MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused

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Tue 21 May 2013 20:21
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - myaquarium

had a camshaft sensor fitted 10 months ago by main bmw dealerwhich has now failed. there is a 2 year warranty on part.

bmw mini refuse to relpace the part as they say there is rust on camshaft causing the failure.

car is owned by wife and she drives 3000miles a year which they say has caused the rust on camshaft due to engine not getting hot enough.

They charged me £105 to clean top of rocker box and remove rust deposits. and say its not worth putting a new camshaft sensor on as it will also fail eventually. I have even offered to pay outside of warranty and they are reluctant to do it as they say it will fail eventually again.

however they have offerde to replace camshaft for £1000.

I thought it was reosonable to pay for sensor and if it did not fail after 10 weeks they should honour warranty and give me a refund. they have also said no to this.

any advise would be great thanks in advance

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Tue 21 May 2013 20:53
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - mss1tw

In the service book it may state that short journeys are classed as severe use and therefore need a shorter (5000? 6000?) service interval.

To my knowledge they have no way of proving you've not done 30 trips of 100 miles though.

I've never heard of a rusty camshaft being caused by this though, and a few cars in our family have had the shopping trolley treatment.

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Tue 21 May 2013 21:49
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - Collos25

I have taken cars out of barns that have stood for many years I have yet to see one with a rusty anything inside the engine.

If there is rust on the camshaft then its a faulty shaft but I think the agents are giving you a bit of a fairy storey.

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Tue 21 May 2013 21:58
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - gordonbennet

Yes the only rusty camshafts i've ever seen are in partly dismantled engines left in the open for years.

Quality motors these MINI's, going to need their own forum page on HJ the way its going.

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Wed 22 May 2013 08:36
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - Cyd

Most warranties have an upper mileage limit, but never heard of one with a lower mileage limit!!

If it's under warranty and it's failed then it should be fixed.

Ask the dealer to show you which warranty clauses you have broken. None I'll bet.

Short journies = condensation (especially in the cam cavity) = [usually] sludging
But rust? sounds dubious to me.

Edited by Cyd{P} on 22/05/2013 at 08:39

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Wed 22 May 2013 09:44
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - craig-pd130

Cam position sensors usually rely on a magnet and a steel pin in the cam. As the cam rotates, the sensor either detects the magnet passing by, or the pin causes the magnetic field to fluctuate which is detected by the sensor.

Rust will NOT affect either of these components, nor will it affect the actual sensor's operation. The dealer is talking utter bull excrement.

Also, did they remove the camshaft from the cylinder head to 'remove the rust deposits' or did they just scrape them off and let the flakes fall into the head?

They sound like a bunch of charlatans, I'm afraid.

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Wed 22 May 2013 10:04
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - RT

How do you get rust in a lubricated area? Surely it's physically/chemically impossible.

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Wed 22 May 2013 10:11
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - unthrottled

Not if the oil is emulsified with water it isn't.

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Wed 22 May 2013 10:16
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - Collos25

Rubbish

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Wed 22 May 2013 23:55
MINI Cooper and Cooper S - mini cooper camshaft sensor warranty refused - focussed

Refer the dealer who is refusing the warranty claim to the owner's handbook. If it does not specifically mention that the type of usage is liable to cause a problem, or is not recommended and details the consequences then the dealer has no option but to repair the defects under warranty-it's that simple. Dealers and/or manufacturers cannot come along after the event of selling a vehicle and add weasel clauses to avoid their liability when something goes wrong-unless the driver was officially told about it via some sort of a bulletin or letter.

I wrote a couple of the chapters of that well known book" How to avoid paying out on warranty claims" during a stint as a warranty claim inspector for a major manufacturer many years ago.

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