Passenger Side Airbag Recall

[ZFRED10]

So I took my newly purchased 2013 X5 35i in for the airbag recall along with inspection and emission. I got a call from the service rep stating they have ran into a few issues in regards to the recall. They are claiming my windshield was replaced prior, which is strange to me as I have all of the prior service records with no mention of this. The car was always taken to certified BMW's for all service done. Regardless, they are claiming whoever replaced the glass didn't install it correctly and the window adhesive got stuck to the 'A' Pillars so they had to cut the 'A' Pillar trim out. Not a big deal, they did this without issue, but they said they will have to charge me 30 min. of labor for this. On top of that, they want to charge me another 30 minutes of labor since I have the Avin Screen installed. They made it out like it was this complicated wire harness setup they had to configure when disassembling the dash when reality it's just a Y Harness splitter to plug into the factory connection. Keep in mind, I've owned a few BMW's and have never taken them to dealers because of horror stories I've heard, but had no choice for the recall. I'm waiting to pick up the car after work to see the final bill, but overall pretty disappointed I'll have to pay money to get a recall done. Just wanted to get your feedback to see if you think this is something I should try to push back on a bit or to just bite the bullet and pay the bill. If so, do you think the extra hour labor time is fair for this? I can see me going there and them trying to make me pay even more for something else that came up as this is all information I was given yesterday. On top of this, I was lied to about how much the inspection/emission was going to cost and paying an extra $30 for that as well.

[Poppyboy]

I can’t comment about the extra charges other than it sounds like total BS. I will, however, strongly caution you to check everything on your dashboard, including fitment, glove box functionality and all vents and buttons, before you leave the dealership. It seems like a tall order for them to remove the dashboard and put it back together without fucking it up.

[jandref321]

It depends on how bad the job was on the windshield. I’ve had a windshield replaced by a reputable company with BMW glass and seal and when I pulled my a pillars to re-adhere the felt on the trim I found that the seal had been glued partially to the pillars. I was super stressed for like 10 mins then grabbed a razor blade and 30 seconds later the pillar was free with no visible damage. It just took a steady hand and a razor blade...but if the job was done very poorly, it might be a real pain to cut it off.
The Avin thing is stupid, but I can see any dealer charging the same whether it’s Toyota or whatever. Just because they now take responsibility for something aftermarket that they know nothing about. If they broke the avin or messed up the wires you may go running to them saying they better replace it.
Honestly though...they are are charging you for the above reasons and mainly because you don’t go see them regularly. They will put up with stuff for people they see all the time but a random guy they’ll get upset for anything out of the ordinary.

[ZFRED10]

Originally Posted by Poppyboy

I can’t comment about the extra charges other than it sounds like total BS. I will, however, strongly caution you to check everything on your dashboard, including fitment, glove box functionality and all vents and buttons, before you leave the dealership. It seems like a tall order for them to remove the dashboard and put it back together without fucking it up.

Appreciate the feedback. In regards to the actual dash, the fitment looks like they did a good job. Some other things, not so much which I'll respond to below.

Originally Posted by jandref321

It depends on how bad the job was on the windshield. I’ve had a windshield replaced by a reputable company with BMW glass and seal and when I pulled my a pillars to re-adhere the felt on the trim I found that the seal had been glued partially to the pillars. I was super stressed for like 10 mins then grabbed a razor blade and 30 seconds later the pillar was free with no visible damage. It just took a steady hand and a razor blade...but if the job was done very poorly, it might be a real pain to cut it off.
The Avin thing is stupid, but I can see any dealer charging the same whether it’s Toyota or whatever. Just because they now take responsibility for something aftermarket that they know nothing about. If they broke the avin or messed up the wires you may go running to them saying they better replace it.
Honestly though...they are are charging you for the above reasons and mainly because you don’t go see them regularly. They will put up with stuff for people they see all the time but a random guy they’ll get upset for anything out of the ordinary.

So I went and picked up the car and after initial inspection, it didn't look too bad so I paid and was on my way. The cost for the extra labor time was roughly $130 which is actually less than an hour of their labor rate, but still pretty upset about it. Keep in mind, they had my car for almost 2 whole days. The A-Pillars weren't too bad, there is a little fray on some parts of them where I can see they had to cut, but it's not really noticeable unless you really look for it. There was no really way around this really according to them, and I believe them when they say it must have been glued pretty tight. Just makes me mad that I know that the glass was replaced by another BMW dealership and they did it incorrectly, but there's nothing I can do about that. Anyways, as I was driving, I then noticed my AVIN unit was showing gaps and didn't line up correctly. Looked like they tightened some of the bolts too tight and it was warping how it sat. On top of that I then noticed the trim around my cup hold had a bunch of scuffs on it from what I can only think was them not taking it off when removing the radio and setting it on top of it. Really frustrating as the part isn't too cheap to buy. (roughly $80) Then I plug my phone in and realize I'm not getting any sound out of the AVIN unit so of course they didn't hook something up right. I really should have inspected more before leaving the dealership, but at the end of the day, I know they would have denied the scuffing the trim, saying it was already like that and I probably know more about the AVIN unit than they do so no point in letting them keep it to mess up more. Got home, ripped the radio apart to find they didn't connect the AUX back to the back of the radio and it was nowhere to be found. Probably got buried with the dash as they put it back it. Luckily, I had another AUX splitter to use so installed everything back correctly and it's working properly now.

Surprise, surprise, even a "free" recall cost me $130, frayed A-Pillars & a scuffed cup holder trim. Not to mention personal time to fix the unit they couldn't put back in correctly. Safe to say this was my first trip to a BMW Dealer & probably the last. I'll stick to indy shops from here on out.