New owner 2014 X5 xDrive50i didn't even get a taste of it

[SNG_]

Hello All, About 1.5 week ago I bought from a BMW dealer a 2014 X5 xDrive50i with about 71k, the car has almost all options, including night vision, B&O sound, ACC, etc...

Well due to my travels for work and other commitments I was only able to go pick it up last Wednesday. And boy I was excited as I love how the V8 moves.

low and behold I take the car, drive maybe 4-5 miles and while on the highway accelerating to pass another car I get a "Drivetrain Malfunction" message on the iDrive and no CEL. The car did not seem to have gone into limp mode as I can still accelerate thou lightly since the transmission seems to be slipping. I exit the highway and find a parking lot. Drive around to try to see if the transmission is slipping in lower gears and it is, I pull up into a parking spot and very fearfully turn off the car.
I turn on the car and the message is gone! I start driving again and within just a few hundred feet the message comes back and I can notice the transmission is slipping.
At this point the car goes into neutral and they can't put it in gear I turn it off again turn it on and then allows me to go into gear then I decide to start driving back to the dealer slowly.

Drop off the car dealer says they will look into it.
Service advisor told me on Friday that they had to send the errors to BMW engineers because it's not a very common error and it seems to be internal errors to the transmission.
Today they said that still no news from BMW, I tried to get ask for the error codes and the service technician said he would get them to me once BMW replies, not sure why he can't give me the codes. But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Now I'm starting to be in a bitter sweet spot. Nit sure I can undo the deal in IL. And I'm hoping they fix it properly.

I'll try to add a video later.

*forgot to say that I test drove it quite hard and I had a PPI done, also looked in detail all service records and car was CPO warranty until July 2019, all seemed good!

Any advice is much appreciated!
Thanks and I'm excited to become a parte of this awesome community!
Cheers,

SNG

[Violator]

Congrats, but I hate to hear these stories. It’s possible that the previous owner is a member here and can chime in on the issues that led them to trade it in.

You should be able to drive it hard and not get errors, these are made to be driven.
As for the SA not sharing the codes now, that’s just strange. I’d ask him what the reasoning behind that.
Post up the VIN/last 7 and we’ll check the options.

Did it come with two sets of wheels or just those?

Best of luck, I hope it works out for you.
Cheers!
V

[menelaos]

Sorry to hear.
A couple of members have had similar experiences with CPOs.
This appears to be a lemon... Can't believe DTM error happened to occur right after you drove off the lot.

Am surprised they have not shared the error codes with you.
Seems shady, like trying to hide something.

Suggest you hire an attorney or at least threaten to do so if they don't become more transparent

[turboawd]

Let them sort it out. These transmissions are pretty reliable, and used in many other car brands and even trucks.

[sj22]

I would walk away from the deal. I have traded in cars with issues before and seen them on the for sale list in 2 days. These cars bad big issues and would not pass a stiff drive test and I hope sometimes the buyer would force the dealer yo fix these things (think slipping transmissions, transfer case, differential etc)

[-c-]

Well I hope your story will be different than mine but Looks like you bought your x5 from BJ's Bmw in Naperville they are a nightmare and left me out to dry even after buying cars from them for over 8 years.

They blew my motor on my x5 during a test drive after the mechanic finished his work on my engine he stalled it 3 times during the test drive got it back ran for codes got mine took it out again then blew my motor then expected me to pay for it. They woudent help me even through away the old oil filter so it couldn't be inspected.

Took months and finally after them telling me just buy another car from them and they would give me a grand for mine I flipped out got my insurance involved and they sided with me and slapped negligence on them and totaled my x5 but got $13.9 for the X. Whitch was worth every penny.

Then bought a 2016 40E with 48k miles from another dealer and after driving it for a couple months the x5 started a slight shake, took it to laurel bmw in Westmont and talk about night and day difference!
They good willed everything and then after trying spark plugs, fuel injectors and whatnot they finally decided it needed a new engine. Well I got scared as hell! 2 x5's needing new engines ! What are the chances !

Anyway they good willed it, over 18k dollars later she's back to being a great X!

If I took it to BJ's I bet it be a different experience.

[Sophisticated Redneck]

When you reset it did it accelerate normally or still as though it was slipping? If it felt normal after the reset it would point more to a mechatronics issues (most likely solenoid failure) then actual mechanical failure. Plus mechanical failures are rare to have on the 8HP70 transmission with only 70k on them.

If this was a an out of warranty repair and you were going to do it yourself, I Would recommend emailing ZF themselves with the codes (they have excellent tech support) to confirm its solenoids and replace the entire set (about 800 dollars DIY for the solenoids, oil, pan). I'm actually replacing the solenoids in mine now but as preventive maintenance as I have over 150k on mine.

BMW will most likely replace the entire valve body and mechatronics, probably around 3500 total with parts and labor. Hopefully they cover it all.

[Sophisticated Redneck]

Btw, if they won't give you the codes then you can pick up a scanner like the foxwell nt510 with the BMW software loaded on it off Amazon and get them yourself and email ZF direct for the info (which is exactly what the BMW engineers are going to do)

[SNG_]

Originally Posted by Violator

Congrats, but I hate to hear these stories. It’s possible that the previous owner is a member here and can chime in on the issues that led them to trade it in.

You should be able to drive it hard and not get errors, these are made to be driven.
As for the SA not sharing the codes now, that’s just strange. I’d ask him what the reasoning behind that.
Post up the VIN/last 7 and we’ll check the options.

Did it come with two sets of wheels or just those?

Best of luck, I hope it works out for you.
Cheers!
V

Hello Violator,

It only came with the wheels that are on the car currently.

The last 7 for the VIN 72996

Thanks,
SNG

[SNG_]

Originally Posted by menelaos

Sorry to hear.
A couple of members have had similar experiences with CPOs.
This appears to be a lemon... Can't believe DTM error happened to occur right after you drove off the lot.

Am surprised they have not shared the error codes with you.
Seems shady, like trying to hide something.

Suggest you hire an attorney or at least threaten to do so if they don't become more transparent

Thank you for the advice I will definitely look for an attorney if they do not address this properly.

Originally Posted by turboawd

Let them sort it out. These transmissions are pretty reliable, and used in many other car brands and even trucks.

That's what I've heard and I am giving them the opportunity to make it right.

Originally Posted by sj22

I would walk away from the deal. I have traded in cars with issues before and seen them on the for sale list in 2 days. These cars bad big issues and would not pass a stiff drive test and I hope sometimes the buyer would force the dealer yo fix these things (think slipping transmissions, transfer case, differential etc)

I did drive quite hard when I took it myself for a PPI as well as when test driving it, everything seemed how it should.

Originally Posted by -c-

Well I hope your story will be different than mine but Looks like you bought your x5 from BJ's Bmw in Naperville they are a nightmare and left me out to dry even after buying cars from them for over 8 years.

They blew my motor on my x5 during a test drive after the mechanic finished his work on my engine he stalled it 3 times during the test drive got it back ran for codes got mine took it out again then blew my motor then expected me to pay for it. They woudent help me even through away the old oil filter so it couldn't be inspected.

Took months and finally after them telling me just buy another car from them and they would give me a grand for mine I flipped out got my insurance involved and they sided with me and slapped negligence on them and totaled my x5 but got $13.9 for the X. Whitch was worth every penny.

Then bought a 2016 40E with 48k miles from another dealer and after driving it for a couple months the x5 started a slight shake, took it to laurel bmw in Westmont and talk about night and day difference!
They good willed everything and then after trying spark plugs, fuel injectors and whatnot they finally decided it needed a new engine. Well I got scared as hell! 2 x5's needing new engines ! What are the chances !

Anyway they good willed it, over 18k dollars later she's back to being a great X!

If I took it to BJ's I bet it be a different experience.

Yes it is BJ in Naperville.
Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with them. so far they have been quite good in most ways (exception to not providing the codes). They kept on offering for me to take a loaner, I still kind of feel I don't need one since I still have my old car and My wife has her 2013 Mini Cooper S R57.

I'm glad your issues have been resolved at Laurel BMW.

Originally Posted by Sophisticated Redneck

When you reset it did it accelerate normally or still as though it was slipping? If it felt normal after the reset it would point more to a mechatronics issues (most likely solenoid failure) then actual mechanical failure. Plus mechanical failures are rare to have on the 8HP70 transmission with only 70k on them.

If this was a an out of warranty repair and you were going to do it yourself, I Would recommend emailing ZF themselves with the codes (they have excellent tech support) to confirm its solenoids and replace the entire set (about 800 dollars DIY for the solenoids, oil, pan). I'm actually replacing the solenoids in mine now but as preventive maintenance as I have over 150k on mine.

BMW will most likely replace the entire valve body and mechatronics, probably around 3500 total with parts and labor. Hopefully they cover it all.

It did not accelerate normally after resetting.
I have been thinking of getting an extended warranty, any recommendations?

I am also somewhat of a gear head and like doing a lot of maintenance on my own

Originally Posted by Sophisticated Redneck

Btw, if they won't give you the codes then you can pick up a scanner like the foxwell nt510 with the BMW software loaded on it off Amazon and get them yourself and email ZF direct for the info (which is exactly what the BMW engineers are going to do)

Thank you, I have 2 OBD readers but both are wireless, I have Bimmercode as well as OBD Fusion and a few other Apps. Any app recommendation that will allow me to read and reset all modules of a BMW?





Now to the update I received from their Technician this morning.

He texted me saying that they were reaching back to BMW with some additional information...
Then a couple hours later called me directly and said that he had heard back from the engineers and that, his words now "BMW being the awesome company that they are authorized that the transmission be replaced".
I asked him for the codes and he still did not provide them. Maybe I'll get them at some point, but now I'm not very concerned as whatever the issue was it will be resolved with replacement of the trans.
My fear was that they would want to try and replace bits and pieces of the trans and I would keep on having issues with the trans until it had to be replaced.

I am overall satisfied with this at this point as I will have a brand new trans on my car instead of one with 71k and some towing (it did have an aftermarket tow hook that seemed used.)

I was telling my wife yesterday that I was hopeful that this could be a blessing in disguise and I'm glad this happened now instead of a month from now when the limited warranty is long gone.

I'll keep you all posted on what happens next.

[Sophisticated Redneck]

Originally Posted by SNG_

Thank you for the advice I will definitely look for an attorney if they do not address this properly.



That's what I've heard and I am giving them the opportunity to make it right.



I did drive quite hard when I took it myself for a PPI as well as when test driving it, everything seemed how it should.



Yes it is BJ in Naperville.
Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with them. so far they have been quite good in most ways (exception to not providing the codes). They kept on offering for me to take a loaner, I still kind of feel I don't need one since I still have my old car and My wife has her 2013 Mini Cooper S R57.

I'm glad your issues have been resolved at Laurel BMW.



It did not accelerate normally after resetting.
I have been thinking of getting an extended warranty, any recommendations?

I am also somewhat of a gear head and like doing a lot of maintenance on my own




Thank you, I have 2 OBD readers but both are wireless, I have Bimmercode as well as OBD Fusion and a few other Apps. Any app recommendation that will allow me to read and reset all modules of a BMW?





Now to the update I received from their Technician this morning.

He texted me saying that they were reaching back to BMW with some additional information...
Then a couple hours later called me directly and said that he had heard back from the engineers and that, his words now "BMW being the awesome company that they are authorized that the transmission be replaced".
I asked him for the codes and he still did not provide them. Maybe I'll get them at some point, but now I'm not very concerned as whatever the issue was it will be resolved with replacement of the trans.
My fear was that they would want to try and replace bits and pieces of the trans and I would keep on having issues with the trans until it had to be replaced.

I am overall satisfied with this at this point as I will have a brand new trans on my car instead of one with 71k and some towing (it did have an aftermarket tow hook that seemed used.)

I was telling my wife yesterday that I was hopeful that this could be a blessing in disguise and I'm glad this happened now instead of a month from now when the limited warranty is long gone.

I'll keep you all posted on what happens next.

That is excellent news!!! Best possible outcome. As for you original question, I have only used the Foxwell NT510 and bimmergeeks protools, both I highly recommend for reading specific bmw codes as well as drivetrain codes that normal OBD2 scanners cant pickup so I cant give advice on the others. (You can also use both for resetting adaptations and live data and the NT510 will do datalogging if you want to really geek out).

[SNG_]

Got the car back last week.
So far so good, the car runs smooth and strong when needed.

Going to add dashcam and start to code!

I also found that the stock wheels were 19" square setup and that's probably why someone decided to get them changed.

I had also put only the last 5 of the VIN, here goes the seven: 0J72996

[aliangF85]

all that overthinking and a great outcome i believe stock sizes are the 469m 20" staggered setup.

[jch1511]

Glad to hear it worked out.

[EdgyE36]

Wow on the first drive! Glad to read about the new transmission.

FTI when I checked a couple of months ago, NT510 did not support F-Series.

[-c-]

Yea great news on the new trans! I felt the same with the new engine in my f15 40e when they replaced it as a good Will, What sucks in Illinois I found out is any good will you have to pay sales tax on. At least they files yours under the extended warranty !

as the new engine they installed had a bunch of updated parts I bet your trans also had some updates through the years so yea blessing it is!


BMW doesn't really make a bunch of repairable parts for the trans. It's basically if it has issues they just replace the whole thing. Lots of things comes as assemblies nowadays.

Anyway great it all worked out.

[Picasso]

Hey man, it's a best outcome as others said. However, here's my advise. That car looks like it was driven hard (hence tranny failure). Aftermarket rims are also red flag. I'm not saying every x5 with aftermarket rims is hard driven/abused, BUT those symptoms put together: tranny failure + non oem rims + 50i = driven hard.
So in your place I would find some engine diagnostician and pay $50 so he can quickly check cylinder heads with boroscope - takes 10min to do on 50i. You can have 2 outcomes:
1. Cylinders are fine - you'll get piece of mind, reassurance and you can drive your car for many years to come
2. There will be signs of scorched cylinder/s - this will confirm it was abused/tuned etc. If you get this - you are better off trading it in or selling while it drives without issues. You'll get higher oil consumption in that case and it will be one of first signs.

In any case since tranny had an issue - my next step would be to replace at least transfer case oil and preferably diffs too. If car was driven hard with tuned 50i and constant accelerations and such - transfer case might stat acting up soon and it will be good to try to prolong its life.

Not to scare you or anything, but rather to put you into proper preventative mode.

[P1]

Sorry to hear this happened. Certainly takes the joy of buying a car away pretty quickly. Do you know if they will give you a one-year warranty on the transmission? I believe that's standard if a repair has been made out of warranty. Might want to check though.

[SNG_]

Originally Posted by aliangF85

all that overthinking and a great outcome i believe stock sizes are the 469m 20" staggered setup.

I wouldn't know but from the vin decoder thats what I understood was the Original setup.

Originally Posted by jch1511

Glad to hear it worked out.

👍🏼

Originally Posted by EdgyE36

Wow on the first drive! Glad to read about the new transmission.

FTI when I checked a couple of months ago, NT510 did not support F-Series.

Sorry for the ignorance but FTI? NT510?

Originally Posted by -c-

Yea great news on the new trans! I felt the same with the new engine in my f15 40e when they replaced it as a good Will, What sucks in Illinois I found out is any good will you have to pay sales tax on. At least they files yours under the extended warranty !

as the new engine they installed had a bunch of updated parts I bet your trans also had some updates through the years so yea blessing it is!


BMW doesn't really make a bunch of repairable parts for the trans. It's basically if it has issues they just replace the whole thing. Lots of things comes as assemblies nowadays.

Anyway great it all worked out.

🙏🏻

Originally Posted by Picasso

Hey man, it's a best outcome as others said. However, here's my advise. That car looks like it was driven hard (hence tranny failure). Aftermarket rims are also red flag. I'm not saying every x5 with aftermarket rims is hard driven/abused, BUT those symptoms put together: tranny failure + non oem rims + 50i = driven hard.
So in your place I would find some engine diagnostician and pay $50 so he can quickly check cylinder heads with boroscope - takes 10min to do on 50i. You can have 2 outcomes:
1. Cylinders are fine - you'll get piece of mind, reassurance and you can drive your car for many years to come
2. There will be signs of scorched cylinder/s - this will confirm it was abused/tuned etc. If you get this - you are better off trading it in or selling while it drives without issues. You'll get higher oil consumption in that case and it will be one of first signs.

In any case since tranny had an issue - my next step would be to replace at least transfer case oil and preferably diffs too. If car was driven hard with tuned 50i and constant accelerations and such - transfer case might stat acting up soon and it will be good to try to prolong its life.

Not to scare you or anything, but rather to put you into proper preventative mode.

Thank you Picasso, is this something I can check myself? I try to be a bit of a gear head.
Also I think this towed something, the tow hook looks used. Quite a bit.

I hope these cars are not a one race type of veihicle and can handle being driven hard I didn't buy a V8 with +400hp to go like my brothers Prius.
And I'm sure that any car driven hard will have more wear and tear I believe it's just the rules of the "game" and I'll by it as best I can.

Also got some financing on the car so I need to stick with it for a while.

Originally Posted by P1et

Sorry to hear this happened. Certainly takes the joy of buying a car away pretty quickly. Do you know if they will give you a one-year warranty on the transmission? I believe that's standard if a repair has been made out of warranty. Might want to check though.

It did take away some of the joy but I'm being positive and have my wife saying "what's the worse that can happen?"
Me: "we have to shell out cash for repairs"
Her: "well then its ok, you'll be healthy still and thats what matters, also you can always work more!!"


I'll have to ask but I would expect there to be warranty on the transmission.

[SNG_]

Anyone recommend extended warranty? If so any recommended company in the USA?

[mrfochon]

Originally Posted by SNG_

Anyone recommend extended warranty? If so any recommended company in the USA?

Question asked a lot. I still wonder myself what to do. But if you search the forum you ll find many threads and recommendations.

[SNG_]

Originally Posted by mrfochon

Question asked a lot. I still wonder myself what to do. But if you search the forum you ll find many threads and recommendations.

Thank you for the response I have search the forum and there's a lot of answers out there which makes it difficult to come to decision