Is BMW likely to give me a goodwill contribution to replace the engine in my X1?
My 69 plate BMW X1 with 73k miles broke down and I've been told by two different garages that the engine has failed and needs replacing. The car was bought from a BMW dealership from new (ex demo) and it's first service was done at BMW, all other servicing and work has been done outside of the network. It was last serviced and MOTd in September this year. I have contacted BMW about trying the goodwill route and the garage were helpful, but I'll have pay to transport the car to BMW, pay £159 for the diagnostic tests and pay for any investigation work required before the report can be sent in. What I'm trying to weigh up is whether it's worth paying out for all of that if I'm unlikely to get anywhere with goodwill. An engine replacement at full cost at BMW is well out of my price range. Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I'm very unsure what to do next.
Asked on 26 November 2025 by Nicola Stephenson
Answered by
David Ross
Goodwill payments for a significant failure will be on a case by case basis, but as a general rule we would expect a dealer or manufacturer to do so only if the vehicle was serviced by a main dealer or authorised garage for its whole life. If your vehicle has only one service with BMW and the rest by an independent garage this is likely to significantly reduce the likelihood of a goodwill contribution, if not completely eliminate it - it may depend on exactly which garage or garages carried out the servicing. You could approach the garage and/or BMW for clarification on this point, but it may be that a better option would be to have the car taken to an independent BMW specialist - a diagnosis would likely be less expensive and a repair or replacement engine would also be cheaper than main dealer prices.
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