of the time. The 1 is at the dealer right now for an alignment and paint stains on the hood that wax buffing would not take out. I suspect they are going to do nothing, I will see........

09-19-2012, 01:23 PM	#1
JTBMW1 Private 3 Rep 63 Posts Drives: 2012 BMW 128i Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Naples, FL iTrader: (0)	Warranty Valid if you do Own Maintenance? Does anyone know if BMW will honor the warranty if you do your own maintenance? I have my own shop and am very meticulous with maintenance and working on cars in general. All of the cars I have purchased over the years almost never go to the dealership unless it is a major and costly issue covered under warranty. (And so far I have only had issues for a bad transmission once, alternator and AC condensor- never problems with internals of an engine). So for oil changes which are so easy for me to do myself- and I would prefer to do myself and know it's done right- will BMW still honor the basic warranty if something goes wrong? I keep all maintenance records, what was done and at what mileage. Also record the weight/brand oil and filter used, etc. Normally I do not keep the receipts although I can make a point to in this case if it's required. And I know the limited maintenance they do while under warranty is free and I can do oil changes in between- although with my 11 hour a day work schedule it's tough to find time to go to the dealer at all when I can do my own work at 11 PM or 5 AM, or weekends when I do have free time.
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09-19-2012, 01:31 PM	#2
Dackelone European Editor 10539 Rep 22,992 Posts Drives: N54 e82 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Bayern, Germany iTrader: (1)	As long as you keep good receipts and use BMW approved fluids and parts - you should be fine. The burden is on BMW in the states to prove why the car/part broke, when making a warranty claim. Why not write BMW NA an old fashioned letter. Send it registered mail - that will get their attention! That way you have something in writing down the road should you encounter any trouble with your dealer/BMW NA. Most people here do not do their own services. But I do. We aren't BMW's typical customer. For me its not worth the hassle or lost time to go into the dealer. I do buy most of my parts from them though. I also don't like going into the dealer for fear of damaging my car. Something always seems to occur. When I do my own maintenance, I know it was done right and no damage was done to my car. __________________ Dackel's European Delivery Museum Guide
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09-19-2012, 05:16 PM	#3
pinmagic The Only Sane One Here 61 Rep 1,135 Posts Drives: 135i Convertible Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Arlington, VA iTrader: (1)	Hmmm....you'd better do some research on that. I know they can't ding you for doing your own when there's a charge, but if they offer you free services (as BMW does), then I seem to recall hearing that you may have to use those to maintain a valid warranty. Not sure. __________________ 2011 135i VERT SGM/SB/MOONLIGHT - ED - with every single friggin' option they offered.
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09-20-2012, 06:53 AM	#5
JTBMW1 Private 3 Rep 63 Posts Drives: 2012 BMW 128i Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Naples, FL iTrader: (0)	I have had issues at the dealers that they did not fix the issue or fixed it incorrectly, etc. that I have had to fix the issues on my own. Once I get a car, new or used and I go through it and once get it on my maintenance schedule, I very rarely have a problem- and the cars perform very well all of the time. The 1 is at the dealer right now for an alignment and paint stains on the hood that wax buffing would not take out. I suspect they are going to do nothing, I will see........
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