[AyrshireColin]

Originally Posted by Surg_Capt_R

Yes. I rejected a VW Polo in 2009 via the Ombudsman. The mechatronic failed prematurely. The shunt from the DSG was so violent it felt like a RTA each time. Then one day mid roundabout the dashboard flashed PRND. VW said they couldn't find a fault. I managed to demonstrate it. Refused to drive the vehicle. The Ombudsman gave them 30 days to rectify it. The time frame is 6 months from purchase for the dealer to prove there is no fault. The dealer couldn't do that. So within 3 months the car was rejected. I had to get a second opinion from a mechanic at my own expense to push my case. You have to remember the Ombudsman are not mechanics. If you are confident you have a solid case then get an independent engineers report.

DEKRA engineer carried out an inspection. Diagnosed as loose pinch bolt on suspension mount which was the culprit and surmised that it had left the factory incorrectly torqued and worked its way loose.

This makes sense as from me reporting the issue the range got wider which would marry up with the bolt working its way loose to the point that it was too loose to carry out its task of acting as a mechanical fixing.....at that point the suspension collapsed.

So did it take 3 months from you contacting the ombudsman until the car was rejected?

[EvilDrPorkChop]

Whilst I can see your gripe with the car, BMW and the dealer, along with the act you've repeatably reported the issue on a number of occasions I'm not sure why you wouldn't let them repair the issue that they've finally admitted to - Surely this is the easier route than rejecting the car, being without a car and then having to order another car (Whether that be another manufacture or not). Obviously this route would have to involve some sort of compensation package for being without a car for x amount of time and the fact they tried to blame the issue on you. I'm just not sure rejecting the car is really the correct thing to do when it's an obvious repair. Now if you got the car back after this repair and then the issue was still not resolved I think you have reasonable grounds to reject.

Life is too short, let them repair it and get your car back.

[MackM4Comp]

Originally Posted by EvilDrPorkChop

Whilst I can see your gripe with the car, BMW and the dealer, along with the act you've repeatably reported the issue on a number of occasions I'm not sure why you wouldn't let them repair the issue that they've finally admitted to - Surely this is the easier route than rejecting the car, being without a car and then having to order another car (Whether that be another manufacture or not). Obviously this route would have to involve some sort of compensation package for being without a car for x amount of time and the fact they tried to blame the issue on you. I'm just not sure rejecting the car is really the correct thing to do when it's an obvious repair. Now if you got the car back after this repair and then the issue was still not resolved I think you have reasonable grounds to reject.

Life is too short, let them repair it and get your car back.

+ 1 👍🏼

[SkyJawa]

I think you’re in for a rough ride. This all sounds very similar to an epic M140 thread in which bmw tried to blame the owner that it was modified.

You might want to get some to read this one!

http://www.babybmw.net/viewtopic.php?f=74&t=97876

[Soul_Glo]

Originally Posted by AyrshireColin

DEKRA engineer carried out an inspection. Diagnosed as loose pinch bolt on suspension mount which was the culprit and surmised that it had left the factory incorrectly torqued and worked its way loose.

This makes sense as from me reporting the issue the range got wider which would marry up with the bolt working its way loose to the point that it was too loose to carry out its task of acting as a mechanical fixing.....at that point the suspension collapsed.

So did it take 3 months from you contacting the ombudsman until the car was rejected?

The whole process took 3 months. Waiting for the complaint to be picked up, the engineer report and, VW attempting to fix.

I felt the fault was so dangerous I stopped driving the car. The Ombudsman will first of all request that all reasonable attempts be made to rectify the problem. If BMW refuse to fix or eventually do fix it then you cannot reject the car as there is no longer a problem.

The law defines reasonable timeframe loosely and as a rule of thumb it can be up to 28 days. Reasonable attempts can be more than one visit. That is more than enough time to order a part unless the manufacturer can prove the specialist part was on back order etc. If your issue was not addressed within the time frame then you would have stronger grounds.

Regardless of the earlier mishap where they were supposed to arrange collection. If BMW can show they tried to fix it and managed to fix it in the end then you don't have a case.

If the car has still not been fixed and is off road or you are missing an important feature (cannot open boot) or unreasonable fault (using 1 litre oil every 50 miles) then you do have a case. The FSO could even rule compensation in your favour if you had to spend more getting into work without a car and even lost earnings if you were self employed at the time for example.

However, if they know what the problem is and have the part but you are refusing because it should have happened a while ago then the Ombudsman has the final call.

[pdk42]

Originally Posted by SkyJawa

I think you’re in for a rough ride. This all sounds very similar to an epic M140 thread in which bmw tried to blame the owner that it was modified.

You might want to get some to read this one!

http://www.babybmw.net/viewtopic.php?f=74&t=97876

Wow - that's quite an epic tale. I confess it's damaged BMW's reputation in my mind. Dealer incompetence, dealer lying, BMW failing to sort out something that was obviously seriously wrong. The OP deserves a medal for his patience, perseverance and civility over it all. Shame on BMW.

[DB118D]

Originally Posted by EvilDrPorkChop

Life is too short, let them repair it and get your car back.

See OP's other thread

He doesn't want the car back

[SkyJawa]

Originally Posted by pdk42

Wow - that's quite an epic tale. I confess it's damaged BMW's reputation in my mind. Dealer incompetence, dealer lying, BMW failing to sort out something that was obviously seriously wrong. The OP deserves a medal for his patience, perseverance and civility over it all. Shame on BMW.

Exactly this.

[AyrshireColin]

Originally Posted by SkyJawa

I think you’re in for a rough ride. This all sounds very similar to an epic M140 thread in which bmw tried to blame the owner that it was modified.

You might want to get some to read this one!

http://www.babybmw.net/viewtopic.php?f=74&t=97876

That is quite the tale of woe.

This is my major concern - how long exactly this can drag on.

If you contacted the ombudsman and they said 'give us 14 days' .....but they don't and it leaves things completely open ended.

It's a complete bugger that you end up in the situation when you compromise because you can't just wait it out as long as the big man - who also has a license to bullsh*t!

[Cleybrooke]

I found the Ombudsman process to fair, pragmatic if a little slow.

In the first instance, give them a call and lodge the complaint. They will encourage everyone to be nice and get the issue sorted. Note - your not dealing with an "Ombudsman" at this stage, they get involved later.

If that doesn't work, they then go to an interim finding and the first person you chatted to will investigate. This is not legally binding at this stage and either party can appeal.

If either party appeals the initial finding, then it goes to the ombudsman proper. Based on on the work the investigator did and taking onboard the appeals, they make an initial final decisions.

This can also be appealed. At this point, unless new information is revealed, it's near enough a done deal. They cannot appeal on the basis they don't like it or don't agree.

Finally, a final decision is made and the company, if found to in the wrong, has 3 or 4 weeks to sort out the situation.

TOP TIPS.
- Be nice the investigator. They are very busy and whilst you may have every nuance to hand, they won't.
- Try and make their life as easy as possible. Send an email that sets out your position verys simply.
- Don't assume they know everything there is no know about the finance product you purchased, they deal with a lot of disparate issues.
- Try not be emotional and put forward a rational position.
- Don't be confrontational, you want them on your side
- Be patient, in my case, it was 8 months start to finish

For me, the result was positive. The chap was a bit of petrol head which helped. He was disappointed I purchased an M2 however. He prefered a Nssan R32...

Good luck!

[AyrshireColin]

Okay so I blinked first.

I've accepted what essentially equates to the car being repaired and £1,716 in my pocket (x3 months payments plus the cost a tyre when the fault was misdiagnosed).

I have 100% confidence that the ombudsman would have ruled favourably but I'm already 5 months in and I don't think I could face a potential 12 month slog.

The one detail that I don't seem to have shared was that for the duration I have been driving a courtesy F36 420D so while not my car I've not been 1 day off the road.

I'm not happy with how everything has played out to be honest (having to justify and argue) but I'm in a no loss position really so live, learn and move on.

[KCH1984]

Probably as good an outcome as you could hope for all things considered - you can put that money towards sorting out the suspension mods

[Hooded]

Originally Posted by pdk42

Wow - that's quite an epic tale. I confess it's damaged BMW's reputation in my mind. Dealer incompetence, dealer lying, BMW failing to sort out something that was obviously seriously wrong. The OP deserves a medal for his patience, perseverance and civility over it all. Shame on BMW.

Yeah that was some read, .. glad the ombudsman eventually ruled in his favour!

I do suspect BMW weren't telling lies about the coding though .. did anyone else notice on his video that the average speed, mpg etc were freshly reset to dashes -- -- ,.. this would have happened if he'd coded out again the Digital speedo just before recording the video (or am I being a bit too Sherlock Holmes here), mine all reset like that when I coded it in recently.