My compressor has been running more often than normal and the dealer tells me I have a small leak in the valve block. I dont have a warranty at this time but I have been shopping around for one. So my questions are:

- I'm fairly mechanically handy. I wouldn't have any problem attempting to replace this myself unless someone tells me its too technically difficult and/or needs special tools, etc. Does anyone have any experience with this?

- Does anyone know of anywhere I can get the part that would be less expensive than through the dealer? They're quoting me $615 for the part alone.

My other alternative is to buy the warranty, wait the 30 days for it to kick in and have it replaced under the warranty. Problem is, I think the only extended warranties out there that would cover this part would be the exclusionary ones and I'm looking at $4500 for that since my car is out of warranty (29,000 miles but over 4 years) ........... that would hurt. I was looking to get an acceptable lesser warranty that would still cover most things that could be disastrous in this car like the tranny.

Any input would be appreciated. Thx.

If you are mechanically inclined, skip the warranty. Sounds way to expensive and some have had trouble with companies going under and/or being diffucult with claims. (some have also had good experiences)

You can get any OEM part from several online sources such as <a href="http://www.impexfap.com">www.impexfap.com</a> which is my favortie because it is local to me.

If it were me, I would troubleshoot and diagnose the problem personally before ordering and installing the part. It seems that dealerships have trouble properly diagnosing suspension issues and they end up 'thowing parts' at a problem until it gets fixed. We have heard from numerous owners here that dealerships replaced many suspension parts during a attempted resolution.

Once you determine that a particular part is bad you can buy it online, look in a junkyard, find someone who is parting out a car (one recently on this board) or perhaps even attempt to repair the leak with some ingenuity.

This would be my strategy, but I am probably not the norm.

Check with Rob@motorhomecenter.com he is parting out a 2003 allroad. He may still have the part you need for a lot less. I got a couple of things for my car. Also if you don't have a Bentleys get one. Only approx 65.00 shipped. Bimmerzone

Pardon my ignorance ....... but what is a Bentleys?

<img src="http://www.bentleypublishers.com/images/covers/cv_ac55.jpg"><ul><li><a href="http://www.bentleypublishers.com/product.htm?code=ac55">Bentley Publishers (but you don't have to buy from them)</a></li></ul>