Fryed motor....Insurance Battle - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

em5464 · 11th November 2004, 03:59

Well folks, this is an update on the situation that I'm going through with Mercury Insurance.

The engine was severely damaged due to water being sucked in about two week ago. Apparently, Avus Autosport said that there are bent rods, pistons damage which are not repairable. Therefore, I'd need a new BMW rebuilt motor, $18,500.

Mercury sent their appraiser to assess the damage and look at the car. They determined that it's best to replace the motor,however they said that I'm responsible for covering $7,200 out of my pocket, for "betterment" and depreciation of the engine.

My engine had 52000 miles. So the way he calculated the betterment is to take 1% for each 1,000 miles....which is outrageous. I told them that these are high performance engines and last for over 200,000 miles.

So their argument is that they'll give me a new motor, however I have to cover the depreciation rate ($7200) which is a compromise between the insured and insurer. There is no set law of how much depreciation they can charge, it's a plain compromise. But I think that this is unacceptable and in bad faith, so I spoke with the Claims Supervisor today.

I was able to negotiate with the Supervisor and inform him that the figure quoted by the appraiser was unacceptable and unreasonable. I also informed him about my options : State department of Insurance, Insurance Commissioner, BBB etc. He immediately said that he'll make some phone calls and call me back.

He got back to me in less than an hour and said that they could take it down to 25 %,meaning I'm responsible for $4400. So, the next step is to inform the shop and place an order, which I heard that there might not be any motors inthe States and they'll have to get it from Germany.

So, in the end I'm getting a brand spanking new motor for only $4400. You know, in the real world of insurance claims settlement, "compromise" which has nothing to do with the law is the order of the day. These appraisers will give you the runaround and try to deny you as much as they can, but if are persistent and talk to the right people you'll make a compromise payment.

I'm looking at another two weeks before I can have my beast back.

Ed

Brother Methias · 11th November 2004, 04:24

A bmw mechanic was just trying to talk me into the dinan CAI.. he tried to dispell my fears by saying no way water could get in with some 'condom' they put in the pipes...

Of course i've seen condoms break.

Good luck on the new motor, could be worse....

boostmiser · 11th November 2004, 05:10

Very interesting story. I just saw the service history on an M5 with Dinan CAI. It had a comment in it that anything that went wrong with the engine and was related to the CAI was not covered. I would have though maybe the MAF's. But it never crossed my mind sucking up water. I can only think, though, that you went through some heavy heavy rain or a very large puddle.
Good luck with the motor and though $4,400 is a lot of money, it's a bargain from $18K. If it wasn't covered, I think I would have rolled the darned car off a cliff.

TCM · 11th November 2004, 05:23

Sorry to hear about your engine, but glad to see you were able to get the price down to a more reasonable settlement. Insurance companies are ruthless, they would steal the clothes off a child's back if they could. Please let us know how you make out with the new engine.

ray540inyc · 11th November 2004, 05:45

well , you might want to take it to a dealer .
i'm thinking they might warranty the motor install and motor for x number of years as opposed to an independent doing it and giving no warranties.
i could be wrong , you should call a service adviser and see.
or ... maybe call discovery auto and see what they can give you for that kinda money or a little more

ray

em5464 · 11th November 2004, 23:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by boostmiser

Very interesting story. I just saw the service history on an M5 with Dinan CAI. It had a comment in it that anything that went wrong with the engine and was related to the CAI was not covered. I would have though maybe the MAF's. But it never crossed my mind sucking up water. I can only think, though, that you went through some heavy heavy rain or a very large puddle.
Good luck with the motor and though $4,400 is a lot of money, it's a bargain from $18K. If it wasn't covered, I think I would have rolled the darned car off a cliff.

Yup, if they didn't cover the rest, that car would've been rolled off the cliffs...

Yeah, you have to be careful with the CAI, it's dangling 7 inches off the ground, so it needs to be protected in the rain...

I just got back from the shop today, and they ordered the motor so it's on the way...hopefully I'll get my beast back in two weeks.....

Ed

Roy · 12th November 2004, 07:29

I guess you should consider your self lucky that you are getting the engine through deception to your insurance company.

To hydraulic a engine that seriously , you had to be in standing water over seven inches( CAI installed at 7 inches) at engine speeds over idle.

Here in Germany you would of pushed it over a cliff.

MAH · 12th November 2004, 16:47

Was the CAI the culprit here? I have the AA CAI and even though the water issue is suppose to have been taken into account by engineering through design, I can't imagine Dinan would nat have taken this into account as well.

Then again if you were trying to turn your M5 into a 400hp ski boat...................

Mark

em5464 · 13th November 2004, 00:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAH

Was the CAI the culprit here? I have the AA CAI and even though the water issue is suppose to have been taken into account by engineering through design, I can't imagine Dinan would nat have taken this into account as well.

Then again if you were trying to turn your M5 into a 400hp ski boat...................

Mark

Hey Mark, you crack me up...a 400hp ski...that's too funny.

Well, the Dinan CAI was part of the issue, because it's dangling so low to the ground and the veh was low as well, it's a combination of those. The water wasn't that high, about 8-10 inches but that was enough to cause my engine to choke...learned my lesson now, no driving in heavy rain.....and yes, no waterski..lol

Ed

MAH · 13th November 2004, 16:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by em5464

Hey Mark, you crack me up...a 400hp ski...that's too funny.

Well, the Dinan CAI was part of the issue, because it's dangling so low to the ground and the veh was low as well, it's a combination of those. The water wasn't that high, about 8-10 inches but that was enough to cause my engine to choke...learned my lesson now, no driving in heavy rain.....and yes, no waterski..lol

Ed

Ski-man er, Ed,

Does the Dinan CAI make the same provision for water expulsion as the AA CAI? I say that because AA CAI does metion it was engineered to prevent just such an occurance such as your water injection. Now I do not know just how well it works, but I have not heard this happening with anyone who purchased the AA CAI.

Good luck on that replacement and stay in the dry zone!

Mark