BMW Forums : BimmerForums banner

2001 e46 330i - Inspection II Prices

10K views 22 replies 11 participants last post by  ckl139 
#1 ·
Hi all,

Been ringing round for some prices for an Inspection II service on my 2001 330i. Quotes have ranged from £280 at a local independent, to £400 at a BMW Specialist, (inclusive of VAT and parts).

However, the local BMW dealer came in at £319 inc VAT and parts.

Where do you normally take yours and do these prices seem reasonable (for London)?

Thanks,

Gareth
 
#3 ·
319 at BMW dont sound to bad mate,

but 400 at an indy specialist is a bit of a joke,

bare in mind yours is a 6 cylinder, and mine is a 2.0l 4 cylinder

i paid at a local bmw specalist for Inspection 2 + brake fluid changed

just over £300

hope this helps
 
#6 ·
You need to weigh up how long you intend to keep the car, if it's 10 years old and a keeper, I would be inclined to do the service yourself.

If your going to sell it then a garage service stamp would see you get a higher return.

Dealers always want to change the brake fluid after 2 years, but they will charge you on average £90 on top of the original service quote :jaw-dropping
 
#7 · (Edited)
Oh I intend to keep it at least for a few years. Since I bought it in September it's had new:

- Water pump (metal impellor) & pulley, radiator, thermostat, expansion bottle, aux belts, tensioners and coolant change.
- Front wishbones and bushes (Lemforder), track rods and front drop links.
- Rear trailing arm bushes (Lemforder)
- Discs and pads all round, with brake fluid change.
- Differential mount bushes (what a bi*ch of a job!)
- Gearbox and differential oil (Fuchs).
- Rear shocks (Sachs), bump stops and top mounts (Lemforder).
- Crankcase ventilation valve (CCV) and all associated pipework

It's also due to go in to have a refurbed Vanos fitted next month, he's also going to remove the CDV :).

I did everything but the wishbones myself, so I reckon I should be ok to do a decent service on it. At least that way I know it's been done, and to a decent standard.
 
#9 ·
Not meaning to jump on the thread, but is this a good price?

engine oil - 5w40 fully synthetic £66.63
oil filter - £7.77
Brake fluid - £7.86
Coolant - £14
Air filter - £11.94
Pollen filter - £19.47
Spark plugs £7.79ea (x6 £46.74)
Labour - £112.50
VAT £57.38

TOTAL £344.29

with the MOT at the same time (which does not have VAT applied)

TOTAL WITH MOT £389.29
 
#14 ·
#16 ·
think mines 339 cos its the 6 cylinder. but would you recommend BMW dealer vs a BMW indy

I am trying to work out the advantages (apart from the stamp) do dealers do a better job or not..
 
#17 ·
If you think about what they do, it is quite hard not to do to the job the same way provided no corners are cut which a good indy would not do.

For example you need to change the filter housing o-ring and drain plug seal when changing the oil, but a good indy would do this anyway.

The important things is knowing the reputation of a garage, BMW also charge a premium for parts where an OEM equivilent is much cheaper and just a good (in most cases!)
 
#18 ·
Hello again mate

I take it you would suggest indy?

What about diagnosis when they do plug in check as part of inspection II - i presume this would be of the same level?

PS - decided to just live with my gearbox noise - until it stops working
 
#19 ·
I would use an Indy if I didn't do the servicing myself but it is personal choice, a BMW dealer does return the car lovely and clean and so you feel like you have been treated well.

They are supposed to do diagnostics for an inspection II but the only real codes of interest are the engine ones as you have a manual gearbox and an Indy could get those for you. There are some great non dealer BMW specialists who will cost less and follow the service schedule to the word, plus recomendations from experience, these guys and dealers come in to their own for those jobs that need special tools like VANOS rebuilds or similar, but for day to day servicing, no special tools are required

I suspect the gearbox will keep going for a while longer, did you ever change the box/diff oil? remains one of the better ways to see if anything is wrong inside.
 
#20 ·
Paid about 270- ish for my inspection 2 early this year at Indy in Stoke-on-Trent. Did a very good job and talking me through everything once it had been done. Car felt amazing afterwards.

In my experience Indy's are just as good as they are usually Ex-BMW Employees and they need to provide a good service to gain repeat custom.

I find that the quality in BMW Dealer Garages does vary a lot and I sometimes feel as though they are slightly taking the p*ss when they suggest things that might need doing for X amount of thousands, when in reality, the problem is a lot less than they said.

Dave. :thumbsup
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top