E46 News: BMW Sub-frame Defect Class Action Lawsuit - Settlement Approved - Updated information

Originally Posted by Scooby24

What's the consensus on why some cars are fine and others fail? Metal fatigue due to exposure to the elements? Driving habits? Bushings failing causing excessive movement at the mounting point?

I just cleaned up and thoroughly inspected my rear subframe mounting points and found no cracks or signs of failures. My car has 109k miles on with and was a florida car its whole life so very little exposure to snow/salt. All the rubber bushings on the car seem to be in unusually good shape given the mileage. I am curious to know if it's as simple as keeping up on the bushings to ensure the subframe is mounted securely with movement reduced as much as possible to ensure the mounting point isn't constantly being flexed.

My bushings are in good shape, my stirs were replaced 20k miles ago, we use sand, not salt here in Ak. And my car is from Los Angeles I've only had it here since last October. I assume it already had cracking before I bought it, unfortunately, I knew nothing about subframe issues. Thanks for the reply tho

Has anyone be able to work with BMW NA to take their small offer money say $1500 and get it fixed correctly at a shop of your choice. I don't want bmw to replace failed parts with failed parts.

Has anyone ever had their insurance company help out, or pay for the subframe repair? Im thinking of bringing it to their attention and asking them to help, or even pay for it.

Originally Posted by snikwad

Has anyone ever had their insurance company help out, or pay for the subframe repair? Im thinking of bringing it to their attention and asking them to help, or even pay for it.

Interesting thought. It's vehicle body damage...can't say what exactly as a result of, could have been a sharp impact with a pothole.

Yeah, thats what im thinking.

Just spoke with my wife who is an insurance adjuster for a smaller company. She said if an insured were to bring a claim to her stating they found body damage at the subframe mounting points after hitting a pothole she would send an appraiser out to inspect the car. If the appraiser said he could neither confirm nor deny that it was as a result of an impact she would err on the side of caution and cover it for the insured.

Ethical debates aside, just something to consider.

Will try give it a try, I already dont like my insurance rates, so if they dont help me, im dropping them. lol.

I think its a fair non collision/comprehensive claim. Not much different from vandalism or natural disaster if you ask me. Its all out of my control.

It would be considered collision.

oh. ok. cool. If i can get them to even split it with me i'd be happy. will post here once i call em.

Holy Fvck. I am the original owner of my 05 325i, and tonight is the first time I have heard of this! I had heard that some earlier E46's have had subframe issues, but that's it. Never got a letter, from dealer or lawyers. WTF? I get emails practically daily about some class action I am a part of for some crappy $3 reward, but never ever heard of this.

What do I even look for? It would appear that BMWNA and the dealer will tell me to F off.

05s dont get it as much. you can check yourself by getting under the car and inspecting the mounts, or you can take it to an indy shop and have them check for you.

just called my dealer and they said the lawsuit did NOT get approved, and any repairs would be handled by BMWNA on a case by case basis. I'm going to try and repair it myself I suppose.

Originally Posted by qthegenius

just called my dealer and they said the lawsuit did NOT get approved, and any repairs would be handled by BMWNA on a case by case basis. I'm going to try and repair it myself I suppose.

The settlement did get approved, however there was a time limit, which i believe was September 10, 2010 or so...

The "case by case" thing was whether or not the would just do a fix (weld & reinforcement) or replace it all together. This depended on the length of the cracks (if any were found) and up to BMWNA

They sent out letters after the settlement to e46 owners that they could track, but you could also just go to a dealer and have it inspected for free, and fixed or replaced free if needed. I got mine completely replaced and it took about 3 weeks or so. (most of the time was just waiting for the new one to come in.

The bad news is, i'm pretty sure i cracked mine again after about 6 months ...could just be my shocks and bushings, but considering the receipt i got was for $4500... if it is broken i'd just get a new one and part it out.

Originally Posted by snikwad

05s dont get it as much. you can check yourself by getting under the car and inspecting the mounts, or you can take it to an indy shop and have them check for you.

on mine, i couldn't even see it.. the dealer thought it was okay at first glance until they took everything apart. It was so bad it ended up needing a full replacement

hello guys I have a 330Ci for about a year now and I knew nothing about this aswell when I purchased (am financing) the car after a while I belive when I step in on the clutch or let out theirs this ''creeeeak" noise could this be a sign of subframe damage?

Originally Posted by dVeLoPe

hello guys I have a 330Ci for about a year now and I knew nothing about this aswell when I purchased (am financing) the car after a while I belive when I step in on the clutch or let out theirs this ''creeeeak" noise could this be a sign of subframe damage?

Definitely. Give details to your local dealership and then see if they'll help inspect it for free to verify the issue.

Subframe on my 3 is SEVERELY torn in the rear passenger side. Crack spider webs all the way under the trunk area

My shop (RRT) wants around 3k to fix it as the damage is extensive. Is it even worth attempting to get cash from BMW NA or is that a lost cause?

Originally Posted by 2000_328CI

Subframe on my 3 is SEVERELY torn in the rear passenger side. Crack spider webs all the way under the trunk area

My shop (RRT) wants around 3k to fix it as the damage is extensive. Is it even worth attempting to get cash from BMW NA or is that a lost cause?

Sorry to hear that ! Thank God it did not cause an accident.

You have nothing to lose but try. According to this thread they still offer help.

Also, a replacement sub-frame is probably not enough and requires a reinforcement kit.

Regards,
Loay

Does anyone have a contact that they would suggest using at BMW NA?

^ i think you may have voided your warranty somewhere along the line...