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Originally Posted by sgcrockett1
If you read the earlier posts you will see than my connection cannot be through my cell phone on either a blue tooth or a usb connection. I have no idea how it connects. I do not even know the location of the 911 operator I contacted. When I discovered I had been connected to a 911 operator, I apologized for pushing the wrong button and disconnected as quickly as possible so as to not take up resources that may be needed on a real emergency. Obviously BMW hires very competent counsel who made the language (insofar as possible) require arbitration. There are cases that go both ways as to whether that language is enforceable although the majority of courts find arbitration provisions are valid and binding. That is not the issue for me. My issue is the lack of BMW's efforts to provide better customer service for a car that is 4 years old and was fairly expensive. Clearly technology changes, but there should be a real effort to avoid penalizing customers who relied on technology that constituted at least in part the reason for this purchase. I expect better customer service in this circumstance.
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My apologies for missing that reply where you stated the phone wasn't connected. What is occurring is the phone number associated with the 2g SIM card installed in the car has been reclaimed by the wireless provider but the TCU is still able to connect to a 2G network and make an outgoing eCall to a PASP, just as an external mobile phone with no active account can still initiate an emergency call if it has a connection to the network.
As to the other points, BMW's efforts to provide resolution are a matter of personal opinion. They have been and will continue to work and implement fixes. This is not the first time BMW Assist has encountered this problem, however this instance is far more complex due to the number of different Telematics and Infotainment Systems affected.
Look at it from the opposite position. There are cars less than 4 years old (some less than 2) that are affected and covered under warranty. Those must be addressed first and any vehicles that can be updated outside of that range with the same fix will be given the opportunity as well. For older vehicles outside of the warranty period which require more complex fixes will follow; depending on the equipment, an entire retrofit of the Communications, Telematics, and iDrive systems could be a possibility.
It's not the kindest thought, but logistically its the manner in which it needs to flow. The 1st year purchase rate of BMW Assist outside of the free period is in the 70% range. After that, the customer purchase falls below 20%. It takes years to develop, test, gain regulatory approval (this is a communication device), manufacture, and finally distribute a hardware fix. They've only had about a year and a half to address the cars with 2G Systems and were suddenly hit with the 3G cars being affected as well.
What is certain, the hardware solution for any car outside of the 4 year warranty will be at the customers expense.