XSeries-forum

As title. Just driven since purchase yesterday. On smooth open roads drives perfectly but on uneven or undulating or man holes etc there is a pronounced knock. Bit like a train as the front wheels then the rears hit. A sort of hollow knock. Just passed M.O.T with no advisories and garage assured me all the usual culprits such as bushes, link arms etc would have been checked. I sound like I know what I'm talking about technically but I don't.
2006 3.0d. Will have it looked over in the next couple of days but would appreciate a heads up if possible.

MoT will check all the suspension which should include bushes, but some are more rigorous than others.  It's not impossible to pass an MoT but still find issue with the car lifted, especially with weight off wheels.  If it's pronounced over speed bumps etc, first check would be Anti roll bar bushes and drop links.  Failing that, control arm bushings.

Ok. Bit annoyed I couldn't detect anything on the test drive. Purchased a warranty but they responded with 'pre- existing fault' but advised to me initially contact Halfords, (their approved garage) to get an appraisal and they would take it from there. The dealer I purchased from is over a hundred miles away and I've made him aware.
Does anyone know my rights concerning this or do I just need to suck it up?
Also does anyone have a general ball park figure  for bushes or link arm repairs? The wife is kicking off and asking me for figures....

I think strictly speaking, any mechanical issues should be covered by a dealer within the first six months (they often say 3months warranty but truth is, they are legally responsible for 6months). I don't know if it covers wear and tear items. Obviously, a day or so later can't be deemed as wear and tear under your use - might be worth your while contacting Citizens advice or trading standards to get your facts straight before any possible fob off.

halfrauds..............lol

i wouldnt let them change a wiper let alone work on my suspension

See what they find, then when you have a Mechanics conclusion, you are armed with the evidence you need to go back to the dealyer - you could call to pre-warn him of your experience and to expect some paperwork. See how he reacts.

If it was pre-existing, and a ball joint / control link, then it shouldn't have passed the MOT.


Turks.

If it's anything which is safety related, the dealer could have committed a criminal offence of selling an unroadworthy vehicle. This is a strict liability offence - it makes no difference if the dealer was unaware.

See what the outcome is and if its anything covered by unroadworthy vehicle regulations, then the Police should deal, although a mention of it to the dealer should change his tune ?

If you bought the car from a dealer, the car must:

Match its description. This means it must be as described by the seller. This includes any written description in an advertisement or catalogue.

Be of satisfactory quality. This means the car must be in reasonable condition, considering its age and make, its past history and the price paid.

Be fit for its purpose. If you request a vehicle which is capable of towing a large caravan, it must be capable of doing the job.

Be roadworthy.  As above, it is a criminal offence to sell an unroadworthy car. A car is not roadworthy if its brakes, tyres, steering, or construction make it unfit for the road. Even if the car has an MOT certificate, this doesn't necessarily mean that it is roadworthy.

Car booked into garage tomorrow morning. They are going to check all the suspension. Keep you posted. Now find the rear pdc doesn't work or is temperamental.
Off outside to press my ear to the sensors.
Neighbours already witnessed me polishing the engine bay earlier.

Ref your sensor, don't know what it is when you buy second hand car things stop working after a few days. Had the same problem with mine bought a new sensor, for some reason when I took old one out I decided to spray the plug with WD40, put it back in. still have that new sensor in the boot, that was 18 months ago?? could be worth a try

Sounds like roll bar drop links to me.

MOT wouldn't really look for them or pick it up IMO
Only way to truely tell is to disconnect one end of each and check individually for play in the ball joints.
Or just take them off and change them.

Update. Ok, so the garage comes back with play on the near side ball joint. He also mentioned my front discs are rotten on the inside, flakes of metal coming away. Both borderline fail but definitely advisory. Price all in, around £450. He stressed they would use Pagid discs and pads as anything less would be a waste of time. They also mentioned they thought that the clutch was slipping slightly, not going up through the gears as quickly as they would hope. They drove it briefly but said they would do a twenty mile or so full test tomorrow to determine definiatavely if it's worth calling time and returning it. They would hold off on the repairs until that was clear.

I contacted the dealer where we bought the car and after several calls he declared that price for repairs was too high but he would be prepared to do all the repairs at his garage. It's a hundred miles away! I'm guessing it will be of a lesser quality component but obviously the repairs will be free. He also stated that he 'had some pdc sensors lying around' so would tackle the rear pdc!!!!

Obviously I'm doing nothing until my garage gives me their opinion on the transmission. They are experienced in Beemers and the bloke doing the test has twenty years on them so it would make sense to heed whatever they say. This may be my last post and my X5 experience lasted less than a week.
Would be interested in other forum members opinions regarding any part of this situation.
Btw I love this car and would be devastated to return it.

Certainly hope its not your last post, even if you give it back, you say you like it and there are plenty more out there and now that you have gained some experience as to what to look for you shouldn't let one potentially bad experience put you off. You hopefully will let us know the final outcome if there is one.

Pagid are rebadged by BMW and common from Eurocarparts.  I think the law says that you have to allow the supplier the opportunity to put things right.

A new clutch will be expensive as the flywheel (dual mass) should be replaced at the same time.  Not a short job.

Given the number of issues it sounds like a car that was on the cusp of 'lemon' status and you might be kinder to yourself to hand it back for a full refund.

Probably got my terminology wrong. It's an auto. Mechanic thought it wasn't shifting up as it should and I might be looking at the start of a failing auto box. If that's the case then I'm done. I can't see myself going through this again. I paid 8 grand for an 06, which I believe is top dollar and in the last three months of constant scouring that was the best I could find, or not ironically.  90% of the service stamps were John Clark BMW, outwardly, condition is excellent, mint interior, but the Achilles heel of the transmission may be too much for me.
Anyway, here's hoping.

Auto box repair is the wrong side of £1,500, or higher.