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      05-21-2016, 03:20 PM   #1
Dawgman
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Drive Shaft Failure - Important Read!

I just had my drive shaft tear out of my car at 70 mph on the freeway in rush hour traffic last night. Did the N63 recall last year and they inspected the drive shaft and assured me it was fine. I think I mentioned that in the N63 recall thread. I pressed hard for a replacement and had no luck (Bellevue BMW). Told them this was starting to happen quite frequently with what I was reading online and had a paper trail expressing my concerns and documenting they would take care of any damage if it were to go out in the future.

Well, my worst fears happened last night and it was pretty scary. I knew immediately what it was. One big clunk and then another and I then looked into my rear view mirror and watched the drive shaft doing cartwheels down I90. Cars were scattering everywhere I can't believe it didn't take out other cars. It could have been catastrophic for sure and I believe BMW would have been on the hook for all damage and injury as a result. Interestingly enough, the dealership was more concerned about that part of the story compared to the damage.

My SA was very cool about it and said not to worry about anything, it wouldn't cost me a dime. Very routine for them, mine was the 3rd X5 THIS WEEK and they have had several this month alone. They have all parts in stock if that is any indication. I checked out one the cars getting repaired to see what it entails. Definite oil pan and area damage, under carriage, transmission, and possibly engine. They have had to replace a few engines due to damage and mine was the first shaft that flew off the car. All others have stayed attached.

Now for the interesting part. This has gone from a service bulletin, to an extended warranty, to now I believe a full blown recall. I don't know if this recall is official yet, but the dealership really had their head between their legs last night when I came in. My car was in twice last year for repairs and I asked both times to replace the shaft and they couldn't per BMW HQ instructions. The whole gamble of replacing as they should vs. crossing their fingers with failures and which will end up costing more. It sounds now they have finally gotten smart and are going to recall and replace these shafts. Very idiotic not to due this in the first place as this failure on a freeway could easily cause fatalities. My SA felt very bad and seems very relieved that they are treating this more like a recall now as they are seeing way too many failures coming in right now.

I will go back in on Monday and press for replacement of ANYTHING in question. It seems at this point they will not fight me on anything, even if there is engine damage. Anything that got nicked I want a replacement on. I can't even imagine how much this repair will cost, especially if there is an engine involved. Was a bitch getting this off the truck. Car wouldn't start (lost all fluids) and couldn't get it into neutral due to the hydraulics not working. Had to put it on sliders and then dollies once off the truck to roll it away. Very sad sight. I am going to nitpick as much as possible on this repair. I warned them it wouldn't be a fun day if this drive shaft failed and that is exactly what happened. My SA remembers those conversations very well.

I would urge anyone with an affected model to get their shaft replaced ASAP. They are failing at a very high rate right now and the damage isn't pretty. My car is a 2011 50i M Sport with a 9/10 build date with 73k miles. I went back this morning and picked up my drive shaft on the side of the road. Looks like all of the other failures at the U joint.
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      05-21-2016, 03:57 PM   #2
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Glad to hear nobody behind you was hit/injured. This is scary, and I hope you're right that it becomes a recall.

I hate BMW Bellevue and would never take my cars there, but it sounds like they had their hands tied this time. I know another local member who goes to BMW Seattle like me, and they initially said 'no' to replacing his until he had an indy shop do a separate inspection w/ pictures...only then did Seattle agree to replace it. He might chime in here as well...

Next time mine is in for service I plan to have them inspect it, figuring they'll say no as well unless it's a recall by then.
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      05-21-2016, 04:44 PM   #3
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best of luck. BMW is taking some very calculated risks with this.
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      05-21-2016, 08:37 PM   #4
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Quote:
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best of luck. BMW is taking some very calculated risks with this.
Fight Club was a good movie!
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      05-21-2016, 09:57 PM   #5
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Is this just an V8 model thing or all E70 x5 thing ?
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      05-22-2016, 01:17 AM   #6
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Is this just an V8 model thing or all E70 x5 thing ?
All E70's.
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      05-22-2016, 01:27 AM   #7
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Quote:
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All E70's.
God these jokers wouldn't replace mine either. Now im feeling vibrations when i'm on the gas over 80 mph when i let off and roll - no vibrations. Has to be the drive shaft.
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      05-22-2016, 05:02 AM   #8
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You have to check it asap if you don't want any surprises.
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      05-22-2016, 08:08 AM   #9
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We had a 2011 X5 - same thing. Heard vibrations for a few days prior when pressing the gas but none when letting off the pedal. Then about an hour into a two hour drive at 70 MPH the front drive shaft joint broke. This is the front universal that connects the rear wheels (shaft) just under the front seats. When it broke it sounded like a machine gun firing (50 calibur). You can imagine the collateral damage in that area. Oil pan, brake lines etc. We had a third party warranty that offered to pay for the part ($50) but didn't want to pay for the other $2500 in parts and labor. We fought hard and had all but about $200 covered by the time we were done. Same mileage - around 70K. We got the car back but ended up trading it in for a newer one since the wife was freaked out about what happened that day. It wasn't until we got rid of it when the notice came in the mail about the recall. I called the dealership and they told me that I still had to own the vehicle if I wanted to recover the $200. I will be keeping an eye on the 2013 X5 part.
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      05-22-2016, 09:49 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jiggz View Post
All E70's.
2010 and up E70 right?
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      05-22-2016, 11:04 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robcburton View Post
We had a 2011 X5 - same thing. Heard vibrations for a few days prior when pressing the gas but none when letting off the pedal. Then about an hour into a two hour drive at 70 MPH the front drive shaft joint broke. This is the front universal that connects the rear wheels (shaft) just under the front seats. When it broke it sounded like a machine gun firing (50 calibur). You can imagine the collateral damage in that area. Oil pan, brake lines etc. We had a third party warranty that offered to pay for the part ($50) but didn't want to pay for the other $2500 in parts and labor. We fought hard and had all but about $200 covered by the time we were done. Same mileage - around 70K. We got the car back but ended up trading it in for a newer one since the wife was freaked out about what happened that day. It wasn't until we got rid of it when the notice came in the mail about the recall. I called the dealership and they told me that I still had to own the vehicle if I wanted to recover the $200. I will be keeping an eye on the 2013 X5 part.
Did you check with BMW regarding repairs? There's a limited warranty extension to 10 years/120K miles on the driveshaft.

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Originally Posted by smassey321 View Post
2010 and up E70 right?
I'm not actually positive on the years when I said 'All E70's' above, I just meant it wasn't V8 specific.
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      05-22-2016, 11:24 AM   #12
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are X5M's affected as well? I asked my SA and he told me its not a open recall?
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      05-22-2016, 12:46 PM   #13
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I asked about mine when my buddy was replacing my injectors and he said mine's not applicable, which is odd to me. 1/2010 build. Fingers crossed it doesn't fail during the hard driving I'll be doing going from Seattle to Hollywood for Bimmerfest.

So what's the official story on coverages...I'm at 77k, so would I still be covered on the chance it does happen? All this talk of everything being replaced has me curious if that's due to an extended warranty or just what same dealerships might do it out of generosity.
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      05-22-2016, 03:27 PM   #14
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When the shaft broke on my 2011 my SA told me that anything that was damaged due to the shaft breaking would be covered. I had mine inspected about 2 months before it happened. The mechanic checked the bolts and shaft and said it was OK! BMW needs to get these vehicles in and get the shaft replaced.
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      05-22-2016, 04:14 PM   #15
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Sorry to hear of your ordeal, Dawgman. Glad you're OK, and there were no other injuries to you or folks driving around you at that time. BMW really screwed up on this one, by proactively not replacing the driveshafts. Hope everything turns out right.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jiggz View Post
I hate BMW Bellevue and would never take my cars there, but it sounds like they had their hands tied this time. I know another local member who goes to BMW Seattle like me, and they initially said 'no' to replacing his until he had an indy shop do a separate inspection w/ pictures...only then did Seattle agree to replace it. He might chime in here as well...

Next time mine is in for service I plan to have them inspect it, figuring they'll say no as well unless it's a recall by then.
Jiggz, I assume you're referring to me . I've documented my experience here: http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...2&postcount=83
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      05-22-2016, 04:36 PM   #16
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Is this strictly concerning E70? No mention of E71?
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      05-22-2016, 05:17 PM   #17
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There's a VIN range - The dealership can let you know if yours is in the range. Mine was, replaced without question after I mentioned oil splattered around the U-joint. A 10 year, 120k mile warranty was added to my vehicle info (for the drive shaf) when they looked it up.
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Last edited by LeoBurr; 05-23-2016 at 10:54 AM..
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      05-22-2016, 10:36 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bmwx5er View Post
Sorry to hear of your ordeal, Dawgman. Glad you're OK, and there were no other injuries to you or folks driving around you at that time. BMW really screwed up on this one, by proactively not replacing the driveshafts. Hope everything turns out right.
Thanks bmwx5er. All is well and it was actually not too bad. From start to finish, I was out of the dealership with a loaner within 2 hours and that was in Friday rush hour. Missed 9 holes, dinner, and drinks with the boys that night, but oh well.

They have seen this so much lately, they are being as accommodating as they can be. I feel if it was up to the local dealership, they would be replacing all of these but their hands are tied. Time to put pressure on your dealership if you need a new drive shaft.

I'll report back if I find out any more about this turning into a full blown recall.
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      05-23-2016, 01:24 PM   #19
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I dropped mine off for service last Wednesday and I asked them to look at the driveshaft due to the issues. The car was going in for a normal "vehicle check" service, anyway. I have nearly 77k miles now.

They just said there was an extended warranty on it, but nothing else. When I picked it up they made no mention of the drive shaft's condition and honestly I just forgot to even ask.

I'm slightly terrified of this happening to me, but I guess it sounds like if it does, they'll be fixing a whole lot of things on their own dime, so whatever.
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      05-23-2016, 05:12 PM   #20
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Still a calculated risk for BMW at this point. I have a feeling this will not turn into a full blown recall until a catastrophy happens and the NHTSA starts catching wind of this. I am still shocked this thing flying out the back of my car at 70mph in rush hour traffic didn't cause a horrific multi car accident.

Checking the drive shaft or tightening it will not make a difference. That U Joint shears off and breaks in half. There is no play in it or really any way to properly check the front shaft from what I understand unless you take the whole thing apart.

If I were BMW, I would loosen the requirements and allow anyone who has concern or anyone who is complaining of any vibration to replace with no questions asked. Less than 2 hours of labor and a $500 or so part is the right play.

The shop foreman told me today the last 2 they have fixed had to have engine and tranny replacements along with all of the other parts. Those are pretty expensive repairs. They haven't been able to assess all the damage on mine yet, still waiting for that news.
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      05-23-2016, 06:36 PM   #21
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Just got off the phone with the dealership and they so far are replacing the engine, transmission, drive shaft (obviously), exhaust, oil pan, and who knows what other small parts in the bottom of that car.

I gotta believe this is going to be a $15-$20k repair at this point. They said they ordered the parts including engine with overnight delivery and estimated mid next week for completing the repair. 9 or 10 days on this repair seems really optimistic.

I plan on taking a look at the damage with my own eyes tomorrow and taking some picture to at least understand what is going on. Who knows what other type of damage there might be. I just have a feeling this will be more than a 1 visit repair before things are somewhat back to normal.
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      05-23-2016, 08:01 PM   #22
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Blessing and a curse at this point. Are you having it done at BMW of Bellevue or Seattle?
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