[BMW_Amateur]

Hi everyone, my first post here.

The first set of errors I got after starting my X3 (F25 2014) was traction control / ABS and the parking brake error. Moved out of my parking spot in the underground parking area and got stuck at the bottom of the ramp, the car could not go up the ramp, saw the drivetrain error and the engine power reduction message. I also noticed the steering wheel had more resistance when I turned it. I then reversed into an empty parking space, drove around the garage for a minute and then was able to climb the 2 ramps and got out of the garage. The drivetrain error was gone. The check engine light was on though (not blinking), the traction control and ABS errors were on too. In about 20 minutes I reached the local BMW service, cut the engine and started it in 20-30 seconds and all errors were gone. I was actually leaving on a vacation trip with my family and the BMW service could not offer any immediate help, we decided to drive on. Next day no errors appeared and we reached our destination. I did not start the car for 6 days and on the day of departure all of the errors and the aforementioned symptoms appeared again. After cutting and starting the engine a few times and letting it run to warm up to 100 degrees Celcius the drivetrain + DTC/ABS errors were gone again and I was able to climb uphill and head back home. Check engine light was still on and after 30 min of driving I stopped, cut the engine, waited for 10 seconds, started it and the light went out. No issues on the way back home. The next day started the car, no warnings, everything worked well but I did not drive anywhere, just switched the parking position of the car. The day after got all the errors again with a few more - cannot get rid of them anymore. The biggest issue I have now is that I cannot get the car out of level (-2) of the underground parking - the drivetrain error cuts the engine power and I get stuck at the bottom of the ramp, gas pedal all the way down to no avail.

Such a bummer since I bought the car just a month ago and there are so many errors to resolve:

1. Press brake to engage gear. Attention: gear can be engaged without brake.
2. Restraint system. Function of airbags, belt tentioners and belt force limiters fault.
3. Drivetrain. Continue the jorney at a moderate speed. Full performance not available.
4. ABS / Brake System. Continue the jorney at a moderate speed. Where possible avoid hard braking.
5. Driving stabilisation. Continue the jorney at a moderate speed. Have the problem checked by Service.

+ steering wheel is stiffer to turn - no errors displayed though - but it was always getting like that when the drivetrain error was appearing.

I hope all of this could not have gone wrong all at once so based on everythingI have read on this forum so far and beyond makes me think the car battery voltage getting low (original one - was not changed since mid 2014) although I am not getting any battery errors and not spotting any signs of weak battery.

Any help is very much appreciated.

[02420X3]

Believe it or not, what you’re seeing may be an indication of a bad or undercharged battery. There ar a number of threads here mentioning battery issues and the use of battery tenders.

[BMW_Amateur]

Hey 02420X3, thanks a lot for your response. I really hope this ends up being the actual reason. I checked the battery voltage with a multimeter - it shows 12.41 volts at rest (with ignition off) and dropped to 10.72 volts when the car is started - and reads 14,67 when the engine is running. While 12.41 volts seems a bit lower than normal (I saw 12.63 volts on some Youtube videos), the drop was not below 10 (which was mentioned on those videos as a sign of a weak battery). Do you think it would be a good idea to get a tender and take the battery out of the car into my apartment and charge it? I don't have an electrical outlet near where the is car is parked to plug the tender without removing the battery - and I cannot drive out of the underground garage Thanks again for your response.

[ejw2011]

If you're going to pull out the battery, you might as well buy a new battery and register it. The original battery is almost 4 years old. Average life span of auto batteries are 4 -5 yrs.

[02420X3]

I do very little of my own work. If I were looking at hauling that oversized AGM battery out of the car and back to my home then I would seriously consider having it replaced on-site by someone else, or at the very least, follow ejw's advice and just replace it and register it.

[BMW_Amateur]

Thanks for all of your replies guys!

Update: I got my battery replaced with a new one but this did not resolve anything. No regrets about replacing the old battery but still a bummer as I hope it would help. Any other ideas? I have an appointment with my local BMW Service in a week, that's their earliest availability. Anything I could do in the meantime like check fuses or anything else? It all started with the driving stabilization and ABS errors and then others joined in with the drivetrain being the most drastic one preventing me from driving the car out of the underground parking. Is there anyone out there who had experience a drivetrain error preceeded by the driving stabilization and ABS errors?

[///Mposter]

Autohold is a feature where the motorized parking brake holds for you once you stop. It then un-holds when you press the gas. If the previous owner used that feature a lot, maybe one of the motors is going bad and dragging the brakes.

If you get a brake light , it was common on the rear brakes to get the error when putting a new set of pads. If the motors were backed out all the way clockwise, the system check could not do its thing by rotating clockwise, counter clockwise. The error would be a mismatch from left rear to right rear.

I would think if the parking brake was "engaged" and you tried to drive, you would get a fault from either stability control or ABS as one or more tires are dragging or cannot rotate at all.

The next time you get stuck and it won't move uphill , try putting it in neutral and see if you roll downhill or something is stopping you like the brakes.

That is all the ideas I have at the moment.

[///Mposter]

Here is an error when the pads wear sensor is tripped. Not sure if you have experienced this but it scared me since it was the first time it wore through all the way.