BobA

Thanks - still learning after several Beemers!

Thanks. Didn’t know that though it seems sensible. But my question is really what was deciding that @Andrew’s engine was ill so soon after startup from cold before the engine temperature sensors would have triggered? Is there something which detects a lack of coolant circulation?

@Andrew so what caused/causes the cooling fan to run at high speed at startup when the engine is cold and long before any heat sensor can have triggered? Is there something to sense circulation rather than just temperature?

No the xDrive is permanently 4x4 with (for the 530 at least) a nominal 60:40 rear:front split varying as different wheel speeds are detected. I’ve read that the Alpina has a different nominal ratio, no idea about X3, X5 etc.. So BMW put quite a tight tolerance on the rolling circumference of all 4 tyres as @Kopfjaeger hints at to avoid undue wear in the diffs. In fact the BMW tolerance is probably unnecessarily tight but that’s BMW 😉.

A G31 so not directly relevant but my ex-demonstrator from the local $tealer tramlined noticeably when I bought it. Back to the $tealer a few times to check alignment and geometry but no faults found. The problem was more or less cured when I replaced 1 front tyre as the $tealer had replaced a single damaged RoF leaving a large difference (about 3-4mm) in tread depth between the 2 fronts. Mine is a 4x4 so maybe more sensitive but it shows how much tyres affect tramlining. Still on RoFs but I only get tramlining on quite rutted roads now (plenty around here!).

Yes of course you can reset the service date without actually servicing the car. Pretty unlikely anyone would do that I’d say though. TBH I’d be inclined to trust them but it’s up to you of course. The only service in question is the June 2023 one which is a ‘minor’ one so if you’re really bothered about it just do an oil change just now (which would be a good idea anyway. BTW) and you’re good to go. £800 for a minor service? I’d look for a different dealer! 😉 I wonder why your service plan wants a different schedule to BMW’s own one. Actually 12 month oil changes wouldn’t hurt and the other costs won’t be exorbitant anyway, just wondering.

Not relevant to your issue @Andrew but I’d say that the resistance measurement is actually in milliohms and to put it in context the main battery feed is probably v-e-r-y roughly about 0.5 milliohms per metre (assuming 2 gauge but not checked what BMW actually specify). So the battery losses are in the same order as the cable losses and IMHO not an issue. back to sleep now ……. 🥱

^^^+1 So easy to do as mentioned earlier. Done it lots of times from the house while my car’s on the drive.

^^^ +1 Done it a dozen times bending to untie my shoelaces with the key in my trouser pocket both the tailgate and a full unlock. Doesn’t the car relock if no door is opened within a given time? Come out a few times to find the tailgate open and rained overnight too, even had a cat sleeping in it overnight!

Well if they unlocked it normally the alarm wouldn’t go off I guess? Did you lock it?😉

No they’re all like that - both of mine have been anyway. Just a bit of a nuisance when you’re trying to clean the rear windscreen or as you say change the blade (not that I’ve needed to yet). Peculiar design.

25000

My quote (2019 reg G31 530D xDrive) comes in at £953 for the same cover, quite a bit higher. Are diesels really so much less reliable? Still not as expensive as I thought it might be but £250 is a large excess (on top of any investigation).

I’ve always done my own maintenance too - still do when it’s practical - but now with 75 well behind me and a big birthday on the horizon I can’t rely on my own abilities so much. I was trading whinges with my neighbour on Saturday who’s had his big birthday and who’s 520 has just spent a week and a bit in the garage with a misfire (and a bill north of £1k) - comes to us all!

Thought I’d ask this here too as there’s a fair chance of a few F series cars around whose owners have opted for a warranty. My G31 is an April 2018 build and it’ll soon be its 6th birthday. I’m planning on keeping it though as it’s low mileage and everything I need in a car so I’m starting to think about a warranty. I’ll consider the BMW offering as I doubt if there’s anything better but I’m expecting it to be pricey and I might end up going 3rd party. Anyone here with a warranty? Any recommendations one way or the other? Thanks.