[johnott10]

Hi all,

Lately we have been experiencing a little longer crank on start up on our '11 35i. It's like it does one extra crank than normal before it turns over and engine is on. Car is at 60,000km and front brakes are schedule to be replaced next week and no errors appear on screen...does anyone have any ideas on what it could be? Oil change is not scheduled for another 3 months. Thanks.

[n55x3]

One of the main symptoms of a failing HPFP (High Pressure Fuel Pump) was / is long cranks. While the N55 hasn't been known to have the common HPFP issues like the N54 did, I have been seeing posts over the last couple months, with users who have run into HPFP issues on their N55 motors.

When you have it in for breaks I'd mention your long crank issue so at the very least they document it. BMW still offered HPFP replacements on N54 motors well past their warranty end date.

[johnott10]

I was hoping it's not that as we had that replaced in our previous '06 325i...I did mention it to the dealer a couple of weeks ago when it was in to have the Vanos bolts replaced and he did note it down in our file but also said it could be battery related since it does power a lot of electronic compoments on start up but who knows...I always lock the car even when in the garage and have the key located far enough away that it's not communicating with the car so we'll wait and see...thanks for the reply.

[Max Well]

Originally Posted by johnott10

I was hoping it's not that as we had that replaced in our previous '06 325i...I did mention it to the dealer a couple of weeks ago when it was in to have the Vanos bolts replaced and he did note it down in our file but also said it could be battery related since it does power a lot of electronic compoments on start up but who knows...

I'll defer to your Service Advisors as to whether battery issues can cause such symptoms, but as an aside, we have been surprised with the battery needs of our X3s. Granted much of our driving is in-town short-trips, but we do take a fair amount of long trips as well. It was actually the morning after one of our 600 mile round trips that I received a 'low battery' warning and a longer start as you mention, which seemed confusing to be right after we drove it for an extended time. When I asked our Service team about that, they indicated if you use an iPad or other electronics connected while driving (which we used to do), have the stereo on, ..., then batteries can drain more than they charge. They recommended a trickle charger, which we've now had for about 9 months. Every 3-4 weeks I hook the cars up over the weekend, and usually it takes a good 18 hours or so before the green light stays on (fully charged).

Not meaning to get off-topic, but in case it is your battery (and they don't feel it is defective), this has been a great charger for our needs.

[n55x3]

I've got the same Battery Tender (021-0128) version of the above charger (I think that they are exactly the same but one is branded with a BMW logo). It's a great little device and we have used it on our 2011 X3 (50k miles, original battery) over the winter and it works great.

[johnott10]

Originally Posted by Max Well

I'll defer to your Service Advisors as to whether battery issues can cause such symptoms, but as an aside, we have been surprised with the battery needs of our X3s. Granted much of our driving is in-town short-trips, but we do take a fair amount of long trips as well. It was actually the morning after one of our 600 mile round trips that I received a 'low battery' warning and a longer start as you mention, which seemed confusing to be right after we drove it for an extended time. When I asked our Service team about that, they indicated if you use an iPad or other electronics connected while driving (which we used to do), have the stereo on, ..., then batteries can drain more than they charge. They recommended a trickle charger, which we've now had for about 9 months. Every 3-4 weeks I hook the cars up over the weekend, and usually it takes a good 18 hours or so before the green light stays on (fully charged).

Not meaning to get off-topic, but in case it is your battery (and they don't feel it is defective), this has been a great charger for our needs.

The dealer did recommend this to me last winter quoting just over $200 including installation but I passed on it...but re-thinking of getting it this winter as we plan to keep the car for a while...between my wife and two teenage step-kids with iPhones and and iPads, something is always plugged into the car so maybe the trickle charger would be a wise purchase.

[n55x3]

For what it's worth, there is nothing to install. You can pick up the battery tender equivalent (even uses the same status light sticker as the BMW model) for around $50. It's very easy to hook up too. You don't tie directly into the battery which is in the back. You'd clip the charger to the charging posts under the hood.

http://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender...ender+chargers

[johnott10]

The charger they suggested was one that is installed in the engine bay and there would be just a plug that remains unseen that I simply plug into an extention cord thats plugged into an outlet in our garage...this is a much better option for me as I would need something simple for my wife or step-son to do for when I'm not there...although I would love to see my wife try to pop the hood and clip the charger to the charging posts lol

[n55x3]

Ahh gotchya. That makes sense. Would definitely take any guess work out of hooking the thing up and be way more convenient!