[itwasepic]

Hi all,

Well, after ~3 months of owning a brand new custom order F30, BMW has bought it back. The vehicle has been in the shop for 30 days and there is no fix in sight for an issue that can be reproduced on demand. BMW NA Engineering says it is a model-specific production issue and that a fix is "TBD" for those unfortunate vehicles with the problem. The dealership advised not to purchase another F30 to which I already removed from my future purchasing decision.

To be fair, both the dealership and BMW NA were excellent in taking care of me.

This is just my opinion so take it with a grain of salt. As some of you may have read on some of my other posts, I have been a fan of BMWs since I was a kid and my first BMW was a 540i 6-speed M-sport which was awesome. During the 4 weeks of my vehicle being in the shop, BMW let me use a handful of loaners (F10 5 Series and F30 3 Series). So here is what I concluded for myself. Again just my opinion.

First, impressions on the 3 Series: the two 2013 F30s I got to use had 3,000 and 9,000 miles respectively. The F30 with the higher miles squeaked and made so many loud flexing noises that if this was any indication of what to look forward to with my vehicle at ~9,000 miles I would be supremely disappointed. Granted, people probably drove that loaner hard but still it only had 9,000 miles and I can assure you I drove my F30 M-sport just as hard if not harder. I recall a post'er on this message board saying that, after a year (or something), his/her vehicle squeaked worse than a Buick. I know it is not fair to consider these two examples as the outright whole.

Second, impression on the 2013 5 Series: in keeping consistent with the review on "build", the F10 is solid. The impression was that the F10 just had better fitment. Sure I get that it also has higher quality materials. Both F10s I had on service loan were 4,000 and 10,500 miles respectively. Both were dead quiet and I drove them equally hard compared to the F30s.

So I guess the buyback was a blessing in disguise. I concluded to get back into a 5 Series and, for the price of a loaded F30, think it is fair to expect a marginally higher quality product than what I received. This was my first 3 Series and may need to wait a few years to consider it again.

Sad to go.

[IM2C]

That sucks. Why would BMW advise against purchase of another F30?

[NISFAN]

Originally Posted by itwasepic

Hi all,

Well, after ~3 months of owning a brand new custom order F30 M-sport, BMW has bought it back. The vehicle has been in the shop for 30 days and there is no fix in sight for the AC fan / Engine management issue that can be reproduced on demand. The dealership has two other F30s in the shop with the exact same issue so they got to use my car as the guinea pig for troubleshooting. BMW NA Engineering says it is a model-specific production issue and that a fix is "TBD" for those unfortunate vehicles with the problem. They also advised not to purchase another F30 to which I already removed from my future purchasing decision.

To be fair, both the dealership and BMW NA were excellent in taking care of me.

This is just my opinion so take it with a grain of salt. As some of you may have read on some of my other posts, I have been a fan of BMWs since I was a kid and my first BMW was a 540i 6-speed M-sport which was awesome. During the 4 weeks of my vehicle being in the shop, BMW let me use a handful of loaners (F10 5 Series and F30 3 Series). So here is what I concluded for myself. Again just my opinion.

First, impressions on the 3 Series: the two 2013 F30s I got to use had 3,000 and 9,000 miles respectively. The F30 with the higher miles squeaked and made so many loud flexing noises that if this was any indication of what to look forward to with my vehicle at ~9,000 miles I would be supremely disappointed. Granted, people probably drove that loaner hard but still it only had 9,000 miles and I can assure you I drove my F30 M-sport just as hard if not harder. I recall a post'er on this message board saying that, after a year (or something), his/her vehicle squeaked worse than a Buick. I know it is not fair to consider these two examples as the outright whole.

Second, impression on the 2013 5 Series: in keeping consistent with the review on "build", the F10 is solid. The impression was that the F10 just had better fitment. Sure I get that it also has higher quality materials. Both F10s I had on service loan were 4,000 and 10,500 miles respectively. Both were dead quiet and I drove them equally hard compared to the F30s.

So I guess the buyback was a blessing in disguise. I concluded to get back into a 5 Series and, for the price of a loaded F30, think it is fair to expect a marginally higher quality product than what I received. This was my first 3 Series and may need to wait a few years to consider it again.

Sad to go.

Not my experience, I just traded a 14,000 mile F30 for another one. My old one was just as tight and squeak free as the brand new one. The 14k miles weren't easy ones either

Sorry to hear your experience.

+1 at finding it weird that you were advised not to get another F30, your problems are hardly pandemic.

[itwasepic]

Yeah, I edited my post. It was the "dealership" who strongly suggested not to buy another one until they felt comfortable the fix from BMW NA was implemented and confirmed. I get it. At least I'm staying in the brand

[bavarianboar]

Not to say anything in general about the F30 quality of build and perhaps some cost reduction, looks like the Quality control is not the best at the moment. Squeaking and all such things point to either problems in the manufacturing process or something in engineering design or quality/inspection control. We would hope this is close to a perfected science but maybe it isn't. Sad to hear these issues and more I read such threads, more I get inclined to a 5, though its like a boat for me with no family

Good luck with your next purchase. F10 535i I imagine?

[itwasepic]

Originally Posted by bavarianboar

I get inclined to a 5, though its like a boat for me with no family

Good luck with your next purchase. F10 535i I imagine?

Same on the "boat". 535i M-sport

[QTC]

If you don't mind sharing, what was the issue that led to the buyback?

Glad BMW/dealer handled it well for you though, as unfortunate as the situation may have been.

[bimmerjph]

Originally Posted by QTC

If you don't mind sharing, what was the issue that led to the buyback?

+1 I am curious as well.

[btbossman]

Damn bro that sucks, but Im sure it really was a blessing in disguise, plus the 5 is an awesome car!

[LeifW]

Originally Posted by bimmerjph

+1 I am curious as well.

+2


Leif W.

[bcl0328]

what a shame. i'm just now over 30,000 miles on my f30 and she is just like brand new still. no noises or squeaks. daily driven over 80 miles a day. i would like to drive a 5-series though to compare.

[southbynorth]

Originally Posted by LeifW

+2


Leif W.

Make that +3 - have you had to sign an NDA or something?

[Kabrich]

Strange there are no posts by the OP over the past 3 months speaking of any issue that would warrant a buyback

If he had to sign an NDA, he violated it by starting this thread.

[Bowser330]

Originally Posted by southbynorth

Make that +3 - have you had to sign an NDA or something?

With that cryptic and edited post, I would hope so....

[DerekS]

Sorry to read about your F30 situation. But it would be helpful to learn the nature of your car's problem and why it required repeat visits to your dealer.

Fortunately, my own F30 has thus far been issue free; after 8 months of ownership, not a squeak or rattle to be heard, nor any other problems.

Having owned three different E9X versions, I am convinced that the F30-335i is a definite step up from the previous generation. It feels rock solid and it offers a roomier interior together with excellent exterior design (M sport version) and better fuel economy.

As for the F10-535i, it too is a solid car, but it definitely feels and handles like a large sedan.

[F32]

Must have been poor steering feel...

[BavarianFanatic]

Originally Posted by F32

Must have been poor steering feel...

Or repeatedly taken back even though it was explained that there wasn't yet a solution. I guess we'll never know...

[ADRQ0811]

I had a 2011 5 series before I had my f30 with a benzo in between and I hated my 5 it was a boat but I guess I do agree it did feel better quality wise but as you said you pay a bit more over all I like my f30 more i think it's a better car but everyone has their own taste

[zamboni]

Good moved which one did you get? 535i or 550i?

[DesertSmokeBBQ]

I've had my '13 M-Sport 328 since late December, I've driven it hard and put it away wet regularly with 15.5k miles to date without much more than a few niggles such as the idrive randomly shutting off.. I'm currently trying to decide whether to trade it for an F30 335 same config (EBII MSPORT) or whether to wait for an F32 or later F80

[F32]

Originally Posted by ADRQ0811

I had a 2011 5 series before I had my f30 with a benzo in between and I hated my 5 it was a boat but I guess I do agree it did feel better quality wise but as you said you pay a bit more over all I like my f30 more i think it's a better car but everyone has their own taste

Damn, I almost ran out of breath reading that one...

[SergioK]

Originally Posted by BavarianFanatic

Or repeatedly taken back even though it was explained that there wasn't yet a solution. I guess we'll never know...

Did you have them buy it back because of the miter saw sound?

http://www.f30post.com/forums/showth...7#post13984397