Philes' Forum by Vic Lucariello

Hello, Bimmerphiles! This month I have, as promised, Bimmerphile Alexei Tsekoun's account of how Hunterdon BMW resolved a warranty issue with his 318 ti. Alex's story is presented verbatim, with any of my comments shown parenthetically [Uh, Ross….that's like this]. Take it away, Alex……….

In late June of this year, my car, a 1997 318ti Sport with just under 50,000 miles, developed a strange noise. Under moderate to heavy braking, a clunking sound would emanate from underneath the front portion of the car. Since I couldn't detect any performance degradation, and not being an expert mechanic, I simply decided that something came loose under the car. Being nevertheless concerned, I brought my car to the dealership I usually work with.

Later the same day, I got a call from the service advisor: the transmission bellhousing [so-called because it is quasi bell-shaped] had a 1" hole in it, and there was a piece inside that was making the noise I heard. [The bellhousing contains the clutch, pressure plate and flywheel] Since on a 318 ti the bellhousing is an integral part of the manual transmission, the gearbox had to be replaced, together with the clutch and possibly the flywheel. The worst part, however, was the fact that the dealership decided to deny warranty coverage, citing "abuse". I was looking at an almost $3,500 repair bill.

I requested to see the car. Prior to being shown into the shop, the dealership's service manager explained that they believed the damage was caused by careless driving, basically, by running over something. Once I looked at the car, it became absolutely clear to me that the impact that caused the damage came from within the bellhousing, and not from the outside (see photo).

The service manager agreed with me, but still refused to cover the car, still citing "abuse". I guess my tires, beat up by Driver Schools and winter-time wheel spin, made a bad impression. The service manager offered to show the car to a BMW Field Service Engineer. A few days later, I was informed that a BMW Representative had looked at the car, and sided with the dealership. I was refused an opportunity to speak with the representative, and moreover, the dealership refused to provide me not only with the representative's phone number, but even with his name !! BMW Customer Service who, incidentally, I found to be virtually worthless, confirmed that a Field Service Engineer is the final arbiter. I was left without any recourse. Basically, I was found guilty and sentenced without ever being able to present any arguments in my defense.

The dealership offered to take the clutch assembly apart at my expense, and then make a further determination as to whether the problem might still be a warranty case. I asked the service manager to present me with possible scenarios, something like "when we open up the car, if we see A or B, it's your fault, but C would be covered".

The answer I received was: "I have no idea what we're going to see inside, but once we see it, we'll make a decision". Being a scientist, I was obviously dissatisfied with such an experimental plan. Thus, I requested that no work be done, and took my car back home. Having exhausted my options with the official channels, I have resorted to the best resource that we all have – the Club and its members. I contacted Vic Lucariello and asked for his advice. After discussing the possible clutch failure modes with me, he suggested that I bring the car to Hunterdon BMW. This was the pivotal advice.

At Hunterdon, Vic and Service Manager Bill Young looked at the car and came to the conclusion that the clutch most probably suffered an internal component failure. Bill explained that this case would still have to be shown to a BMW Field Service Engineer, owing to the cost of repair and to the fact that the car had already been looked at.

A few days later, a BMW representative, Stephen Tanderup, inspected the car and authorized disassembly for inspection, which revealed a broken clutch guide pin. [Most BMW clutch pressure plates are located on the flywheel by three pressed-in pins. The pins provide more accurate centering of the relatively heavy pressure plate than would the attachment screws alone. When performing clutch service, care must be taken not to bend or otherwise disturb these pins. When resurfacing the flywheel, the pins must be carefully removed and reinstalled. Alexei and I theorize that prior clutch service on his car was the root of the problem.]

Mr. Tanderup determined that the repair should be covered under warranty, and a few days later I had my car back, with a new transmission, clutch, and flywheel. Moreover, Hunterdon performed a wheel alignment and a Driver School inspection, and didn't even charge me for it! My experience with Hunterdon BMW exceeded all my expectations. Bill Young and his team [Service Advisor Michael Tomaszewski, Super Tech Bill Wiedmuller, and others. Wiedmuller, of course, is a NJ Chapter Lime Rock School tech worker. We hire only the best!] exhibited high level of professionalism, true customer–oriented attitude, and, most importantly, respect for and understanding of Club members, which is really rare these days. I now see firsthand why I have never heard a bad word about Hunterdon from anyone, and why this dealership has such a close and fruitful relationship with our Chapter.

Another lesson I learned was that the Club and its people are our best resource when the going gets rough. So, let's all get involved in the Club affairs, let's give to the Club when we can, and it will be there for us when we need it. [My emphasis] Thank you, Vic!

You are quite welcome, Alexei. By the way, Wiedmuller and I want to know about those dates you promised with your sisters. Are they really twins who look like Ashley Judd? Any more problems we can help you with, Pal?

How anyone could have looked at Alex's bellhousing and honestly concluded that the damage was the result of road debris is beyond me. In addition to the hole in the photo, the other side of the bellhousing had a deformity patently due to something trying to escape from the inside.

Hunterdon BMW is on Route 22 West in Lebanon, NJ. 908 236 6302. This was not the first time our friends at Hunterdon helped out NJ Chapter members who could not find satisfaction elsewhere. Although I cannot publish the name of the dealer who could not help Alex, I am positive he will tell you if you ask him in private.

Anyone wishing to contribute to Philes' Forum should contact me via the info on the masthead. I'm interested in tech tips, repair/maintenance questions and/or tips, dealer horror stories, product evaluations, etc. Please call before 8 PM, and if you leave a message, PLEASE INCLUDE A PHONE NUMBER WHERE I CAN REACH YOU DURING THE DAY ON WEEKDAYS. Also, please be patient, I try to return every phone call, but it sometimes takes a while. If you don't hear back from me within a few days, please call again. The best way to contact me is via e-mail.

Copyright 1999 - V.M. Lucariello, PE