That is insane, i’m sorry you have to deal with that after paying so much. I would try to talk to them again and emphasize that you’re still paying $700/m for a car you can’t drive.
And a garage full of tools 
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Sorry, I didn’t see the Fusion part from OP…
If that’s the case, then yes, I agree. I wouldn’t want to be paying $700 to be driving a Ford Fusion.
He’s in NJ. Most BMW dealers here (and most likely his) have 5, 7 and 8 series loaners. He’s needs to speak to the dealership and explain that a Fusion is not going to work. I’m sure they’ll accommodate him.
did you post this on reddit first by any chance? I assume you kept in contact with Chris from Paul miller (I assume thats your rep based on your recommendation), see if he can pull some strings.
I think this approach could backfire. The OP can interpret the letter as keeping options open: the other parties could interpret the letter as lawyering up and adopt a more adversarial approach. The lawyering up approach is much more warranted when the car is genuinely a lemon rather than a single instance of failure that’s taking longer than expected, and because the loaners are less than equal.
Expediting shipping on the parts, if that’s part of the reason for the backlog, is much cheaper than buying back the car. They’ll rush to finish the job in those 9 days. Rushing is not ideal, and neither is the possibility that they deny him any kind of loaner for that time.
Just as likely, the GM wont even take the call because he doesn’t give a rats ass about BMWFS calling him to upgrade someone’s loaner. There are some things the OEM or captive has 0 leverage over the dealership, and this is one of them.
The OP personally reaching out to the GM is a much better option at this point in time than sending out that letter. Use up all your non-adversarial options first.
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The only issue here is incentives don’t exactly line up. Does the repair cost the dealer can bill BMW for includes a loaner? If so, does it cover the cost of a well equipped 5/7/x5/x7 loaner for a month?
This is right on a few levels. The first being that the car hasn’t been in the shop 20 days yet. So the OP has no other option. After 20 days in an X2 if GM doesn’t intervene then you consider next steps.
Wow. Good luck, I almost had a lemon law issue with my car, has been in the shop twice for a total of 22 days. And they were magically able to fix it with a transmission update in a day.
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Just to be clear. They did end up upgrading me to a 530i. Nowhere near as nice (or fast) as my 540 xDrive, but better than an x2. I was wondering if I should try to get an even better upgrade— m5 or 7 series, etc. As far as finding a Lemon attorney I’ll probably have the paperwork ready to send in on that 20th day. Whether or not I’ll send it in… well I haven’t decided yet. But you guys have given me plenty of options!
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Why would you send in a letter yourself when a lemon attorney, for no cost to you, will write the letter with years of professional experience behind it?
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I’d be livid if this happened and I got stuck with an X2. Your $700 payments don’t stop, but the use of your vehicle did. I’d first talk to the GM and explain your concern; your paying $700 a month for almost $70k car and your without use for 1 month at least. You don’t want to but without a comparable loaner I’d lemon it and start over.
That’s what I meant, I just worded it wrong. I’m definitely going to have an attorney do it.
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Gotcha. A lot of people have some huge aversion to using lemon attorneys and insist on doing it themselves for some reason.
if all levels of the dealership have ghosted ya through no fault of your own then I`d call up BMW directly to see if they can assist on the matter. Normally I would not recommend this as other companies the dealership is an indy operation, but BMW owner experiences seem to point otherwise.
The current situation of parts availability seems to be bad for all parties, and a bit of accommodation from all folks would go a long way in situations like this, but if all that fails and thats the best they can do, then its of course in your right to pursue a lemon via Lemon Law Attorney, which probably will not go that far, as most mfgs dont want a branded title. I`d expect the an offer:
a) simple dealer loaner upgrade (cheapest)
b) possible reimbursement from them to account for the inconvo
c) buyback before lemon branding, you`d be on the hook for the interim use.
I’m a little hung up on the failure. So no warning lights came up before the engine seized? Even my 2008 bimmer would flash warnings and go into limp mode when it got just a little hot.
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Before going full on lemon, consider seeking goodwill $$$. Think of it as a lease subsidy. I’d you can get $2k - $3k. for inconvenience, that will buy down your existing payment. Right now lemon law would only get your money back and you would be car shopping again.
Or bmw would settle at some middle ground. Starting the lemon conversation rarely ends in the car actually being branded a lemon. It’s almost always with a settlement of some amount. Often that’s the same amount that would be had if the car was lemoned, but that’s still a different process.
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Correct, more the reason to not involve an attorney straight away. If they’re non responsive or unreasonable, then go for it.
100% disagree. They can do a great job of facilitating a settlement.
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There is a lot of the same sentiment being repeated here: obviously if your car has an issue and gets fixed before time has expired, it isn’t a lemon. Obviously, give the dealer a chance to fix it.
Looking at this specific example, where a new lease had the engine blow, parts were delayed, and the OP had to insist multiple times on a suitable loaner, those of us who have been through a Lemon/Buyback process were recommending they speak - for free - with an expert to get their counsel on how best to proceed.
To Matt’s point, once you’ve done that, whether it qualifies now or nearly qualifies, lean on the expert to do the needful (eg next steps, what records to get, what letters to send, etc).
If the dealer fixes it quickly and it never gives OP another problem, no harm/no foul. But the chances of it both being fixed quickly (after this long) and not being problematic in the future? Quite low.
Which is why ~30 posts ago I suggested
Which maintains the deal, replaces the problem car, and is more difficult to negotiate on one’s own than a buyback or settlement (the latter being the worst outcome, because once you have settled on a problem car and kept it, you usually waive your rights to future claims during the lease, and you’re stuck).
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I’ve never seen a M5 loaner at a bmw dealer. A 530 is pretty comparable to a 540 in the loaner game. I was given a 328i after having major issues with a M6 years ago…but I also knew they didn’t have anything better there at that moment after going in the back myself to look at their fleet.
I would talk to a Lemon attorney just in case…if they are able to fix it quickly then that’s fine too. You got a decent deal on a nice car…but I would definitely lemon it if possible based on how new it is etc. Not a great a experience to lose your brand new car for a month or more while paying good money for it.
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