For the record, I'm NOT a lawyer. But I have to agree with Krieger; class action lawsuits have the potential for producing societal benefits, even if they enrich lawyers. A class action lawsuit is a market-based substitute for direct government regulation aimed at inducing businesses to deliver products that are not defective. BMW has had ample time to fix the HPFP problem and has failed to do so, given the number of complaints and multiple failures on individual vehicles. I almost cancelled my recent order based on the complaints on this website. It would be nice to know what the probability is that I will experience an HPFP failure but the data are not public to allow me to make that assessment. Hopefully this lawsuit will get some results.
One doesn't have to be a powertrain engineer to know that something is not right when a car suddenly and unexpectedly loses power at high speed on a superhighway. Lawyers may not be capable of designing a fix for the HPFP but they are not idiots.
Update: Good Morning America, 10/26/10 ABC News Investigation Prompts Major Action Finally, one week after ABC News first contacted the company, the German automaker told ABC News that they would soon announce a "major action" to address the fuel pump issue. "We understand that people are feeling uncomfortable with the situation and people want to know more, so we're taking action as quickly as possible," Baloga said. He conceded that questions from ABC News "caused us to decide to take action sooner, rather than later." Still, it may take longer to restore the faith of their once-loyal customers. "There is nothing that could get me into that car, ever, ever," said Mangot. "If something was to happen to my daughter that would change my life forever," Noone said. "And I don't want to see something happen to my daughter or someone else's daughter in an unsafe car." (full article linked below) http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/bmw-admits-fuel-pump-flaw-turbo-cars/story?id=11968495&page=1
From the link: So it wasn't the lawyers ... and it wasn't the electricians. It was the investigative journalists. I would normally prefer that such a tactic would be the last resort in resolving a recurring problem with a manufacturer's product. However, it seems that BMW has told us that this is what works the fastest. I am truly sorry to see that precedent.
Is that because the lawyers won't see a big payout now? Actually I'm sure that the ABC report just added more pressure for BMW to move. The end result it what matters...usually.
Assuming you're kidding, of course ... Seriously, no; that's not the reason. I think it's a bad precedent for BMW to have forced the issue of undeniable and widespread customer complaints into both a class action lawsuit and a media exposé. Their corporate pig-headedness has only damaged them and their swift backpedaling in the face of an ABC investigation hasn't helped much. They end up looking foolish. You'd think they learned something from the Nikasil debacle of the early '90s. Apparently, not much.
Is the announced "solution" just a continuation of installing HPFPs that fail and softare bandaids in an effort to escape media attention? Does BMW actually have a proper N54/55 HPFP solution or is this just an official confirmation of what they have been doing for the past year, with resulting vehicle operational issues and more HPFP failures?
Yes, according to the recall information. No "real" fix, just continuing what they've been doing so far.
