BMW 6 Series 640d servicing, dealer or independent garage?

[Muddypaws]

Hi all,

So I took the plunge yesterday and picked up a 2013 bmw 640d m sport cabriolet. It's needs a service (hence price was reduce). Its got 60k on the clock with previous services done at bmw. I'm not planning on keeping it too long or doing big mileage. Do you think if I service at an independent garage there will be an impact on its value when I come to sell? Or should I stick with keeping the fbmwsh?

Thanks all.

[MDMetal]

These are the more common variants so there will be a fair few floating round the market for people who want one, bottom line is if your not keeping it long have a look and see currently if the service history is making a big difference to price. Did you for example value the car more than others on offer due to that service history?

[Ninja59]

Does not really matter overall.

But make sure the service level is right as every other service should include the fuel filter, air filters being changed and they can add quite significantly to any bill if using genuine BMW parts.

If it is a small service you are probably talking about £250, if it is a big service then easily 500 (and even more if it needs a vehicle check at about £80) with a franchised dealer.

[anonymous-user]

If I was in the market for one of these and going from our own experience with bmw dealers then I’d rather see a sh full of independent stamps.

I understand others may have had better service at bmw and opinions differ.

[va1o]

I think it's new enough and valuable enough to warrant taking to BMW for servicing. Unless you're planning on keeping forever

Also you might find a lot of independant garages can't update the digital service history on the iDrive, as the car won't have a paper service book. So the iDrive servicing details would become wrong and you'd need to rely on paper invoices...

[Muddypaws]

va1o said:

I think it's new enough and valuable enough to warrant taking to BMW for servicing. Unless you're planning on keeping forever

Also you might find a lot of independant garages can't update the digital service history on the iDrive, as the car won't have a paper service book. So the iDrive servicing details would become wrong and you'd need to rely on paper invoices...

Agreed, thanks for the advice - dealership it is!

[T16OLE]

I would be taking the BMW warranty up as soon as possible. If you choose the monthly option the price won’t increase per month as it is not an annual policy. Its an ongoing policy paid per month.

60,000 & 100,00 are amounts that increase the cost dramatically

I’m not advocating it, but they don’t check the mileage if it just so happened to be on 59,500 miles. If so price will be significantly less, the difference on mine was nearly double if over 60,000.

I’ve had about £12,000 worth of warranty repairs on my 640d none of which were serious but repairs are extremely expensive.

Cost about £75pm.

It also covers wear & tear upto 100k (ex tyres & brakes)

Well worth it IMO

On the servicing side, they offer reasonable a discount for cars over 3 years old. You also get a courtesy car, valet & a health check.

My Indy wanted more than the dealer to service mine which seemed crazy.

Edited by T16OLE on Wednesday 24th January 21:01

[Muddypaws]

T16OLE said:

I would be taking the BMW warranty up as soon as possible. If you choose the monthly option the price won’t increase per month as it is not an annual policy. Its an ongoing policy paid per month.

60,000 & 100,00 are amounts that increase the cost dramatically

I’m not advocating it, but they don’t check the mileage if it just so happened to be on 59,500 miles. If so price will be significantly less, the difference on mine was nearly double if over 60,000.

I’ve had about £12,000 worth of warranty repairs on my 640d none of which were serious but repairs are extremely expensive.

Cost about £75pm.

It also covers wear & tear upto 100k (ex tyres & brakes)

Well worth it IMO

On the servicing side, they offer reasonable a discount for cars over 3 years old. You also get a courtesy car, valet & a health check.

My Indy wanted more than the dealer to service mine which seemed crazy.

Edited by T16OLE on Wednesday 24th January 21:01

Thanks for the advice mate, got the warranty luckily just in time!

[Mr Whippy]

£12,000 makes the 640d sound like unreliable junk.

Then I remember BMW probably swap out a £2500 headlight because a £10 motor inside it has failed or something.


I can't think if I'd want a 6 GC or not.

I'm sure there are tons of easy and cheap DIY fixes but also sure there are some jobs where a BMW warranty are very nice to have!

[Origin Unknown]

Can I ask what that 12k comprised of and is this one of these unusual exception cases where the car kept needing more and more?

[Ninja59]

Mr Whippy said:

£12,000 makes the 640d sound like unreliable junk.

Then I remember BMW probably swap out a £2500 headlight because a £10 motor inside it has failed or something.


I can't think if I'd want a 6 GC or not.

I'm sure there are tons of easy and cheap DIY fixes but also sure there are some jobs where a BMW warranty are very nice to have!

Not really "unreliable", ultimately the 640D depending on exact specification can feature some elements that are still just appearing on other models as options.

The LED headlight module rings can fail and yes they cannot replace the module. That decision was pretty much made by the supplier to make it almost impossible to replace. Although they are about £2000 fitted per side in LED adaptive format.

Common issues on the 6 series are:
Seats rattling more so on the passenger side - some have had part replacements right through to complete seat replacement
Headlight LED modules failing - more likely the outer rings than the inner ones
Suspension/Wheel issues
Any issues shared with related models (for example the yellow grommit that is an issue across all previous generation 7 series, previous generation 5 series and the outgoing 6 (i.e. excluding the new 6GT))

[cerb4.5lee]

My 640d was completely reliable for 70k miles/3 years, it did have the passenger seat rattle but I got used to it and just ignored it!

It didn't have a massive spec though(Dab/20" wheels/Sun protection glass), so a lot less to go wrong with it.

[Muddypaws]

Only bought it a couple of days ago, its a 13 plate 640d cab just shy of 60k miles, recent new tyres all round but in need of a service.

Has a decent spec inc heads up, soft close, tv function, reversing camera, bmw premium sound system. I bought it off the 3rd owner and paid 19150. Not a bad deal as I been looking at quite a few. Will probably be selling it on early next summer.

[T16OLE]

Origin Unknown said:

Can I ask what that 12k comprised of and is this one of these unusual exception cases where the car kept needing more and more?

Rear shocks, it has adaptive drive making them adjustable , as above, covered under the wear and tear policy. The AU C warranty may not have covered these.
New window motor & regulator, was clunky but no biggy
Egr cooler
Both seat frames replaced, slight wobble feeling
Surround camera replacement of cameras, didn’t fix the issue so just replaced the entire system plus the control module.
Replace gasket on rear diff, ended up replacing some other bits at the same time
Pins on the plug in I drive broke when doing something, so replaced the bit backup the loom
Discs replaced under warranty due to slight vibration

Off the top of my head that’s it, it’s all niggly type stuff apart from a few items. The seat frames were something stupid like £1400 a pop plu 7hrs per side in labour.

That seem to just replace parts, no matter the cost, until it fixes the problem. Which in fairness, is great if you have a warranty. I’m sure an Indy would’ve been able to do the above or fix instead of replace some bits.

On the plus side the car is completely niggle free

[T16OLE]

Muddypaws said:

Only bought it a couple of days ago, its a 13 plate 640d cab just shy of 60k miles, recent new tyres all round but in need of a service.

Has a decent spec inc heads up, soft close, tv function, reversing camera, bmw premium sound system. I bought it off the 3rd owner and paid 19150. Not a bad deal as I been looking at quite a few. Will probably be selling it on early next summer.

Get a photo up

[Muddypaws]