[SwaggyP]

Hey guys!

I have a question about the definition of CPO and I thought you all would be a great resource.... Here's the question/scenario

I purchased my 2011 335d about 8-9 months ago from a dealership w/ 28k miles on it. Perfect condition and the car fax said no accidents. I've developed tons and tons of rock chips on the front bumper and I brought it in to an auto body shop to get an estimate for it to be re-painted. The auto body shop said the reason why I have the so many rock chips is because its not stock paint, its been painted before. aftermarket paint doesn't hold up as well as stock paint. They looked at the hood and they said that also has been painted before.

Doesn't CPO mean it has never been in an accident? If I pull up an updated car fax report and it shows an accident is that means for return? I live in California if that means anything.

- Please let me know what your thoughts are. I thought purchasing a certified pre-owned car meant it was inspected and certified as just like new.

[rulonger]

I purchased a CPO that was sold with a 'clean' CARFAX. After some CBU scare at the end of last year, I actually thought about trading it in. When the car was appraised by the local dealership for trade-in, they asked me about the accident. I said that it had never been in an accident. So the finance manager then showed me the CARFAX that detailed an accident to the right front of the vehicle about 2 months before I bought it. Seems that the previous owner unloaded it just after the accident. CARFAX would not give me any information about the accident, not even telling me the source of the reported accident. Needless to say, I was pissed. I called the dealership that had sold me the car and raised a stink. I share their answer with you as it may relate to your situation.

They claim that a car can be certified for the BMW CPO program as long as the repairs are done with OE parts.

I felt that they misled me when selling, but guess I have no recourse. The dealership said that the CARFAX report is provided as a courtesy and that they have no way of guaranteeing the accuracy of the report. So to me, CARFAX is a sham perpetrated by dealerships. And a wrecked car can be certified by a dealership - we have two cases that prove that.

Interestingly, I have gone after the dealership to have my front bumper repainted. I will let you know how that goes.

[Hoooper]

I know I have stock paint on my car and the front bumper is completely hammered. Another couple years and there may be no paint left on it. The auto body shop can tell if a part has been repainted and they maybe can tell if a new part has been fitted and painted with aftermarket paint, but that would be questionable. The body shop is quite possibly just wrong. Is it a BMW certified shop?

If you commute and drive on a busy highway a lot there are going to be lots of chips, there isnt really a way to stop that unless you have a bumper bra or repaint the bumper with bedliner.

[SwaggyP]

Originally Posted by rulonger

I purchased a CPO that was sold with a 'clean' CARFAX. After some CBU scare at the end of last year, I actually thought about trading it in. When the car was appraised by the local dealership for trade-in, they asked me about the accident. I said that it had never been in an accident. So the finance manager then showed me the CARFAX that detailed an accident to the right front of the vehicle about 2 months before I bought it. Seems that the previous owner unloaded it just after the accident. CARFAX would not give me any information about the accident, not even telling me the source of the reported accident. Needless to say, I was pissed. I called the dealership that had sold me the car and raised a stink. I share their answer with you as it may relate to your situation.

They claim that a car can be certified for the BMW CPO program as long as the repairs are done with OE parts.

I felt that they misled me when selling, but guess I have no recourse. The dealership said that the CARFAX report is provided as a courtesy and that they have no way of guaranteeing the accuracy of the report. So to me, CARFAX is a sham perpetrated by dealerships. And a wrecked car can be certified by a dealership - we have two cases that prove that.

Interestingly, I have gone after the dealership to have my front bumper repainted. I will let you know how that goes.

Please let me know what the dealership ends up doing. I would love to know.

Thanks for your reply

[SwaggyP]

Originally Posted by Hoooper

I know I have stock paint on my car and the front bumper is completely hammered. Another couple years and there may be no paint left on it. The auto body shop can tell if a part has been repainted and they maybe can tell if a new part has been fitted and painted with aftermarket paint, but that would be questionable. The body shop is quite possibly just wrong. Is it a BMW certified shop?

If you commute and drive on a busy highway a lot there are going to be lots of chips, there isnt really a way to stop that unless you have a bumper bra or repaint the bumper with bedliner.

Hooper, Yes. I went to one of 2 BMW NA authorized dealerships in northern California. I found out there is a difference between authorized and certified... I learned that when my car went into the shop for a bubbled strut tower (Big, Big Pothole). Anyways, everyone at the shop has to be an authorized bmw representative. Certified shops only need one man on premise to be BMW certified.

Anyways.... they said the paint on my bumper is much thinner than the stock BMW paint. that is the reason why it has chipped so easily and now shows the white primer/plastic behind the paint. Hopefully the dealership will paint the bumper for me or return the car and I can get another 335d.

[Hoooper]

Yeah, if BMW is telling you its not BMW paint I think that would be reason to raise a stink at the dealer. Would be interesting to hear their response. I get the feeling some dealers are repainting the front bumpers of used cars before selling even without them being in an accident because they show a lot of chips from normal use which would obviously hurt the resale value.

[kbsilver]

I'm sure repainting a front bumper because it's been blasted by road debris is not considered an accident. I think almost every used BMW, CPO or not has the front bumper resprayed. I purchased a service loaner with 8K miles and it was resprayed. Now at 60K half the paint has been blasted off. In NJ they NEVER clean the roads.

If it bothers me bad enough I'll get it painted again. At least with this design the bumper cover takes 95% of the wear, not like an E46 where that front face was part of the hood.

[gavronm]

Just to throw another data point onto the fire - the hood of my CPO was absolutely pristine when I bought it about 4 months ago. Just about every time I get a touchless car wash several new little chips show up. I haven't taken it to a body shop to ask if they can tell me whether it was resprayed but I think I know what the answer will be if I do.

When I moved from the city (Chicago) to the burbs I knew I would miss the restaurants - I never expected to miss the hand car washes.

[joe_planet]

I bought a CPO and it was a theft recovery. CPO doesnt mean its a perfect car by any means. They also resprayed the front bumper, after a few months the paint started coming off. I complained and they took care of the respray. As long as you buy from a decent dealer you should be ok if any issues come up.