I bought my 2008 BMW 328i in 2009, one-year old, pre-certified, with a 3-year warranty. Each spring thereafter, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, in late May or early June, when outdoor temps start to rise, my AC failed, blasting out hot instead of cold air. Each year I've taken it in to have the problem fixed, three years under warranty and in 2013 at BMW's expense on account of the prior track record.

On June 8, 2015, I took my car to BMW Manhattan to have various minor issues sorted out, scratches, dents, new brake pads, tail lamp and seatbelt repair, oil change, etc. Only on July 6 - a month later! -- was it ready for pick-up. I used it very little afterwards, prior to leaving on vacation Aug. 12-28 then off on a week-long biz trip to the West Coast. Following my return, I discovered that yet again, the AC had failed.

I called BMW Manhattan to relay the bad news. I was quoted a $380 diagnostic fee -- for starters. My take is that BMW Manhattan must have inadvertently damaged the AC while working on various other repairs. If this were a one-off situation, I'd pay whatever is due, but given the terrible track record with my car's AC, I think that in this case, BMW should shoulder the cost of diagnostics and repair. I am extremely disappointed, to say the least. As someone who works in PR for luxury products and handles customer complaints in the course of my work, I'd be ashamed to handle the situation like this. Very poor customer service!