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Morning Paul Wow that stirs the old grey matter I take it your familiar with www.realoem.com check the Classic section or BMW have a Classic section try their Customer services (I am told they can be slow) If I recall alarms were not a standard fitting back then so you may find Baur fitted it when they retrimmed the car Maybe a question to Baur in Stuttgart I am sure they will have an Archive Good Luck Dave

Hi Hamid Welcome to the Forum First check the engine bay side there is a distribution valve and Auxiliary water pump make sure it's working. Then inside the car if all fans and controls are working check the Final Stage Resistor (used to be a common fail on E53 X5's) Have a look at www.realoem.com put the last 7 digits of your Vin into the search box it should bring up your model, then check the Heater section you should find the FSR (Final Stage Resistor) in the blower motor. You will now have all the part numbers you need to find a replacement at a sensible price. The FSR on X5 E53 models was a fiddle to change but not beyond anyone with a bit of sense Dave

After many months of messing with door i decided to try, again, the key in the door after about 10 tries THE DOOR OPENED!!! So I can finally get door panel off to access and replace the actuator. Thank you to everyone that responded and tried to help me. And to Greydog...I found the lever you were talking about.

Morning Phil First thought "is it a genuine wide body or an aftermarket kit that's been fitted" I would check one of the Vin Decoder websites using the Vin number to see what the original build sheet tells you. As it may be a rare customer special order One of our Z car owners may have more thoughts Dave

You have a "list of jobs" too 🤣 I tried confusing her by starting at the bottom I thought if she saw ticks near the bottom 😅 Top tip it didn't work 🤣

Hi all, just an update to my previous post. Finally resolved my problem, with no help from BMW…… Had to replace the generator/starter/alternator unit to sort the problem, having 1st replaced the 48v battery to eliminate that from being the problem, which it wasn’t. So just over 3 years old, less than 70k on the clock and the MHEV system started breaking down. As time went on the issue got worse and resulted in numerous unexpected ‘shut downs’ whilst driving and on one occasion a complete electrical failure due to a flat 12v battery which wasn’t being charged. Lesson from that episode was that I constantly charged the battery when not in use to avoid a si,liar situation…. Hearing more and more people with the same problem and BMW parts confirming they are getting numerous enquiries every week for the component, so clearly BMW have a longevity issue with the system. Going to be a lot of unhappy customers. BMW of course denied there was an issue , weren’t willing to resolve the problem and instead said ‘take it to a main dealer have them identify the problem and if clearly a BMW design or manufacturing problem, they might consider a contribution to the cost’. I could see running up a huge bill at main dealer rates and then getting a minor contribution from BMW if I was lucky so opted to get it fixed by my local independent who was excellent with it. Fortunately, the vehicle was fixed and drove like a dream again, I forgot how good it was! But as the title says MHEV owners beware!1

Just a quick update. Managed to find a second hand front passenger seat in the correct trim. 1o mins to remove ols seat, 10 mins to fit replacement. No Airbag light issues, and seat belt indicator system, working as expected. 😃🤘 Thanks Guys for you suggestions.

Hi guys, turned out it was the 'Idler Pulley' in the belt. Local autoshop figured it out. $100 repair. Thanks again for your help, appreciated! Norm.

Lol… @Greydog just pops out and strips two cars … I managed to find a matching pair of socks! success all round!

Morning All The X5 is back on the road front calipers changed so no more binding brakes As the sun was out I also fitted new front bushes and rear drop links to my wifes Subaru Outback must be the warm weather 😅😅 This morning I feel like an Old Bloke who spent yesterday rolling around on the garage floor 🤣 🤣 Now cut the grass hedges and tidy the garden Dave

Hi Andrew Welcome to the Forum First the Dealer is a business and will try to generate Profit where it can. If you are capable of changing Oil and Filters yourself do so and keep all reciepts as part of the cars History Spark Plugs these are normally mileage based for change or if of course showing signs of failing the same applies to coil packs Micro Filter and Air filter these items I change annually as the cost is so low If you are not into DIY then Google the Register of BMW Specialists these garages normally are BMW trained technicians with all the equipment to maintain your car but their hourly rates are often about half that of a Dealership (someone has to pay for the Free coffee) With the BMW Specialists many can register your service records held on the BMW servers and update them. When servicing my own cars annually I buy Mann Filters Air and oil (OEM suppliers)and Castrol Magnatec 5-30 oil which meets BMW LL04 standards cost is around £70. I carry out the work near to MOT time so I can check the car over. I have my own BMW Diagnostics allowing me to rest any service points and of course find and reset fauts Dave

Hi Dave Thank you. I will give the guy who looks after my car and get it booked in for a diagnosis. No warning lights and to be honest I haven't noticed an increase in fuel usage either. My daughter has a 2025 BMW and the grill on that certainly opens and closes. I will post the outcome for my car once it's been looked at. Thanks again for your help

Hi Paul Just contact https://www.ecutesting.com they are in Derbyshire they offer and excellent service and I have used them several times they also Warranty all their work Worth contacting them and talking through what you need Dave

Hi Greydog, While I had some troubles loading INPA from my laptop, I want to report back that I have successfully re-coded the RDS module using Pro Tool. Now all is working perfectly! Thanks for all your previous help! Best, JC

Hi Greydog, Thanks for your time checking on the i-Carsoft unit! I will be looking to obtain a copy of the ISTA then! Best, JC

Morning James Welcome to the Forum If you can get a Diagnostic Scan done using a BMW capable system it will help a lot and probably save changing parts that don't need changing. For your model I believe has I-bus so software like BMW 1.4.0 is available and really cheap (about $20) its easy to use and will actually give you Dealer level diagnostics and programming (if needed) Just load it onto a lap top and it will as said allow so much information and test ability. However as you get an attempt to start, the place I would begin is check/test the Fuel Pump relay and it's loom back to the ECU. See if you can download a Pinout for the ECU to check which pins need checking testing Hope this helps Dave

Good morning! My widebodied Z3 is on a W plate (Feb 2000) and it has the 2.0 straight 6 cylinder engine. As far as I know the 4 cylinder was fitted to some of the widebody models (I saw one in a garage recently) but not sure why you would want to go with the 4 cylinder over the 6 cylinder as they are worlds apart and the 6 cylinder will go on forever with makes for a much more exciting drive. Plenty of Z3's on the market at the moment and they are certainly increasing in value so pick one up soon before the prices get out of hand. I would recommend you look very thoroughly at the metalwork as rust is an issue with some, but by the time the widebody Z3 came in, they seem to have sorted a lot of issues. Let us know how you get on with acquiring one and if you need any further info then just let us know.

Morning Gary Welcome to the Forum At 17k I would suspect that the Bushes are OK but check that the Upper Control Arms are torqued correctly The supplying garage should take care of that with no argument even if it means new upper arms, as these are faults that were are present at sale. Even if it is outside their 60day warranty the sale of goods act is on your side as clearly the car in its current condition isn't suitable for purpose Push Good Luck Dave

Well….. the drop top pug is getting kicked out soon… I went on eBay and made a cheeky bid. off to pick up a nice 4.5 v8 Porsche cayenne up on Saturday !! ironically I won it while I was registering my wife on a speed awareness course 🙄 let’s see how many times the X5 is going to have a hissy fit when this one turns up. 😂

Well… finally got round to taking a pic this morning before I left for work.. the lady next door just rolled up in her new purchase… she said she looked at a Porsche, but as I beat her to it she went for another option! 🙄🙄🙄…

Gave the car to my mate who gratefully took it for his young family. he took it to his local garage and turns out the camshaft timing sensor was clogged up and misreading. I had changed the inlet and outlet cam sensors but not the camshaft sensor. an engine flush and clean, new oil and spark plugs, a good service and it’s off like a scalded cat! Cost wise it was about £300 to sort. happy days!

Hi Dave, Thanks for the reply and the welcome. Car has only done 33k miles with full service history - never any issues. The tuner in question will be DMS automotive, I believe they are established and have done various things with Carwow and Top Gear. Slightly on the higher end price wise but believe it would be stupid to cheap out on something like this. I also don't plan on being a boy racer, I just want the extra power for the odd over take and to prevent the delays from the automatic gearbox. Thanks again for the help! Seb

Morning James Google the Register of BMW Dismantlers (Quarry Motors have always been useful). For my E53 4.6is I used a local Carpet Fitter he made up a full set for me all edges trimmed and including non slip velcro patches. He used the OEM mats as patterns and off cuts from a Dark Grey High Quality Wilton carpet he had fitted, cost was less than half OEM gave the car a new smell for ages. Dave

Hi Dave, Many thanks for your reply, yes i would always DIY this … I am fully aware of realoem and have indeed been researching a replacement front diff. anything i’m looking at will be factoring in new oil seals to be fitted also, along with the correct spec diff oil.. will keep this post informed of the outcome.. Dave 👍

Update on this. It was a terminal in the plug. Terminal was not making a good connection with one of the pins on the o2 sensor plug. Extremely annoying but fixed

Ha...I just sold my Porsche (2001 Boxster S) and now have a 420D convertible (with remap). The Boxster was a beautiful car and very energetic but my body is getting old and decrepit and falling out onto the pavement to get out was a pathetic display ! Anyhow, we now have a cockapoo and she has her own back seat now !! Wish I had bought a 435D in hindsight but lets see what a year or so in this girl will decide !!! PS Good luck with your new Porsche !!!

Hi, thanks for your input, but I've finally found a lens in Australia. It's exactly the right one, so good result. Phil

Morning Chris Welcome to the Forum Spoilers are and always will be a matter of personal taste, if you were buying from a BMW Dealer they would want to fit a M sport item but if thats what you prefer it looks fine to me not OTT and Boy Racer ENJOY YOUR BEEMER Dave

Stu, this is tremendously helpful, can't thank you enough. I've ordered the unit from AZ. I'll update you on the results. Thank you. Norm.

Good morning all, So, having had my car for a little over 6 months I decided to give the transmission an overdue service. Parts obtained from Autodoc for £205 for ZF service kit, a fill plug & mechatronic sleeve (Just in case) Job wasn't that bad to do. I even found the source of an intermittant rattle from un undershield. Once done I cleared the adaptions & drove up the road, instantly the shifts were noticeably smoother, not that they were too bad before, just slightly less refined. ZF recommend it to be done at 60K I believe, my car has covered 79K miles. I might do just a fluid flush at 100K miles, we'll see...

Good morning Dave True, the one I got ad 79k, full BMW service history and I had to replace almost all gaskets, o rings, hoses, abs sensors, seals, and I still don’t have a fault free car. Although I have just serviced the car, it looks that I should replace the oil sensor just to be on the safe side, I am using the car for family holidays so the last thing I want is to be stranded. Thank you for the support. Very much appreciated!! Take care Dimitri

Morning Stu Ouch!! Fuel pressure check would be my starting place. From memory (old and dodgy) should be around 50psi any thing lower will give the symptoms your getting If I remember Pelican Parts did some great write ups on Fuel delivery and pressure plus stuff on injector testing worth a look at their site I have been told it only hurts when you laugh 🤣 Get well soon Matey Dave

Thanks Dave, the original map company don’t have a clue what could’ve happened as the garage shouldn’t have been able to do anything. I’ve got it booked in tomorrow somewhere else to take ECU out, see if the map is still there/gone dormant and remap if needed. I’ve just done a 500mile round trip fishing at the weekend to wales so I know for certain it’s not driving as it was and the fuel consumption for this journey I do 2-3 times a years has gone up as well as the car being lethargic. As for the headlamp washers…thanks, I’ll get new ones fitted.

On your advice I have left a message with Ash Motors North Wales. Many thanks again

Morning Stu The fact you have a wiper issue would point me away from the Cluster initially My thoughts are Footwell Module it's in the left hand footwell (well it would be 😅) Run a scan it should show up any issues. The Footwell control module on the 4.6 caused all sorts of odd stuff radio that would randomly turn on/off odd light issues seat controls. BMW say you can't swap them it has to be new and set up by them (wrong of course) I changed mine for an upgraded unit second hand it took longer to remove the old unit and swap it than it did to re-program it cured everything and probably stuff I hadn't found 😅 Dave P.S I wont let the E70 on Whats App or Face Book just in case 🤣

is the new battery coded to the car? Does the car try to start or does it click once? If it clicks once, check the starter motor.

Superb news for older models of BMW, even up to the Z4 https://www.bmwgroup-classic.com/en/offers-and-services/bmw-classic-reproductions.html

Well….. all I can say is, if the oil leaks onto the ground and you drive forward… then new tyres ain’t gonna do much good! get the oil leaks fixed first, save your engine from blowing up, save money on replacing oil and then get new tyres.

OK, so had the stethoscope test done and yes, water pump had gone. Not a bad life to be fair, 97K mls. New one installed and also had the belt changed as well. Onwards.......

Morning Paul Sorry Paul it's been a crazy end to the shooting season From my notes nothing I am afraid but from a BMW contact apparently the sequence is "Ignition on all lights show as part of the self check, Crank and start and they should go out apart from seat belt if it isnt plugged in" Dave

Morning Joe Welcome to the Forum What a strange anomaly For years we had a place in Portugal and I kept a car there but have to say 10 years ago it was simple Bluetooth connection for calls. I guess have you talked to Apple to see if it is something they can help with? maybe clone your Spanish phone so at least you have your data Good Luck Dave

Hi Ken It shouldn't be possible to fit an OEM or OEM style replacement wrongly as the joins are 3 bolt flanges. So my guess would be either it is an After Market exhaust or a support hanger is broken/missing If you are not aware take a look at www.realoem.com its an online BMW parts list, go to the Classic section then the model your considering check the exhaust section which will show both front and rear parts are fitted and supported. Dave

Morning Bruce Hope the Test Drive goes well and Welcome Back Dave

Hi Shaun Welcome to the Forum I have read several times about this problem though not seen/suffered one myself From what I read the only solution is change the unit two choices, first BMW I have read £1k+ quotes and long wait times for parts. Second choice a used replacement first use www.realoem.com put the last 7 digits of your Vin into the search box it will call up your model get the Part Number for your car, double click the part number and it should show a list of any alternatives if they are available. Then Google to find the part and check prices Apparently it isn't a major issue to swap a DIY job then get your Mech friend to clear and reset codes Good luck Dave

Happy new year sir! thank you for your wisdom and knowledge throughout the year. enjoy a beer or two

Took it out yesterday and then shopping last night 4x20 mile runs and the car didn’t miss a beat. Still a few little nigly bits to sort, but hopefully the limp mode issue is solved! got a long run next week when I go on holiday so we shall see if I end up coming home via the RAC or not… now to fill it with more petrol!

Morning Stu The fact that ignition on no engine everything is working but engine start causes the problem would to me suggest a chaffed wire in the starter circuit that is sending power to the sensors/sounder. Thinking out loud here, I would start with the sounder circuit. If the sounder is disabled do you get the visible warnings from the sensors? Dave

Morning Kyle Welcome to the Forum First it may sound daft but does it have Sat Nav installed ? you can check using a Vin Decoder to get the original build sheet. If the car has Navigation it should be selectable in iDrive. If the car has Car Play or Android Auto enabled the previous owner may have preffered that route for Navigation (my Daughter uses Carplay) Dave

here is a link to all bmw owners hand book pdf file free to download http://bmwsections.com

For anyone else, found a great youtube footage on a fix for this, which is to use a self adhesive foam pushed between the 'eyebrow' and headlight which seals that route for water. You can then get lamps out use hairdryer to dry light out an a wire rid with cloth to clean the inside of the lens before putting headlight bulb back and back into service. Looks like a good fix, needs patience but best I have seen. Here is the link.