[Jon D]

Do any UK users know if your car warranty remains valid if you use an indy for servicing?
AFAIK your warranty is ok provided that the garage uses genuine BMW parts and, thanks to 'Beemer5to3' on the UK 3 series forum, I gather the only requirement is that the garage is VAT registered.
I've just been quoted well over £400 for the first service on my 840d but around £150 from a local garage - just need to confirm that they can reset the iDrive service history.
I've emailed BMW UK and Eastern BMW Edinburgh but haven't heard anything back yet..!

[beemarman]

I never use anyone except for the main dealer for servicing and it's not because they're better than Indy, but I would never buy a car like the 8 series without the main dealer SH. You might save £250 now, but you would lose more when selling the car.

[Beemer5to3]

Chiming back in here - don’t agree with the above, unless you’re trading back into BMW, where they will specifically ask if it has full BMWSH, primarily because they won’t retail a car without it.

I absolutely guarantee that a good specialist will give your car far more care and attention than any Franchise BMW partner will (albeit some are much better than others), and nor will they rip you off. A lot of these guys are ex-main dealer techs anyway who’ve set up on their own.

The only advantage I can see having main dealer servicing etc, is you may see some good will at the end of your warranty if anything goes wrong, however all of the recent feedback is that this is being completely stopped as they won’t get paid back from BMW without their approval - only got to look at end of warranty checks now being a thing of the past for example.

The wording on the legislation is that it must be approved parts, which is open to interpretation, I.e. parts manufactured to OEM standard, or BMW parts themselves. Again, most independent specialists will have a BMW trade account, and I think from memory, I was quoted £20 extra for an interim oil / micro filter service using BMW parts vs. using Mann / Mahle filter parts - both of which OEM manufacturer for BMW!

[Jon D]

I found an independent garage with a good reputation quite close to me and I really appreciated the owner's honesty when he told me that, although he could reset the service history in the car's iDrive system, he wasn't sure whether he'd be able to access BMW's database to ensure that it is also logged within their system.
So, for that reason plus, as I love the car so much, I'll probably keep it for a fourth year, which means I'll have to buy a BMW warranty extension, I've reluctantly decided to get the job done by a main dealer and it's booked in. At the end of the day, BMW are only charging £50 more than the indy, so it's worth it for peace of mind.

[Beemer5to3]

Jon D for the sake of £50 quid mate, you might as well.

Interestingly, what’s the cost of the insured warranty for a year, as that’ll be me in September!

[Jon D]

Originally Posted by Beemer5to3

Jon D for the sake of £50 quid mate, you might as well.

Interestingly, what’s the cost of the insured warranty for a year, as that’ll be me in September!

Yes indeed, only problem is that it's being done by our 'good friends' at Newbridge!
I can't remember what I paid when I extended the warranty on my previous two 640is but it wasn't exactly cheap. However, when you consider the worst case scenario of breaking down in the middle of nowhere, the car is recovered to the nearest BMW dealer and the job is done.
As to my current 840d, I won't have to make that decision until Feb next year so I've no idea what it's going to cost but I already know it'll be eyewateringly expensive!
I'd be interested to know what they quote you...