[mcrisman]

Thinking about maintenance schedules and extended warranties as I will be signing the contract soon. I cannot find the regular service schedule for the I4 M50. I can’t make a decision about an extended warranty or a prepaid service contract until I know the car’s requirements. I just don’t know what an electric car might need and what might go wrong as compared to an ICE vehicle and if extended warranties and prepaid service schedules a worth it. Thoughts??

 

[Mikeyf79]

When I asked all they could tell me was brake fluid, obv apart from consumables which usually aren't included.

 

[ssh]

Thinking about maintenance schedules and extended warranties as I will be signing the contract soon. I cannot find the regular service schedule for the I4 M50. I can’t make a decision about an extended warranty or a prepaid service contract until I know the car’s requirements. I just don’t know what an electric car might need and what might go wrong as compared to an ICE vehicle and if extended warranties and prepaid service schedules a worth it. Thoughts??

24 months you need to have the brakes checked. That's the only thing that's been discussed. There are also cabin air filters.

Maintenance

Maintain the vehicle regularly to sustain the road safety, operational reliability and the New Vehicle Limited Warranty.

Specifications for maintenance measures:

BMW maintenance system.

Maintenance, refer to page 332.

Maintenance Booklet, available online and accessible via a QR code in the New Vehicle Limited Warranty Booklet

Of course, the QR code doesn't bring up a Maintenance Booklet for the i4.

 

[kindofblue]

And if you drive in B for max regen braking the disc brake pads are going to last a long time. The high voltage battery and its systems have a warranty of 8 years and 100k. They may also try to sell you a tire warranty which I also consider a waste of $$$$. You can buy a road hazard warranty from Discount Tire (which includes flat repairs and rotations free) for much less $$.

 

[ssh]

And if you drive in B for max regen braking the disc brake pads are going to last a long time. The high voltage battery and its systems have a warranty of 8 years and 100k. They may also try to sell you a tire warranty which I also consider a waste of $$$$. You can buy a road hazard warranty from Discount Tire (which includes flat repairs and rotations free) for much less $$.

You don't have to drive in B mode for this. The i4 uses "blended braking," preferring the motor braking to the brake pads in all braking. The pads are only used when the braking force necessary exceeds what the motors can provide.

 

[rollermonkey]

Thinking about maintenance schedules and extended warranties as I will be signing the contract soon. I cannot find the regular service schedule for the I4 M50. I can’t make a decision about an extended warranty or a prepaid service contract until I know the car’s requirements. I just don’t know what an electric car might need and what might go wrong as compared to an ICE vehicle and if extended warranties and prepaid service schedules a worth it. Thoughts??

Pre-paid maintenance is a heck no. The only item worth mentioning that will need maintenance that isn't already covered is tires, and those are not covered.

Extended Warranty, OTOH, could be worthwhile. If something big goes wrong outside of the standard warranty, it could offset the warranty cost in a single repair, but if you aren't going to keep the car beyond the regular warranty period and/or you are a low mileage driver, you may not get anything in return for your money.

 

[kindofblue]

You don't have to drive in B mode for this. The i4 uses "blended braking," preferring the motor braking to the brake pads in all braking. The pads are only used when the braking force necessary exceeds what the motors can provide.

Thanks. I prefer the B mode though for its max regen braking. My previous EV was a Tesla (now traded in and gone, a BMW i4 replacing it).

 

[SGinAZ]

When I went through the required finance guy add-on gauntlet, I was offered an extended warranty for $6K! No, thank you. I didn't get into specifics as I was dumbfounded by the price. I was also offered other typical items (tinting, maintenance, and a few others). I declined them all.

 

[ssh]

Thanks. I prefer the B mode though for its max regen braking. My previous EV was a Tesla (now traded in and gone, a BMW i4 replacing it).

I can understand having a preference for B mode, especially if you've driven a more traditional EV like a Tesla.

The important point is that it doesn't provide more recuperative braking. It just does it with the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal. The amount of recuperation is the same.

 

[kindofblue]

I can understand having a preference for B mode, especially if you've driven a more traditional EV like a Tesla.

The important point is that it doesn't provide more recuperative braking. It just does it with the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal. The amount of recuperation is the same.

Got it, thanks.

 

[chipset]

They kind of tried the extended warranty with me. That was a no go. Same with the maintenance package. Got to wheels and tires and the way he was circling the items (upside down to him), he circled “Tires and Wheels” and with it a number. $590. I was all set to buy that for the wheels and tires, but when he rang it up, it was $2950. I mentioned my confusion, he said, “oh, my bad” and that was that. No add ons.

 

[tonyquan]

Maintenance plans and extended warranties are definitely not worth it for this car.

@ssh you can get the maintenance booklet from here: Maintenance Resources | BMW USA

Here's the direct link to the 2022 booklet (no 2023 booklet yet)

2022: https://www.bmwusa.com/content/dam/...books/2022/BMW_2022_i4_iX_Maintenance_web.pdf

The only maintenance items are:

--Vehicle check (inspecting a laundry list of items). Right now my car's service display is saying do this in 2 years. I don't see anything likely needing to be done from this list except replacing keyfob batteries and windshield washer fluid
--Check and replace brake pads if necessary. As mentioned above, replacing brake pads would be unusual in an EV. I've had two EVs for years and have never replaced brake pads once. Brake pads are not covered by warranty/maintenance plan anyway.
--Check/replace brake fluid if necessary. Right now my car's service display is saying do this in 2 years.
--Replace cabin air filters once every 2 years

 

[chipset]

One of the biggest pains of an electric vehicle is… you don’t get fluid top offs when you get your oil changed. Gotta do that yourself, since it never gets the oil changed.

 

[BMWdav]

It all depends on price, I got the prepaid service thing because it cost me like $100 for 4 years which I am sure is cheaper than paying out of pocket even for the few service items the i4 has.

Also extended BMWs bumper to bumper warranty with an additional 2 years for $1000. That one isn’t as sure to save me money but I’ve said I’ll never own a Tesla outside of warranty and the i4 is unproven so far. And BMW only including 2 years of warranty when even Tesla does 4 didn’t really show me BMW themselves are confident in how long it will last.

 

[tonyquan]

It all depends on price, I got the prepaid service thing because it cost me like $100 for 4 years which I am sure is cheaper than paying out of pocket even for the few service items the i4 has.

Also extended BMWs bumper to bumper warranty with an additional 2 years for $1000. That one isn’t as sure to save me money but I’ve said I’ll never own a Tesla outside of warranty and the i4 is unproven so far. And BMW only including 2 years of warranty when even Tesla does 4 didn’t really show me BMW themselves are confident in how long it will last.

In the US, BMW's standard warranty is 4 years/50k miles, and 3 years/36k miles of maintenance is already included for free. Also, federal government regulations require that electric car batteries be warranted for a minimum of 8 years/80k miles.

The maintenance packages are priced high enough in the US that they don't make sense to me. Ultimate care for 3 years/36k miles is $700, 5 years/75k miles is $1700, and 7 years/125k miles is $2400.

Extending the warranty past the original 4 years starts at $3400 for the 5th year coverage and ends up being $5000 for extending it to 7 years.

 

[A_Camera]

24 months you need to have the brakes checked. That's the only thing that's been discussed. There are also cabin air filters.

...also the AC needs to be checked and several other things, for example the battery cooling system and maybe also inspection of motor brushes. At least in Sweden, extended maintenance service is worth paying for if you intend to follow the maintenance recommendations and let an authorized shop do the job for you. We also get 10% off for parts and consumable needed during that period. Extended warranty is a rip-off, but extended service is well worth paying for.

 

[A_Camera]

It all depends on price, I got the prepaid service thing because it cost me like $100 for 4 years which I am sure is cheaper than paying out of pocket even for the few service items the i4 has.

Also extended BMWs bumper to bumper warranty with an additional 2 years for $1000. That one isn’t as sure to save me money but I’ve said I’ll never own a Tesla outside of warranty and the i4 is unproven so far. And BMW only including 2 years of warranty when even Tesla does 4 didn’t really show me BMW themselves are confident in how long it will last.

I agree that BMW is very stingy regarding warranty, my previous Mazda had a warranty lasting forever if services were made by an authorized shop, and our coming EV6 has seven years warranty. Anyway, I'll take my chance and don't buy any extended warranty, only extended service. I have always served my cars as recommended and let the authorized shops do the job even if some say they are overpriced. The only cars which were tremendously expensive to serve were my Volvo cars back in the 80's. In fact, service costs were a driving factor for me in selecting other brands.

 

[lefkonj]

Other than a tire and wheel protection plan won't be adding anything to the vehicle.

 

[JSH_i4M50]

If you feel comfortable adding washer fluid, then a Maintenance Plan is a hard "no".

You may get some pressure to sign now on an extended warranty but there's no need to rush. You can purchase an extended warranty at any point before the base warranty expires. Don't buy an extended warranty right off the bat; you have time to evaluate and get comfortable with the car and learn its "personality". Take your time.

 

[ssh]

Thanks @tonyquan! I hadn't found that and it reinforces that there's very little to maintain on the i4.