Catalyst warranty extension on 1998 318ti US.

[Phil Marx]

In response to many of you asking for a copy of the letter pertaining to the catalyst replacement on my '98, I've doctored a copy to hide the identity and VIN of my car as the repair was done in the name of the original owner before I purchased the car. The VIN is a real one but not mine. I hope this helps some one as it is pretty clear in stating both the problem as well as the catalyst warranty being extended to 10-years, unlimited mileage.

[adempster1]

That’s probably the rattling noise I’m getting, it rattles only when I accelerate and it only happens once the car is at normal operating temp. I had a friend check it out and he said that it sounds like something might have came loose inside my muffler, but now reading this I’m assuming that it could be my catalys. So if I read this correctly, I can just take my 98ti to a BMW dealer so they can check it out and if in fact is the catalys they can fix it for free?

[Phil Marx]

You might want to call the number in the letter first, make sure you quote from the letter, and take a copy of that letter with you when you go to the dealership. The whole reason I'm posting the letter is many have hit the great stone wall that is BMW's Customer Relations Department when inquiring about what seems to be a simple warranty extension available to everyone with a '98 318ti in the USA.

Let us know how that works for you. Make sure you aren't going in with any CEL faults—like Secondary Air Pump—they might try and say caused the problem.

[Tyler]

I had mine replaced under warranty in 2002/03. You'll notice a big loss of power if it is going bad.