Dear Honest John,

I purchased a BMW M3 CS from Beck Evans in Sidcup on 29th September this year. This is my 5th BMW and my 3rd 'M' so I know a bit about them. I paid £12,000 (partly though Close Motor Finance) the vehicle had covered 75,000 miles on a '55 plate. I arrived at the dealership at the pre-arranged time to collect my vehicle and was told "its not here - the boss has been driving it". Now in hindsight I should have compalined about this and I would have had I of known of things to come....

Immediately after purchase I discovered that the self-levelling xenon headlingts did not level and as a result permanently pointed straight down making night driving impossible. As such I duly called Beck Evans and was told "call the warranty company". I explained that I had never been given any details of the warranty company and after asking and then following up with another phone call I eventually got sent a warranty booklet. I found a mechanic myself and arranged for the repiars to be made. My car was not useable at night for a week but I did get this resolved under warranty.

Fast forward a month and the drivers door lock actuator fails. This means that the drivers door canot be opned from the inside or outside - effectively making the car unuseable, again. Given the lack of help from Beck Evans previously I went direct to the warranty company. The part was out of stock at BMW and as the fault occured over a weekend the car was off the road for another 5 days but the fault was covered under warranty.

Fast forward another month (still only had the vehicle two months!) and the o/s/f brake caliper seizes on which again means the car is off the road. I call the warranty company and they say that calipers are not covered under warranty. As such I duly call Beck Evans workshop who ask me to bring the car in but any work will be charged for. Now, as any competant person will confirm its not advisable to drive a car with a seized caliper at all, let alone 30mins up the motorway. Its obviously unsafe but will also destroy the discs/pads which on an M3 are not cheap. I duly explain this and am advised to email the Boss, Samuel Evans.

I email Samuel Evans staing only the facts, not making any demands or being unreasonable and ask what he can do to help. A couple of days later I get an email back from his secretary explaining why they will not do anything to help - at all.

Mainly I am disgusted that any dealer would not at the very least offer an apology for this series of failings but surely they have an obligation to make good the fault? As I need my car on a daily basis I have had to get it repaired myself now so should I send them the invoice? (I think its important to note that now the caliper has been replaced its obvious that this has been partially faulty since purchase as the car now drives much better).

Sorry for the lenghty post. I am fortunate enough to be able to afford the repiars (more cross about the lack of apology) but I feel this needs to be taken further and maybe make them think twice about treating another custmer like this......

Here is the letter they sent me (with a couple of comments from me):

I refer to the above vehicle that you purchased from this firm in September 2012 and in particular your email dated the 3 rd December 2012 to Samuel Evans in which you complain of a vibration through the brakes and steering wheel that you believe is the result of a seized brake caliper. You additionally complain that this fault is not covered under your Autoguard warranty.

When you accepted the Autoguard warranty you also accepted the provider’s terms and conditions, although your acceptance of this does not affect your statutory right to be provided with a vehicle that is of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose. (how could I accept this if I was not given the warranty booklet until a week after the purchase??)

However, a statutory right exists only until a time when acceptance by you has taken place and affects items that are deemed to have been faulty at the time of your purchase, in contrast to a warranty that insures against a breakdown of a component that although functioning correctly at the time of purchase, subsequently fails.

Furthermore, a statutory right is determined by reference to the description applied to the vehicle, it’s age and particularly it’s mileage and I think it therefore goes almost without saying that a person’s expectations, when purchasing a 1-year old vehicle that has traveled just 12,000 miles, should be different when buying a second hand 7-year old vehicle that has driven some 75,000 miles.

I understand that Samuel Evans has offered for our workshop to inspect your brake calipers and no cost. However whether the problem can be remedied by cleaning or replacing the caliper, there will be a charge made to you on the basis that brakes represent a component that is subject to wear and tear. (calipers are not wear & tear - ask ANY mechanic)

Edited by vectra159 on 08/12/2012 at 07:31