Not the best news I'm afraid

[big x]

...If you drive a larger engined BMW E46 http://www.turnermotorsport.com/html/photo_gallery_e46sf.shtml
We give Mercedes a hard time over rust but some BMW's rip their rear
subframes out due to structural stress failure no rust required !
In the UK it seems mainly the 3 series coupes that fail.

adam

 

[miro]

...If you drive a larger engined BMW E46 http://www.turnermotorsport.com/html/photo_gallery_e46sf.shtml
We give Mercedes a hard time over rust but some BMW's rip their rear
subframes out due to structural stress failure no rust required !
In the UK it seems mainly the 3 series coupes that fail.

adam

The strange thing is that people are expected to pay for their own improvements according to the kit being offered. Perhaps I feel surprised that any owner should have to take any kind of action.

 

[Flash]

BMW is starting to go down hill big time now with their after sales support.

 

[fuzzer]

BMW is starting to go down hill big time now with their after sales support.

i beg to differ , its light years ahead of mercedes. but , then again you can't go much lower than rock bottom

 

[big x]

It wouldn't be the first time a car engineered for smooth German roads suffers in markets like the UK and the US which have 3rd world standards of construction.The expansion joints on Freeways are really punishing.
The rear axle carrier is a substantial affair (all alloy on my 5-series) that carries the diff and is attached to the body at four places by bolts running through rubber subframe bushes.Normally it's the bushes that wear and need renewing.

http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=AM52&mospid=47641&btnr=33_0839&hg=33&fg=30

adam

 

[Flash]

i beg to differ , its light years ahead of mercedes. but , then again you can't go much lower than rock bottom

Fair comment...

 

[marcos]

i beg to differ , its light years ahead of mercedes. but , then again you can't go much lower than rock bottom

Depends on the dealer. I went to test drive BMW's a few years ago and the dealers attitude was awfull, thats being polite. I then found out after speaking to various people that the servicing dept was even worse, at the time my local MB dealer was exceptionally good.

 

[shadowninja]

I heard this about the Z3 (2.8 and M3 spec).

 

[Dave Lewis]

It wouldn't be the first time a car engineered for smooth German roads suffers in markets like the UK and the US which have 3rd world standards of construction.The expansion joints on Freeways are really punishing.

I'm not sure about that, it's a global market for cars, and I'm sure that BMW, Merc and the rest try to design and engineer for all markets, the UK being a major market for BMW, and the US for DC. I think it's more likely bean-counters making engineering decisions.
Any car that doesn't stand up to UK roads must be under engineered. My old Volvo Amazon was 35 years old, 200,000 miles, and nothing ever fell off it, inside or out, and it wasn't an excessively over-engineered car. It was, however, more expensive than it's peers. This used to be the reason people bought Mercedes, until the Badge took over.

 

[big x]

I'm not sure about that, it's a global market for cars, and I'm sure that BMW, Merc and the rest try to design and engineer for all markets, the UK being a major market for BMW, and the US for DC. I think it's more likely bean-counters making engineering decisions.
Any car that doesn't stand up to UK roads must be under engineered. My old Volvo Amazon was 35 years old, 200,000 miles, and nothing ever fell off it, inside or out, and it wasn't an excessively over-engineered car. It was, however, more expensive than it's peers. This used to be the reason people bought Mercedes, until the Badge took over.

It's only recently Audi did any testing whatsoever on UK roads.For years the magazines here complained about poor ride quality with their sports suspension.Things like the camber in the road being greater here, stones embedded in tarmac,concrete expansion joints,high frequency bumps etc.none of which Audi picked up in their testing.Compare them to something like a Ford Focus which was developed here and the difference is night and day better.Things are changing though.Audi are moving engines back in the chassis for better handling balance and a less front heavy feel that they have typically had and the suspension settings are being fine tuned.
In general all they did was fit heavy duty suspension to markets like Russia.
I think Mercedes have more robust underpinnings the company concious that they are taxis in many countries.
I read recently in Autocar magazine that Richard Parry Jones the handling guru and Chief Technical Officer of Ford Motor Company Worldwide is taking over Volvo suspension development.Volvos current suspension settings just don't work well here and the ride quality is "atrocious" with the sports option.That is the word he used.A car developed to handle well in the UK will work everywhere.

adam

 

[glojo]

i beg to differ , its light years ahead of mercedes. but , then again you can't go much lower than rock bottom

I think the rock bottom is pretty crowded.

A good friend was here yesterday and we were talking about after sales service. He owns a diesel Ford Ranger pick-up truck and has had a problem with the glow-plug light flashing on and off.

He took it to the dealer, a technician examined the vehicle and stated it needed a new fuel pump. Great says my friend the car is still under warranty, can you fix it straight away? "Sorry sir, Ford insist we fit a new fuel filter first, I guarantee it will not solve the problem, but the light will stop flashing for about three weeks, then you'll be back here complaining!"

A new filter was fitted and sure enough three weeks later my friend goes back to the dealer. "How can I help sir?"

"I was here three weeks ago complaining of problems with my vehicle, the technician looked at it and diagnosed a new fuel pump, but they only replaced the fuel filter, I still have the problem, it is documented, can you fix it please?"

"Sorry sir but all our technicians are busy, can you leave it here for the day?" My friend is a builder and needs the vehicle for his work but had no choice. That night he returned to the dealer and was told the vehicle needed a new fuel pump. It would take two days to deliver and THREE days to fit.

In the interim they offered him a Ford Ka as a courtesy vehicle! He has managed to put half a tonne of sand into it, but has had problems unloading it

The grass is NOT always greener on the other side of the road

Regards,
John

 

[grober]

AFAIK the Ford RANGER pickup is built in the USA on the same production line as the MAZDA pickup. Maybe the new fuel filter excuse is a "time buffer" to allow the dealer to order up a new pump from the USA only in this case they didn't! Just idle speculation on my part.

 

[Dieselman]

Having read the link regarding the E46 subframe mounting splitting I doubt the engine torque has anything to do with this fault. It's down to the hard ride transmitting too much shock to the car body and cracking the steelwork.

People consider E46 to be sporty and certainly they give a harsher ride but maybe this is why MB stick with a more supple ride?