— A BMW N63 engine lawsuit has been filed in a Kansas court alleging the N63 engine drinks too much oil and has battery-drain problems.
The N63 engine lawsuit was filed by Scott Crockett, who claims BMW vehicles with N63 engines aren't worth what they were advertised to be and trying to unload a vehicle to someone else is nearly impossible. According to the BMW lawsuit, trying to sell a car equipped with the N63 engine is next to impossible because so many BMW owners have complained online and elsewhere about the engines.
Crockett claims BMW is fully aware of the alleged engine defects because the automaker has issued technical service bulletins and customer satisfaction programs to remedy the supposed problems. However, the plaintiff says no remedy has worked and the N63 engines continue to consume oil, eat batteries and require constant repairs at an advanced rate.
The lawsuit alleges BMW addressed the N63 engine oil consumption issues by telling dealers to use larger amounts of oil in the cars. In addition, BMW has provided free batteries for any vehicles still under warranty and equipped with the N63 engines. Finally, BMW started replacing certain engine parts even if the vehicle warranty had expired. But owners still complain the N63 engine problems persist.
According to the lawsuit, BMW knows these procedures won't fix the N63 engine problems and the automaker is offering the services only to buy time until the warranty has expired.
BMW has previously said the V-8 N63 engine does drink a lot of oil but the problem can typically be fixed by breaking in the turbocharged engine by pushing the engine. In place of this, adding extra oil can at least help keep the low oil warning indicator from activating.
As for drained batteries, BMW says the cooling system keeps running after the engine is shut off and this is what can drain the batteries. The cooling system must run for a period of time after the vehicle is shut down so the two turbochargers can cool down.
BMW N63 Customer Care Package
In February 2015, BMW issued what it calls the “N63 Customer Care Package,” something the plaintiff says is just another way to put on a good show without fixing the core problems. The automaker says it offered the N63 customer care package as a way to please customers.
The package offers free inspection and replacement of fuel injectors, battery, low pressure fuel sensor, engine vacuum pump, crankcase vent lines and mass air flow sensors. In addition, BMW switched the service schedule from 2 years/15,000 miles to 12 months/10,000 miles, and all work will be performed even if the warranty has expired.
The automaker further created the BMW "N63 Customer Loyalty Offer" that will provide incentives for trading the car for a new BMW model.
The "N63 Customer Appreciation Program" was also created which offers a $50 gift card, gas card, car detailing or BMW merchandise.
The N63 engine lawsuit accuses BMW of violating the Kansas Consumer Protection Act, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and breach of warranties.
The BMW N63 engine lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas - Crockett v. BMW of North America LLC.
The plaintiff is represented by Wagstaff & Cartmell, LLP.
