[PLF69]

Originally Posted by Maynard

But trying to argue that FBO status doesn't affect the longevity of the drivetrain is pretty crazy, and expecting BMW to pay for problems seems a bit unfair.

THIS ^^^

Plain and simple

[3ToAgree]

Originally Posted by PLF69

THIS ^^^

Plain and simple

Likely true but not sure that is the real debate. The real debate is someone bought a product that has warranty terms that basically says if BMW denies, then Dinan pays. Let Dinan debate with BMW the root cause and who is responsible, that shouldnt be the customer's responsibility especially if you paid double the cost of other piggy back tunes for the warranty component.

FYI, I recently had an CEL thrown and my BMW dealer was great. Put me in a loaner for several days while they shared logs with Dinan and the Dinan sent a replacement part.

Going forward, if the BMW dealers wont offer this service in exchange for taking my money then i would just get the JB4 tune and take the risk on warranty. Just my thoughts.

[cecaa850]

I have been looking into Dinan mods as well. This is what they state on their website:

US and Canadian Specification Vehicles Only

If your vehicle is currently covered by the vehicle manufacturer’s new car limited warranty, Dinan products are warranted for the remaining term of the vehicle manufacturer’s new car limited warranty. The manufacturer’s new car warranty is limited to 4 years or 50,000 miles (80,000 kilometers in Canada), commencing on the date of first retail sale or the date the vehicle is first placed in-service as a demonstrator or company vehicle, whichever is earlier. Dinan’s warranties are transferable when ownership of the vehicle into which the Dinan products were originally installed is sold.

To obtain service under this warranty, the vehicle must be brought, upon discovery of a malfunction or defect in materials and/or workmanship, to the workshop of any Authorized Dinan Dealer, during normal business hours. Proof of purchase in the form of a lawful invoice is required. The Authorized Dinan Dealer will, without charge for parts or labor, repair or replace the defective Dinan component(s), as well as any original vehicle manufacturer’s component(s) that may have been directly affected by a Dinan component, using new or authorized remanufactured parts. The decision to repair or replace said parts is at the sole discretion of Dinan and/or the original vehicle manufacturer. Parts for which replacements are supplied under this limited warranty become the property of Dinan and/or the original vehicle manufacturer. In all cases, a reasonable period of time must be allowed for warranty repairs to be completed after the vehicle is delivered to the Authorized Dinan Dealer.



It sounds like they've been butting heads with BMW in Canada. I wonder if the same thing has happened in the US?

[3ToAgree]

There is another thread in the 3 series section where Dinan recently responded to this very point and clears up some of the misconceptions. Link below:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=284

[MarkDemma]

Originally Posted by 3ToAgree

There is another thread in the 3 series section where Dinan recently responded to this very point and clears up some of the misconceptions. Link below:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=284

Thanks for the link. One takeaway is that while the Dinan Rep makes a good point, that the person you are talking to at the dealer may very well be misinformed, it could very well just be the "why" - "BMW’s agreement with Dinan is no longer in place". The Dinan rep quoted another poster as saying the reason was "dinan refused to cover warranty work for which they were responsible".

So while carefully crafted, the Dinan response could be read as obfuscation of the issue. As someone that is considering purchasing Dinan products, if indeed it is becoming more difficult to find a dealer that will install / honor warranty for these products that is troublesome. Earlier in this thread a couple of folks posted that dealers in Canada were dropping Dinan due to difficulties in getting them to honor warranty work and that is indeed troubling if it's something that is fairly widespread and not isolated to a couple of dealer. As the Dinan rep points out, dealers come and go and change their minds on these things.

Selling the company and moving it from CA to AL was bound to cause some issues and disruption. The question I'd have as a prospective purchaser is have these changes lead to a decrease in quality of the product and how they will honor warranty work? It's not at all uncommon for new owners to try to cut costs wherever they can and you see things take a downward turn.

I'm not aware of any JD Powers style customer satisfaction surveys for aftermarket parts. Relying on anecdotal evidence from forums isn't the most accurate way to gauge these things. Could use the number of dealers that are still selling Dinan parts as an indication if those data were available I'd think.

Thoughts?

[3ToAgree]

Originally Posted by MarkDemma

Thanks for the link. One takeaway is that while the Dinan Rep makes a good point, that the person you are talking to at the dealer may very well be misinformed, it could very well just be the "why" - "BMW’s agreement with Dinan is no longer in place". The Dinan rep quoted another poster as saying the reason was "dinan refused to cover warranty work for which they were responsible".

So while carefully crafted, the Dinan response could be read as obfuscation of the issue. As someone that is considering purchasing Dinan products, if indeed it is becoming more difficult to find a dealer that will install / honor warranty for these products that is troublesome. Earlier in this thread a couple of folks posted that dealers in Canada were dropping Dinan due to difficulties in getting them to honor warranty work and that is indeed troubling if it's something that is fairly widespread and not isolated to a couple of dealer. As the Dinan rep points out, dealers come and go and change their minds on these things.

Selling the company and moving it from CA to AL was bound to cause some issues and disruption. The question I'd have as a prospective purchaser is have these changes lead to a decrease in quality of the product and how they will honor warranty work? It's not at all uncommon for new owners to try to cut costs wherever they can and you see things take a downward turn.

I'm not aware of any JD Powers style customer satisfaction surveys for aftermarket parts. Relying on anecdotal evidence from forums isn't the most accurate way to gauge these things. Could use the number of dealers that are still selling Dinan parts as an indication if those data were available I'd think.

Thoughts?

I guess i haven't seen any data yet in all the posts that the net number of BMW dealers selling Dinan is decreasing. Not saying that is not the case but seems anecdotal at this point from posts. All I saw was the coming and going comment. I think also in the Dinan rep's posting, he refuted the examples of dealers leaving (eg the Canada example) as he stated he had just met with his Edmonton dealers and they were still onboard and he asked for a PM to further investigate.

I can see the reps point about turnover in dealers and getting a consistent straight message when you talk to different dealer staff. Heck, i see this all the time on BMW related topics getting different answers from different folks and also on occasion hearing complete BS on a topic At my BMW dealer, anything Dinan comes up, they direct to me to a single individual at the dealership that handles Dinan and that has seemed to work ok so far.

Not 100% on this but on the purchase of Dinan point, I thought that the parent company of Dinan has owned them for some time now even when in California and the recent move to AL is just that, a physical move only not a ownership move at the same time.

The real proof in the pudding is when someone has something major go on with the drivetrain while under warranty and we see how Dinan and BMW sort it out and whether the customer ultimately gets screwed or not.

[xander_g]

The dealership i go to is a Dinan dealer and has its own "performance division" where they'll do everything from cosmetic stuff to full motor builds and organizing track days.

However when it comes to Dinan parts, there is a representative in the parts department that is the go-to person when it comes to sales/service/warranty/etc. and I was told that they're not planning to stop selling and/or providing warranty on Dinan parts.

[JohnEnglish]

Originally Posted by xander_g

The dealership i go to is a Dinan dealer and has its own "performance division" where they'll do everything from cosmetic stuff to full motor builds and organizing track days.

However when it comes to Dinan parts, there is a representative in the parts department that is the go-to person when it comes to sales/service/warranty/etc. and I was told that they're not planning to stop selling and/or providing warranty on Dinan parts.

Pfaff?

[xander_g]

Originally Posted by JohnEnglish

Pfaff?

Budds

[enjoythemusic]

Originally Posted by xander_g

The dealership i go to is a Dinan dealer and has its own "performance division" where they'll do everything from cosmetic stuff to full motor builds...

Same with the BMW dealership here (Sarasota FL) and they've been GREAT to work with. Everything has gone smoothly, including sub'ing my ER CP for the stock plastic one when it blew out (they handed me the new BMW stock replacement). Dealer also installed the ER TIC and GFB DV+ when doing the Dinan Stage 4 upgrade.

Guess it is dealer dependent. Dealer here is awesome!

[insanecoder]

Originally Posted by cdn240cab

I was considering purchasing a Dinantronics Elite for my 2017 m240i, however after speaking to my local BMW dealer in Calgary, Canada, they encouraged me to hold off buying the tuner because the Dinan BMW relationship was on the rocks due to warranty issues, mainly who pays if there is a problem. He told me the dealership could not sell several vehicles on their lot because they had Dinan parts installed, and BMW Canada killed the warranty on the entire vehicle. Has anyone else heard this, or for that matter, had any trouble getting warranty work covered because they have Dinan parts installed? I have not spoken to the other BMW dealership in Calgary, which is owned by the same company, and is a certified Dinan dealer yet, I will update ASAP.

Did they really ever have a relationship?
BMW doesn't need Dinan
I think Dinan simply got some BMW dealerships to take on its aftermarket products..
I've never seen anything to say BMW corporate ever works with Dinan explicitly as a partner..

[JohnEnglish]

Originally Posted by insanecoder

Did they really ever have a relationship?
BMW doesn't need Dinan
I think Dinan simply got some BMW dealerships to take on its aftermarket products..
I've never seen anything to say BMW corporate ever works with Dinan explicitly as a partner..

Dinan has said several times there is no relationship with BMW.

[cecaa850]

Without knowing the exact details of what part failed and why Dinan nor BMW covered it, there's no way to form an opinion. It sounds like a disagreement between one or two dealers about coverage, not a broad issue. I've seen some knucklehead dealers and service managers in my time.

[TakoMako]

This is more of a reply to people in Calgary.

I have a 2017 m240i with Dinan stage 1, exhaust and sway bar. My car was the first m240i xdrive to arrive in Calgary.

Drivetrain malfunctioned on a highway 3 weeks ago.

The car is currently being repaired. Initially they though it was the throttle body. It was warrantied through Dinan (part delivery took a long time from Germany), but it didn't fix it. Today, the service advisor told me the engine might need to be replaced and are waiting on Dinan's reply. So it seems like I have to wait another month.

So here is what I am getting. They will sell you dinan product if you first void your warranty else where, such as installing Dinan parts at other authorized non-bmw dinan dealership. (Motorwerkes or RCTs Canada in Calgary)There are warranties, it just takes more time than usual as the warranty claim must go through Dinan first, such as any other non-bmw dinan dealership.

So, in a way the warranty exists. Though I will have to wait for them to fix my engine before I can tell you my full experience with this Dinan/bmw warranty. At least the upside is that I got a loaner until the car is fixed.

[cdn240cab]

Originally Posted by TakoMako

This is more of a reply to people in Calgary.

I have a 2017 m240i with Dinan stage 1, exhaust and sway bar. My car was the first m240i xdrive to arrive in Calgary.

Drivetrain malfunctioned on a highway 3 weeks ago.

The car is currently being repaired. Initially they though it was the throttle body. It was warrantied through Dinan (part delivery took a long time from Germany), but it didn't fix it. Today, the service advisor told me the engine might need to be replaced and are waiting on Dinan's reply. So it seems like I have to wait another month.

So here is what I am getting. They will sell you dinan product if you first void your warranty else where, such as installing Dinan parts at other authorized non-bmw dinan dealership. (Motorwerkes or RCTs Canada in Calgary)There are warranties, it just takes more time than usual as the warranty claim must go through Dinan first, such as any other non-bmw dinan dealership.

So, in a way the warranty exists. Though I will have to wait for them to fix my engine before I can tell you my full experience with this Dinan/bmw warranty. At least the upside is that I got a loaner until the car is fixed.

Thanks for the info, keep us posted on how the repair goes!

[Who?]

508 or 2002 timeless cars

[TakoMako]

My car is now being repaired. Waiting on engine, turbo and other parts.

[cdn240cab]

Originally Posted by TakoMako

My car is now being repaired. Waiting on engine, turbo and other parts.

Originally Posted by TakoMako

My car is now being repaired. Waiting on engine, turbo and other parts.

What caused the failure? Who is paying?

[TakoMako]

Originally Posted by cdn240cab

What caused the failure? Who is paying?

Not exactly sure who is paying, as at the moment I am just happy it is getting fixed.

That thing in there cause the damage, no idea what caused it to come off.

[David70]

Originally Posted by TakoMako

Not exactly sure who is paying, as at the moment I am just happy it is getting fixed.

That thing in there cause the damage, no idea what caused it to come off.

Are you sure you aren't expected to pay? I would want to make sure of this before the work started.

[TakoMako]

Originally Posted by David70

Are you sure you aren't expected to pay? I would want to make sure of this before the work started.

Why would I be expected to pay when it is being warranties. They won't order all the parts if it was the case, and cannot proceed with work unless I am informed.

[David70]

Originally Posted by TakoMako

Why would I be expected to pay when it is being warranties. They won't order all the parts if it was the case, and cannot proceed with work unless I am informed.

Good for you, just wondered. Most of this thread is about warranty issues and who will pay, looks like this one is working out as you hoped.