Lemon Lawed 335i ??

Looking at an '09 335i that was Lemon Lawed at 24K...HDP warrenty extended to 10 years or 120,000 miles. Fuel injectors replaced, plugs replaced. BMW NA extended warranty on turbo charger, etc....Car looks great, cosmetic very good, very good price....opinions please...Thanks

How much?

My friend bought an 07 335i that was lemon lawed back in 2009. The only problems he has had are the HPFP went a few years back and an adaptive headlamp failure a few weeks ago that was covered under an extended warranty he bought through his credit union. Other than that just routine maintenance that he does by himself.

The key, IMO, is to not overpay for the car, and of course a very intensive PPI by both yourself and a qualified mechanic.

About 7 years ago, I won a case against Mazda. My problem was that the Miata would not start and during arbitration, I told the judge it simply didn't zoom zoom. Mazda offered to give me an extended warranty, problem was that it still did not cover my problem...the ignition. Personally I would never buy a lemon. Be very careful, extended warranties do not cover bumper to bumper and excludes certain things.

Originally Posted by bradnyc

I told the judge it simply didn't zoom zoom.

You're buying this from a BMW dealer? With CPO warranty? Doesn't sound like it. Private party? If so, I'd not touch it. If dealer, then read all the fine print in your warranty and unless you get a minimum 3 month bumper to bumper I'd reconsider.

Just remember that when you buy a lemon, it doesn't just mean that something was wrong with the car. It means that something was wrong with the car where it was repeatable and unsolvable and the manufacturer was forced to take the car back. So unless, you find out what the problem was, you're taking a serious gamble because in essence, you'll be buying the problem that the previou owner couldn't get fixed.

We lemoned my wife's Chevy back in '85, right after the law went into play in Mass. Multiple repair tries, multiple calls, all for naught, and they finally took it back.

The day we returned it, there was a factory rep there to see how it went (we were one of the very first cars that made it through the whole lemon process). He asked what the problem was, straight away said, "Oh, that's the secondary temperature sensor on the low end of the block. Anyone ever change it?" The dealer looked at him as though he had two heads - they had no idea there were 2 sensors for the warning light in question. We returned the car even through he said he knew the fix.

About a year later, a friend's car had the same problem. She was on repair 3 when I heard about it, and told her what the rep said. She told her dealer, and it was fixed the next day.

So, FWIW, sometimes a lemon can be repaired. It just takes the right person to look at the problem.


Having said that, it's unlikely I'd purchase one.

Originally Posted by Zooks527

We lemoned my wife's Chevy back in '85, right after the law went into play in Mass. Multiple repair tries, multiple calls, all for naught, and they finally took it back.

The day we returned it, there was a factory rep there to see how it went (we were on of the very first cars that made it through the whole lemon process). He asked what the problem was, straight away said, "Oh, that's the secondary temperature sensor on the low end of the block. Anyone ever change it?" The dealer looked at him as though he had two heads - they had no idea there were 2 sensors for the warning light in question. We returned the car even through he said he knew the fix.

About a year later, a friend's car had the same problem. She was on repair 3 when I heard about it, and told her what the rep said. She told her dealer, and it was fixed the next day.

So, FWIW, sometimes a lemon can be repaired. It just takes the right person to look at the problem.


Having said that, it's unlikely I'd purchase one.

Good post. So the lesson learned here that sometimes the service department is the lemon, not the cars.

Another thing to remember, is that the lemon-law buyback is now a permanent part of the car's history. Therefore this car will be worth significantly less than an equivalent car without the lemon history (when it comes time to resell it). This fact is not necessarily a deal-breaker, but certainly a consideration when negotiating price.

Originally Posted by Zooks527

We lemoned my wife's Chevy back in '85, right after the law went into play in Mass. Multiple repair tries, multiple calls, all for naught, and they finally took it back.

The day we returned it, there was a factory rep there to see how it went (we were one of the very first cars that made it through the whole lemon process). He asked what the problem was, straight away said, "Oh, that's the secondary temperature sensor on the low end of the block. Anyone ever change it?" The dealer looked at him as though he had two heads - they had no idea there were 2 sensors for the warning light in question. We returned the car even through he said he knew the fix.

About a year later, a friend's car had the same problem. She was on repair 3 when I heard about it, and told her what the rep said. She told her dealer, and it was fixed the next day.

So, FWIW, sometimes a lemon can be repaired. It just takes the right person to look at the problem.


Having said that, it's unlikely I'd purchase one.

My parents had a '08 Hyundai Elantra (first mistake) for ~3 mos that had problems starting. They towed it, said it was the battery....had problems....oh it's the starter....didn't start AGAIN. Then figured out it was some other defective part.