Need parts contact at BMW NA

louv · 25th June 2002, 23:56

My car is disassembled, and the parts that my local BMW dealer has ordered for me are wrong. Or at least they appear to be different enough from what was removed to make me not want to replace the old parts with these new different parts. (electrical hazard, danger to my body, and all that)

I need contact info for someone at BMW NA, (and eventually for someone at BMW Germany) to help explain why the parts catalog is listing different parts than originally shipped in my car.

FAQ:

-Are the parts in my car original? YES.

-Did BMW ship me the wrong part numbers. NO. What I got matches the parts catalog.

-Is my car sitting in pieces, waiting for the correct parts? YES.

-Might these be the right parts? MAYBE, But I want someone (who actually knows what they are talking about) to tell me why they changed, and how I should install the new, different parts.

-Do the parts look the same? Do they fit the same? NO.

-Does the parts CD list "old part numbers" for these? NO.

-Am I frustrated by the lack of a clue? YES.

-How long has this been going on? A Month.

-Did I call the 800 number for Customer Assitance? YES.

-Was customer service at all, in any way, helpful? NOPE. No. Not at all. She refused to be of any assitance.

Help. Please.

SVTWEB · 26th June 2002, 02:45

Louv,

Sorry to hear about your dilemma. If you can tell me what you are tryint to do, and what parts you are looking for, I may be of assistance.

I know a great deal about the in's and out's of the BMW Parts system, Plus I have a few contacts that will master MOST european parts into the United States.

-SVTWEB

SVTWEB@yahoo.com

DZeckhausen · 26th June 2002, 03:46

Quote:

Originally posted by SVTWEB
Louv,

Sorry to hear about your dilemma. If you can tell me what you are tryint to do, and what parts you are looking for, I may be of assistance.

I know a great deal about the in's and out's of the BMW Parts system, Plus I have a few contacts that will master MOST european parts into the United States.

-SVTWEB

I was going to ask the same question as Eric! If you tell us specifically what parts are giving you problems, I'm sure we (probably Eric) can help you.

By the way, will you (Eric) be able to make it to the BBQ on Friday in VA? Would love to finally meet you in person, plus I want to talk to you about the double-glazed side windows. My ETK shows that they are available tinted. Now that I've got my NAV TV working, I could use a little darker, quieter viewing room.

louv · 26th June 2002, 03:59

The parts are for my M6 (not the M5). Specifically the seat heater elements.

The ones that are in there now are different part numbers from the new ones that BMW sold me (and are listed on the Parts CD).

The old ones have 2 wide "elements" for the seat, and 2 for the backrest. Each element slides in between the stitching of the leather.

The new ones have 4 narrow elements each for seat and backrest. Yes, I COULD shove 2 elements in where 1 came out, but the 2 elements together are slightly wider than the one that was there before. I don't think they would stay in place, and would eventually shift and overlap each other (which would be bad).

I really want to talk directly to someone from BMW who has ACTUAL knowledge of these parts and why what I have is different (old and new).

My parts guy just doesn't understand. (not his fault, he just doesn't know)

The upholsterer has my driver's seat all torn apart at his shop. I have the passenger seat where the driver's seat should be. I'm going on the track with this car in exactly two weeks and MUST have the seats done before then.

I have photos, but can't get them out of the camera until I home, and I'll be at work until late tonight.

louv · 26th June 2002, 04:25

Frankly, it's just seat heaters, and if I weren't trying to restore the car back to "original" condition, I wouldn't care. But the car came with seat heaters... so, I really want this to get resolved. And I can't really have the leather installed, and then removed again later once we figure this out.

tfung · 26th June 2002, 05:45

could it be the difference between euro spec and US spec?

louv · 26th June 2002, 06:53

Well, now I have another piece of the puzzle...

The seat heaters in there already are part numbers that belong in an e30! But they fit better than the ones that BMW says should go in there.

I'm so confused.

I just sent mail to the previous owner... maybe he had them swapped out a long time ago.

I know the seats are correct. I've compared to other M6's.