Excitement of purchase to disappointment and frustration

[dckazi]

Hi All!

I've finally made the switch from Audi to BMW. I previously owned a 2014 S4 which was honestly a great car, had no complaints or issues, and had my eyes on the F10 M5 for about a year now. A buddy of mine at work set me up with a local dealership that had a 2013 model with 24k miles on it for a pretty damn good deal. I trusted my colleague due to his numerous purchases through this dealership and co-workers getting new cars through them as well.

The whole process took about a week to secure financing. The anticipation and anxious feeling to get the deal done was killing me every day that passed. I was so excited I wasn't performing nearly as well as I normally do at work and I had to have the car in my possession.

The day I picked the car up she was freshly cleaned and ready to go. It was about a 45 minute drive back home, and I was trying to get on the power of the car multiple times from freeway to side streets and it just didn't feel as powerful as I was expecting. I've previously owned a e46 M3, and it felt slightly faster. My S4 gave me instant pull due to being a supercharged all wheel drive car, so i was honestly questioning if i made the right choice. I asked numerous friends the next day about it (ones who drive M's), and they all said there's no way I should be doubting the power of the M5 or the F10 motors. So I reached out to the GM and said I was worried something was wrong, that I get almost no power in 1st gear, and its sluggish. He told me 1st gear is irrellivant in those cars and I should start in 2nd gear (being an M5 owner himself).

That same day, I go to my friends house who owns an E93. He test drove the car with me and said the same thing, it's not as fast as it should be. He had me visit a shop the next day to get a 2nd opinion. The owner of the shop test drives the car and immediately tells me the turbos are not running and that I need to take the car back ASAP.

I took the rest of the day off work and took the car in. To top things off, when I got out of the car I noticed the tow hook cover fell off and was missing. I was given a 330I loaner (M5 purchase was wednesday night, i had it all day thursday, returned Friday night) and told I would have to leave the car there all weekend. So at this point, I've owned the car for 1 day and had it in the shop for 4 days.

The dealership calls me today and says they noticed the meiesterschaft exhaust the car came with didn't have two exhaust valve hoses hooked up to it which was causing the turbos not to spool, and that should fix the issue. I get a follow up call an hour later, and they tell me it did not fix the issue, and that the turbos are barely spooling, made odd noises after test driving and may need to be replaced. They couldn't give me an ETA on it.

The car is not certified but it looks like they're covering the cost to fix the issue. The GM also said he'd throw in a 100k service warranty which was pretty nice to do, but i'm seriously disappointed I had to deal with something so major this soon and concerned about future issues. This is the first time i've had to deal with immediate issues, after owning 7 cars prior to this (all sports cars) and I'm not sure what to do at this point.

Sorry for the long rant, I'm a bit flustered over the whole deal and I'm not sure whether to be cool and just let everything play itself out or tell them to take the car back and give me my money. I'm having trouble understanding how a dealership would even accept a car with this type of issue or not even check for it prior to buying it back. When I got the car, no check engine light was on, and the vehicle history/service records look squeaky clean.

Any experience and recommendations in this situation would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

[DingolfingLove]

This reminds me of something I experienced at approx 5,000 miles - from turning the ignition on until the end of a 35 mile journey, my '15 M5 felt more like a Prius in electric mode. On the return journey 2 hrs later, it self corrected and has been 100% ever since. I can only think it may have been a sensor or fuel issue?

[smoorebmw]

wow - you're upset that cars are not perfect and the dealership did the right thing???? in-fact, they did more than they should have... you're right, you should probably ditch the m5 if things like this can ruin the experience.

[DenverF10M5]

Originally Posted by smoorebmw

wow - you're upset that cars are not perfect and the dealership did the right thing???? in-fact, they did more than they should have... you're right, you should probably ditch the m5 if things like this can ruin the experience.

I think you missed the context of his entire post. Read it again.

[MyF15+F85]

Before I got my M5 I have had driven a few of them, once I got the one that I wanted I new exactly what to expect. Don't tell me you bought M5 without driving one before ?! I'm not trying to defend the dealership here, they obviously did not do their job before you got the car. But if you would have yourself or someone that has driven the car ( like that ) before you purchased it could have made a difference for you ( decision wise ). Now, since you will get extended warranty, that is a $2500 ( give or take here in Canada value ) I would take it ( in case of trade in that brings the residual value higher ).
As for the car I think there is more to the story than what you have been fed.
Once everything will get rectified, hopefully you will get to appreciate the full enjoyment potential of that car. I have had mine since new, and never so far not even one issue, I may be that lucky one. M5s over all have one of the best reputations ( as german cars go ) out there, I'm sticking with it.
Good Luck !

[DingolfingLove]

Originally Posted by MyFten

Don't tell me you bought M5 without driving one before ?!

lol... I did

[Warrior75]

Lol. I did the same thing with my first M6. Went from a 645 convertible to my M6 convertible. I don't even think I sat in anything other than an M3 at that point, let alone drive one. Lol.

OP, I'm sure that's quite disappointing but look on the bright side, it's getting fixed and you are getting an extended warranty from them for free (which I suggest you get some sort of paperwork for just in case).

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by MyFten

Before I got my M5 I have had driven a few of them, once I got the one that I wanted I new exactly what to expect. Don't tell me you bought M5 without driving one before ?! I'm not trying to defend the dealership here, they obviously did not do their job before you got the car. But if you would have yourself or someone that has driven the car ( like that ) before you purchased it could have made a difference for you ( decision wise ). Now, since you will get extended warranty, that is a $2500 ( give or take here in Canada value ) I would take it ( in case of trade in that brings the residual value higher ).
As for the car I think there is more to the story than what you have been fed.
Once everything will get rectified, hopefully you will get to appreciate the full enjoyment potential of that car. I have had mine since new, and never so far not even one issue, I may be that lucky one. M5s over all have one of the best reputations ( as german cars go ) out there, I'm sticking with it.
Good Luck !

I wish it was the extended warranty, it's actually just a service warranty they're extending which covers minor things like oil changes etc. up to 100k miles. It's great to have but doesn't really give me much piece of mind. It's not about me not wanting to pay for an extended warranty either through the dealership or even a 3rd party, it's that I don't want to keep having to take the car into service over and over again because something keeps going wrong.

I've driven an E60 M5 long ago but these are completely different motors so I practically was trying to convince myself that the F10 is just a heavy car and that I had to get used to the way it accelerated.

Appreciate the feedback!

[Oliver Queen]

Don't worry, once you get the car back and feel the power the way it should be you'll forgive the M5!

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by DingolfingLove

This reminds me of something I experienced at approx 5,000 miles - from turning the ignition on until the end of a 35 mile journey, my '15 M5 felt more like a Prius in electric mode. On the return journey 2 hrs later, it self corrected and has been 100% ever since. I can only think it may have been a sensor or fuel issue?

I was hoping so but I'm doubtful now. Service said when they test drove the car after hooking the valve hoses up the turbos would spool lightly and they were making odd noises - most likely bearings going out in my opinion (just an assumption), but they will likely need to be replaced.

How long it will take to even do the job god knows. Probably by the time my first payment is due, lol.

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by smoorebmw

wow - you're upset that cars are not perfect and the dealership did the right thing???? in-fact, they did more than they should have... you're right, you should probably ditch the m5 if things like this can ruin the experience.

I've owned 7 cars new and used. My E46 was a used M3. I've had issues with the DCT malfunctioning (after 4 years of ownership) and wasn't shocked or upset, it was at least expected after 4 years. The car wasn't driving properly before I even drove it off the lot, and no one caught it. That wouldn't leave a sour taste in your mouth or give you the slightest concern moving forward?

Im pretty sure if this issue came up a month after ownership vs 1 day after ownership, I wouldn't be getting any assistance from the dealership without an invoice attached to it.

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by Oliver Queen

Don't worry, once you get the car back and feel the power the way it should be you'll forgive the M5!

Looking forward to it my friend

[13M5F10]

Sounds like the exhaust valve hoses were left unplugged which caused the sluggishness. Known issue with aftermarket exhaust systems and this car may have had one if it's back to stock.

I wonder if its was a prolonged issue they didn't know about. Wonder if that caused the turbos to fail.

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by 13M5F10

Sounds like the exhaust valve hoses were left h plugged which caused the sluggishness. Known issue with aftermarket exhaust systems and this car may have had one if it's back to stock.

I wonder if its was a prolonged issue they didn't know about. Wonder if that caused the turbos to fail.

It actually has a meiesterschaft exhaust on it currently, Came with the car (only mod done to the car to my knowledge) so that assumption is on point.

[13M5F10]

Originally Posted by dckazi

It actually has a meiesterschaft exhaust on it currently, Came with the car (only mod done to the car to my knowledge) so that assumption is on point.

Bummer. Once I plugged mine, power was restored. I remember when I put my aftermarket exhaust on and felt how slow it was I was so disappointed haha

[VoytekM5]

how do you guys plug the valve hoses? golf tee and clamp?

[DRiFT_645]

Just be happy they're fixing it! Once you drive it all fixed up, you will definetly smile.

PS: he said to start in 2nd? Efffff that!

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by DRiFT_645

Just be happy they're fixing it! Once you drive it all fixed up, you will definetly smile.

PS: he said to start in 2nd? Efffff that!

Agreed. I'm not knocking the dealership by any means. I know they're doing the right thing by fixing it, it's just not the start to the relationship with the car I was hoping for, lol

p.s. yes he did. and I definitely won't be taking that advice either

[TheHouseWon]

Just wait until you tune it or put a JB4 on it... All smiles

[allmotor_2000]

Have you checked the history of the car? It's possible the previous owner had upgraded turbos and decided to return the car with some mal-functioning stock turbos. This may also indicate car had other mods etc...

Some tell-tale signs:

1. Hole/plug on ECU's - coolant clamps on ECU not OEM type
2. Clamps on charge pipes not the OEM types
3. Hole in grommet near driver-side brake-booster... where meth lines run

Hope its none of the above and dealer rectifies the issue (nice of them) and life goes on... the M5 is a fantastic car - enjoy in good health!

[Warrior75]

Start in 2nd...great advice. Lol. Dealerships are so ridiculous sometimes. Hopefully it gets sorted, best of luck.

[dckazi]

Originally Posted by allmotor_2000

Have you checked the history of the car? It's possible the previous owner had upgraded turbos and decided to return the car with some mal-functioning stock turbos. This may also indicate car had other mods etc...

Some tell-tale signs:

1. Hole/plug on ECU's - coolant clamps on ECU not OEM type
2. Clamps on charge pipes not the OEM types
3. Hole in grommet near driver-side brake-booster... where meth lines run

Hope its none of the above and dealer rectifies the issue (nice of them) and life goes on... the M5 is a fantastic car - enjoy in good health!

Man, that's seriously my biggest fear in the back of my mind is that the car was previously modded and they limped it back into the dealership without them catching anything. Thanks for all your tips. I will surely check for everything.