URGENT ADVICE PLEASE!

A

AJZ4London

Member
All, some advice please. I have just received this from my servicing contact:

Good morning Alex,

Just a quick update for you.

BMW have said that under no circumstances can the head light be changed under warranty for moisture in the headlamp, They have instructed us to dry out the headlamp only which we are now doing while the vehicle is programming. Sorry for the mis-information yesterday.

I will let you know once the repairs are all complete

Regards

HAS ANYONE ELSE HAD THIS? IS THIS RIGHT? SHOULD I PUT UP A FIGHT???
 
Has the headlamp failed due to faulty materials/manufactre or is it damaged. If the former, I can't see how they can deny the warranty claim.
 
Thanks for the quick reply...I highly recommend Aiden at Hexagon of Highgate. The man thinks outside the box, keeps you informed at all times and works damn hard to insure thst you are satisfied.

See below... I was about to go off on one!


Alex

I have had the technician replace the seal on the rear cover as soon as he informed me about not being able to change the whole lamp under warranty.

-----Original Message-----
Aiden

No reflection on you but I will look into this.

Could you at least swap the rubber seal that goes in between the backing and the main housing? Or can this be ordered separately? Pretty sure that is all that needs doing. I have dried the lamp out before and as soon as I wash the car or drive in the rain it steams up again...I can see this being a more material problem in the future if the parts start to rust/deteriorate.
 
How are they drying it out? do not leave the light running with the car stationary as the lamp will start to melt and start to go all milkly.

Ive had moisture in my headlamp and was advised by the parts department to leave the back off of it and go for a long drive on a dry day with the lights on. That still didnt get all the moisture out though and had to fish around with a tissue!

Make sure the back is sealed properly when refitting otherwise you will get the same. The sealing gasket on Mine was deformed so I bought another one (cant remember is it was just the gasket or the whole back :oops:). wasnt much though - about £8 if I remember correctly...

If the light is cracked though they should replace?
 
the light is not cracked, it is just that rubber seal (I THINK!) that is malformed.

I find the most effective way to dry is to remove the back, take one of the lamps out and use a hair dryer!! It will be dry in 5 mins all over. Just be careful not to hold it too close as may melt wires (!).

I will see when I get it back if the problem is solved...

They have replaced the airbag chip, updated the car's software and replaced a rattling vent under warranty this week. That is on top of the new roof motor and coolant tank. Going to try and knacker the gearbox under warranty as well :poke:
 
I had also tryed a hair dryer but without taking the light off the car... Im sure I looked a right idiot hair drying my car :oops: Couldnt get it all out that way either :(

might as well do some full bore burn outs and knacker the clutch while you are at it :rofl:
 
My neighbours were making many comments when I was sat there on the road with a hair dryer...put hey.

Taking the lamp out and using the dryer definitely works. My dryer is quire small so you can get it quite close.

Oh and got two new rear tyres because they sold the car with non-runflats...must be up to about £3k worth by now. Wow work is boring...
 
Just as a pointer BMW WILL replace lights due to condensation if it is serious enough and that usually involves visibly running water on the inside not a misting. Problem is that folks see a minor misting and assume that it needs a new light and it's oft just change in temperature, humidity.

If the seal on the rear cover is faulty (and having dismantled and retro engineered many Z4 lights I can tell you the only place they can ever leak, is the seal on the rear cover through distortion, not being clipped on or grit in it, unless the plastic housing is physically cracked) then that may well fix it.

One thing to check though is that if the condensation has left run marks down the inside of the light as they will never go and a new light should be requested, since they will always be clearly visible at certain angles and lighting
 
AJZ4London said:
All, some advice please. I have just received this from my servicing contact:

Good morning Alex,

Just a quick update for you.

BMW have said that under no circumstances can the head light be changed under warranty for moisture in the headlamp, They have instructed us to dry out the headlamp only which we are now doing while the vehicle is programming. Sorry for the mis-information yesterday.

I will let you know once the repairs are all complete

Regards

HAS ANYONE ELSE HAD THIS? IS THIS RIGHT? SHOULD I PUT UP A FIGHT???
Click to expand...

If you have the VERY expensive bi-xenon lights then condensation is normal. If you arn't sure which lights you have then see if you have headlamp washers. - They are a legal requirement for UK cars fitted with xenons....

If you have normal Halogen H7 lights - create a fuss. :thumbsup:
 
SittingBull said:
If you arn't sure which lights you have then see if you have headlamp washers. - They are a legal requirement for UK cars fitted with xenons....
Click to expand...
headlamp washers are not a pointer to xenons... mine are halogen with washers :D
 
Dealer said to me over the phone they wouldnt replace, even though I explained how bad it was and how frequently it happened, then they saw it and replaced without issue and testing.

light.jpg


http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=417&p=6308&hilit=+condensation#p6308
 
IDIOTS!!!

They left the lights on for sooo long that it burnt a hold in the passenger lamp. So now they are keeping it in over the weekend and I get a courteousy car...

cust service again v good though...I drop the car back Monday on way to work and they drive the Z back to mine...wow.

Still, a 318d v a Z4 on a sunny weekend :thumbsdown:
 
AJZ4London said:
IDIOTS!!!

They left the lights on for sooo long that it burnt a hold in the passenger lamp. So now they are keeping it in over the weekend and I get a courteousy car...

cust service again v good though...I drop the car back Monday on way to work and they drive the Z back to mine...wow.

Still, a 318d v a Z4 on a sunny weekend :thumbsdown:
Click to expand...

There is no way that putting the lights on for a long period burnt a hole, wonder if they used a heat gun?
 
This scenario echoes my experience with my 120d. Customer service were, and are, 10/10. Car was collected every time from home but, for eg, a missing (from new) seat control handle took 3 visits as the 'engineer' couldn't find which one was missing. I suppose he couldn't find it because it wasn't there. And a door seal which kept coming adrift was just put back 3x hen it obviously needed replacing. A glove box and storage bin which were obviously defective had attempted repairs before being replaced - 2 visits.

It strikes me that the customer service folk are as dedicated to good service as ever. But, maybe there's a budget per outlet for warranty repairs and the budget mgr/service mgr is focused on that rather than customer satisfaction. Thus bits don't get replaced straightaway, or at all, and you and I waste time going back and forth.

As I say though, customer service have always been top notch for me, when it went wrong it was behind the scenes perhaps in an attempt to save money.
 
The biggest problem dealers have is that the have to claim back from BMW, so if they replace any parts and BMW say not covered the dealer is left with the bill. This is why I believe sometimes they are reluctant to change parts unless you are firm with them :wink:
 
That makes sense. To be fair, when a sensor went on my 5 year old Z, CS claimed most back from BMW without me asking.
 
srhutch said:
The biggest problem dealers have is that the have to claim back from BMW, so if they replace any parts and BMW say not covered the dealer is left with the bill. This is why I believe sometimes they are reluctant to change parts unless you are firm with them :wink:
Click to expand...

I think the situation is even worse than that in that before any item is replace they have to follow a certain procedure and series of tests, of course depending upon what it is. Once approved the dealer will be allowed to bill for the work and parts at agreed labour rates. The offending part is then returned for inspection at the factory or supplier and if found not be be faulty the dealer gets his claim bounced. I once read in the TIS how a steering column has to be tested, the way it has to be packed and if the dealer has tried to dismantle it, etc. or it was found to be within tolerence, no payout...

Of course this aside, during a recession of course the delers are under pressure to reduce warranty claims and headlight is an easy 'go dry it out' fob off.

Still in this case it makes me laugh. Some idiot must have left a hot air gun on it and gone for a tea break... :rofl:
 
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