In March 04 I purchased a brand new M3 E46. Shortly after I noticed that if the handbrake was not fully (and I mean fully) applied prior to getting out of the car, the car sounded like an old spring bedstead (memories of being in the Army). I mentioned this to my local BMW dealership. Their view was 'They all sound like that'. So I posted a message on this forum to hear your views. The general view of respondents was that the garage was trying to have me over and that they had not had any problems.

Last month I took my car in for a service and mentioned the above. I was advised that if the brakes were stripped down and lubricated, matters might improve, but that didn't come under the warranty.

I e-mailed BMW GB and complained about the brakes and asked them to carry out the work under the warranty. Their response was as follows:

A lecture on always applying the handbrake fully to ensure maximum safety!!!!!!!!!!!!. Then the following classic:

'I have spoken to the Service Manager at Hexagon with regard to the brakes. He informs me this is a common occurrence particularly with cars in the London area. The dusty conditions and driving style in this area cause a build up of brake dust which leads to a squeaking noise'

I replied by pointing out that I had driven in London for 30 years. In that time I had never owned a car (including BMWs) with the same problem. Needless to say I didn't get a reply.

Any ideas on how I can get BMW to deal with this problem?

BMW UK are a bunch of Idiots.

The CEO who writes in the BMW CAR CLUB MAG, Jim O'Donnell, should stop talking about how good his P&L looks and sort out the current warranty situation.