Scheduled maintenance on some luxury and sports cars can be really expensive, but one owner of a 2021 BMW M3 reveals that sometimes dealers go beyond all reasonable limits. The story, published by a user with the nickname Khalnayak on Reddit, caused a wave of comments and raised the question of pricing at official service stations.
According to information from Carscoops, a BMW dealer issued the owner a bill for $ 1,200 (1,028 euros) for routine services. The activities included were an engine oil change, a cabin filter change and a standard diagnostic. The most expensive service, an oil change, was estimated at $ 399.95. Considering that the M3 requires 7.4 liters of 0W-30 oil, which costs between $150 and $200 in the US, this is an impressively high price.
Inexplicably high costs
Even more disconcerting is the $340 price tag for replacing the cabin air filter. It turns out that this filter, manufactured by Valeo, costs only $40 and is identical to the one used in the standard 3 Series. Access to it is not difficult, which makes the labor cost extremely high.
Two other items on the bill also raise questions:
A "Standard Inspection" for $180, which is a basic scan of the electronic control unit (ECU) via the OBDII port.
A "Vehicle Inspection" for $279.95, which supposedly includes a complete inspection of the car and its main components.
The owner of the BMW in question says that he refused to pay and went to another repair shop. This case is a clear example of how some dealers can abuse their position by charging unreasonable prices for routine services.
It also raises the question of alternatives for j=kd,= m,e;rw; dljf;f/r.r owners who want to avoid such costs without compromising the quality of support.