I'm a new owner and need help!!

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nev
Joined: Fri 19 Feb, 2010 20:33
Posts: 13

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Sutton-in-Craven

I'm a new owner and need help!!

Post by nev »

Bought a 2000 Z3 3.0 yesterday, always liked them and this one ticked all the boxes (47K, one owner, M interior and wheels etc). It was taken as p/x at the garage where I bought it, they carried out an inspection 1 service + oil change and everything worked perfectly during the test spin. On the way home the traction control light suddenly came on and pressing the ASC button has no effect! The next problem is that the remote locking won't work - again it worked perfectly on the way home but it's now dead. Tried the spare key and that doesn't work either, the key batteries seem OK as the red light is bright enough. Love the car, looks superb, but the 2 faults have taken the spark off owning our first sports car :( . I don't really want to take it back to the garage as it's 100 miles away and to be honest I wasn't impressed with them. Rang the previous owner and he had no problems with either the remote locking or the ASC. Anyone got any ideas? I live near Skipton so if anyone can recommend a garage that would help. (Love to post some pics but can't make the file size small enough). Cheers
**Z3**
Joined: Sat 02 Jan, 2010 13:03
Posts: 226

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Torquay

Post by **Z3** »

Take it back to the dealer. I know its a 100 miles but its an enjoyable 100 miles in the Z! If you attempt to fix it yourself and more serious problems arise then the garage will tell you where to go when you return it tothem because you attempted repairs yourself!

Don`t be put off by these cowboys you have rights!
rgf
Joined: Sat 23 May, 2009 08:09
Posts: 570

  Not specified
Location: York

Post by rgf »

Welcome to the forum Nev, (especially as another North Yorkie!).
Sorry you have got off to an unfortunate start with your Zed. I would agree - take it back to the dealer. Electrical faults can get complicated (and expensive) so in spite of the inconvenience it might be worth it.

Hopefully you can get it sorted quickly and then join us on the Whitby run in April??
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Titan
Joined: Fri 01 Apr, 2005 20:20
Posts: 4002

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: North Yorkshire

Post by Titan »

Hi Nev and welcome to the forum :thumb:

Sorry to hear you new toy isn't playing fair :bawl:
As has been said already, electrical problems can be tricky.
The ASC and central locking could be totally un-related but at this stage we have no way of knowing.
Three thoughts:
1. If the car came from BMW garage then any BMW dealership should honour "warranty" repairs especially as it has failed so quickly.
2. If it was from a non-BMW franchise, does it have any 3rd party warranty which you can invoke?
3. Failing the above, much as you may not like it, your contract is with the supplying factor and you need to pursue redress through them.

This really is a shame for you but I hope the slight hiccup doesn't detract from the joys you have lying ahead :drive
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maurice the martian
Joined: Tue 26 Jan, 2010 19:44
Posts: 1026

  Z4 roadster 3.0i
Location: mars

Post by maurice the martian »

Hi NEV and welcome.
I bought my Z from a dealer 150mls away from my home. like you a number of faults occurred on the drive home,so i took it to my local reputable garage to do a report for me .After a few conversations with the supplying dealership they agreed to the cost of the repairs £170-.
Part of my argument was it was unreasonable for me to travel that distance and wait around whilst the repairs were carried out.I just had the standard 3mth warranty with the car.
Dont give up on the Z youll get a lot of fun out of her .
Best of luck maurice.
t-tony
Joined: Sun 21 Feb, 2010 23:17
Posts: 353

  Z3 roadster 2.0
Location: torksey lock

Post by t-tony »

Hi everyone from a new member.Only got my Z early last november.It's a 2000 2.0 Auto,mtech wheels and interior and chrome kit only just turned 70k and I love it. Only problem I've had is very occationally the orange warning light that tells you to take car back to dealer comes on,there is no apparent problem(no noises or anything) and if you turn the engine off and restart the light doesn't come on again? P.S. Please would someone give me a clue on how to uplaod photo's then I can show it to you all. Thanks Tony.
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Titan
Joined: Fri 01 Apr, 2005 20:20
Posts: 4002

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: North Yorkshire

Post by Titan »

Hi Tony and welcome to Z Roadster :D

Start a new thread in this forum and trySpokey's linkfor uploading fotos ;)

Oh - and to answer the warning light question, we need to know which one it is :oops:
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nev
Joined: Fri 19 Feb, 2010 20:33
Posts: 13

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Sutton-in-Craven

Thanks

Post by nev »

Thanks everyone for the advice - I'll be phoning the dealer tomorrow to ask what they are prepared to do. The option of taking it to a local garage and passing the cost on is definitely appealing as they were a Seat dealer and I have to question their knowledge of BMW's. We'll be signing up for the Whitby run, might be with no traction control (good fun if you're an experienced driver but I'm more used to 2-wheels and this is our first rear wheel drive car), might be with no central locking :cry: and something I didn't mention was that the car came with a CD that is stuck and won't eject so we'll know all the words by the time we return! Any more advice welcomed - signing off now to help the wife with a bottle of wine.
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Robert T
Site Admin
Joined: Mon 12 Jun, 2006 10:35
Posts: 10170

  Z3 roadster 1.9
Location: Cheshire

Post by Robert T »

Hi nev, and welcome to the forum.

First up, with the remote locking, this can happen sometimes when the car loses sync with the key. I had it happen once on mine and the key appeared not to work. Later on the same day it was fine and it hasn't done it since. See if it works tomorrow and if not, then it would seem that for some reason the car has either forgotten the remotes or is not receiving the signal. It could be something as simple as a bad earth on the battery.

Second problem could be one of a number of things. The ASC/DSC light being on continuously means a fault with the system. It can sometimes be accompanied by the ABS light. It is usually triggered by a fault with one of the wheel sensors, often by them being dirty, and a tiny bit of wheelslip brings the light on. This system will normally reset itself when you turn off the ignition (or at least several restarts), but will come back on again as soon as you get some wheelslippage again. Be prepared for this if/when you take the car back as the light may not appear. Note that whilst either of these lights is on, the system is deactivated, so don't go relying on them.

Hope you get both problems resolved soon and that it doesn't spoil your enjoyment of the car - I'm still enjoying mine after 11 years. :D

Cheers R.
Arctic Silver '99 Z3 1.9 & Black '59 Frogeye 1275cc
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Zed Carer
Joined: Thu 13 Dec, 2007 20:27
Posts: 1642

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Wakefield

Post by Zed Carer »

Hi nev and welcome.

As Robert T has said above the ASC/DSC could just be a dirty sensor so hopefully that will be a relatively easy fix.

Is the CD stuck in a boot mounted 6 CD changer? If it is then slide a credit card (VISA, Mastercard, etc as any one will do) under the magazine to release it.

Hope that everything gets sorted.
Hers: Z4 2.0i Sp --------------------- His: Z3 2.8
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