Thanks Mike. I think if I had a reliable mechanic/dealership that I could trust to fix it, I would keep it. But I'm tired of the BS and the on-going problems. The biggest problems with that car is that no one wants to work on it. BMW doesn't want to admit that it is really one of theirs. My MINI dealer is a knucklehead. And every other place I take it, they look at me like I have two heads.

I also found out that BMW keeps a tight hold of all information on their cars. They even had AllData remove the BMW/MINI technical service bulletins from their web site! If you're not a BMW/MINI dealer, you get nothing. So that means that stand-alone mechanics don't have access to normal repair/maintenance information for their cars - forcing car owners to rely on dealerships. Then you go into a dealership and BMW forces their mechanics to use a flow-chart to diagnose problems, rather than their own experience and knowledge.

Oh, my rant could go on and on like the energizer bunny. I'll stop, since that would be a real thread-jack.



So... my next car isn't going to be a BMW or MINI.

Let's hope VW is a good alternative. If nothing else, at least there's a dealership across the street from my office instead of 90 miles away!