Brought my BMW in to FCS for what I thought was an alternator problem. Was charged $251 to be told both turbo chargers needed to be replaced for $8,000. Went to a different mechanic who deduced it was a bad alternator and replaced it and battery (they also checked the turbo chargers and told me they were fine). All issues were resolved but unfortunately I'm out $251 for bad advice.
Thank you for your review. The occasional less than stellar comments provide us with opportunities for improvement. Your experience was not what you had expected & we want to address that situation. On May 6th your 2008 BMW 535xi Turbo with an N64 motor presented with a check engine light & an intermittent "no start" condition. Our service advisor requested your permission to perform diagnostic testing related to your concerns. You approved time at a cost of $251.39 for one of our Certified BMW technicians to perform testing needed to identify the cause of your problem. Our Tech performed several related vehicle testing procedures. At that time, the battery & alternator tested within specification & the alternator was charging. Since it is not our practice to replace costly components without confirming their demise we could not in good conscience condemn either. The tech continued to follow the diagnostic testing plan related to intermittent no start issues. Using BMW factory scan tools & software, several fault codes were noted including faults for vanos control, air fuel mixtures, low boost pressure, & multiple under-voltage faults, which also could cause intermittent no start conditions. The experienced diagnostician who is familiar with the codes that were reported inspected the vacuum lines for turbocharger control & noted the reserve tank had a failed fitting. Visual inspection showed it had been previously repaired (elsewhere), the connection had failed again, subsequently there was no vacuum supply to turbocharger control solenoids. He temporarily corrected the connection & revved the engine. The wastegates could be seen operating but excessive "rattle" noise was heard on deceleration. The photos & videos detailing this had been sent to you in our DVI report. The noise is due to excessive wear in the wastegate of turbochargers, causing linkage to bind & wastegate to not seal properly, & will cause intermittent loss of boost pressure, resulting in fault codes. It is a known problem evidenced by BMW's Service Information Bulletin #010212. In fact, BMW extended warranties for these engines to 8 years, 82,000 miles as a result. Our job is to be your vehicle's advocate, & to report any issues identified during it's visit to our facility. Not reporting issues would mean we are not doing our job as professionals. We do not embellish issues which we have not been able to verify, nor decline to convey issues which need attention. Your type of BMW is known to have turbocharging system issues & your vehicle is experiencing indicators which are evidence of this problem. We also recommended a coolant flush. The antifreeze found in your engine's coolant system is not correct. It is overly concentrated which is known to cause deterioration of internal components, especially anything composed of aluminum & yellow in color . The correct coolant is blue. We understand your concern regarding the battery & alternator, it was not our intent to minimize their importance. They both tested within acceptable ranges, we were unable to duplicate the problem you had experienced. You are not out $251 (and 39 cents) for bad advice - The $251.39 spent was for a factory trained and certified technician's time spent looking at your vehicle, running tests to identify the cause of your concerns and assess the results of the testing processes. We welcome you to call us at 845-452-5005 to have a conversation on how we might better help you understand the services you received and ask you how we might better serve customers like you in the future.
- Foreign Car Specialists - Walkway