[diswell19]

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Hi, We have had a really poor experience with our 2021 X3 delivery. We paid and ordered the Comfort Package which included side bolster, lumbar support plus heating for the front seats. On delivery day No side bolster and lumbar support for the passenger seat... Dealer said factory had a chip shortage and offered a $300 credit...

So I have asked parts to price a new passenger seat with the side bolster and lumbar support. They say it cannot be retrofitted!!

Does not make sense to me as it is mechanical so new seat with the buttons and options should work. Is this just the factory / BMW Australia not wanting to have an "option" to fix.

[M40i4me]

Had the same thing happen to me. Besides the credit they threw in the OEM all weather floor and cargo mats. No big deal as I haven’t had any passengers that notice the difference. If it was the drivers side I would have rejected it in a heart beat.

[Posull78]

I think they removed it for the passenger seat a while ago. Did the dealer send you a confirmation of the order when he placed it? Mine shows 48Z remove front passenger with adj -$100 and ZLF front passenger lumbar removal -$175

[gugin]

Originally Posted by diswell19

So I have asked parts to price a new passenger seat with the side bolster and lumbar support. They say it cannot be retrofitted!!

Does not make sense to me as it is mechanical so new seat with the buttons and options should work. Is this just the factory / BMW Australia not wanting to have an "option" to fix.

Anything can be retrofitted. It's a question of money and willingness to do it. I suspect they simply don't want to deal with it. Much easier for them to sell you the car as is and have you, rather than them, bear any inconvenience resulting from the difference between what you ordered and what BMW delivered.

[diswell19]

That was the issue, no notification from the dealer until delivery day and I noticed the passenger seat... BMW Australia offered a $300 credit.. It is not the money it is the features that we wanted. I agree they just want to wash their hands of it. Dealer saying cannot be retro fitted. We are very tempted to get rid of the car only has 1050 klm on the clock.

[M40i4me]

Originally Posted by diswell19

That was the issue, no notification from the dealer until delivery day and I noticed the passenger seat... BMW Australia offered a $300 credit.. It is not the money it is the features that we wanted. I agree they just want to wash their hands of it. Dealer saying cannot be retro fitted. We are very tempted to get rid of the car only has 1050 klm on the clock.

My dealer told me before pick up or signing anything, yours should have done the same. Not cool.

[gugin]

Originally Posted by diswell19

That was the issue, no notification from the dealer until delivery day and I noticed the passenger seat... BMW Australia offered a $300 credit.. It is not the money it is the features that we wanted. I agree they just want to wash their hands of it. Dealer saying cannot be retro fitted. We are very tempted to get rid of the car only has 1050 klm on the clock.

Not sure what used car prices are these days (I keep reading about Carvana going crazy in the US), but normally you take a meaningful loss when you sell a car, even slightly used one. Why don't you talk to another dealer what it would cost to retrofit the passenger seat. If it costs $3k and you take a $5k loss selling the car, you are better off keeping it and having the dealer retrofit. Basically, research your options first.

[chassis]

Also happening to Porsche. The Cayenne GTS is being delivered without power adjustable steering column due to lack of electronics availability. The electric column will be retrofitted at no charge when available. Not ETA on when it will be available.

I think MB has stopped offering selected options as well for the same reason as BMW and Porsche.

[ckbingge]

same issue in China factory.

Originally Posted by diswell19

Hi, We have had a really poor experience with our 2021 X3 delivery. We paid and ordered the Comfort Package which included side bolster, lumbar support plus heating for the front seats. On delivery day No side bolster and lumbar support for the passenger seat... Dealer said factory had a chip shortage and offered a $300 credit...

So I have asked parts to price a new passenger seat with the side bolster and lumbar support. They say it cannot be retrofitted!!

Does not make sense to me as it is mechanical so new seat with the buttons and options should work. Is this just the factory / BMW Australia not wanting to have an "option" to fix.

[spangle1980]

One has to ask - chip shortage yaaa OK. Driver assistance would use much chippage. HK audio would use many chips, ditto HUD, ditto other fancy gizmo chippy type things. It's not just cars btw, I had an absolute bastard of a time buying a sony av amp recently (I like SONY) but it was a proper mission.

But heated seats? A heating filament and an on/off button? Comfort seats, ikkle blowey up ting, and another switch (no chips I can think of of value there).

Sounds like bollocks, to me at least.

[Drothgeb]

Our M40i came without the adjustable bolsters and lumbar on the passenger side. But it came up on the day we ordered, so we knew when ordering. We would have preferred to have it, but it wasn’t really that big a deal for us.

We originally ordered an X5, but the HK and air suspension were cancelled due to the chip shortage. That was a big deal, so we canceled that and went with the M40i instead.

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by spangle1980

But heated seats? A heating filament and an on/off button? Comfort seats, ikkle blowey up ting, and another switch (no chips I can think of of value there).

For adjustment of the temperature for the 3 level, which one you want turn on automaticaly and at what temperature and so on...

Nothing like depending on China for Creature Comfort in a German SAV build in the US

[Yobyot]

Originally Posted by chassis

Also happening to Porsche. The Cayenne GTS is being delivered without power adjustable steering column due to lack of electronics availability. The electric column will be retrofitted at no charge when available. Not ETA on when it will be available.

I think MB has stopped offering selected options as well for the same reason as BMW and Porsche.

I was in the BMW store for an oil change and noticed on several X models, including M versions, on the Moroney sticker (a label which must be affixed to the window in US cars) that various "credits" were applied to MSRP for missing seat functions. They were about $100 each.

This is informative on several levels. It demonstrates the chip/supply chain issues post-pandemic. It also confirms the standard disclaimer in marketing materials that in-model-year changes can be made. And that should be enough to make a dealer less eager to let you out of a deal (except they can find another buyer easily in this market).

Bottom line: either buy a stock unit which is a known build or wait until the world resets to order your car.

This is painful for many, I know. I only custom-order my cars because that's the only way I can get precisely what I want. I rely on the ordering guide, which I almost memorize, to understand which feature or package is which.

If my car came any way other than what I ordered, credits be damned, it would be permanently disappointing.

My sympathies are with the OP.

[3lucidus]

Originally Posted by diswell19

Hi, We have had a really poor experience with our 2021 X3 delivery. We paid and ordered the Comfort Package which included side bolster, lumbar support plus heating for the front seats. On delivery day No side bolster and lumbar support for the passenger seat... Dealer said factory had a chip shortage and offered a $300 credit...

So I have asked parts to price a new passenger seat with the side bolster and lumbar support. They say it cannot be retrofitted!!

Does not make sense to me as it is mechanical so new seat with the buttons and options should work. Is this just the factory / BMW Australia not wanting to have an "option" to fix.

selling my 2021 m40i in sydney... all bells, all whistles, shortage issue free

[jacko15]

You have to realize the shortages aren't just high-end processing chips, there's also shortages of simple transistors. I just spent two days trying to find a microwave oven for the kitchen. Several local appliance stores had none. I finally found one, and it was the last one they had in stock. These shortages are going to get worse before they get better. I'm putting off buying anything unless I absolutely need it until this whole mess is straightened out.