In 2004, my 2000 Model Year 323i (with less than 44,000 miles) began to develop what is now a national scandal and potential if not already the basis for a class action suit - the lost reverse gear. With no where else to turn I began to reach out to folks (local chapter leaders for example) to get some ideas/suggestions on what to do...I got NADA! nothing, no help from anyone, with responses like "um well I have a manual, maybe you should consider doing a manual" Thanks but that's not the answer. The answer was (perhaps I was early, but this was in 2004), or should have been "there are several similiar reports, try Googling "323i no reverse", contact BMW NA and be specific. Send a letter in writing. (It turned out there was an existing site with pages and pages of the same problem including one person who took apart the trans it's entitled "Steptronic Autopsy" if you care to look. So I said " the heck with this.. I enjoy the Roundel mag, but my local dealer just stopped giving CCA discounts - what the heck am I doing !!" Let my subscription lapse, replaced the trans at a cost of nearly $4000, and shortly thereafter (after doing MUCH research) bought my wife a 2004 325 CI Convertible which she adores.. 2 years later I trade my Lexus SUV for an X5 and have never been happier. Just today the DS window regulator failed on the X5, and not only was that fixed BUT a complete break job, wiper replacements, micro filter, hand wash and dry and the charge was $0. I've come back solely because I think in the next year or two we'll be ready to replace 1 if not both of the cars as the come off CPO and want to at least take advantage of the discount. I bought the extended maintenance for the 04. Plus there was a CCA party I wasnt invited to at my local dealer (who has reestablished the CCA discount), so I invested $76, but as a member of both E46Fanatics and Xoutpost.com (formerly X5world) which are FREE, I've made great friends, and it didnt cost me a dime. So I'm back..Optimistic..and look forward to a better experience than the last time. Thank you for the opportunity to give you my feedback. I hope it's treated as constructed critcism and I wont need a flack jacket to ward off flames It's good to be back ! ed in Metuche, NJ
Nothing but love... No flames from northern NY. Welcome back, and enjoy shopping for your next purchases!!
Ummm, let me get this straight: you got upset because your chapter officers (who are all volunteers, by the way) didn't help you out with a problem they'd probably never heard of? They (OK; we - I was a board member and chapter officer for nearly a decade.) are not technical advisers or anything of the sort. They run the club and its activities. That's all. To be honest, I would have given you the same answer because this is the first I have ever heard of such a failure - and I tend to hear about a lot of this stuff. Still, this is a mostly model-specific malady and the vast majority of everyone in the club has never seen nor heard of it. Just so you know. Well, Ed, I certainly can't blame you for joining up purely for the financial incentives. In your place, I'd probably do the same. But I think you've missed the main objective of the club in the past. It is to participate in the activities we plan around our mutual enjoyment of BMWs. Yes, we have some club technical advisers and we have club ombudsmen; none of whom, IIRC, are paid. We are a club largely moved by volunteers who do a surprisingly professional job of it, if I do say so myself. We harbor some incredibly well-versed individuals as well, but they are not always easy to find for answers to your technical problems. You have since located some non-club sources that may or may not remain unaffiliated (as is my own favorite cyber-group, MyE28.com), but I'll bet the majority of their best-informed members are 'CCA members as well. I am glad you finally got some satisfaction from your earlier BMW and I'm even happier to hear you're satisfied now with later ones. But I will be delighted if I can meet you next summer at Oktoberfest because then I will know you're hooked.
Welcome back Whatever happened with the 323i reverse gear issue? After that episode, I would have been very hesitant to ever buy another BMW product. So, BMW should consider themselves lucky to have you as a returning customer. However, BMWCCA really can't offer much support, beyond sympathy, in that type of situation. Now you raise the issue of your CPO ending. I assume you are speaking of a CPO lease. Beware, BMWFS has shifted focus and CPO leases are much less attractive these days. I went through that experience this summer and opted to buy my current 330i. The current lease offer on a new 328 is actually better than a CPO lease on a 3-year old car with similar features. Of course, you have to accept the "package deal" which limits you to an automatic transmission.
Welcome Back edcolandra edcolandra Welcome back! There is nothing like the forgiveness you've extended the BMW brand. Hey when you're good at what you do that doesn't mean, in your case the '04 323i, is perfect. Thats the thing with machines they break down and are rarely consistent across the board. Stick w/machines though because even the best sciencists cannot help you even with us humans, but I know who can!!!!! (see sig)
