Unusual Central locking problem.. 2001 X5
 

So I've only had the car about 18 months and there were numerous issues to fix, the central locking woes were way down the line..

But now that the cooling system is refreshed, the air springs replaced, the oil leaks are hopefully fixed and the aftermarket stereo is in, it's now made it to the top of the list.

I've searched on here, but the symptoms don't seem to match what I've read In other posts. In summary:

All the doors will centrally lock from the remote.
Only the fronts UNLOCK with the central locking.
The rears won't even unlock using the switch on the console.
I always have to reach in and unlock the rears by pulling on each rear interior door handle.
I can hear noises in the rear doors I think when I try and remote unlock them, I think.
Now even the passenger door is starting to not unlock with the driver's one, it tries, but struggles and you can see that the "pin" only pops up about 1/3 of the way. It's as if the mechanism is experiencing too much resistance, or not getting enough juice to get the job done. (But silicone spray has not helped!)

Any ideas?

Neil

Have you tried hitting the remote twice to unlock the rear doors? My car originally required me to hit the remote twice to unlock the front and rear doors, but I had the car re-coded to open all the doors with just one push of the remote. I also coded the car to open and close all the windows and sunroof with the remote.

I have got a very similar problem and it got worst as battery was let run down. To my mind it is either due to faulty actuator or the amount of power required to open all door have reduce through faulty battery or relays!
For now I am using the key to get in the car.


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Sounds like actuator problem to me. Wife's car has three failing actuators. They each have two motors. One for lock one for unlock. You can have either one fail so you can have a door that won't lock or won't unlock.

They usually fail slowly where they will unlock sometimes or only when warm outside.


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I certainly have to double press the 'unlock' - only the driver's door tries to unlock on the first press. But that second press provides a 30% chance of unlocking the passenger door, and 0% of the rears..

Certainly it has got worse now it's got cold..

Joy - just looked those up on BavAuto $214 each.. If the existing Actuators are not repairable, at those prices, I'm going to have to pick one door door of the three to repair.. I'd better fix one before the Driver's one packs up too.. Don't want to be needing to climb in through the trunk / boot..

Perhaps will monitor the pick-a-part stock lists..

Thanks for the input!

Anyone used a "Dorman" branded, made in China one?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-E53-X5-...taHmsu&vxp=mtr

I've used their Tire pressure sensors on my Honda and they have (so far) lasted well..

Neil.

The door actuator is repairable. The motors inside probably cost $3/5 each. My wife has three bad actuators now so I will be buying a bunch of motors and fixing them soon.

There is a DIY here on xoutpost how to do the repair. You have to drill out rivets I believe to get the thing open but fairly straightforward replacing the two motors.


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So of course as soon as you have the correct technical terms from other members on here, suddenly the search tool delivers much more pertinent results and you realize your 'unusual' central locking issue is not so unusual..
(of course, most cars' previous owners were not so cheap as to leave it until both rear door actuators were kaput..)

So I've ordered a Mabuchi FC-280PC-22125 motor off amazon, and also a Dorman actuator.

I'll see if i can fix the old actuator (excellent write up by oldskewel, https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...or-repair.html but it remains to be seen my drilling skills are up to the job..)

If I manage it - I'll return the Dorman actuator. Otherwise I'll be able to fit that.
I'd like to stick to OEM parts, but I'm not keen to drop $750 on three new actuators..

Saving the better part of a grand should be motivation enough to earn some experience points.

Depending on the rivet type, a Dremel or right angle grinder will be easier.

I'm going to be performing this repair soon on my wife's car. She has three bad actuators. Coincidence that HER car with 15,000 less miles auto-locks the doors but mine doesn't and all my actuators work?


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Glad to see that someone else will hopefully try this. Some comments:

My actuator is still working fine. The other 3 are still original and working fine. I think the PO mostly used this truck for a ~60 mile/day commute by himself, so only the driver's door lock actuator got worn out. Something to consider for those who might program all 4 doors to actuate together.

I agree from the symptoms you're reporting that you probably have failed/failing unlocking actuators. The fact that the all lock fine with central locking is a good clue for this. That the problem is worse in colder weather or with a weaker 12V battery makes sense, and points to the actuators as being the problem (vs. needing a new battery or more global warming).

As mentioned in that write-up, I used that Mabuchi FC-280PC-22125 motor since I already had it in-hand from my Honda repairs. But an ideal fit would have been one exactly the same but with the longer shaft and worm gear. Since I did not have one with the longer shaft in-hand (have since bought a few that I have as spares now), I did not try transplanting the worm gear off the original shaft. I just transplanted the new plastic end cap onto the existing shell + rotor (all as described in the writeup). It worked great for me, and would be a safe bet to expect it to work for you, but if you're ordering parts anyway (remember, I did all that blind to what I'd find in there), you might want to get ones with the longer shafts and maybe try putting the gear on there.

Take your own photos as you go. It will make the reassembly much less impossible.

On the rivets, they are not your typical ones that you might already have a riveter for. They are machined steel, tight fitting pivots, etc. You can see a few of them in the photos (but only a few of them need to be drilled out).

The challenge is not in getting them off, it is in being able to basically reinstall something when you're done that does the same job.

So I generally tried to drill them out carefully, drill and tap a screw hole in the center, and then reinstall using a screw of just the right size, with a good washer too. Key things to have are sharp (I used Cobalt) drill bits, a small drill that you can position carefully (or a drill press, which would be ideal), and a good selection of options for the screws/nuts, taps/dies, and washers. You'll want to get the best performance you can out of this thing that used to be a piece of perfectly fitting solid steel, reconstructed after drilling, tapping, etc.

Whenever you finally access the motors in your actuators, I would immediately apply 12V and make a clear note of the rotational direction vs. voltage polarity. Hopefully even your dead motors will move enough to reveal their polarity. You would not be happy to finally get this back together and find out that the motor is driving the wrong way.