Tire and Wheel Insurance (From BMW) - DEALER COST??

[bonwit904]

Picking up the M3 tomorrow and going to purchase the tire and wheel insurance - which is now provided by BMW and not a 3rd party as it had been in the past since apparently the 3rd party providers were loosing money on BMW's given the runflats on the majority of their cars.

My question is how much is the dealer cost for this? my dealer quoted me 1100 dollars, and promised they were selling it at cost but I get the feeling this is not "cost". Since a majority of us end up buying this protection given the low-profile tires on the M3 it would be good to know how much we should be paying for this ?

[comebackid]

Originally Posted by bonwit904

Picking up the M3 tomorrow and going to purchase the tire and wheel insurance - which is now provided by BMW and not a 3rd party as it had been in the past since apparently the 3rd party providers were loosing money on BMW's given the runflats on the majority of their cars.

My question is how much is the dealer cost for this? my dealer quoted me 1100 dollars, and promised they were selling it at cost but I get the feeling this is not "cost". Since a majority of us end up buying this protection given the low-profile tires on the M3 it would be good to know how much we should be paying for this ?

I guess my dealer was smoking something. He offered it at over $2,000. Something like $2,200 or 2,500.

[duk]

why would you need this? not being sarcastic, trying to understand

[Slpnbyu]

This is the one upsell that I always stop and think about when they offer it to me.

- $1100 is a great deal if you even bend/crack one wheel on a pothole

brain kicks in...

- How many times have I ever bent/cracked a wheel? ZERO (knock on wood)

[WCH]

Depends on where you live. Some places like Boston - damaging a tire or wheel is a fairly common occurrence. The other consideration is whether you are going to go aftermarket for wheels eventually - most policies won't cover the wheels.

$1100 is not too bad depending on how long you covered (3 years, 5 years?).

Like all insurance, it's a matter of whether you rather pay per incident or pay up front to have peace of mind.

In addition, you should ask whether you need to make a claim or if the dealer will do it for you. The latter is much better as you then don't have to pay anything up front and then wait for a check.

[PrimeBMW]

I am not a fan of paying for something you may never use or best case pay in advance. Plus if I were to bend a wheel I would make the City, County or State pay for it. Either way there is a company in Portland that will straighten a wheel for $150 and he is highly respected.

Don’t buy the insurance.

[Frozen Black Panther]

this saved me 4 times during 2.5 years on my 335, WELL WORTH IT, and yes im getting it for 1100 as well

[WCH]

Originally Posted by PrimeBMW

I am not a fan of paying for something you may never use or best case pay in advance. Plus if I were to bend a wheel I would make the City, County or State pay for it.

Fair enough. However, it is unlikely in MA that you could get the state or city to pay for it. Oregon might be different.

[bonwit904]

In my opinion anyone who doesnt buy the wheel/tire is shortsighted if you live in an area like northeast, chicago, etc... esp if you order the 19's

As for local gov't paying - unless your local gov't is different than mine, good luck trying to get them to pay for a 500+ dollar wheel and 350+ dollar tire. I am fairly sure the rule is they only pay if they have been formally notified about the road hazard and have yet to correct the issue.

As for no flats / bent wheels - buying 35 series tires (19) and commuting on pothole plagued roads...flats are going to happen....2 replacements and it has paid for itself....its not about piece of mind, its about dealing with a real risk. Car has to be usable on a daily basis without fear of a 3 digit bill every time you leave the garage

I dont think the 3rd party guys would have pulled out of the business of insuring bmw wheels/tires had they been making money on the policies - the reality is they were paying out far more than the cost of the policies....and on the aggregate the consumer was in the black on that investment...

[Slpnbyu]

Originally Posted by bonwit904

As for no flats / bent wheels - buying 35 series tires (19) and commuting on pothole plagued roads...flats are going to happen....2 replacements and it has paid for itself....its not about piece of mind, its about dealing with a real risk. Car has to be usable on a daily basis without fear of a 3 digit bill every time you leave the garage.

Like I said, I guess I have just been very lucky over the past 18 years of driving in the Chicagoland and Washington D.C. metro areas.

I dodge potholes to an extreme and I switch to dedicated winters on 18s during the worst months.

Knock on wood, I hope my good fortune continues...

[E30M3/E90M3]

I paid $1100 for 5 yrs. I usually decline stuff like this when they try to upsell, but with my last car (135i) my wife managed to get nails in 3 different tires within the first 5k miles of ownership. I got it for peace of mind, I "cringe" less too if I hit a pothole

[yvl]

Originally Posted by bonwit904

Picking up the M3 tomorrow and going to purchase the tire and wheel insurance - which is now provided by BMW and not a 3rd party as it had been in the past since apparently the 3rd party providers were loosing money on BMW's given the runflats on the majority of their cars.

My question is how much is the dealer cost for this? my dealer quoted me 1100 dollars, and promised they were selling it at cost but I get the feeling this is not "cost". Since a majority of us end up buying this protection given the low-profile tires on the M3 it would be good to know how much we should be paying for this ?

What did you end up paying and for what term? I'm going to sign for a 3 year ED lease this week end so would love to know what pricing people are getting...

[J BONE]

I've cracked two rims in the last three months and blown out 3 tires over the last 2.5 years. I wish to hell I would have gotten the tire insurance. Before it was sold by a third party, they did cover after market wheels. I would def ask about this. Not sure how strong the OEM ones are?

[yvl]

Originally Posted by PrimeBMW

I am not a fan of paying for something you may never use or best case pay in advance. Plus if I were to bend a wheel I would make the City, County or State pay for it. Either way there is a company in Portland that will straighten a wheel for $150 and he is highly respected.

Don’t buy the insurance.

Good luck doing this in bankrupt Los Angeles.

[M3chris]

When I first got my 2007 335i Conv, I drove it straight to the America's Discount Tire and purchased road hazard warranty for tires that I didn't even buy from them for about $130 for all 4 tires. I did that because of all the blogs I read on how expensive run flat tires were, and how often there were problems with them. That was the best money I had ever spent. I had 5 episodes of free replacement of tires. (Keep in mind, each time I had to buy another $30-40 warranty for the new one) In the three years I drove the car (nearly 40K miles), I only bought two full priced tires for my car. Now, I’m ready for my 2011 M3 conv. The wheels are not covered under that circumstance.

[dimabimmer]

subscribed

[positiveions]

more methods to rip consumers off.

[Poleposition]

I supposedly paid dealer cost for the wheel and tire insurance when I got the X. It came to $600. It is an insurance policy with a third party. The dealer handles ALL correspondence with the insurer and you only deal with the dealer. It has more than paid for itself as I have replaced tires that cost $500+ on more than one occasion. I dont plan to purchase the insurance on the M as I plan to run an aftermarket setup and the insurance only covers OEM wheels and tires.

[elh0102]

Here is a rule that has served me well for 30 years: If the dealer is selling it, don't buy it. And of course it is not their cost. It is now an internal product, so their only "cost" is their claim experience, which I'm sure your dealer associate does not know. If it offers you peace of mind, then maybe it's worth it to you.

[BMW Alpina]

If your car is a daily driver,
mostly driven in road with many potholes, then buying the wheel and tire insurance will be a good choice.

[netjack]

so whats the best rate people have been able to secure from a dealer these days for a 3 yr lease?

[shawshank772]

I agree, it depends where you live. I know I have bent/cracked a few rims in my day here in Chicago.