2000 323i Brakes and battery replacement?

[SweetT]

Hi:
I have a 2000 323i with 39K on it. Last week I had to have it towed to the dealership because it would not start. The problem turned out to be a bad battery...how long should a battery last?? It was covered under warranty, but I am just curious..

When I went to pick it up, they said that I needed to have my "belts" replaced as well as the front brake pads/rotors, which was just done 15K ago (at 23K)...but, of course now that I am at 39K, they are not covered under the warranty. I also have had the rear brakes done at 30K. I understand that the brakes on the BMW are "soft," but does it seem normal to replace them this often?

This just adds to the littany of problems that I have had with this car since I bought it. I absolutely love driving my car, but I am so sick of it spending time with the dealer every other month! I am seriously considering selling it and buying something else while I still might be able to get some $$'s for it!!

Also, anyone out there from Atlanta that can recommend a good shop to take my car to??

Cheers,
t

 

[bmwrocks]

15K miles for pads and rotors? Thats total BS as the brakes would be smoking and burning to wear out that fast and you would have noticed that. If your front brakes are wearing out at 15K mile intervals, something else is wrong. If they are just looking at maintenance schedules and not actual wear, it could be that your brakes are due according to the miles you have. However if you just had them done, then they obviosly didn't even inspect them and are being stupid or trying to rip you off.

A battery will last about 4 years max, so you are right on schedule for that, sounds legit. The battery date of manufacture is engraved on top of one of the terminals.

As for other maintenance type work, ask to see a printout of the maintenance schedule for your car. BMW calls them "Inspection 1" and "Inspection 2". These list in detail what should be done at what interval for your car. It could be that belts are due at the mileage interval you are at. For instance my '01 X5 just came up on an Inspection 1 and 2. The Inspection 1 had many items like oil service, coolant service, brake fluid change, and lots of visual inspections. The Inspection 2 only asked for microfilter replacement!! So be in the know as to what they are doing, ask questions, stay informed....you have the right.

 

[Abdoman]

I agree with bmwrocks - 15k is way too early for a brake and rotor job. I am not sure about the E46, but my E39 didn't have the belts replaced until 100k. You can check the belts yourself. Look for cracks. If any have developed, it would be a good idea to replace them.

As for the battery, my experience is 5 yrs, like clockwork. Every five years I have to replace my battery.

If you are a member of the Owners Circle at BMWusa.com, you can view the Inspection I & II list on the web sight.

 

[Section_8]

Hi:
I have a 2000 323i with 39K on it. Last week I had to have it towed to the dealership because it would not start. The problem turned out to be a bad battery...how long should a battery last?? It was covered under warranty, but I am just curious..

When I went to pick it up, they said that I needed to have my "belts" replaced as well as the front brake pads/rotors, which was just done 15K ago (at 23K)...but, of course now that I am at 39K, they are not covered under the warranty. I also have had the rear brakes done at 30K. I understand that the brakes on the BMW are "soft," but does it seem normal to replace them this often?

This just adds to the littany of problems that I have had with this car since I bought it. I absolutely love driving my car, but I am so sick of it spending time with the dealer every other month! I am seriously considering selling it and buying something else while I still might be able to get some $$'s for it!!

Also, anyone out there from Atlanta that can recommend a good shop to take my car to??

Cheers,
t

Where in Atlanta are you? Is your car still under warranty, or a CPO? Where are you taking it now?

The guys are right, your brakes should not be wearing out. Either you have a problem going on, the last pads were not installed right, or maybe last time they really were *not* replaced as you paid to have done. (Again where did ya get it done at?) Or you're riding the brakes awfully bad.

I'm in Atlanta and have bumped into some guys here and on e46fanatics that can suggest good places to go, but if you are under warranty I'd still take it to the dealerships. Global Imports, United BMW in Roswell or Duluth, something like that.

 

[SweetT]

Hi: Thanks for all the info...I have been taking my car to Nalley (used to be Chris BMW) in Decatur. I have been pretty happy with them for the most part. My car is a CPO so it is still under that warranty, but brakes pads are not covered under that...the previous sets were replaced under the maintenance warranty at no charge...I have NEVER seen the brake pad light come on...is this strange?

When I questioned my SA abou the fact that I just replaced them 15K ago, she said...well it depends on how you drive. Most of my miles are city driving, but I definitely don't "ride my brakes." She said that it was "close" and that it should be done soon, it was not an immediate..of course, they were ready to take my money to fix them.

 

[Section_8]

Hi: Thanks for all the info...I have been taking my car to Nalley (used to be Chris BMW) in Decatur. I have been pretty happy with them for the most part. My car is a CPO so it is still under that warranty, but brakes pads are not covered under that...the previous sets were replaced under the maintenance warranty at no charge...I have NEVER seen the brake pad light come on...is this strange?

When I questioned my SA abou the fact that I just replaced them 15K ago, she said...well it depends on how you drive. Most of my miles are city driving, but I definitely don't "ride my brakes." She said that it was "close" and that it should be done soon, it was not an immediate..of course, they were ready to take my money to fix them.

Ok not all Nalley's are like this I hope, but I did have a bad experience with the one here in Roswell. When I was shopping for my car back in November, I went there to see what BMW's they had on the lot, or scattered across all their Nalley lots. Well after 1-2 cars, and checking to see if they could approve me, they quickly tried to put me into one of their new 300M's, even though I said I didn't like it, and didn't want a high car note that the 300M came with.. They just could not understand that they were trying to sell me something I totally didnt want.

I left frustrated, crossed the street and bought my BMW from United in the space of 3 hours.. And the car I wanted was in Duluth so they had to bring it over to me to look at even. There's my Nalley experience, and I've heard similiar tales of rude or bad service.

I'm sure it's not all the time or every one, so enough Nalley kicking.

Your brake light indicator should come on, stating your brakes are low. This is controlled by a wire sensor on each brake. Generally when brakes get redone, they will put in a new sensor as well. Either you got an overzealous mechanic who was looking to make a $, or maybe last time they were 'fishy' doing your brakes. Probably the first, they're always looking to make money, and some folks will unfortunately will take advantage of the situation, especially if they think you might not know better.

You'd have to stand on the brakes with both feet between each light to wear them out in 15k.. That or do alot of street racing..

 

[aNoodle]

Chirs BMW (I guess they're kicking around a new name now) is the worst! You couldn't pay me to take my car there. My E46 popped off the production line the first month they were made in 1998 and I had that kinked A/C hose deal. Chris managed to "loose" parts in the fix, as I was told by Global when I was getting all sorts of wierd sounds out of the air vents. But anyway....

I'm now at 104,500 miles...belts should be changed at 100,000. I popped those off just last summer and amazingly they were like new! My car, too, has been in GA since 1998 (with road trips all over...including Vail in winter...Death Valley in the heat of summer...sea salt air from Key West). I ended up putting new belts on as a preventative measure...but put the old "new" ones in with the spare tire, in case I'm ever stuck needing a belt change in a wierd place where they don't stock them. But I'm telling you....you should have seen my belts after 100,000...like new!! I hope you demanded to have the "old" ones for your trunk.

As far as brake pads...jeez...so hard to say. Automatic? That will wear the brakes a lot quicker. But I'm with BMWRocks, it sounds way too premature. I hope you're not paying someone to replace pads. You would be amazed how easy it is to do pads yourself. After taking off the wheel...we're talking about two bolts! The rotors require one more bolt. (But the rear rotors are more tricky because the hand brake is actually a hub on the inside of the rear rotors...requiring a little bit more.)

If the dealer isn't making any sense...roll up your sleeves, pop the wheels off and have a look for yourself. But a measuring caliper at AutoZone or wherever....you can guage the thickness of the rotors yourself and compare it to the recommended minimum size stamped on the rotor itself. You can see the thickness of the pads for yourself. I buy the stock BMW pads, which cost less after BMWCCA discount than a lot of the stuff we see at the back of Roundel and other mags.

As for the sensor....realize that the sensor is only on ONE pad on ONE wheel per axil. So you only have two. In each case they are on the inside pad. Once, at about 75,000 miles, my rear left OUTSIDE pad was worn down to the metal...without the INSIDE pad being worn down enough to throw the sensor. If the sensor has not yet gone off, then you can just plug the old one into the new pad (if it's tripped, then BMW recommends replace the sensor wire with a new one).

I've averaged about 2 to 3 sets of pads to rotors. At 104,500...I'm on my third set of rotors (but I'd have to go back and check to see exactly how many sets of pads I've gone through). Brakes have little do with miles because, of course, it's totally a function of how the car is driven. Long road trips don't do much to the brakes.