Rear Differential Mounts Catastrophic Failure Caught on Video

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by Used2be

Can you tell yet if your failure looks similar to the failure in this thread? Post number 16 is the picture.

http://f10.m5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1291580

I think you're fortunate that you bought as a CPO! Sorry for the headache though!

At first glace, I would say no, it doesn't appear to be similar. I hope to know more about the specific nature of the failure soon though.

[Used2be]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

At first glace, I would say no, it doesn't appear to be similar. I hope to know more about the specific nature of the failure soon though.

If you're in a position to take pictures when the dealer disassembles for the repair it would be great if you could post them. Or maybe the dealer would take pictures anyway? I'd appreciate seeing them. Best of luck with it.

[M6-Coupe]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

No mods other than cosmetic.

However, the original owner of the car was a tuning company in NJ (I didn't learn this until after the purchase) and they tuned the hell out of the car. Over 100 launches. There is a thread on this forum detailing the 10.95 1/4 it did back in 2014. It's an example of someone saying "Hey it's a lease, who cares what we do to it?". Screw the next owner, amirite?!?!

In any event, the details of this M5's history were reported to BMW NA when I discovered its past. I purchased the car CPO from a BMW franchise dealer. I don't have any fears of them not covering the repairs.

You should have posted this thread on modding side of this forum where people claim the tuning of this car has no issue and believe this car has a lot more capabilities... I had lots of argument with them and at the end I figured out most of them are advertising for their friends who are tuners... anyways, hopefully you will have your car back soon...

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by Used2be

If you're in a position to take pictures when the dealer disassembles for the repair it would be great if you could post them. Or maybe the dealer would take pictures anyway? I'd appreciate seeing them. Best of luck with it.

Had a chance to inspect the damage. This is was not related to the post you referenced. Looks like a bolt failed, although it's hard to tell if it's cause or consequence, but that's best guess.

I'll need a new diff, half shaft, rear subframe, and fuel tank. So far.

[Igor_M5]

I literally had the same type of failure 2 years ago. Road was a bit wet, I was about to make a u-turn, blimped the throttle a bit and leg go of the clutch, and bam... heard bolts flying across the streets.

[Darkshear]

Posted an update in the original post.

[kefler]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

***UPDATE 12/2/16***

A few days ago, I was contacted by the dealer. They requested a meeting between them, myself, and the BMW of North America Area Manager. Today I had the meeting, and the outcome was not what I expected, but it was what I had feared.

BMW is going to buy back the car. They feel that it's not financially in anyone's best interest to repair the car (it has extensive damage--drive shaft, half shaft, rear diff, rear subframe, fuel tank, etc.) and they feel that the car is a liability for them as well as for me.

This was so, so disheartening to hear. I was truly disappointed, and felt very sad that this dream car I finally got my hands on was going to end up recycled, crushed, whatever.

But, I understand. I agree the car is a liability. I agree this is the best course of action. I agree all parties are better off this way.

So, the search begins for a new (used) car. Fingers crossed I find something that makes me as happy as this car has.

I'd like to mention that BMW NA as well as the local dealer I've been working with have both been so, so great with their service. It's not just that they do their job like they're expected to--these two teams have inspired confidence in the brand, the support, and the communication. BMW NA is going to assist me in the search and acquisition of a replacement M5. And, I have no second thoughts about repurchasing the same car.

There isn't any clear explanation why this failure occurred. At this point, the fate of the car is unknown to me. But I'm very confident this didn't occur because of a flaw in the design or build of this brand, platform, or this particular car. My faith in the brand is still just as strong as it was the day I drove a BMW for the first time in 1998.

Dang!! I hope it all works out for you. While buying back the car sounds like they're doing the right thing, if it happened to me I'd be carless and it took me months to find the CPO I ended up with so I'd be in that state quite a while. I sure hope that they help mitigate similar challenges for you.

Good luck!

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by kefler

Dang!! I hope it all works out for you. While buying back the car sounds like they're doing the right thing, if it happened to me I'd be carless and it took me months to find the CPO I ended up with so I'd be in that state quite a while. I sure hope that they help mitigate similar challenges for you.

Good luck!

Thanks for the good wishes. Yeah, that's going to be a challenge. I already located a car that is very close to what I have, so I'm hoping that works out. In the mean time, I recently did a least takeover on a C250 Coupe in an effort to offload some of the miles from the M5. That is my primary car until this all gets worked out.

[momos750]

To be honest this will work out very well for you although an inconvenience.
You will get back every dollar you put into that car including down payment and all payments.

With the winter here and the market very very soft on M5's you should no doubt be able to find a steal on a 15 or even 16.

Good luck and hope it all works out for the best.

[kefler]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

Thanks for the good wishes. Yeah, that's going to be a challenge. I already located a car that is very close to what I have, so I'm hoping that works out. In the mean time, I recently did a least takeover on a C250 Coupe in an effort to offload some of the miles from the M5. That is my primary car until this all gets worked out.

Wow that is smart to grab a short-term lease takeover and then you're set!

And what momos750 said makes a lot of sense. With the winter weather the ones that are sitting in showrooms will continue to sit and you can use that to your advantage. Looking forward to the pictures of the next one

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by kefler

Wow that is smart to grab a short-term lease takeover and then you're set!

And what momos750 said makes a lot of sense. With the winter weather the ones that are sitting in showrooms will continue to sit and you can use that to your advantage. Looking forward to the pictures of the next one

Next one is going to be immediate. I won't get a killer deal, but I'll get a fair deal on a comparable car with a few extras I didn't have before, with what at first glance seems to be nothing out of pocket. I'll post more details once they're not conjecture.

[BPMSport]

Glad you got it resolved, and impressive for BMW to do the right thing. Good luck with your next beast!

[sdf10m5]

Wow that sounded horrible. Best of luck Op

[boots]

Sorry to hear that the diff broke but good to know they will buy your car back. That's great news. Hope nobody else has a broken diff anymore

[Eddybro]

Can you post up the details or letter BMW sent you in regards to the buy back?

I'm sure this is not a one time occurrence for these cars. It would help the community, in case someone else suffers catastrophic failure like this and BMW denies the claim.

Thank you.

[allmotor_2000]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

***UPDATE 12/2/16*** (replies start at post #29)

A few days ago, I was contacted by the dealer. They requested a meeting between them, myself, and the BMW of North America Area Manager. Today I had the meeting, and the outcome was not what I expected, but it was what I had feared.

BMW is going to buy back the car. They feel that it's not financially in anyone's best interest to repair the car (it has extensive damage--drive shaft, half shaft, rear diff, rear subframe, fuel tank, etc.) and they feel that the car is a liability for them as well as for me.

This was so, so disheartening to hear. I was truly disappointed, and felt very sad that this dream car I finally got my hands on was going to end up recycled, crushed, whatever.

But, I understand. I agree the car is a liability. I agree this is the best course of action. I agree all parties are better off this way.

So, the search begins for a new (used) car. Fingers crossed I find something that makes me as happy as this car has.

I'd like to mention that BMW NA as well as the local dealer I've been working with have both been so, so great with their service. It's not just that they do their job like they're expected to--these two teams have inspired confidence in the brand, the support, and the communication. BMW NA is going to assist me in the search and acquisition of a replacement M5. And, I have no second thoughts about repurchasing the same car.

There isn't any clear explanation why this failure occurred. At this point, the fate of the car is unknown to me. But I'm very confident this didn't occur because of a flaw in the design or build of this brand, platform, or this particular car. My faith in the brand is still just as strong as it was the day I drove a BMW for the first time in 1998.


Original Post:

So, I'm making a right turn on to a highway after a quick food stop. I step on the gas with some light urgency to get safely merged when *BOOM*. It felt like the car exploded, or like I ran over a boulder, or a small planet. The car jumped, shook, and grinded violently. Now on the side of the road, car still in "D", I tried to move to a safer spot with no luck--there was no power to the rear wheels anymore. I realized there was a catastrophic failure somewhere, maybe driveshaft or rear diff. I popped my head under the rear end and saw it--the mounts for the rear diff failed, and the diff was now sagging.

I can only imagine what this would have felt like if the car was moving at speed. My Waylens picked up some awesome g-forces at the point of failure, and the noise is terrifying.

BMW Roadside Assist picked up the car and dropped it at the dealer last night. I'm looking forward to hearing their take on the failure.

Looks they are doing the right thing as you were unaware of the car's history. I personally think it's totally f****d for someone to lease a car, abuse it to the tilt and then happily put things back to stock and return it. At that time BMW techs had no clue how to really inspect the history on the car. Check the tires and it's a CPO. This also plays out as to why BMW will start denying warranty claims for people who abuse their cars and potentially add a penalty on lease returns! It becomes a liability and BMW isn't stupid - expect more anti tamper on the next gen M5 ECU's....!

[M6-Coupe]

Originally Posted by Darkshear

***UPDATE 12/2/16*** (replies start at post #29)

A few days ago, I was contacted by the dealer. They requested a meeting between them, myself, and the BMW of North America Area Manager. Today I had the meeting, and the outcome was not what I expected, but it was what I had feared.

BMW is going to buy back the car. They feel that it's not financially in anyone's best interest to repair the car (it has extensive damage--drive shaft, half shaft, rear diff, rear subframe, fuel tank, etc.) and they feel that the car is a liability for them as well as for me.

This was so, so disheartening to hear. I was truly disappointed, and felt very sad that this dream car I finally got my hands on was going to end up recycled, crushed, whatever.

But, I understand. I agree the car is a liability. I agree this is the best course of action. I agree all parties are better off this way.

So, the search begins for a new (used) car. Fingers crossed I find something that makes me as happy as this car has.

I'd like to mention that BMW NA as well as the local dealer I've been working with have both been so, so great with their service. It's not just that they do their job like they're expected to--these two teams have inspired confidence in the brand, the support, and the communication. BMW NA is going to assist me in the search and acquisition of a replacement M5. And, I have no second thoughts about repurchasing the same car.

There isn't any clear explanation why this failure occurred. At this point, the fate of the car is unknown to me. But I'm very confident this didn't occur because of a flaw in the design or build of this brand, platform, or this particular car. My faith in the brand is still just as strong as it was the day I drove a BMW for the first time in 1998.

The liability story is just a BS they say. The reality is that they don't want to pay at BMWNA rate. and they will not total it. At BMW rate the cost of parts is over 30k (including labor) to be replaced with brand new parts. They might want to pass it to certified repair stores to repair or replace with used parts and then get rid of the car in auction or somewhere else even export to another country, but to be honest with you it's a good thing for you. I would never fix this kind of issue or buy this car.

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by Eddybro

Can you post up the details or letter BMW sent you in regards to the buy back?

I'm sure this is not a one time occurrence for these cars. It would help the community, in case someone else suffers catastrophic failure like this and BMW denies the claim.

Thank you.

The details of the dealer-assisted trade have been only verbal so far. This situation is not an example of something anyone else will likely ever experience. I believe the circumstances leading up to this were aligned in a way that compelled BMW to retake possession of the car. I would honestly be surprised if you ever saw something like this happen again.

Originally Posted by allmotor_2000

Looks they are doing the right thing as you were unaware of the car's history. I personally think it's totally f****d for someone to lease a car, abuse it to the tilt and then happily put things back to stock and return it. At that time BMW techs had no clue how to really inspect the history on the car. Check the tires and it's a CPO. This also plays out as to why BMW will start denying warranty claims for people who abuse their cars and potentially add a penalty on lease returns! It becomes a liability and BMW isn't stupid - expect more anti tamper on the next gen M5 ECU's....!

I agree. It's not just a matter of the fact that this car was modified then returned to stock--these guys just beat the holy piss out of the car. They just didn't care.

[TrevorM3]

that is the risk when you buy used.... no matter CPO or not.

CPO is over-rated regardless. Some people just find that out the hard way, by paying the premium.

[kefler]

Originally Posted by TrevorM3

that is the risk when you buy used.... no matter CPO or not.

CPO is over-rated regardless. Some people just find that out the hard way, by paying the premium.

Well, I'd say in this case it proved its worth. Would the buyback have happened if he showed up in a used car w/ a non BMW warranty?

[knepsterd]

Last 7 on vin so BMW doesn't sell nor auction sell this auto on market to an unsuspected buyer

[Darkshear]

Originally Posted by kefler

Well, I'd say in this case it proved its worth. Would the buyback have happened if he showed up in a used car w/ a non BMW warranty?

Absolutely not. I'd have been screwed.