Rod bearing failure - what to do?

[BMWZ4MC]

I try to be pragmatic about such things - better a definite £1k cost every 50k miles than the potential for a £5-8k cost, huge inconvenience and a sense that the car has somehow betrayed you (a crazy emotional response I know!).

Or having your car blown up in florence, and not have sufficient insurance to get alternative transport covered or the repatriation of your car.
Having had that twice (dont ask...) but with the right coverage, I can say how importatnt that is as I earned back my travelinsurance premium for the next 350 years or so :rofl:

I had a car that became terminally ill in Monaco. Fortunately I managed to nurse it back to London. I had no insurance for repatriation, so my strategy if it had failed completely would have been to abandon it, fly home and come back for it in a rented tow truck fitted with a winch!

 

[Jembo]

I try to be pragmatic about such things - better a definite £1k cost every 50k miles than the potential for a £5-8k cost, huge inconvenience and a sense that the car has somehow betrayed you (a crazy emotional response I know!).

Or having your car blown up in florence, and not have sufficient insurance to get alternative transport covered or the repatriation of your car.
Having had that twice (dont ask...) but with the right coverage, I can say how importatnt that is as I earned back my travelinsurance premium for the next 350 years or so :rofl:

I had a car that became terminally ill in Monaco. Fortunately I managed to nurse it back to London. I had no insurance for repatriation, so my strategy if it had failed completely would have been to abandon it, fly home and come back for it in a rented tow truck fitted with a winch!

I think now you’d just come back to tyre prints

 

[Mangozac]

Is there a cost synergy to doing this at the same time as an inspection 2? Thought the quote of £1400 early in this thread for both seemed pretty good.

Not particularly - the jobs are at opposite ends of the engine (valve clearances on top, rod bearings in the bottom). The only thing in common is that you drop the oil for both the inspection service and the rod bearings.

 

[zmaster007]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

 

[R60BBA]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth supplying your own oil for future oil changes though...

 

[zmaster007]

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth supplying your own oil for future oil changes though...

I actually asked whether I could do this at the last service (wanted to put millers in) - they said they don't offer that service anymore because mistakes have happened...!

 

[mr wilks]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth switching to a different garage for future though...

Sorted that for you

 

[R60BBA]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth switching to a different garage for future though...

Sorted that for you

Touché :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

 

[MrPT]

:rofl:

Glad you got it sorted, OP. The fix may actually add to the value of the car in some circles, although you might want to just check what other issues could arise from prolonged use of an incorrect oil grade.

 

[Lower]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

I am amazed that a dealer has made this offer this early on. I'd have expected you to have had to start legal action and then still fight it.

Best result you could have hoped for in my opinion.

 

[MrPT]

Just out of curiosity, was a sample of your oil ever analysed?

 

[Jembo]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth supplying your own oil for future oil changes though...

I somehow think they will never make such a mistake again & will be carefully looking at their records over every other S54 engined car that’s been through their workshops

 

[srhutch]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

So a BMW main dealer is admitting putting the wrong oil in?

 

[mmm-five]

Do you think I should be looking through the invoices for my 100,000 miles of BMW servicing to see if they’ve stated the incorrect oil.

Maybe get them to pay something towards my rod bearings

 

[DMC63]

For what it's worth to anyone, Regal Engines in Purfleet Essex. Top quality work. Rebuilt an engine for me and it never missed a beat in 7 years! Small family business. Reground crank, the lot. Admittedly it wasn't a Z but they do all cars. :driving:

 

[r0bb0]

An update from me on this.
All my invoices from the same dealer (2 oil, 2 inspection services) state the wrong oil was used. As they are unable to prove otherwise that the right oil was used, they are fixing the car. They offered a contribution to a new car of the retail value of the M in a running condition. I couldn't justify a new car right now, so it looks like LF78184 will be saved after all!

Good to know you’ve got a solution which means you’re not out of pocket.

Might be worth supplying your own oil for future oil changes though...

BMW Huddersfield refused to let me supply my own oil at my last service

 

[Joneeboy]

Well done, OP! Most probably caved early to stop any embarrassing negative feedback. What a bloody 'schoolboy error' though! :roll:

 

[Babw]

I think the lesson here is to not take your car to the main dealers.

 

[R60BBA]

I think the lesson here is to not take your car to the main dealers.

Could not have been put any better.

 

[Viren]

As others have said, for these cars a dealer would be the WRONG place to service or work on your car. The knowledge just isn't there because their focus is on newer models. An indy who primarily works on these older cars is always a better shout. Take the oil situation in this thread, it's just too basic an error, imagine they took the engine apart (top end or bottom end type work), would you really trust them to have it all put together to spec........ I defo wouldn't. In my opinion I'd be more wary about buying a z4m that only has main dealer service history at this sort of age.