# Night Vision Repair $4500+ help!!!



## maggie2 (Feb 23, 2006)

I have one of the first cars built with night vision and according to my dealer the only one they have seen. Problem - the lense has been pitted from driving and the image is very weak. 

To repair they say they have to replace the unit and it will be about $,500 for the part plus labor - seems crazy.

Does anyone know if they can just replace the lense? I am beyond speachless, I love my 550i and the nightvision but this is nuts.:dunno:

help please


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## joebox (Aug 19, 2006)

They should do it under warranty. If the part design did not take into account road use, it is not suitable for the particular use for which it was sold. Press the warranty issue.


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## maggie2 (Feb 23, 2006)

*warranty*

I am pushing that the design is crazy and that it should be covered under warranty - the foglights are not pitted and are at the same level - anyone know what postion person I should talk to?


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## BMW1983 (Feb 1, 2006)

Is the night vision part of the windshield? Or is the lens you are referring to separate from the windshield? If it is part of the windshield, can't you just have your insurance company pay for the glass replacement under comprehensive insurance?


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## djfitter (Sep 12, 2007)

BMW1983 said:


> Is the night vision part of the windshield? Or is the lens you are referring to separate from the windshield? If it is part of the windshield, can't you just have your insurance company pay for the glass replacement under comprehensive insurance?


He says it is the same level as the fog lights, definitely not part of the windshield. :rofl:

dj


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## ///M Rakete (Apr 1, 2002)

maggie2 said:


> I have one of the first cars built with night vision and according to my dealer the only one they have seen. Problem - the lense has been pitted from driving and the image is very weak.
> 
> To repair they say they have to replace the unit and it will be about $,500 for the part plus labor - seems crazy.
> 
> ...


The camera is one self-contained unit. The lens is not a separate replaceable part. I too think it is a bad design because of this. There should be a sacrificial cover. I have 2 or 3 pits in mine but there's no observable effect to the image display.

I considered putting clear bra material over it but I wasn't sure if it would end up not being transparent in the infrared range. I didn't want to try it because I didn't want to be in a potentially worse position if I had to remove the material.

I think the price they are quoting is ridiculous. The unit looks to be fairly accessible from beneath the car by removing the front splash guard. One would have to access the actual repair/replace procedure in the TIS to be sure. The good news on a leased car is any pitting is normal wear and tear given the location and the lack of protection.


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## Adumbration (Jun 23, 2007)

Yikes. This strikes me as something that definitely should be covered under warranty.

Makes me wonder: does anyone know of a case in which a dealership claimed something wasn't covered by warranty, charged full price, and then found out it was covered by warranty and the dealership double collected?


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## Lucardes (Jul 12, 2006)

have someone throw a baseball towards your windshield by the night-vision side and call your insurance to have it fixed  telling them hit and run.


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## maggie2 (Feb 23, 2006)

*nightvision*

I have started talking to the head of sales at the dealer-I keep bringing in people to buy and he is going to see what he can do.


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## TED13B (Aug 15, 2007)

The part alone is $4,500, the dealer is correct. Warranty covers defects in materials and workmanship, not outside influence. By that logic, brken windshields should be warranty since BMW knew they would be prone to breakage due to flying rocks. If you're a good customer, the dealer may be able to help through BMW Goodwill.


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## NickHW (Aug 17, 2008)

That doesn't seem very analogous to me. 

The parts should at least be fit for their purposes: if you needed to replace your wheels every 2,000 miles you'd be angry because it would be clear they'd been badly designed; I don't see how this is any different from a camera with a lens filter that gets pitted on a short timescale due to ordinary wear-and-tear.


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## Adumbration (Jun 23, 2007)

How many others with night vision have this problem?


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## Fulltone74 (Oct 19, 2005)

First of all, it's totally ridiculous to charge $4,500 for the fix. 

It's a $1,200 option on the car. 
How can fixing a broken one cost nearly 4 times as much as what it costs to configure a new car with the same option. 

Are they charging you $3,000 in labor? 

Keep pressing the issue. The pricing is ridiculous -- especially for an item marketed as an additional "safety" feature.


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## Adumbration (Jun 23, 2007)

The cost of the night vision option may be "subsidized" by BMW in an effort to amortize costs and allow new innovations to come to market sooner. If they charged what they really cost, it might take a lot longer for production to scale and prices to drop, etc.

So perhaps BMW charges $1,200 for the option, but the part really does cost about $4,500.


What's disappointing about this, though, is that BMW doesn't seem to be standing behind its product now that something has gone wrong. Definitely makes me less likely to try a new option or feature that BMW offers in the future.


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## MikeCee (Apr 3, 2007)

I see a couple of people confusing Heads Up Display for Night Vision. Heads up Display is the projection onto the windshield, NightVision is a small camera located near the bumper that allows you to essentially have night vision, see heat etc.

It seems to me like you should be able to get this covered under warranty. Try pressing the issue with the Service Manager, or the General Manager.


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## tturedraider (Nov 11, 2005)

joebox said:


> They should do it under warranty. If the part design did not take into account road use, it is not suitable for the particular use for which it was sold. Press the warranty issue.





maggie2 said:


> I am pushing that the design is crazy and that it should be covered under warranty - *the foglights are not pitted and are at the same level* - anyone know what postion person I should talk to?





TED13B said:


> The part alone is $4,500, the dealer is correct. Warranty covers *defects in materials* and workmanship, not outside influence. By that logic, brken windshields should be warranty since BMW knew they would be prone to breakage due to flying rocks. If you're a good customer, the dealer may be able to help through BMW Goodwill.





NickHW said:


> That doesn't seem very analogous to me.
> 
> * The parts should at least be fit for their purposes*: if you needed to replace your wheels every 2,000 miles you'd be angry because it would be clear they'd been badly designed; I don't see how this is any different from a camera with a lens filter that gets pitted on a short timescale due to ordinary wear-and-tear.


This is absolutely a warranty issue. You need to take this right up the chain of command all the way to BMWNA and BMW AG if necessary. It sounds like at this point the next step is getting a BMWNA regional rep involved.


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## SergioK (Aug 14, 2002)

You could file a claim w/ your insurance company.... essentially you did hit something that caused the $5k+ damage.


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## shointake (Aug 4, 2008)

u own a 2008 BMW

WARRRENTY SHOULD COVER IT!


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## maggie2 (Feb 23, 2006)

update:
The salesmanager has gotten the ball rolling. He is working on it from 3 angles and feels that at worst it will be covered thru the goodwill progam. The whole process takes time and he asked me to be patient- actually he gives me weekly updates. He did confirm that part alone is $4,500 and that the labor would probabley be over $1,000 due to the time to unbolt the bumper and everything else needed. I will keep updating everyone.


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## JSpira (Oct 21, 2002)

What are the other two angles?


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