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Old 06-06-2016, 01:26 PM
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Battery charging issues...

So, my 2008 X5 4.8i was having battery issues. Occasionally and randomly, the battery would die while driving the car. Always started fine, but would sometimes go completely flat while driving to the point that the engine died. Jump the battery, get it home and recharge. All good except when it happened again days or weeks later.

Quick check indicated 12.5 volts static and 14.0 volts with engine running. Seems all good. I did notice that occasionally there was a failed bearing sound coming from the alternator/idler pulley area. Stop engine and restart and the noise went away...curious. So, I decided to replace the alternator (AGM battery tests fine and holds a charge while car is inactive).

Hopefully, the rebuilt (from Autozone) Valeo 230 amp alternator does the trick as I have a 1200 mile road trip coming up soon. Half of which will be pulling an Airstream.

Anyone else have similar symptoms and resolution? BTW, I don't think the issue is from short trips not allowing the battery to recover.
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Old 06-07-2016, 01:00 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Davidf View Post
So, my 2008 X5 4.8i was having battery issues. Occasionally and randomly, the battery would die while driving the car. Always started fine, but would sometimes go completely flat while driving to the point that the engine died. Jump the battery, get it home and recharge. All good except when it happened again days or weeks later.

Quick check indicated 12.5 volts static and 14.0 volts with engine running. Seems all good. I did notice that occasionally there was a failed bearing sound coming from the alternator/idler pulley area. Stop engine and restart and the noise went away...curious. So, I decided to replace the alternator (AGM battery tests fine and holds a charge while car is inactive).

Hopefully, the rebuilt (from Autozone) Valeo 230 amp alternator does the trick as I have a 1200 mile road trip coming up soon. Half of which will be pulling an Airstream.

Anyone else have similar symptoms and resolution? BTW, I don't think the issue is from short trips not allowing the battery to recover.
Hi Davidf,

I actually had a very similar, if not the same issue as you described. My car is also an 08 4.8 X5. I had repeated issues of my car turning off while driving, usually after the entire dashboard lights up with warnings. (4x4 malfunction, DSC, etc).

After reading the boards, I tried to remedy the situation by purchasing a new battery. But low and behold, after 3 weeks or so, I still had the same problem.

Problem persisted, and did some more research on the boards. From what I understand, one theory is that if the car is not driven extensively to charge the battery, you will continue to have this problem. I don't recall the recommended driving distance, but I know my wife (who is the primary driver) does not drive frequently or long - short commutes around our home.

Long story short, I ended up purchasing a battery charger. It was the CTEK 3300 model. I charge the vehicle weekly now, and since then, have not had the issue arise again. This was probably 6 months or so ago.

I have since driven long distances (to and from Nor Cal) back to Long Beach without issue. But I always remember to charge the vehicle weekly. Hope this helps. Good luck.
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Old 06-07-2016, 10:16 PM
ard ard is offline
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Originally Posted by Davidf View Post
S
Anyone else have similar symptoms and resolution? BTW, I don't think the issue is from short trips not allowing the battery to recover.

I have read a few similar reports.

Without having the software to interrogate the car to look at BMW-specific module stats on charging, etc, we re stuck with rudimentary tools.

People like to get 'rifle shot' diagnoses, but sometimes you just cannot. They want the mechanic or store to 'test my battery' or 'test my alternator' to be certain they have the right cause.... the active charging system BMW uses can 'fool' this diagnostic approach.... Batteries go bad. After 4-8 years, depending on use, temp and other factors, it may be easier to just replace the battery to rule that out.

Here is the problem- the symptom you describe (battery crashing due to chronically low charge) can be due to lack of charge caused by bad alternator; lack of charge due to short trips and depleted battery; lack of charge due to bad battery.

At least thats my view.
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Old 06-08-2016, 10:52 AM
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Thanks for the responses. My wife has been driving the X5 for over three years now with similar driving habits all three years. The problem just showed up for the first time about 3 months ago and started increasing in frequency. As my wife no longer trust the truck, I have been driving it for the past few days without incident. The road trip is this weekend which will be the acid test.

I understand short trips might not fully charge the battery, but that does not explain the battery going dead while driving. If the battery had enough charge to start the vehicle, the alternator should be sufficient to keep it running and provide excess current to the battery to at least maintain its currently level of charge. It was not happening, hence my decision to replace the alternator.
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Old 06-08-2016, 12:51 PM
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I had similar symptoms on my 07 4.8i. Changed just the voltage regulator on the alternator. Cost about $100. After doing so it was fine.

FYI if you update the software on your modules the vehicle can at least give a warning before it completely dies.
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Old 06-08-2016, 04:43 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Aveman View Post
I had similar symptoms on my 07 4.8i. Changed just the voltage regulator on the alternator. Cost about $100. After doing so it was fine.

FYI if you update the software on your modules the vehicle can at least give a warning before it completely dies.
Yep, I thought about going that route, but at 100k miles, I wanted new bearings as well.

Update: 1200 road trip in three days with no problems. I believe the new alternator solved my issues. Old alternator tested fine, but have had a sporadic fault.

Last edited by Davidf; 06-13-2016 at 10:05 AM.
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