Yes!! I was just about to say that too!!
Go to dealer
if not satisfactory then
contact vehicle manufacture if not
then contact Motor code !! According to bloke with specs on right now. See iplayer for replay.
I think you may be ok on this as Watchdog scored a victory for the Clio drivers with bonnets that popped open - let's hope it does same again.
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wow - now I understand - potential politician that guy.
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According to BMW they don't have this "cracking" problem elsewhere, only in the UK. Now given the combination of poor road condition, lots of speed bumps and the use of run-flat tyres, it's hardly a surprise that this sort of thing is happening. I wouldn't have bought my 335d if it had 19" wheels on - it's just asking for trouble,
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Having watched the programme and saw the damage highlighted I must say, the rubber between alloy and tarmac is remarkably narrow, so I'm not surprised these alloys crack under the strain of potholes and speed humps.
Or BMW are buying in sub standard wheels.
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Plenty of rubbish roads on mainland Europe - Maybe Europeans don't subscribe to the sad willy-waving that is having wheels much bigger than is actually useful (reminds me of a joke where the punchline is about an 18 inch pianist...).
Thus less cracked alloys.
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........... I'm not surprised these alloys crack under the strain of potholes and speed humps.
And mounting/hitting kerbs etc.
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>>According to BMW they don't have this "cracking" problem elsewhere, only in the UK.
They said that about the Nikasil bore problem!
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>>According to BMW they don't have this "cracking" problem elsewhere only in the UK.
There's plenty of reports of it on US forums - does stupid BMW not know the web is world wide?
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My wife bought a pair of shoes with stilletto heels.
She's only worn then on two hiking trips and on one marathon but already they're falling apart - I find it truly disgusting that a new pair of shoes has deteriorated so quickly.
I'm going to write to my MP and the Daily Mail immediately, this surely a national scandal.
MVP
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Yes of course, that's the problem - these BMW owners are using their cars on the road :yikes: instead of just looking at them on their drives.
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What ever happened to tyres being used to absorb some of the bumps? I don't understand why anybody in their right mind would buy a car with such low profile tyres. The ride quality must be bone shaking.
I found BMWs attitude quite disgusting. Clearly if all these wheels are cracking its not all the drivers fault.
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She's only worn then on two hiking trips and on one marathon but already they're falling apart
...and what's the equivalent of this in driving terms? From what I've heard/read none of the owners with problems have been driving on anything out of the ordinary.
Edited by Focus {P} on 23/10/2009 at 12:43
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She's only worn then on two hiking trips and on one marathon but already they're falling apart - I find it truly disgusting that a new pair of shoes has deteriorated so quickly.
So in the case of BMW 19" rims, this would be the equivalent of two long trips off road through a rocky gorge, followed by 24hrs on the Nurburgring....
Yes, you're right, I wouldn't expect alloy wheels to take that kind of punishment either.
However, normal road use is another matter, isn't it?
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This size/type of wheel and tyre is completely unsuitable for the UKs roads.
If people are silly enough to pay lots of money for them, it's their lookout, and they will need to lookout, for every speed bump and pothole.
What do people want, government regulations saying you can't have stupid wheel/tyre combinations?
MVP
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I think you have a point :) BMWs are just show pieces designed as status symbols and should not be driven on public roads :) I assume this why their indicators never work.
They could be nice cars but they need to make them more practical for proper roads. Whats the point on super handeling when there is speed cameras every mile anyway?
My uncle has a 5 series that is a nice car, it has proper tyres and is actually very comfortable. That is what BMWs should be like.
Edited by Rattle on 23/10/2009 at 13:52
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If BMW fit it, then they agree (by law) that it is fit for purpose.
Owner's buying a car fitted with these wheels have a reasonable expectation that BMW should only be offering them because they are suitable. If they are not, then BMW should withdraw them and offer affected owners new alloys of a smaller size. This is a moral and legal obligation.
Myself, I prefer 16" rims or less, as it happens. But I understand why people like the larger designs and why they are unhappy with this situation.
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This size/type of wheel and tyre is completely unsuitable for the UKs roads.
The wheels should be fit for purpose, and while the definition of 'purpose' might be open to interpretation, 'driving along the average road at legal speed without cracking when used in a BMW approved wheel/tyre combination' seems reasonable. Are you saying they are not fit for purpose?
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The wheels should be fit for purpose and while the definition of 'purpose' might be open to interpretation 'driving along the average road at legal speed without cracking when used
So are you saying all BMW drivers with silly wheels always travel below the speed limit, and go over speed bumps at an appropriate speed?
MVP
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So are you saying all BMW drivers with silly wheels always travel below the speed limit and go over speed bumps at an appropriate speed?
Don't be daft :-) But the ones featured on Watchdog claimed to be sensible drivers - I suspect at least some of them are, unless you know otherwise.
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>> So are you saying all BMW drivers with silly wheels always travel below the speed >> limit and go over speed bumps at an appropriate speed? Don't be daft :-) But the ones featured on Watchdog claimed to be sensible drivers - I suspect at least some of them are unless you know otherwise.
If they were sensible, why did they buy this wheel/tyre combination ?
MVP
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If they were sensible why did they buy this wheel/tyre combination ?
I said they claimed to be sensible drivers - I don't think being a sensible driver and liking the appearance of big wheels are mutually exclusive.
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>> If they were sensible why did they buy this wheel/tyre combination ? I said they claimed to be sensible drivers - I don't think being a sensible driver and liking the appearance of big wheels are mutually exclusive.
Well they weren't going to parade the boy racer brigade , or people who say they went over speed bumps at 40mph were they !
Would you not say that people who buy huge wheels and thin tyres are more likely to be "enthusiastic" drivers than the norm, and therefore more likely to cause damage to delicate fashion accessories ?
MVP
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Would you not say that people who buy huge wheels and thin tyres are more likely to be "enthusiastic" drivers than the norm and therefore more likely to cause damage to delicate fashion accessories ?
Nonsense, there's no evidence for such a poor generalisation. Only your own preconceptions support this idea.
That's like saying that if you own a car with 15" rims you'll drive carefully, but if your next car happens to have 19" rims, you suddenly become a hooligan?
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SQThat's like saying that if you own a car with 15" rims you'll drive carefully but if your next car happens to have 19" rims you suddenly become a hooligan?
You seem to be trying to put words in my mouth.
Do you think people who buy drug-dealer wheels are more likely to "keener" drivers than those who buy 15 steel wheels?
How many pensioners/nuns/mums/vicars do you see driving BMWs with 19inch wheels?
MVP
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 23/10/2009 at 20:03
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You seem to be trying to put words in my mouth.
No, just pointing out the absurdity of your argument.
Do you think people who buy drug-dealer wheels are more likely to "keener" drivers than those who buy 15 steel wheels?
That's unknown. The worst driving I see round my way is teenagers in chavved up Corsas, with or without big alloys. There's a nice gentlemen down the road from me with a 645i convertible and a set of huge rims, which he drives impeccably and with some grace.
You see where your generalisations don't work?
How many pensioners/nuns/mums/vicars do you see driving BMWs with 19inch wheels?
How many aggressive arrogant types do you see driving humdrum Vectras and Mondeos with 16" wheels?
Meaningless question, meaningless answer.
The fact is, you're trying to claim these BMW drivers brought this wheel failure upon themselves by either choosing a wheel that's inappropriate or by driving inappropriately.
You cannot and do not know whether either of those are true. You only have your preconceptions of an average BMW driver to guide your reasoning here.
But the simple fact that there are other makers with a very similar target audience (e.g. Audi and Mercedes) appearing to be producing cars fitted with 19" rims without having these issues. How would you explain that?
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There's a nice gentlemen down the road from mewith a 645i convertible and a set of huge rims which he drives impeccably and with some grace.
Have his wheels cracked?
But the simple fact that there are other makers with a very similar target audience (e.g. Audi and Mercedes) appearing to be producing cars fitted with 19" rims without >>
having these issues. How would you explain that?
Not so many boy racers buy Mercedes or Audi
MVP
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Have his wheels cracked?
No, but then he doesn't use it as a daily driver, more as a weekend toy. Give it time, who can tell?
Not so many boy racers buy Mercedes or Audi
Well you plainly haven't suffered from one Audi after another up your backside on our lovely motorways. Haven't you heard? Audi is the new BMW...
;)
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Well you plainly haven't suffered from one Audi after another up your backside
Makes my eyes water just to think about it !
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delicate fashion accessories
Ah well if that's how they're described in the BMW catalogue then fair enough :-)
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SQAh well if that's how they're described in the BMW catalogue then fair enough :-)
I'm sure this was in the BMW catalogue, they wouldn't rely on their customers working it out for themselves ;)
MVP
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 23/10/2009 at 20:03
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SQI'm sure this was in the BMW catalogue they wouldn't rely on their customers working it out for themselves ;)
I think it is reasonable for customers to expect a hard ride, but not broken wheels when driven at legal speeds and taking normal pothole/speed bump avoidance measures. Is it that you disagree with, or that all the customers who are complaining were driving at illegal speeds etc.?
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 23/10/2009 at 20:03
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This size/type of wheel and tyre is completely unsuitable for the UKs roads.
Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. It's not the point though, is it?
Other manufacturers can supply these tyre & wheel combinations without them having the problems that the BMW ones are having.
In this case, "The Ultimate Driving Machine".....isn't.
What do people want government regulations saying you can't have stupid wheel/tyre combinations?
They are not "stupid wheel/tyre combinations". I reiterate, other manufacturers have no problem supplying reliable examples of these particular wheels.
Do you work for BMW or something - or are you just one of their over-zealous fans?
Cheers,
LDO (BMW driver, but neither strongly pro- or anti- the marque)
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BMW wheel problems being discussed on Watchdog BBC1 now (Dom Littlewood).
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BMW know they have a catastrophe on their hands here and are fighting it to the hilt.
Phew, glad I've got an Audi !!
I must say the the SMMT guy they had on watchdog was pretty slimey, you can see that they aren't on joe publics side.
I will be very interested to see how this pans out, I wounder how much it will cost to replace all of the 19" alloys on BMWs in the Uk sold in the last few years ?
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