Man, it burns me up... I just had my 540i (97) in for major servicing.. including the level II diagnostics.. or whatever they call it. I tell the service manager the cruise control isn't working and that I believe it's the cable (all insulation is rotted off and the symptom (CC shuts off shortly after being turned on esp. when on a steep incline/decline)[i.e. the cable is binding]. I've also brought it in for a radiator replacement ($250 for the part) which I inform the service manager caused a high temp alarm (and was seen on the temp guage)
Okay... diagnostics are performed....
you need a new cable ($65) and controller ($990) to fix the cruise control
your thermostat needs to be replaced ($330)
didn't these used to cost $3.30 on my TR6?
jump to end...
I had the cruise control cable (only) replaced... works like a champ
(knew it would)
didn't have the thermostat replaced... guess what... guage appears to be working (and car is running fine)
What ever happened to troubleshooting?
I'll not even go into the fact they will only REPLACE rotors.. .not go to the TROUBLE of turning them anymore.
and my battery was dead when I picked it up.
my real point/question is ... Does a REAL person ever look at the results and think about the possible other solutions?
Chris David
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| Reply » What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership? |
I share your anger.
Once you´re out of warranty (during which you siomply don´t care about the costs), your only option is to educate yourself about cars and either turn to a trustworthy independant or DIY.
The answer to your question is no. Competence seems to be a vanishing quality nowadays. And not only in BMW mechanics but in many walks of life.
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| Reply » What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership? |
Troubleshooting (the old fashioned way) isn't really done anymore, especially at dealerships. Today they plug the car in, see what it says, replace the related control module/black box and hand you the bill. They hope that does the trick as you drive away.
If you're back the next day, they try another black box and so on and so on...
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| Reply » What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership? |
With rare exceptions, I find the dealership of pretty much any make of car is the last place I would go to find a trustworthy, reliable mechanic. Your best bet is a competent independent shop that relies on word of mouth for their business. Much cheaper and most of the time better work.
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| Reply » What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership? |
As to the original question, when did it go away? Maybe when the electronics advanced so much from year-to-year (plug-in diagnostics). Maybe when labor rates went up faster than the profit margin. Not sure, but I do remember better dealer servicing of both cars and bikes when I was much younger (or is that just selective memory?).
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| Reply » What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership? |
Troubleshooting is great but it doesn't save the dealer any money so they just shotgun it and throw parts at it till its fixed, under warranty even its frustrating for me. I do all my own mechanical work not because I like to but because the other options are so poor. I wish I could find an independent BMW shop close by.
I work in aviation and I can attest to the fact troubleshooting is a lost art.
I had an recent exp with a corporate jet that had all 3 engines fail to start on the first flight of the day. Obviously all three engines share something in common.
The techs (away from home) ripped apart the electrical system, threw 10 grand in relays and circuit boards at it. Then we called from the hotel, what the hell are you doing I asked. Do you think all 3 engines cant start to to failure of all three start systems? or perhaps its the one thing they all have in common.
I assumed they knew the system requires the aircraft to be seen in ground mode for the engine starts while your on the ground ( weight on wheels) to verify proper operation.
How about looking at the clocks in the cockpit and seeing they are counting flight time.... odd when your on the ground huh? 6 techs at 90 bucks per hour... ( funny how car dealers charge more)
They had the balls to try to charge us the 10 grand plus labor. Best thing with a plane is you can literally fly out of there......
My horrible local BMW dealer ( Park Ave) couldn't diagnose things I pointed out to them in person. When the engine was running on 5 cylinders the tech said let me find out which cylinder isn't firing. By the time he brought out the OBC and hooked it up I told him it was cylinder 4 that wasn't firing, he looked at me like I was nuts. When the OBC confirmed what I said he was in awe, how did you know? he asked. Well all the other cylinders are hot... this one is not. How about just handing me a coil and I will do it myself......
Its a generation on parts changers out there, its the way things are now, nothing gets fixed just replaced. Try to get a TV fixed these days....
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What ever happened to troubleshooting at the dealership?