The X5 (E53) electrical gremlin story

[Momus]

I've been a lurker on this board since my first BMW (a 1995 525i) and did a lot of reading here when I was considering buying an M3 a few years ago. I finally decided to become a member when I bought a 2004 X5 4.4i earlier this year. It's an absolutely fantastic vehicle that is fun to drive, comfortable and very good in all road conditions.

The problem I am having is that there seems to be an infinite number of gremlins inside this vehicle's electrical system and I am hoping that a description of the problems will trigger an association for someone here and they'll say "oh wait - you have this, this and this? That has to be your flux capacitor"

The first problem I noticed was that the parking distance control does not seem to work - it emits a steady beeeeeeeeeeeep sound when the vehicle is put in reverse and then does not make any further sounds while reversing. In addition the PDC light flashes. My assumption was that the sensors didn't work any more, but I didn't really care because I'm basically indifferent to having PDC.

The next thing I noticed was that the main cluster of gauges in the dashboard would occasionally all go to zero. Typically the needles on the battery, fuel, speedo and tach will twitch a few times and then will all drop to zero and stay there. Turning off the car and then restarting it will sometimes cause them to start working again. The back-lighting and other read-outs on the dash do not seem to be affected.

I then noticed that the driver's door lock would only work intermittently. Sometimes it will unlock on the first try, sometimes I need to unlock, lock, unlock a few times before the driver's door unlocks. The same is true of locking - sometimes it works the first time other times I have to unlock it and relock it to get the driver's door to lock.

After that I noticed that the passenger side mirror would auto-dip while reversing - sometimes. However often when it dipped it would not return to its normal position once the car was put in drive. Currently the auto-dip does not seem to be working as I haven't seen it happen in a while.

Next I noticed that the driver-side window controls didn't seem to work properly. The mirror fold button would cause the mirrors to fold as long as it was pressed, but as soon as I lifted my finger they would return to their normal position. If I held the button down the mirrors would go to the fully folded position and then return to their normal position even while I continued pressing the fold button. In addition to this, the window lock button did not seem to work at all. The light would not come on and pressing the button had no effect on the ability to use the power windows on the other doors.

The mirror problems have actually got worse recently as the controls to adjust the driver-side mirror no longer function at all. It is no longer possible to adjust the mirror and only the passenger side mirror does the folding behavior described above.

Extensive reading lead me to try a few things:

The first thing I did was purchase several OBD2 readers (one cheap-o self-contained unit that displayed codes, as well as a bluetooth one and a USB one - to allow me to look at codes in more detail on my computer). It was then that I discovered that the OBD2 port was not working.

I then tried resetting the car by disconnecting the battery and leaving it for 30 minutes. This seemed to fix a few problems for a while, but they all have returned. The definite highlight of doing that was that it caused the OBD2 port to start working again, and that at least has continued to work properly ever since.

Next I was reading that it was possible that a defective driver-side window control unit was actually causing a series of signal problems within the Can Bus. I purchased a new control unit and installed it and then did a reset on the car by disconnecting the battery again. Immediately after reconnecting the battery the driver-side mirror controls worked, but only for moving the mirror side-to-side - it still would not adjust up or down. The folding also did not work at all on the driver-side and still did the odd behavior I describe above on the passenger side. The window lock button lights up when pressed now, but still has no effect on the ability to use the window controls on the other doors. After a short amount of time - possibly because I pressed the window fold button - the driver-side mirror would no longer adjust left and right any more.

The most recent thing that has happened is that I now have a fast-blinking turn signal on the passenger side and my rear passenger-side turn signal has stopped working. I assumed this was just a blown bulb, but upon changing the bulb and then switching them from side to side I discovered that the bulbs are fine and the turn signal has just stopped working. I haven't had a chance to get a friend to try the other lights (reverse, brake, etc.) to determine if the entire set of lights are malfunctioning or if it is just the turning signal. I also haven't tested the actual contacts in the light cluster to see if it is receiving power or if there is a problem with the ground.

My hope is that someone more familiar with BMW electrical systems will be able to suggest things to try or test because god help me I'm considering taking it to a dealer. I am very familiar with electrical theory and working on electronics, and am fairly skilled with car mechanics in general, so any suggestions to try would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[HeliHover]

I've been a lurker on this board since my first BMW (a 1995 525i) and did a lot of reading here when I was considering buying an M3 a few years ago. I finally decided to become a member when I bought a 2004 X5 4.4i earlier this year. It's an absolutely fantastic vehicle that is fun to drive, comfortable and very good in all road conditions.

The problem I am having is that there seems to be an infinite number of gremlins inside this vehicle's electrical system and I am hoping that a description of the problems will trigger an association for someone here and they'll say "oh wait - you have this, this and this? That has to be your flux capacitor"

The first problem I noticed was that the parking distance control does not seem to work - it emits a steady beeeeeeeeeeeep sound when the vehicle is put in reverse and then does not make any further sounds while reversing. In addition the PDC light flashes. My assumption was that the sensors didn't work any more, but I didn't really care because I'm basically indifferent to having PDC.

Sounds like you have a sensor out or a connection to the sensor is bad. To test, put your key into position 2 (all the way on, but not started), and press the PDC button. Then go out side the vehicle and check each of the eight sensors for a clicking sound. You'll need to put your ear right up to them. Chances are you will find one or more that is not clicking. You can then unplug one that works and plug it into one that doesn't and see what happens. On mine I found two dirty connections and one bad sensor. In the mean time if you press the button as soon as you put it in to reverse the beeeeeeeeeeeeep will stop

The next thing I noticed was that the main cluster of gauges in the dashboard would occasionally all go to zero. Typically the needles on the battery, fuel, speedo and tach will twitch a few times and then will all drop to zero and stay there. Turning off the car and then restarting it will sometimes cause them to start working again. The back-lighting and other read-outs on the dash do not seem to be affected.

No idea but, make sure your battery is good and your connections are tight. These cars will get a little freaked out when the voltage is low or there is a bad battery connection.

I then noticed that the driver's door lock would only work intermittently. Sometimes it will unlock on the first try, sometimes I need to unlock, lock, unlock a few times before the driver's door unlocks. The same is true of locking - sometimes it works the first time other times I have to unlock it and relock it to get the driver's door to lock.

Could be a bad door lock actuator. Pretty simple DIY.

After that I noticed that the passenger side mirror would auto-dip while reversing - sometimes. However often when it dipped it would not return to its normal position once the car was put in drive. Currently the auto-dip does not seem to be working as I haven't seen it happen in a while.

You can have it dip with reverse or not. If your switch is set to adjust the pass side mirror, the mirror will dip with reverse. If your switch is set to adjust the driver side mirror, then the mirror will not dip. This is covered in your manual.

Next I noticed that the driver-side window controls didn't seem to work properly. The mirror fold button would cause the mirrors to fold as long as it was pressed, but as soon as I lifted my finger they would return to their normal position. If I held the button down the mirrors would go to the fully folded position and then return to their normal position even while I continued pressing the fold button. In addition to this, the window lock button did not seem to work at all. The light would not come on and pressing the button had no effect on the ability to use the power windows on the other doors.

The mirror problems have actually got worse recently as the controls to adjust the driver-side mirror no longer function at all. It is no longer possible to adjust the mirror and only the passenger side mirror does the folding behavior described above.

Extensive reading lead me to try a few things:

The first thing I did was purchase several OBD2 readers (one cheap-o self-contained unit that displayed codes, as well as a bluetooth one and a USB one - to allow me to look at codes in more detail on my computer). It was then that I discovered that the OBD2 port was not working.

I then tried resetting the car by disconnecting the battery and leaving it for 30 minutes. This seemed to fix a few problems for a while, but they all have returned. The definite highlight of doing that was that it caused the OBD2 port to start working again, and that at least has continued to work properly ever since.

Next I was reading that it was possible that a defective driver-side window control unit was actually causing a series of signal problems within the Can Bus. I purchased a new control unit and installed it and then did a reset on the car by disconnecting the battery again. Immediately after reconnecting the battery the driver-side mirror controls worked, but only for moving the mirror side-to-side - it still would not adjust up or down. The folding also did not work at all on the driver-side and still did the odd behavior I describe above on the passenger side. The window lock button lights up when pressed now, but still has no effect on the ability to use the window controls on the other doors. After a short amount of time - possibly because I pressed the window fold button - the driver-side mirror would no longer adjust left and right any more.

The most recent thing that has happened is that I now have a fast-blinking turn signal on the passenger side and my rear passenger-side turn signal has stopped working. I assumed this was just a blown bulb, but upon changing the bulb and then switching them from side to side I discovered that the bulbs are fine and the turn signal has just stopped working. I haven't had a chance to get a friend to try the other lights (reverse, brake, etc.) to determine if the entire set of lights are malfunctioning or if it is just the turning signal. I also haven't tested the actual contacts in the light cluster to see if it is receiving power or if there is a problem with the ground.

The rear light assemblies are notorious for not making a proper connection. Clean/scrape the corrosion on the assembly where the socket plugs in.

My hope is that someone more familiar with BMW electrical systems will be able to suggest things to try or test because god help me I'm considering taking it to a dealer. I am very familiar with electrical theory and working on electronics, and am fairly skilled with car mechanics in general, so any suggestions to try would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Hopes this helps. It sounds like you could get most of these issues tackled by yourself if your a little handy.

[Momus]

Thanks man, you were right about the sensors - I checked then and I have 3 (!) in the back not making any sound and one in the front that is very quiet.

From further research it appears the gauge cluster problem might be caused by outdated daten files so I'm going to attempt to update those.

The turning signal is still a bit of a mystery. I have determined that the electrical problem is occurring before the light cluster as there is no intermittent current on the flasher pin of the connector. Next step is to chase the problem back to the relay and the connector under the dash.

I'll post updates of my progress. If anyone has more suggestions let me know. Thanks again.

[BMWX7]

Congrats on those finds momus. I do have a very small sound from the radio/stereo area even after the car is turned off. Sounds like a paper held on spinning fins. Its so low that you can only hear when its real quite. PO said its been like that and hes not sure if its a radio thing. Any one any idea.?

[Amsoil94]

On the turn signal. I have an 01 X5 30i. I had the same issue with the turn signal. The tail light is a complete electrical assembly and all the lights get there power from basically a board that is powered from a single electrical connector. On one of the pins on the electrical connector was burnt out. I had to buy a used tail light assembly from a salvage yard and a replacement wire with the female end to replace the burnt wire in the connector. This wire I got from the BMW dealer for about $3.

[grussell]

I have seen weak batteries cause strange things. How old is yours? Another thing that comes to mind is possibly a bad ground. I will see what I can find if these issues might have a common ground.

[Consonar]

Momus,
I have an 04 X5 3.0i and have several electrical issues as well. Prob why it was traded. On a separate post I explained about radio shutting off on its own after 20 mins and cannot set clock. Still investigating. Drivers door lock does not lock door with key fob. Have to lock manually. Will change actuator as others suggest. Learned something about mirrors. Guess you should have passenger selected when backing if I understand it. Radio is manual on/off. Not tied to ignition switch. Need to buy a code reader as my prof mechanic friend cannot always bail me out. Never heard of PDC system and don't think I have it. Anyway nothing to suggest just wanted to thank you for posting.

- - - Updated - - -

Forgot to ask - how do you update the data files?

[upallnight]

On my X the mirror selection switch has to be on Driver side if I want the passenger side mirror to dip so that I can see the curb while parking

[jimjax]

Hello all! I'm new to the bimmer world. I just bought my first x5 in June. Love it speed & luxury. I've had my electrical issues as well & have figured out & repaired most on my own but now I'm totally stumped. I'm on my second battery from a mysterious drain. I came out of my house cause my brake lights were on & then I hear the radio on & the steering wheel adjusting. Basically auxiliary power was on! Can't set my alarm due to this or I'm resetting it all night & drains battery faster. Went thru fuses & no constant drain till it happens. Lasts about 10 mins then stops. Any help to figure this out would be greatly appreciated. Thnx in advance!