John in VA
New member
I sent you a message - you'll see it in Notifications at the very top of the page.
Dan's list of local repair shops
- Thread starter 1996 328ti
- Start date
I realize this question was asked a while back, but I'm from Urbana and I've been really happy with Deutsch American http://www.deutschamerican.com . I first had them work on my used X3 when i had just bought it. I had it previously had inspected by another shop in Houston before being shipped up here. They picked up on everything I was expecting them to find and even found a loose U joint in the drive shaft that I hadn't realized was a problem until I stopped noticing a soft clanking sound between acceleration and deceleration after they fixed it. (It is my first X drive, so I just attributed it to normal sounds for an AWD stick shift). It had even made it past MD inspection too....
I meticulously detailed the X3 inside and out--including the engine bay--before dropping it off. I've never had a shop finish with an oil change and leave my engine bay looking as clean as it did when I brought it in-- no drops of oil, no finger prints. This shop is the most detail oriented place that I've used. The place is not new and shiny, but it is clean and organized. And something awesome about using them is that they have their own private air strip to test drive the cars so it is a very controlled environment. I take all my cars there now unless it is something like a recall that needs to go to a dealer.
Very friendly and accommodating as well. And I've also been flexible with them to drop a car off a few days early if they had a cancellation.
They aren't the cheapest shop I've used, but I think they are well worth it considering how picky I am.
pseto
Administrator
Benchmark Motors in Columbia
flanast
New member
Tier Car Care, 307 Church Lane, Pikesville, MD 21211
Tommy Ivic is an instructor for our HPDE's and no one, I repeat no one, knows BMWs better in the area.
John in VA
New member
Our president Paul has previously recommended Benchmark Motors in Columbia - have you checked with them?
yes sent them an email
thank you!Is transmission oil change not recommended? I called one dealer and they said they don't do that and bmw doesn't recommend it... and the other dealer says $2000 just for the labor! which doesn't sound right at all. Even ZF transmission recommend doing so at around 62k miles :/
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John in VA
New member
Most owners feel that BMW's "lifetime" transmission fluid is a fallacy, so do change the fluid. $2K is ridiculous. Look for a shop offering the BG power flush & fluid exchange - we used a shop in Dulles VA & had this done on the '00 E46 with no problem at 60K miles. The BG fluid was compatible with the BMW/Texaco AT fluid recommended in our transmission.
https://www.bgprod.com/catalog/transmission/bg-pf5-power-flush-and-fluid-exchange-system/
https://www.bgprod.com/catalog/transmission/bg-pf5-power-flush-and-fluid-exchange-system/
Thank you John!
I just heard back from benchmark mortors and their price definitely reasonable! not sure what kind of flush system they use tho but I did get a service kit from fcpeuro which includes all the necessary OE parts. https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-ga8hp45z-ga8hp70z-auto-trans-service-kit-24118612901kt
I just hope that I won't run into any issues... too many bad experiences with shops nearby! :frown:
John in VA
New member
Glad to hear it! Some shops will allow owner-supplied parts, some don't. You should have no problem return the kit if that is the case.
Ralph335
New member
Went to see Tommy last week and he took real good care of me. Really nice guy who definitely knows his BMWs. Did the front brakes, a brake flush & oil change on my 335 all while busting my chops that I wasn't coming out to track at Chapter Fest. :tongue:
Thanks for the recommendation! I'll definitely be back to have Tommy do more work to the car!
This talk about the trans fluid change below has me thinking I'll need to go back to Tommy sooner than later. Maybe I'll have him do it in a few months.
John in VA
New member
You'll probably have to slide up to the Rockville area to find a shop. Good luck!
warrenbrown
New member
Any suggestion for good service shops in Cecil or Harford Counties?
Warren
Warren