Likely cost of my door handle repair? Main Dealer versus regular garage?

[sallyjc]

Hi

This afternoon my drivers door handle stopped working. I can open the door from the inside which is something I guess. What else, oh yes, if you look at the outside door handle, it is sticking out a little bit. Also there is no tension if I try to pull the handle. I wasn't particularly rough this morning when I used the car and when the handle was still working. Maybe just one of those things?

So I did a quick internet search to diagnose the problem and it seems it could be either the the door lock carrier or an actuator or a cable!
On to my questions please

1. I am not sure which of the above issues is likely to be the real cause but are the costs much different and what am I looking at in terms of a repair bill?

2. Would there be much difference in price between a BMW dealership and a regular garage?

3. Would the repair be covered under the BMW warranty that Mondial operate?

4. Am I allowed to let a BMW dealership look at it, i.e. diagnose the problem, get a price, and then say the price is too high and then drive away? I have not done this before but would like to know if it possible / frowned upon.

Thanks!!

Sally

[sid10]

Hi Sally common fault on X5 had mine go last year , it is quite easy to fix part is about £60 & takes about an hour ! Did mine myself following an excellent guide on here , I think it was Raj ? The only thing to watch is the inside handle on the car as the light for it is easily broken once you have undone the door card .

[sallyjc]

Hi

Thanks for taking the time to reply and I am glad everything worked out for you.

However I am not able to do the repair myself and therefore need the info i typed earlier.

Thanks again.

Sally

[Ubatoid]

Just done one of mine. Part was £40.00. A garage will take 1.5 hrs  labour will be £40 - £100 per hour so any more than £200 quoted is too much.

[sid10]

Hi Sally the dealers at the moment are very flex able if you go in ask for a quote saying that you dont really want to go to another garage & ask for discount after they give you the quote , you will be amazed at what they can knock off !
It is a quick job should be no longer than 30 mins dont let them quote any more !

[max]

If you car is still under BMW warranty, this would be my first port of call.
Back to the BMW dealer especially if you have warranty in place, no need to pay another garage to do the work.

[sallyjc]

Hi

Thanks for the advice. I will give the Dealership a call tomorrow and see if I can pop in for a quote.

Regarding warranty, I recently renewed the BMW AUC Warranty, and went for £250 excess! Thinking about it now perhaps I made a mistake and I should have gone for a lower excess, e.g. £100 

Regards
Sally

[Raj]

Sanj did a good write up for the handle fix.

But if not able to attempt yourself, then with a £250 excess I'd use a decent BMW indy to sort it as I'm pretty sure it shouldn't come to more than the £250 excess you'd have to pay to the dealer.

Also, BMW will charge you investigation costs if you take it to them to look at in the first instance.

Where abouts are you?

[sallyjc]

Hi

I called the Dealer and they weren't very helpful. They wouldn't tell me if the repair was covered under Warranty. They kept telling me they needed to look at it. Fair enough, but all I said was assuming the repair simply required a new carrier unit, would that be covered under BMW warranty? I wasn't interested in understanding whether all the other possible causes of the broken handle that he was listing would be covered. He was also rather rude!

Anyway does anyone on here know the answer?

I have arranged to visit the Dealer on Wednesday however I am also visiting a local BMW specialist garage tomorrow morning. Following a quick telcon this afternoon they said the problem is most likely a broken cable which will require a new carrier unit. They said they can tell confirm the problem in 10 minutes and it won't cost me £65 which is what BMW want just to look at it.

Regards

Sally

[Raj]

As I said, will be cheaper to go with the independent than the dealer as your excess is high even if it is covered by the warranty.

[sallyjc]

Hi

Just in case this information is useful to anyone in the future, BMW told me it the handle repair would not be covered under warranty. And in the end I found a garage that did it for £170.

Thanks

Sally