Void of warranty due to missing scheduled maintenance

[rpl77]

Originally Posted by SenorFunkyPants

I don't know the legality in your market..here it is a simple contract:
BMW will give you X as long as you do Y and don't do Z.
Do you not get a dash warning when the 1200 mile service is due?
I bought mine with a few thousand miles on the clock having insisted on a system print out that the 1200 mile service had been completed and a print out of the 1200 mile service invoice.

+1

I almost didn't buy mine since the 1200 mile service was done in Germany and US dealers don't have access to their system. however I finally got written verification from the German dealer that the 1200 mile service was done on time. I passed actually passed on 2 vehicles since the 1200 mile service wasn't done until 3000 miles.

[thekurgan]

The way I see it, this woman with baby, whatever, skipped basic service. [she] isn't a person I'd purchase a car from as she didn't take care of it, plain and simple.

As for BMW voiding warranty, it actually makes sense to me, given all the crazy claims they get from M cars since the S54 rod bearing issues.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by SenorFunkyPants

I don't know the legality in your market..here it is a simple contract:
BMW will give you X as long as you do Y and don't do Z.
Do you not get a dash warning when the 1200 mile service is due?
I bought mine with a few thousand miles on the clock having insisted on a system print out that the 1200 mile service had been completed and a print out of the 1200 mile service invoice.

You do indeed get a warning on the dash, and in fact the dealership typically CALLS you to schedule an appointment when that's coming up since the car uploads upcoming service information to its nearest dealership. But who knows, maybe the owner just never got around to it? Either that or the service was done and the records are just missing somehow, possibly due to Euro Delivery or maybe the owner took it to an indy shop for that service somehow not realizing until later that Ultimate Service meant free maintenance?

But I remember reading the terms on the warranty stating that coverage is contingent on certain factors, and I'm almost certain that having performed required maintenance in a reasonable timeframe was one of them.

[Dougeefresh]

I am hoping the service was done but didn't get logged. Based on the inconsistency I saw with the previous dealer I think this is possible and hoping. I found out about the owner after I got the car from some paperwork left in the car. I can only speculate why 1200 service wasn't done, if indeed it wasn't done.

At this point, it's done and hope that nothing will happen to the engine for the next two years until the warranty expires (I've had pretty good luck with all my cars as far as reliability goes *knock on wood*) . I or anyone else can only guess about possible damage done to the engine/differential by not having that svc but that part I am not too worried as I don't feel the car is missing a beat at 20k on the odo and I have yet to see any clear evidence presented by anyone about the consequences. And, I don't plan on selling this car anytime soon .

[M3 n X5M]

OP, look in the service booklet, carefully. I found the record of the 1200 service for my car hidden in that book... I bought the car (08 6MT e90 M3) used, and it was hard to identify if it was done. The book included notes indicating the diff and engine fluids were replaced.

In any case, you are at 20k miles. I would not worry about this again. These engines are tough - they are V8's after all. It is not a little ducati 2 stroke from the 60s. Unless the previous owner or you tracked the car extensively before the first oil change, it should be fine. It is a 4 liter 400+ hp engine. It is not a swiss watch, just a v8. I remember tracking at a school in Vegas, it was a Ferrari Scuderia with 68 k miles on the clock! The engine was unbelievable, ran like new! Do you think that the bearings were less worn than on your engine for missing a service appointment for 1 year, of daily driving? I do not think so.

If you plan on keeping the car for 250k miles then I would worry, and possibly build into your budget an engine rebuild at 150k.
Regarding the diff -- a rebuilt diff from Turner motorsports is like 1900. I would not sweat that part either.

Enjoy the car and change the oil every 10 k miles or so!

[Dougeefresh]

Judging by the car's condition (whatever is visible) and mileage, it was a daily commuter driven by a business woman so I doubt it ever saw anything harsh like track use. And the car runs like a champ so no worries.

As soon as the warranty is over I plan to supercharge it anyway.

[TheGulf1]

I just went through this issue (kind of) 2 weeks ago. I was looking at a 2012 with 6K miles on it at a local BMW dealer. While discussing the car I asked why they weren't selling it as a CPO car. He toid me BMW had disqualified it from being certified for a maintenance issue. I called BMW customer service for more info (and with the VIN). They looked the service record up and said since the 1200 mile service was not done (the dealer recently did it at 5900 miles when it was traded in), BMW would not "Certify" it. He said technically the warranty was still in effect but referred me to a dealer SA since there was a "flag" on the VIN. I talked to a local SA and he looked up the VIN and told me the flag was about the missed 1200 mile service. He said it was up to the dealer to determine if the missed service interval would be cause to deny a warranty claim. In essence if there was an issue with the engine, they may deny a claim based on the missed oil change. Otherwise he thought everything not associated with the changing of the "break-in" oil would probably be OK. I ended up passing on the car because of the uncertainty with the drivetrain.