South Motors BMW . It is my opinion that the service department at South Motors BMW damaged my engine and refused to take responsibility for their actions. Miami Florida

BMW’s are terrific cars, I have owned several.  Between myself and my sister, we have owned an X5, two Z3’s, a Z8, and a 760Li.

Unfortunately, the service department at South Motors BMW in Miami is terrible.  It is my opinion that the service department at South Motors BMW damaged my engine and refused to take responsibility for their actions.

I took my BMW in for an inspection.  The car had no problems, but a potential buyer wanted the car to be inspected by a BMW dealer.  The customer service representative, “Francisco”, said that the inspection would take a few hours, but the car had a recall item regarding the brake system, and offered to perform the recall work while performing the inspection.  Francisco told me that the car should be ready the next day.  I agreed.

Finally, by Tuesday, after way too many calls to Francisco, I was told that he car was ready for pick-up.  Although I was told that the car was ready, the recall work had not been performed.  The inspection report showed that the engine had severe oil leaks and that the battery was dead. 

The car did not have any oil leaks when I took it into South Motors of Miami.  I know this for a fact because I park the car in the same location and there were no oil stains in the driveway, plus I have not had to add any oil to the engine between oil changes.

The battery issue is a mystery:  The battery is fairly new and at no time before taking the car to South Motors BMW did the car have battery issues, and, at no time since retrieving the car from South Motors BMW has the car had any battery issues.  I suspect that the car was either left on, without the engine running, for a significant period of time, or the technician did not know how to start a BMW 760Li.

When I got the car home from South Motors BMW I let the car idle in the driveway for about five minutes, then checked to see if there was any oil on the driveway.  To my unpleasant surprise, there was about two cups of oil right below the engine!  Although the car did not have any oil leaks before I took it to South Motors BMW, it absolutely has a severe oil leak now.

I called South Motors BMW and spoke to “Eduardo Ulloa”, the service manager.  He said to bring the car back in and they would take a look at it, plus they would do the recall work.  Reluctantly, I agreed to return the car to South Motors BMW.  I now know that this was a big mistake.

The assistant service manager “Patrick” (I was never able to speak to Eduardo again) was adamant that the severe oil leak was not caused by South Motors BMW and that if I wanted the leak repaired, it would cost between $2,500 to $4,900 (this price is supposedly a “discounted” price).  I repeatedly argued that the car did not have any oil leaks prior to taking it to Sough Motors BMW, but now it has severe oil leaks, and that something must have happened to the car while it was at South Motors BMW that resulted in the severe oil leaks.  It was my position that South Motors BMW should be held responsible.

In frustration, I called BMW of North America.  Unfortunately, after a lengthy telephone conversation, I was told that each dealership is independently owned and that there was nothing BMW of North America could do.

The recall work was performed as promised.  Unfortunately, South Motors BMW broke something else (besides the oil issue):  Now, after the recall work from South Motors BMW, I don’t have to step on the brake prior to starting the engine, or shifting from park to reverse or drive.  And, after driving the car for five to ten minutes, a warning is displayed that says the traction control system is malfunctioning.

I sent a text message to “Danny” another service representative.  He said that I should bring the car back in to see what the problem is.

To recap, I brought a car that had no problems into South Motors BMW for an inspection.  Now, after two visits to South Motors BMW, I now have a car that has a severe oil leak: safety issues regarding starting the car and shifting the car into reverse or drive; and, problems in the car’s traction control system.  What will happen if I take the car back to South Motors BMW again?  I don’t know because I’ll certainly not be taking any car I own to South Motors BMW again.