Paid 32 lakh and got a lemon (320d)

[mahadev_kc]

Only we can pass our take after getting the full story right.. Otherwise will be unnecessary wasting of the time.

[tez]

I dont believe BMW would do such a thing. We are not getting the complete picture here. can we have moderators suspend this thread till someone actually posts the complete story along with a credible source and pics if possible.
No point discussing on a piece of news which many of tbhpians believe to be just one half of the story

[bIte tHe bulLet]

Originally Posted by morphin1

Well i agree,
1. BMW cannot get away with treating the so called luxury segment owners like crap, as sooner or later it will diminish their image.
2. The self adjusting lights on BMW could require more extensive knowledge of the process which might have been overlooked by a noobie.
3. Until and unless the original poster of the issue, posts some pics to prove his point or decides to take it to another level I am with BMW as
Cancelling WARRANTY just like that will Definitely ruin their rep and I doubt BMW would want to leave India by 2009

So lets wait and see what comes up as I am taking personal interest in this matter and am waiting for the 320d owner to give more info.
Cheers

i really think some people on this forum are going completely o/b. there are too many loopholes in the story and there is no way that anyone on this forum can make an educated and informed opinion based on only one side of the story.

someone needs to get in touch with bmw and see what they say. i think it is only fair to give 'em a chance before lambasting them from here to timbuctoo...

lets get real people... we are supposed to be unbiased on the forum - that is the beauty of belonging to a forum such as this.

[cancerm]

hi Zak
If you are clean from ur end on the warranty part I would suggest you try & approach the consumer court, from what i hear the consurmer court in India is very strong & they shall take up the matter with those guys & put them at task for GOOD.

Rgds
Mustafa

[RishiSuri]

I can find out the true story,
I know the person personally handling the Dealership of BIRD.
If you want a true story then will ask him to give all the details and then i can post on it.

What say?

[zakaaaaasss]

Originally Posted by cancerm

hi Zak
If you are clean from ur end on the warranty part I would suggest you try & approach the consumer court, from what i hear the consurmer court in India is very strong & they shall take up the matter with those guys & put them at task for GOOD.

Rgds
Mustafa

Originally Posted by ported_head

Oh it's not your car. I thought it was zaaakkkaaaas complaining about his own vehicle.

Guys guys guys its not my car...i have posted the source in the opening thread


Nevertheless, as most of us said, whatever the owner has mentioned is jus one side of the coin and if someone cud get the details from the dealer/BMW, things can be more clear instead of any speculations....

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by cheap_deal

you pay 32laks for the 320d and dont get xenons with it? the only 3 series beamer one should buy IMO is the m3 or 335i.

Everyone isn't filthy rich bro .... and m3 costs more than double of a 3 series.
Why are we debating on what options the car has . Some bhpians seem to be talking more about why the car doesnt come with xenons than the real story !

[nitrous]

I feel really sorry for
(i) The treatment given to Indians by BMW i.e. the cars made in India by BMW are not at par with those made in forigen countries.
(ii0 The weak electrical systems of almost all the cars in INdia i.e. the headlights of almost all the cars in India are not effective in our conditions.

Obviously, U have no knowledge on what U're talking.
Legally, 55w/60 is the headlamp wattage allowed.Hence, all cars come with this as standard from the factory.
Like tyres and ICE, this is upgraded to 90/100 or 100/130 aftermarket to suit "indian conditions"!

[thefreak]

Originally Posted by Zappo

I do not think the dealer said that the Xenons caused the suspension failure You guys just got confused and made it sound so hilarious. I understand that this guy changed the tyres, probably upsized as well. According to BMW that is why the suspensions went kaput.

Xenons caused the electricals to go kaput. My my... at this rate someone will lean on the bonnet and the whole car will just crumble and fall down and BMW will say that you exerted undue pressure on the bonnet and that caused the whole body shell to go weak. ROTFLMAO

ROFL! Quite a post this one!

Yeah I agree... Something fishy going on here!

If this is for real sue them in the consumer forum for damages of a crore or such and go and buy a M

[msharma_79]

Originally Posted by RakishRam

Maybe a bit of German there. Tor, Tür or Tuer is door, so possibly he meant front door

seems like people are having fun while i was not looking. yes it is was tyre.

[morphin1]

Originally Posted by RishiSuri

I can find out the true story,
I know the person personally handling the Dealership of BIRD.
If you want a true story then will ask him to give all the details and then i can post on it.

What say?

Yes,YesYes.Please do find out what the BMW people have to say as the salesperson at Bird told me what I told you guys here, so a true story would be helpful as now I am scared of buying the 325i that I am planning to in March 2008.

[aaggoswami]

Obviously, U have no knowledge on what U're talking.
Legally, 55w/60 is the headlamp wattage allowed.Hence, all cars come with this as standard from the factory.
Like tyres and ICE, this is upgraded to 90/100 or 100/130 aftermarket to suit "indian conditions"!
__________________

Well, that is what my point is, that almost all the cars must have more powerful headlamps becuase the present configuration of 60/65W is insufficient for our conditions.

Along with this the electronic gadgets such as auto dimmer, etc are not that expensive, and if they are expenisve, they must be offered as an Option.

Xenon lamps are expenisve, but still people go for them becuase they find the factory fitted setup not sufficient.


I think that although the norm 55/60W is there( I was not aware of it, but i have always felt the need for more that that), Almost all maruti small cars come with 60/65W, skoda in the 1.8T petrol has Xenon, Laura has Xenon and VW passat has Xenon.

[kbk_75]

OK, having read through this post, I have to say that we must not believe everything we read until we have the complete facts. I am not saying that some guy hasn't had a problem with his car, but frankly, I think a little common sense needs to be exercised before you go tinkering-around with the electricals on these hi-tech cars. Putting xenons on a 320d is not a simple matter like changing the bulbs on your halogens, and care needs to be exercised. This is not an old Padmini you're playing with, it's a 3 series.

At any rate, as a BMW owner, I am interested in the full facts of this story, as I'm sure many of us on the forum are, so let's try and get some more details. It may be a case of a genuine problem. It may be a case of someone making stupid mods to a car that caused problems and then crying foul. It may be a case of someone trying to create negative publicity. Let's try and get the facts, if only to better understand what BMW India's take on these matters is.

[Ram]

If I may shoot my mouth off, without offending our nice friends, I would like to say this...

Xenon metal halide high intensity discharge (HID) headlamps do not run on 12V DC.

To switch on the Xenon lamps, the arc between the electrodes inside the bulb needs to "start". That needs rapidly pulsed power at 20,000V to 30,000V.
Imagine the quality of insulation, not to mention -- attention to detail, needed to safeguard the rest of the car from 30 kV !

Once the arc "starts", its heat vaporizes the metallic salts inside the arc chamber. Then the arc stabilizes at a steady 85 Volts in conventional D1 and D2 systems, or at 42 Volts with Hg-free D3 and D4 systems.

Needless to say these kilovolt voltages if mismanaged (as in insulated by uneducated people) can fry the BMW's computing electronics. Then how can warranty be claimed?

As automotive electronics drifts more and more in the direction of aircraft electronics, is it out-of-line to suppose that, electronics modding is best left to qualified electronics engineers, who know their subject?

I rest my case.

[ac 427]

Originally Posted by ram

If I may shoot my mouth off, without offending our nice friends, I would like to say this...

Xenon metal halide high intensity discharge (HID) headlamps do not run on 12V DC.

To switch on the Xenon lamps, the arc between the electrodes inside the bulb needs to "start". That needs rapidly pulsed power at 20,000V to 30,000V.
Imagine the quality of insulation, not to mention -- attention to detail, needed to safeguard the rest of the car from 30 kV !

Once the arc "starts", its heat vaporizes the metallic salts inside the arc chamber. Then the arc stabilizes at a steady 85 Volts in conventional D1 and D2 systems, or at 42 Volts with Hg-free D3 and D4 systems.

Needless to say these kilovolt voltages if mismanaged (as in insulated by uneducated people) can fry the BMW's computing electronics. Then how can warranty be claimed?

As automotive electronics drifts more and more in the direction of aircraft electronics, is it out-of-line to suppose that, electronics modding is best left to qualified electronics engineers, who know their subject?

I rest my case.

off topic : are you an astranout ? you seem to be speaking some language that I cannot understand.

but great knowledge