[AM2021]

I have a 2021 X3 xDrive301 with less than 7,000 miles. I purchased this car new and from the day I brought it home it has made me think I'm crazy with a sporadic faint beeping noise. The beeping is at irregular intervals(beep....beep beep beep...beep....beep beep) but always the same in volume, which is fairly quiet and muffled.

I've noticed no rhyme or reason to why it happens. I've had this car through all four weather season, I've had my AC and heat on and off, head unit on and off, I could be driving for 2 minutes or two hours, highway at high-speeds or side streets just cruising along, etc., etc., etc.

It's hard to pin point where its coming from, but it sounds like front of car, (engine area? Console?) maybe near the passenger side?

I've taken it to my dealership, however they claim they haven't heard it. Either they are deaf or they just don't know how to fix it, because it happens 9/10 times I drive. but I'm hoping someone here can help me.

I finally got a recording of it one day it was being extra aggressive and angry.

Hopefully this SoundCloud link will work:
https://soundcloud.com/user-69884261...f880a50eda368d

[GmanJeff]

Do you keep any battery powered devices in your car? I had a similar experience when the battery got low in the Automated External Defibrillator I keep in the under-floor storage area in the back of the vehicle. The AED began beeping to warn of the low battery condition, and it took me a few minutes to identify it as the source of the sound.

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by GmanJeff

Do you keep any battery powered devices in your car? I had a similar experience when the battery got low in the Automated External Defibrillator I keep in the under-floor storage area in the back of the vehicle. The AED began beeping to warn of the low battery condition, and it took me a few minutes to identify it as the source of the sound.

I do not. The beeping has persisted since I brought the car home. Also, it only does it when the car is on…the beeping does not exist if the ignition is off. It's definitely something with the car itself. Thanks for the reply!

[thestimp]

Might be the BMW assist speaker thats under the dash ? Electrical interference could cause a speaker to make noises... Its by your left knee behind/under teh secret storage compartment. Other than that it might be your brakes or shocks making noises. I know old BMW brakes used to make dolphin noises because of a ball joint, and shocks would "whistle" because they were defective....

But really who knows, have someone drive it while you clammer around finding it.

[danniexi]

are you sure its not the AC?

i’ve had this feint beep issue with my F80. I’d turn the AC on for a couple of minutes (make sure the snowflake was on, or in this case, the A/C symbol, to drive the compressor in the HVAC system), and then shut it off while driving. eventually the beep went away.

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by danniexi

are you sure its not the AC?

i’ve had this feint beep issue with my F80. I’d turn the AC on for a couple of minutes (make sure the snowflake was on, or in this case, the A/C symbol, to drive the compressor in the HVAC system), and then shut it off while driving. eventually the beep went away.

It's not the AC. Happens when AC is off and heat is on and also when no climate control is turned on. Thanks for the reply.

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by thestimp

Might be the BMW assist speaker thats under the dash ? Electrical interference could cause a speaker to make noises... Its by your left knee behind/under teh secret storage compartment. Other than that it might be your brakes or shocks making noises. I know old BMW brakes used to make dolphin noises because of a ball joint, and shocks would "whistle" because they were defective....

But really who knows, have someone drive it while you clammer around finding it.

It doesn't sound like it's coming from the drivers side of the vehicle. It seems to be passenger side or center. I've tried to locate it, trust me! No luck. :

[M3coco]

Do you have lojack or any other aftermarket alarm that the fob could be dying, or radar detector with low voltage?

[danniexi]

Originally Posted by AM2021

It's not the AC. Happens when AC is off and heat is on and also when no climate control is turned on. Thanks for the reply.

I should've been clear. This feint beep happened when the HVAC was off. Turning it on would usually get it to go away.

https://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1178939

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=877990

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by Cocox3m

Do you have lojack or any other aftermarket alarm that the fob could be dying, or radar detector with low voltage?

I do not have any of these.

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by danniexi

I should've been clear. This feint beep happened when the HVAC was off. Turning it on would usually get it to go away.

https://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1178939

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=877990

Being that I had this car through all 4 seasons and happens almost every time I'm in the vehicle, I have to assume I've heard it while the HVAC is off. I will test and reply back to this thread. Just curious, what would this mean is wrong? Thanks!

[Shogun1122]

Hey op,

This is happening to me too. I notice it when I have CarPlay active but am not playing any music. I don't know if i notice it because I have nothing playing or if it's related to CarPlay.

[AM2021]

Originally Posted by Shogun1122

Hey op,

This is happening to me too. I notice it when I have CarPlay active but am not playing any music. I don't know if i notice it because I have nothing playing or if it's related to CarPlay.

I've left my phone at home and the beeping still occurs. 😩

[2kaccordocoupe]

Why is this guessing game still going on?

Can you not take it into service and replicate the sound with a few of the shop folks around to hear it while you are standing there??

[spta97]

Maybe worth getting a cheap stethoscope and probing around with it until you can locate it.

My first guess would have been a CD player (sounds like when I used to have one and it was loading a CD), but I believe they dropped that since my 2020.

Is there a hard drive in the 2021 or is it just flash memory?

[LBMW3]

I have the exact same problem. 2021 X3 xDrive30i with less than 5000, leased straight off the showroom floor in May 2021 with only 3 miles on it. I can hear the same intermittent beep when driving at most speeds, sometimes even highway. No aftermarket stuff installed. No CarPlay installed. Happens when the Auto-Engine on/off is either turned on or turned off. The beep happens 90+% of the time I drive the car and only stops for brief periods of time then starts up again. It is not audible outside the car. This is at least the 7th X3 I have owned or leased going back to a 2005 model and none of them have ever done this. The beep is so high pitch it causes a headache after some length of time driving.

[thestimp]

https://www.amazon.com/AnnoyingPCB-U...mx_gp_gl855gjn

I think you guys may have been pranked...This would be kind of hilarious if it were true. I have done this to people in my office na d it took them months to figure it out.

[Ajxx]

I have this noise too. I always notice it right after I turn the engine off once everything else is quiet. I never considered that the noise is always there… I just can’t hear it with the engine or stereo on.

[Larryatl]

Was there ever a resolution?

[SpamMattsubi]

I have this problem too with a 2022 X3 M40i. Exact same sound under the same conditions. Any update on a fix or why it happens?

[grubbab]

The beeping comes from the center front midrange speaker in the dash. It takes about 10 minutes to disconnect. The stereo may sound better without it.

[Eddie.gomezzz]

Wow just saw this forum for the first time! I’ve also had the same issue since ownership of a 2020 x3m at 19k miles in 2021 now at 46k still comes on periodically.