[Skidriver]

I took delivery on a 2021 X3 30e on Nov. 4 2020. Three weeks/250 miles later, the check engine light came on. They replaced the fuel sensor. Two months later (1000 miles on the car), engine light back on. They replaced the module that controls the fuel sensor. Both times it was in the shop for 3 weeks, total of 6 weeks without my car.

When the first engine light came on, the EV battery stopped showing a full charge even at 100% full--the mileage range dropped from 19 miles to 8-10. The actual mileage was more than 10 but less than 19.

That is now happening again, but this time it's AFTER their fix for the 2nd engine light.

In the 2.5 months I drove it between service calls, the battery consistently charged to a range of 19 miles at full, and delivered a little more than that most days. I live in Colorado and it was cold (often below zero) and snowy that whole time, and I'd use the heater etc... but the two times this has happened the weather was warmer and drier than that (40s).

Also, it is my understanding that while the actual mileage on a full charge will obviously very depending on conditions and use, the range on a full charge should stay consistent. My car is garaged at 65 degrees, and I use a Level 2 charger.

I have no idea what's going on and am about to send it back into the dealer AGAIN. I have seen some people say they experienced this after their recalled battery was repaired, wondering if there's any way BMW could have put a "repaired" battery in my car when they built in in October?

This is my first BMW and I am not impressed! What might I expect, if anything, for compensation? (CO has a lemon law, and I qualify now, but it means hiring a lawyer etc... yuck.)

TIA

[nyalpine90]

go thru dealership to resolve this issue asap, and let them know you are not happy with your vehichle due to the issues. Ask for new car. if they push back, then you hire a lawyer.

[titomi]

If the 30e functions same as petrol/diesel engines, than the range can vary when fully charged. In my 30i the range is constantly different after every full fill-up.

[TXBDan]

As I mentioned in your other thread on the topic, the range shown at full charge is an estimate based on previous driving efficiency and ambient conditions like temperature. Same as how the range shown on a full tank of gas varies.

[Skidriver]

Yeah, that's how EVs are supposed to work. But my car is doing the opposite: for 3 months of harsh winter weather, I was getting 17-19 miles of range. Now the temps are 20-30 degrees warmer and sunny, and I'm getting 8-12 miles of range.

[Dezinerdude]

Hey - just took delivery of my 30e last weekend. I haven’t seen any of the issues you describe. I’m getting about 20 miles per full charge pretty consistently. Wishing you the best as I’m sure that’s frustrating as hell

[brettl]

I’d get a meeting set up with the service manager and your SA. Careful with the word lemon as it requires things get set in motion. I believe they are more likely to work with you if they are not bound to legal stipulations. Better with honey then vinegar type of thing... words like recapitalization of loan or lease are nicer to a dealers ears then lemon...

[Dilbert2402]

Have you tried to double charge the car. There could be a problem with the control circuit and charging it again after one complete charge might fool it into topping it up to the original 19+ miles. Failing that the dealer needs to get some serious diagnostics done.

[xylodan]

Agreed with those who have said to hold your "lemon card" and try to work out a resolution. BMW has a lot of $ and can and will rectify the situation. Do you have resolution in mind that will satisfy you? Do you want to simply abandon your current car and get the same exact model? Do you want to get a different BMW having lost faith in their hybrids? Do you want to abandon BMW altogether due to the experience? I'd say if you're ready to abandon BMW then that's where you probably go straight to the lemon talk because that will be the hardest one to get support from them on since they can't simply hand you another vehicle.

[Skidriver]

An Update:
My dealer really has no idea what is happening--their recommendations (drive in hybrid to juice the gas engine, because the X3 can't be driven in all-electric all the time; drive in Sport mode because BMWs need to run free) are silly and obviously false. (Although engaging the gas engine is a good idea for the gas engine, of course.)

However, BMW USA has informed me that this is a known issue when people bring their 30e's in for service of any kind--they have multiple reports of the EV battery not calibrating right in that situation. They told me to give it 2 weeks to reset, I did, and it seems to have worked.

However, it happened again a few days ago, and I think I've figured out the problem: the EV battery gets confused when there are extreme shifts in temperature. In Colorado, that is not unusual in fall (when this first happened) and spring (the second and now third time). We can go from 70 degrees to 25 overnight. That's when the car seems to get thrown. My theory is that when people have their cars in the shop for repairs, they are often parked outside for days and get very hot/cold, and that throws the battery.

It sucks that the software isn't "smarter" but the good news it has nothing to do with the actual range--meaning, even if it shows 10 miles I still get the expected range for the current conditions (based on my personal experience for five months, not based on what the car tells me that moment).

Meanwhile, BMW USA offered a buy-back (because yes, the lemon law applies here). But with all the supply-chain problems, I couldn't replace my car with an identical build, or even one that comes close. So--I retain that option for the future but in the meantime they are refunding me two months of payments, which seems very fair to me.

[brettl]

The resolution offered is very fair. Maybe keep the buyback in your back pocket for an LCI. I'd double check though to understand if there is a time limit associated with that offer...

[graz74]

Might also be worth checking your miles per kW stacks up with your actual achieved range.

In winter I was getting about 1.5 miles/ kW (approx 17 mile range), now I'm getting 2.3mi/kW (up to 25 miles).

I've found target range is also affected by 'spirited driving' on the previous charge. On a couple of occasions I've subsequently gone on a short sedate trip with the range increasing for every mile driven!

If your actual miles on one charge divided by miles/kW is approx 11 then your battery is being used to full capacity. Likewise, do you track the charge taken by the car it'll show you in the Connected app.

[Mugi]

I have a new 2021 XDrive 30e plug in hybrid which also started to show engine light on the dashboard without flashing within 8 months of buying and has less than 2500 miles. I checked the gas lid as they suggested and it was not the cause, but finally took it to the local dealer. After a couple of hours they appeared to have figured it out and fixed the problem. I was told that the electric battery was heating up as the cooling unit got busted. The mechanic said it happens once in a while but don't know if this happens frequently or my car is a lemon. They said a new part is ordered and it would be installed for free once the part gets here. I reached out to BMW USA complaining that based on what I read from this forum there are several new cars seemed to have this issue and BMW needed to recall and fix this issue. I will wait and see what happens. Meanwhile, I have not seen any engine light on the dashboard, but for whatever reason my electric battery even after fully charged shows only 16 miles as its range. In the past I have gotten up to 23 miles per charge although the range said only 19 miles. Not sure what's happening, but will drive and see if it drives beyond 16 miles.

[Skidriver]

FWIW, this is still happening with my car. Yesterday, after a full charge it showed 8 miles of range (it started with 6!) but after I drove 3 miles to my destination it was showing 13, and by the time I got home it was at 12--which would give me around 19 miles, which is about right.

I do think the problem is with the range calculator (presumably poorly programmed with a bad algorithm that simply can't account for outside-temperature fluctuations) and not the EV battery itself, which has always delivered reasonable range in both all-electric and hybrid modes.

It's been 3 months and 1500 miles and the engine light has not come back on, so I'm hopeful. Even if I wanted to I couldn't replace my car with the specs I want (thanks to all the shortages), so unless something goes really haywire I plan to keep the vehicle through the length of the warranty.

On the one hand, I feel lucky to have got a 30e at all, given that BMW has abandoned the US market with it. On the other hand, I imagine servicing it will be even more problematic in the years to come, since dealers and mechanics will have little experience with these cars in the US.

[Dezinerdude]

Skidriver - given that it’s going to be a VERY small universe of us 30e owners in the states I look forward to being able to compare notes with you. I’m inching up on 10K miles over 5 months and so far no issues at all. Let’s see how these puppies age.

Originally Posted by Skidriver

FWIW, this is still happening with my car. Yesterday, after a full charge it showed 8 miles of range (it started with 6!) but after I drove 3 miles to my destination it was showing 13, and by the time I got home it was at 12--which would give me around 19 miles, which is about right.

I do think the problem is with the range calculator (presumably poorly programmed with a bad algorithm that simply can't account for outside-temperature fluctuations) and not the EV battery itself, which has always delivered reasonable range in both all-electric and hybrid modes.

It's been 3 months and 1500 miles and the engine light has not come back on, so I'm hopeful. Even if I wanted to I couldn't replace my car with the specs I want (thanks to all the shortages), so unless something goes really haywire I plan to keep the vehicle through the length of the warranty.

On the one hand, I feel lucky to have got a 30e at all, given that BMW has abandoned the US market with it. On the other hand, I imagine servicing it will be even more problematic in the years to come, since dealers and mechanics will have little experience with these cars in the US.

[Skidriver]

Originally Posted by Dezinerdude

Skidriver - given that it’s going to be a VERY small universe of us 30e owners in the states I look forward to being able to compare notes with you. I’m inching up on 10K miles over 5 months and so far no issues at all. Let’s see how these puppies age.

I'm still under 3500 miles after 9 months, and so far so good with the engine light issue. Here's hoping they did actually find the fix!

I'm still having the problems with the mileage estimate on electric only, but I also don't care because the actual mileage is always very good. I'd say around 75% of my miles are all electric. I either drive very short distances around my small town, or very long distances, to civilization.

Still loving everything else too, except the ventilated seats, which are VERY weak.

[jrodri7]

My 30e is currently at the dealer after an issue I experienced this week, and a light did come on the dashboard. I think it was the emissions light.

Car is only 2 months old, built in May and delivered to me in July. Only 1,400 miles. About 500 miles on EV.

I was driving home the day before, had no battery charge, so was on ICE on the highway, and noticed a shudder/stutter vibration somewhere under the car when I would decelerate

I initially thought it was the vibration of the steering wheel for the lane keep alert, but it wasn’t.

I drove home and charged for 3 hours. The following day I was getting ready for a long trip, so I remembered the previous days issue and drove on Sport on my way to the highway. About 10 minutes in, I noticed the same issue and then noticed the emission light.

Waiting to hear back on the diagnosis. Something in the manual that mentioned something about engine misfiring.

[Skidriver]

Originally Posted by jrodri7

My 30e is currently at the dealer after an issue I experienced this week, and a light did come on the dashboard. I think it was the emissions light.

Car is only 2 months old, built in May and delivered to me in July. Only 1,400 miles. About 500 miles on EV.

I was driving home the day before, had no battery charge, so was on ICE on the highway, and noticed a shudder/stutter vibration somewhere under the car when I would decelerate

I initially thought it was the vibration of the steering wheel for the lane keep alert, but it wasn’t.

I drove home and charged for 3 hours. The following day I was getting ready for a long trip, so I remembered the previous days issue and drove on Sport on my way to the highway. About 10 minutes in, I noticed the same issue and then noticed the emission light.

Waiting to hear back on the diagnosis. Something in the manual that mentioned something about engine misfiring.

What solved the problem for my check-engine light was replacing the fuel sensor. But, I never had any physical problem, just the light.

[FredBa]

Drove 10,500mi in my 30e since taking delivery in Apr 2021. Not a single issue here so far. FWIW I always take 93oct gas. Range on full charge is 16-24mi at the moment (summer).

[ECinEI]

We had the first issue with my wife’s 2020 X3 30e recently. Parts of how it was handled by both BMW NA and two dealers were somewhat disappointing and may be of interest to the group here.

My wife and I were on my way to a function a few days ago and when we got into the fully charged 30e to start it, I knew right away something was wrong. When I pushed the start button the ICE began running. I couldn’t recall that ever happening with me driving the vehicle no matter what the state of battery charge was. As I put the 30e into reverse to back out of our drive I get a warning message on the center screen stating a “Drivetrain Malfunction” has occurred. It also states that the car is drivable and we don’t need roadside assistance.

As I continue to back the 30e it begins to shake and shudder and stops running. At this point there is another warning message in the center screen reporting the 30e is not drivable and to call BMW roadside assistance. The 800 number for BMW Roadside assistance actually pops up in the center screen. After a few attempts to restart the 30e I take the hint and call BMW Roadside Assistance.

It takes about 20 minutes so the get the roadside assist set up but that process actually went pretty well. Roadside Assist even provided a link to get us a free Uber ride as the way our garage and driveway is laid out I couldn’t get my truck out of the driveway as it was blocked by the non-running 30e.

With the blocked driveway in mind and just to see, I then try to restart the 30e. Surprisingly it does start, again on the ICE, I believe, as all of this was so surprising I can’t recall every detail. At any rate, the 30e starts and now it shows the check engine light and a little yellow wrench icon on the dashboard. So I back the 30e out of the drive and onto the street to facilitate the tow truck picking it up.

A couple of hours later we return from our function and just for the heck of it I start the 30e again. This time it starts in eDrive as it should and is displaying only the check engine light.

Roadside Assistance shows up and the 30e is taken to the nearest BMW dealer, Sale BMW, in Kinston, NC. The way Roadside Assistance works is they only tranport your vehicle to the nearest BMW dealer. This ends up being an issue later. This is about 80 miles from our home. I call Sale BMW the next morning to tell them what the deal is with the 30e and they say they’ll call me back when they get a chance to look at it. Later that day, I get a call from a service advisor at Sale BMW stating at this point there were no warning lights displayed but they were able to pull some codes. He reported the codes all involved “EME” codes which involve the high voltage battery that powers the 30e in electric mode. He also stated Sale BMW wasn’t qualified/authorized to work on this problem as they weren’t an “electric dealer”. Apparently they don’t have a technician trained to work on the electric BMW’s. So, BMW Roadside Assistance had taken our BMW to a BMW dealer not qualified/authorized to work on our BMW. This is where things got interesting.

I ask what I’m supposed to do now and the service advisor says the nearest dealer that can service the 30e is Leith BMW in Raleigh. No problem I think, that’s where we bought the 30e. So I ask, how does the 30e get to Raleigh? Well, he states we can get it up there but it’s better if you set it up. I ask why and he states, well, we don’t know where to put it. So I suggest, can’t your service manager call the service manager at Leith to coordinate the transfer? He responds to this by stating they don’t know the number!

I ask to speak to the service manager at Sale BMW and I’m told he’s not there. I call later and I’m told he is with someone and he’ll call back. That never happened. I never was able to speak with the service manager at Sale BMW.

I then call Leith BMW to see about getting the 30e transferred up there which is about ninety miles from Sale BMW. I speak with a young woman telling her the situation and she states that she’s not even a service advisor she just works scheduling service appointments. She does put me through to the voice mail of the assistant service manager and I tell him what the situation is. He also never calls me back.

I call BMW Roadside Assistance back and tell them the situation and while they understand what’s going on, they state they are not allowed to transport between two BMW dealers. They tell me the dealers are responsible for arranging transport.

Being frustrated by all of this I call Customer Relations at BMW NA hoping that they may be able to intervene. The person I speak with somewhat brusquely tells me I have two options, one, have BMW Roadside Assistance transfer the 30e, which we already know they aren’t allowed to do, or pay for the transfer myself!

To shorten this story the 30e sat at Sale BMW for two days with nothing being done. Sale BMW, once they figured out they weren’t able to work on the 30e basically appeared to want nothing to do with helping getting the vehicle to Raleigh.

I finally called the sales person at Leith BMW who sold us the 30e and told him the story. He remembered us from thirteen months before and went to the service manager who arranged for the 30e to be transported to Leith BMW. The 30e was transferred by BMW Roadside Assistance. It appears if a dealer sets it up they can make the transfer.

The transfer is made and I get a call from a service advisor from Leith BMW asking what the situation is. I tell her and not three to fours hours later she texts me stating the car is fixed.


The following was on the work order:

9967 eme software connected charger and performed short test
Multiple faults stored in vehicle causing drivetrain malfunction
Performed test plans and found necessary to program EME
DIAGCODE D1236_EME00000_90_214 Test drove and faults did not return.


It’s been a couple of weeks now and the 30e seems to be working fine. We use a level one charger so I had to reset the charging rate to 12 amps from the default of 6 amps. And this reprograming process seems to have reset the total battery miles traveled from factory back to zero. That part was disappointing.

I don’t know how many BMW dealers are not qualified/authorized to work on electric vehicles, I assume it is a very small number. However, as I’ve learned here, it is possible your EV or PHEV BMW could be taken to a dealer not able to service it if it is not drivable. If that happens, you could be in for quite an experience.

[jrodri7]

Originally Posted by Skidriver

What solved the problem for my check-engine light was replacing the fuel sensor. But, I never had any physical problem, just the light.

Thank you so much for sharing your specific issue, you never know it may come in handy if they start grasping at straws as to what the issue could be.

Today is day 4, and it still has not been seen by the actual technician assigned.

I am giving them a pass for the 2 weekend days, we will see.

The tech "thinks" it is a software issue, and related to the battery running down too low. I call BS cause it is what the battery does in a hybrid, it runs out and then switches to the ICE.

But, without it being hooked up, it seems silly that they would start hypothesizing issues.

Right now, since I had the physical vibrations and harshness when coasting, I am thinking it may be something similar to what M40i owners experienced with the rear driveshaft issue. It's the only thing I have seen in my search that fits the description of what I experienced. And I know, I am hypothesizing as well.

I opted for the Dynamic Handling Package in my build, and i think some of those components are shared with the M40i.

[jrodri7]

Originally Posted by ECinEI

I don’t know how many BMW dealers are not qualified/authorized to work on electric vehicles, I assume it is a very small number. However, as I’ve learned here, it is possible your EV or PHEV BMW could be taken to a dealer not able to service it if it is not drivable. If that happens, you could be in for quite an experience.

Wow, it seems like a perfect storm of issues for you. Sorry you went through all of that. it sounded like a comedy of errors and a part of me is certainly triggered by issues I have had in the past.

Coming from the industry, I think the issue would be more of qualified techs, not necessarily the dealership being qualified or authorized. Put a charging station in, and send the relevant tools and software updates and they should all be good to go. Having the right techs that are certified to work on high voltage batteries is a different story.

My dealer is one of the largest down here, and Florida is one of the top states for EV registrations, so I am confident they are qualified.

But being that they have had my vehicle for 4 days without diagnosing (I confirmed via the MyBMW app since my vehicle hasn't moved or been roadtested yet) I was curious. I spoke to my SA this morning and pressed him on the delay. All he mentioned is that the tech assigned was finishing up on a high-voltage battery on an i8 - and the i3 and i8 have been around for maybe 10 years? I think they just have a lack of techs that can work on Hybrid and EVs.

This industry is facing a dire shortage of technicians - tell me the last time you knew of someone that was planning on going to technical school to be a certified tech. That was pre-COVID. add onto that the pandemic, and a shortage of workers in general, and the parts shortages... Its a perfect storm of so much right now.