[shaheenazk]

Originally Posted by aman-bh

Hello everyone, I needed some advice and tips on how to go about with this issue in my X3. I'll start with the timeline of events:

Shortly after delivery noticed that the wheel alignment and balancing was a little off, however as the car is required on a daily basis without fail and BMW requires to keep the car for 2 days for that, I chose to get this fixed at the first service.

Why did they not check for wheel alignment and balancing at the time of PDI? They are at fault. They should not have charged you for alignment as its a brand new car and wheel alignment issue and other issues you are facing should not have occurred so early. Ask them to show you PDI copy. Demand refund for wheel alignment ASAP. And definitely they cannot ask you for payment again.

[adi58]

Try changing the dealer. I’ve had many issues with BMW dealers in Mumbai, mainly because they are on a full stomach and don’t pay much attention to their cars. Try one of the dealers in a different city close by or maybe on the outskirts. Hope it helps

[SB08121980]

I don't understand why the BMW Service Center needs 2 days to rectify a small problem like wheel mis-alignment . Are they flying in a team of specialized automotive engineers from Germany to work on wheel alignment ?

All I can think is that, they don't want you to go to them for after sales service . They cannot directly say that to your face, so they giving you hints by creating unnecessary inconvenience for you .

SB

[Kosfactor]

Originally Posted by quattroa4

There is no arrangement for camber setting as well as toe as they are considered to be one solid piece .
I have been using BMWs since 2011 , first the 3 series (E 92) and then the 2013 X1 with RFTs only and haven't done any alignment till date as it does not exist for these cars .

It is a tire and our roads are going to knock them loose over time

Not familiar with these cars but a question nevertheless - if it has steering arms with tie rods isn't Toe in \ out possible?

I understand that certain vehicles do not allow any adjustment apart from Toe in\ out with basic tools and may need part replacements. Perhaps this is the reason they are keeping the vehicle in for longer.

[shrjun]

Originally Posted by quattroa4

RFTs have stiff side walls and hence there is no flex in tyres , so they are not compensated for Camber in cars that are using them .
There is no arrangement for camber setting as well as toe as they are considered to be one solid piece .
I have been using BMWs since 2011 , first the 3 series (E 92) and then the 2013 X1 with RFTs only and haven't done any alignment till date as it does not exist for these cars .

Originally Posted by quattroa4

First things first. There is no alignment for any BMW which runs on runflat tyres . If anybody is charging you for that or suggesting as it is done , they are fooling you around . There must be another problem in suspension or somewhere else .
Please give your vehicle to another repair shop for diagnosis for the same problem .

He might have other suspension issues but what you are saying is incorrect.There are alignment settings for every car.

[shaheenazk]

Originally Posted by shrjun

He might have other suspension issues but what you are saying is incorrect.There are alignment settings for every car.

Correct. Here are a few signs that your BMW needs a wheel alignment:

Your vehicle is pulling to one side
You notice abnormal tire wear
If your Automatic Driver Assist System (ADAS) is engaging when it’s not supposed to
Your steering wheel isn’t centered
When performing a BMW alignment, you need to make sure that the auto repair shop has qualified automotive technicians, up-to-date wheel alignment machines, and current software to give your vehicle the best alignment.

Source: https://stevesautorepairva.com/blog/bmw-alignment/

[skhattar]

Preposterous! Here's my take on my BMW dealership experience:

I take my F10 for service to DM Motinagar / DM Noida.
Once, I had to keep my car overnight at DM Motinagar because the brakes were ineffective. Next day the car was delivered. After a few kms, I realized that the wipers were not in their actual rest position. I tried toggling them on/off. No respite. I called the dealership and they said that they will look into it when I will bring the car in next. Anyways, I drove back home. Over the weekend, I thought I will have a crack at it - thinking it must be a software issue. I looked at the wiper arms and - lo and behold - they didnt belong to my car. They were very old and clearly they have been swapped. My car was brand new. Without waiting a second, I called BMW customer care and shot and an email to them. They promised a call back from the dealership. Got a call back and as expected they denied any misdoing.

I told them there is a serial no on the wiper arm. We can trace it back to the chassis number and we can also view your cctv footage and truth will be out soon. There was no way out for them.

Then I got an email from them that " We shall replace your wiper arms with a brand new ones as a goodwill gesture". Yeah right...

I got the part replaced with a new one FOC.

On the brake issue, that I had sent the car for in the first place - they replaced the brake booster with a stand-by part. The SA told me that they have installed brake booster from the 530D whereas my car was 520D. Nonetheless, at least hey didnt hold my car for weeks for lack of supplies. That was good of them. Is the booster different in both models?

Coming to OP issue:

1. You should have gone immediately back to dealership when the issue cropped up. Or atleast you should have shot an email to register your complaint.
2. You are not liable to pay for the same work twice if you problem is not solved in the first place.
3. They are overcharging for W/alignment & balancing. I never get this done at dealerships. Go to after market shops. Pirelli tyre in east of kailash is good. He charges 2500 for front and rear wheels both. Balancing extra. You can see the changes in front of your eyes on the monitor.As easy as that. I have heard Haryana Wheel Tyres is good shop in faridabad.
4. Ask them to give in writing that alignment went bad due high speed/braking. It will be interesting to post that on BMW global twitter page.
5. Get this issue sorted and think about going to other dealership for future.

I am sure you have your reasons to continue to drive your car for a year on mis-alignment. But, it will cost you dearly in terms of replacing costly RFT's.
Sorry for being straight forward, but there is not other way to put it.

I hope this helps.

SK

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by aman-bh

October 2019: Purchased my brand new BMW X3 30i,after delivery noticed that the wheel alignment and balancing was a little off, however as the car is required on a daily basis without fail and BMW requires to keep the car for 2 days for that, I chose to get this fixed at the first service.

October 2020: Come the first service at Bird, and I conveyed this issue and was charged 12,500rs excluding labour for the same which I hesitantly gave at that point because I needed to get it rectified.

I won't say that it's impossible but very chances of getting an unaligned car from BMW is close to Nil. You should have taken the car back immediately. Can you mention the mileage you have done in 12 months, any misaligned car will simply chew up the tires. It's quite possible that you think that alignment is off, this happens mostly due to our roads (slope for water) And for balancing, did you steering vibrated? and at what speeds?

BMW has 2 separate charges for wheel alignment inspection and second for correction. Though, dealerships will insist that once they put the car on the machine, they will have to do changes. Always insist on Inspection first and if the readings are close to standard, there is no need for adjustment. It costs around 2000 -2500 for each job (total 4500). For some reasons, BMW in India charges costs of weights extra and sometimes if there is a bend on the rim or they don't remove old weights, these can add a lot to the bill. Can you still post a copy of invoice here?

Spoke to the service advisor and once again was told that the sensor might have an issue and they'll have to keep the car at bird for 2 days and also that I might have to pay for alignment again.

Will I have pay again to get the balancing done

Tell them to inspect the car alignment again if you are not satisfied. Regarding turnaround time, they can be sometimes busy so best is to reach early morning and drop the car yourself. I have got many jobs done on the same day. For balancing, go to the Pirelli centre. They have road force hunter machines. I will share the address later in the day as they moved from earlier address.

Will be visiting Bird this week, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Ask for Mr. Shariq, he is a senior guy and will sort your issues. I will also speak to him and see how can they help you.

Originally Posted by quattroa4

RFTs have stiff side walls and hence there is no flex in tyres , so they are not compensated for Camber in cars that are using them .
There is no arrangement for camber setting as well as toe as they are considered to be one solid piece .

That's not correct. RFT's have nothing to do with Car suspension, if that would have been the case, none of the cars with regular tyres would have been on the road.

However, it's also a fact that the built quality/ type of material/ components used in these cars is topnotch and you hardly need to get an alignment done. I mostly get the inspection at yearly service but hardly any time adjustments were required.

Originally Posted by skhattar

I looked at the wiper arms and - lo and behold - they didnt belong to my car. They were very old and clearly they have been swapped.
Then I got an email from them that " We shall replace your wiper arms with a brand new ones as a goodwill gesture". Yeah right...

I got the part replaced with a new one FOC.

The only reasons, I can think is that someone tried swapping to remove/ check the fault and then conveniently letting interchanged ones in respective cars

Not a correct way to investigate but this happens all the time at many dealerships across the brands, interchanging parts with another car, demo mostly and trying to replicate or find the problem. My brand new endeavour had a check engine light and the workshop guys interchanged 3 sensors from a demo unit, both cars worked fine, and no this had nothing to do with loose connections as we tried putting the original sensors back to mine and the same fault will come up in my car but not on the demo

[aman-bh]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

I won't say that it's impossible but very chances of getting an unaligned car from BMW is close to Nil. You should have taken the car back immediately. Can you mention the mileage you have done in 12 months, any misaligned car will simply chew up the tires. It's quite possible that you think that alignment is off, this happens mostly due to our roads (slope for water) And for balancing, did you steering vibrated? and at what speeds?

BMW has 2 separate charges for wheel alignment inspection and second for correction. Though, dealerships will insist that once they put the car on the machine, they will have to do changes. Always insist on Inspection first and if the readings are close to standard, there is no need for adjustment. It costs around 2000 -2500 for each job (total 4500). For some reasons, BMW in India charges costs of weights extra and sometimes if there is a bend on the rim or they don't remove old weights, these can add a lot to the bill. Can you still post a copy of invoice here?






Tell them to inspect the car alignment again if you are not satisfied. Regarding turnaround time, they can be sometimes busy so best is to reach early morning and drop the car yourself. I have got many jobs done on the same day. For balancing, go to the Pirelli centre. They have road force hunter machines. I will share the address later in the day as they moved from earlier address.



Ask for Mr. Shariq, he is a senior guy and will sort your issues. I will also speak to him and see how can they help you.

:

Thanks for the reply.

The steering does not vibrate at speeds of even 150+, I’ve done about 13,500km in a year and the tyres seem to be in good condition still.

I am visiting the workshop today, and will ask for Mr.Shariq.

My car has Bridgestone tyres, I’m not sure Pirelli centre will help me with alignment issues, please confirm.

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by aman-bh

The steering does not vibrate at speeds of even 150+, I’ve done about 13,500km in a year and the tyres seem to be in good condition still.

I am visiting the workshop today, and will ask for Mr.Shariq. I’m not sure Pirelli centre will help me with alignment issues.

I have briefed Mr. Shariq about your concerns. He will attend you. Will suggest you take another X3 for an extended drive for comparison. If there are no vibrations from steering or in the footwell area, why are you thinking about balancing?

Pirelli centre has moved to Faridabad and they have road force balancing machine. Here are the new coordinates & they do for all brands.

Shop no -9, Faridabad Bypass Rd, opposite HP petrol pump, Sector 9, Faridabad, Haryana 121006

https://g.co/kgs/Bwj2dh