2016 BMW 535d back in shop - coolant leak

[Andyd95]

Glad it got fixed. That labor rate is more then triple what I pay thru a friend who loves wrenching Euro cars as side gig.

That’s a heck of a deal. I have one guy that does side work at about $115/hr and stays quite busy

 

[sparky123]

BMW, like a boat or hot tub purchase. You know what they say. Costly parts/labor rates. One after another especially when the car ages. Time to sell IMO.

 

[RooflessVW]

BMW, like a boat or hot tub purchase. You know what they say. Costly parts/labor rates. One after another especially when the car ages. Time to sell IMO.

Blah blah blah

 

[wavinwayne]

Glad it got fixed. That labor rate is more then triple what I pay thru a friend who loves wrenching Euro cars as side gig.

No such luck here. My options are my trusted shop, 2 other less trusted Euro shops, and the BMW dealer. Glad you've got a good friend.

 

[Marcozi]

Like I said you can pay cash for a BMW but you haven’t finished paying for it. Some make remarks that it’s just a matter of keeping up with routine maintenance, but no…

You never stop paying for a bimmer. Ask me how I know!

 

[SC Maintenance]

Does it really take 11 hours to replace the oil cooler gasket and a pipe?

 

[wavinwayne]

Does it really take 11 hours to replace the oil cooler gasket and a pipe?

Had it been clear from the start that both the oil filter housing and coolant inlet pipe needed to be replaced, I'd say no. I have no idea how long any of it actually takes/took.

 

[Andyd95]

Prodemand is 4.8 hrs
I think realistically I’d probably bill 7-8 hrs for filter housing/pipe job here

 

[The Critic]

Prodemand is 4.8 hrs
I think realistically I’d probably bill 7-8 hrs for filter housing/pipe job here

He basically paid 8 hours at CA independent shop rates, no labor matrix baloney, so I think it's fair price from this chair...

 

[wavinwayne]

He basically paid 8 hours at CA independent shop rates...

$250-ish/hr?

 

[The Critic]

$250-ish/hr?

Yep. Dealer is getting closer to $300, some even more.

 

[dbias]

Problem with most plastic cooling systems is as they age the plastic becomes brittle and when a leak springs up in fixing it other parts break getting to the original problem or once the leak is fixed and system returns to operating pressure the next brittle parts raises its hand and says I’m next.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Does it really take 11 hours to replace the oil cooler gasket and a pipe?

The parts sit next to each other underneath the intake plenum. I think I posted a schematic on pg 1. It takes time to remove all the stuff in the way.

 

[Rand]

so they charged 7.6hours found there was still a leak, took it back apart and charged 3.5 hours to do the part next to it..
I also am skeptical. but not many options as mentioned for remedy.
Free loaner was a plus.

to me the second labor charge is crap.. the rest is ok.

 

[RBT]

BMWs are expensive to drive between 75k to 125k, irrespective of year or model. Great cars but the plastic cooling system components are frustrating. Not sure if it is the plastic itself or the cooling system pressures, but it seems to be a common issue across the years.

Your labor charges make me feel better about what I pay at the shop for the trucks, which is similar. Problem is everything has jumped up in cost the last few years and it is still hard to swallow.