[Extreme Justice]

So we have had our 2011 X3 for 3 weeks. It has now been sitting at Bravaria BMW in Edmonton for 2 weeks ( along with apparently 7 other X3's). We're told it has to do with a Relay, but there not sure how to fix it. Apparently in cold temperatures this relay tells the computer that the battery is dead and shuts everything down. So we've been driving a rental as BMW had no loner cars (BMW covering cost of rental, but not $25 day Insurance). When do we say enough is enough? Service Advisor states will call with updates but doesn't. We are getting fed up.

[lbjgh]

This couldn't be a "transit mode" issue could it?

[epiphone3]

This is disappointing! One thing that should happen is that you should be able to book the next available loaner so that you can drive a BMW at least and avoid the insurance cost.

[fiddy yen]

Originally Posted by Extreme Justice

So we have had our 2011 X3 for 3 weeks. It has now been sitting at Bravaria BMW in Edmonton for 2 weeks ( along with apparently 7 other X3's). We're told it has to do with a Relay, but there not sure how to fix it. Apparently in cold temperatures this relay tells the computer that the battery is dead and shuts everything down. So we've been driving a rental as BMW had no loner cars (BMW covering cost of rental, but not $25 day Insurance). When do we say enough is enough? Service Advisor states will call with updates but doesn't. We are getting fed up.

Did they try replacing the Battery under warranty?

I have a Battery Maintainer (trickle charger) hardwired into my X... When it came back from the body shop, it had the discharge warning. Plugged it in overnight and that was the last of it.

[Extreme Justice]

They know what the problem is, they just don't know how to fix it. For some reason when it gets cold this "Relay" indicates that the battery is depleted and shuts everything down. I was hoping that someone else from Edmonton was on this site that is having same issue (apparently there are 7 of our X3 vehicle on a "Holding Pattern" - service advisors exact words.) BTW it's been 21/2 days and still no call from service advisor after he told me he'd call me right back.

[Extreme Justice]

Originally Posted by fiddy yen

Did they try replacing the Battery under warranty?

I have a Battery Maintainer (trickle charger) hardwired into my X... When it came back from the body shop, it had the discharge warning. Plugged it in overnight and that was the last of it.

Batteries checked out fine in all 7 vehicles!!

[fiddy yen]

Originally Posted by Lotus7

Two weeks in the dealership and a "transit mode" issue.
Unthinkable!
No dealer is that stupid!

......well, maybe not.

.....Nevermind.

7 x3's and all the same issue? Same engine?

[lbjgh]

... and to my earlier point, same delivery methods at that particular dealership? I know it sounds unfathomable.

I wonder if there are any other messages on the instrument cluster when the vehicle is booster/running.

[Extreme Justice]

Originally Posted by fiddy yen

7 x3's and all the same issue? Same engine?

I don't know about the same Engine, but I do know all 7 have the same battery/Relay issue (at least that's what i've been told by my service advisor). They all came in the week it hit -31 Celcius with this issue. I was hoping someone on this board who was also having the issues were having and had thier 2011 X3 in at Bavaria. 7 of us talking with BMW would have more clout that each of us individually.

[northX3]

Hello

I live in Quebec and had the same exact problem at -30C

I ignored the warning message and drove the car, and ultimately, it failed to start due to battery discharged ! I got boosted, drove back home, and plugged a trickle charger to get the battery back.

My local stealership says that it's because I'm using too much radio/heated seats/heated wheel and I only drive about 5km to work, so the battery doesn't get enough electricity back (especially with BMW Active Dynamics)

I know someone with a new 550i, he's having the same trouble with cold temps.

I don't think it's a relay problem. I think it's a "design flaw" for cold weather Canadians like us (I'm excluding Southern Ontario guys who rarely see -30C for a whole week )

Let us know what your dealer finds out, if there is something we can do apart from plugging a trickle charger when it gets cold for a few days. Mind you, it's far from a deal breaker, but it does look odd to plug a brand new BMW when it gets cold outside to preserve the battery !

[northX3]

Originally Posted by Extreme Justice

Apparently in cold temperatures this relay tells the computer that the battery is dead and shuts everything down.

It's a real warning ! Your battery will be unable to start your car if the message pops up everyday for a few days, trust me

[Radioactive]

Originally Posted by lbjgh

This couldn't be a "transit mode" issue could it?

Partial "transit mode" is showing as "battery charging", not discharge.

[shaderman]

I had a similar issue in cold weather here in Quebec, and had seen the charge battery indicator after having driven for 1hr. When I took my car in for other problems (see the idling / stutter thread) I decided to have them check this as well.

They told me the battery tested fine, and when they took a dump from the car they said I had my side lights on for 3.5h with the car stationary which is what discharged the battery. I have no idea how this is even possible. My car is always locked, which is supposed to shut everything off. How can I possibly leave on my sidelights for 3.5h?

[northX3]

Originally Posted by shaderman

I had a similar issue in cold weather here in Quebec, and had seen the charge battery indicator after having driven for 1hr. When I took my car in for other problems (see the idling / stutter thread) I decided to have them check this as well.

They told me the battery tested fine, and when they took a dump from the car they said I had my side lights on for 3.5h with the car stationary which is what discharged the battery. I have no idea how this is even possible. My car is always locked, which is supposed to shut everything off. How can I possibly leave on my sidelights for 3.5h?

Hello shaderman

IMHO your side lights are NOT the reason why your battery got nearly discharged.

Cold weather in Quebec the last few weeks + the Efficient Dynamics programming of our cars make it a design flaw, I think (E.D. lets the alternator rest when the battery is around 60%, so you burn less gas. Problem is that at 50% or so power, when you start your car 3-4 times at -30C without driving too much, your battery will be drained...)

Sad, but I think we need a trickle charger for our cars, until BMW finds a "solution"...

[fiddy yen]

Originally Posted by northX3

Hello shaderman

IMHO your side lights are NOT the reason why your battery got nearly discharged.

Cold weather in Quebec the last few weeks + the Efficient Dynamics programming of our cars make it a design flaw, I think (E.D. lets the alternator rest when the battery is around 60%, so you burn less gas. Problem is that at 50% or so power, when you start your car 3-4 times at -30C without driving too much, your battery will be drained...)

Sad, but I think we need a trickle charger for our cars, until BMW finds a "solution"...

QFT... with the amount of electronics in our BMWs and the amount of juice it takes to turn over a COLD engine, it doesn't take much for it to drain the battery. Probably why BMW provides a battery discharge warning when the battery is low.

Best thing to do is DON'T IGNORE THIS!!! Drive it for a little longer to charge the battery, or put it on a charger.

Don't quote me on this... but I am guessing that this has to do with the fact that BMW's program a "reserve" power to ensure there's always enough juice in the battery for one more start. The new Honda Odysseys have this too, and from what I have been hearing is that they are having the exact same problems as well.

Get your dealership to install a BMW approved Trickle charger/ Battery Maintainer... I live in Saskatchewan and we have the coldest winters in Canada (-50 below last week). Kept mine plugged in every night, started fine and made sure I let it run enough to get to operating temp before shutting it off.

[northX3]

Originally Posted by fiddy yen

Best thing to do is DON'T IGNORE THIS!!! Drive it for a little longer to charge the battery, or put it on a charger.

100% agree. Don't do like I did and need to get boosted by an old Chevy Cobalt !

Originally Posted by fiddy yen

Don't quote me on this... but I am guessing that this has to do with the fact that BMW's program a "reserve" power to ensure there's always enough juice in the battery for one more start.

Hmmm not really... I got only one warning the day my battery died, and when I tried to start again, it was dead.

Originally Posted by fiddy yen

Get your dealership to install a BMW approved Trickle charger/ Battery Maintainer... I live in Saskatchewan and we have the coldest winters in Canada (-50 below last week). Kept mine plugged in every night, started fine and made sure I let it run enough to get to operating temp before shutting it off.

BMW, like Porsche and Mercedes, sells rebranded CTEK or Battery Tender trickle charger. 1.2Ah is the lowest I would go, since it would take about 50-60 hours to get a 0% battery up to 100%... I have a CTEK 3300 (3.3Ah) and it's great, plug it overnight, and no more problem after that !

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows...%2BCharger.jsp

BTW, they charge about $150 for labor for a very easy install. See my previous post, there is a pic of my CTEK install. It took 20 minutes of my time and is as stealthy and probably better done than by a zero experience tech at my local stealership...

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=636562
post #9
The quick release is the orange plastic bit at 5 o'clock from the battery negative pole. It splits in red and black, and you can follow each wire to where I got it connected.

[fiddy yen]

Originally Posted by northX3

BMW, like Porsche and Mercedes, sells rebranded CTEK or Battery Tender trickle charger. 1.2Ah is the lowest I would go, since it would take about 50-60 hours to get a 0% battery up to 100%... I have a CTEK 3300 (3.3Ah) and it's great, plug it overnight, and no more problem after that !

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows...%2BCharger.jsp

BTW, they charge about $150 for labor for a very easy install. See my previous post, there is a pic of my CTEK install. It took 20 minutes of my time and is as stealthy and probably better done than by a zero experience tech at my local stealership...

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=636562
post #9
The quick release is the orange plastic bit at 5 o'clock from the battery negative pole. It splits in red and black, and you can follow each wire to where I got it connected.

I have the CTEK 7002 installed on my X3. Charges up to 7A... basically 4 hours from a DEAD battery (like can't turn on the lights dead). I personally wouldn't go without it anymore and think that Battery Maintainer > Block Heater/Oil Pan heater. When I went to Cuba over Xmas, I left it plugged in the whole time. Turns itself off when fully charged.

[lbjgh]

I would never install a battery charger on a new $50-60K car... that is bloody ridiculous!

I think I read somewhere that the Efficient Dynamics charging system would be circumvented by the car's computer if the battery required charging, i.e. the computer would identify low battery level and charge the battery until the required battery level was reached. I'll see if I can find the reference.

edit:

ok, here is the quote from the UK BMW site:

Power from your brake pedal.
Intelligent Alternator Control and Brake Energy Regeneration monitors the battery condition, engaging the alternator as and when the battery requires recharging. This reduces the demands on the engine, reducing fuel consumption and emissions. In addition, when the car's brakes are applied or when coasting downhill, this system automatically engages the alternator to charge the battery, recycling energy that would otherwise be wasted

[fiddy yen]

Originally Posted by lbjgh

I would never install a battery charger on a new $50-60K car... that is bloody ridiculous!

I think I read somewhere that the Efficient Dynamics charging system would be circumvented by the car's computer if the battery required charging, i.e. the computer would identify low battery level and charge the battery until the required battery level was reached. I'll see if I can find the reference.

edit:

ok, here is the quote from the UK BMW site:

This only works if the car is running... and you'll have to leave it running for a long time.

Personally myself I'd rather install a charger that was approved by Audi, BMW, Porsche etc... then having my X die when it gets cold. You'll more likely incur more damage by boosting the vehicle then to have a properly installed charger plugged in when your battery is low.

[tangbb6]

Originally Posted by Extreme Justice

So we have had our 2011 X3 for 3 weeks. It has now been sitting at Bravaria BMW in Edmonton for 2 weeks ( along with apparently 7 other X3's). We're told it has to do with a Relay, but there not sure how to fix it. Apparently in cold temperatures this relay tells the computer that the battery is dead and shuts everything down. So we've been driving a rental as BMW had no loner cars (BMW covering cost of rental, but not $25 day Insurance). When do we say enough is enough? Service Advisor states will call with updates but doesn't. We are getting fed up.

I got a similar message the other week during that cold snap (-35C) about battery being discharged and some power accessories shut off. However my car started fine with no hesitation. I was parked in the garage for 2 days. After driving around in the city, the message dissappeared and nothing since.

I had my car for 7 months now..got it in July of last year. First winter with it.

[lbjgh]

The point is a new $60k car shouldn't be DOA because of a charging system... I suppose you could skip a few options and buy a 'spare' hyundai to have around to boost the BMW when it won't start.

[Extreme Justice]

Originally Posted by lbjgh

The point is a new $60k car shouldn't be DOA because of a charging system... I suppose you could skip a few options and buy a 'spare' hyundai to have around to boost the BMW when it won't start.

I agree, why do people think it's Normal to add a battery tender to a $60,000 vehicle. Never had to add it to any of my other vehicles.