Got few problems with my car...
 

Hello, im new to this forum from Philippines.

I have a 2001 x5 4.4 with 35000 miles and its giving me bit of headaches..

Here in philippines there are no such thing as certified mechanic.

Meaning to say that i have to figure out my self...they will guess what parts to replace to fix the problems.

Before i buy the car previous owner replaced a transmission.

Funny thing is that car will not engage to drive when its cold. Must warm up at

Least 5 mins to engage into drive. I can shift into drive even though in cold, but car will not move.

I dont know whats wrong with it and mechanics here have no clue either.

Another thing is recently ABS, BRAKE, and triangle with circle (yellow light)

Lighted up while driving. Cruse control, speedometer, rpm, etc everything works.

I read few articles that it could be a problem from wheel sensor but obviously

No clue for me.

One last thing will be gas gauge shows quarter tank but i guess its empty since i

Ran out of gas while on quarter tank. Could this be faulty gauge or gauge sensor

Inside gas tank? When i fill it up, gas gauge does move to full and comes down

From usage of vehicle.

Please i need major help with these issues...

Ahh...one more thing will be, how to change MPH to KMS.

This car is originally imported from us... So it shows in F on aircon and mph..

Thank you for reading and i hope i can fix these problems so that i can start

Modify to bling bling mode...

:xoutpost:

Sound like there isn't enough ATF in the tranny. To warm it up makes the ATF expand --> shift/gear engages.

The "trifecta light" indicator could be ABS module also, not just wheel speed sensor. Will they ONLY light up when driving, or after warm-up standing still? When I had problem with the ABS module in my E39, the lights only show after warm-up, regardless of standing still or moving.
2002 E39 ASC BRAKE ABS lights on => Diagnostic Procedure & Parts Location - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

An owner of a E39 claimed to have Techron Concentrate Plus fuel addictive fixed his fuel gauge. Worth a shot.
Techron Concentrate Plus is fixing my fuel gauge - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

Here is how to change the temp from C to F (and vice versa)
http://www.xoutpost.com/articles/x5/...splay-c-f.html

also, for the fuel showing some fuel in the car but actually running out of gas - it might be the siphoning "pump" on under the left rear passenger's butt that is not siphoning fuel from left pocket to the right pocket, where the real pump is located... thus, the car shows that there is fuel, but can't use it since it is not delivered to the pump...

do you know how to pull the TESTs from the cluster? you can go to one of the tests (i don't remember which one, I'd need to look it up) and look at the amount of fuel in each half of the "saddle" tank - that fuel is reported in liters, the left half, the right half and the total...
this way you will know if there is fuel there for real, and if it is in the left half... so you can narrow the issue...

to change the car from miles to kms, you need to change the LAND in the cluster from US to EC... i think you need some higher level software to do so, like GT1 or something... you can change the F to C in the HVAC rather easy, follow TMV's directions...

ohh... BTW...

welcome to the forum...

Thanks~i will have other mechanic to chk transmission oil is enough or not. 3 lights comes up on dash soon as i start the car. I have tried resetting computer by pushing gas pedal etc, unplug battery but still comes up. Thanks for the f to c temp chg procedure.
By the way, fuel tank on left and right means x5 got dual gas tanks?
I will also look up these issues as well...but i have none clue how to chk test mode on dash. If you can tell me roughly how to do it, i will try to play around to get it working. Im highly considering to buy obd tools...plz advise which obd tool is worth to buy. Clear engine codes, kms-mph country code?, etc that can be useful for long terms.
Thank u so much for tips~ i was very depressed by these problems but if these will work, u guys made my day.

OBD tools are a must. I went with the Peake OBD2 scanner, made specifically for BMW.

Peake Research BMW Engine Code Tool 2001 to 2007 (R5-FCX3-16) : Amazon.com : Automotive

it is a single tank, shaped as a saddle for a horse, as it is going over the drive shaft in the center of the car - once the fuel level is below the hump, the passive siphoning "pump" will transfer fuel from the left half of the tank to the right half, where the actual pick up happens...

I would suggest buying the INPA software suite along with the cable... since your car is a 2001 model, you also need to check under the hood to see if you have a circular data port - on the newer models the OBD II connector next to your left knee took over the data port functions... if you have the data port, than you need to buy an additional adapter for it.

i do not know if you can buy things off the ebay, but if you do, please search on ebay for INPA, there is a dude from Romania who is selling the cable and everything that you need for the laptop... check, to see if he will ship to philippines... a lot of folks on this forum are using his product

Welcome to the forum. I agree with TMV about the tranny fluid. Procedures must be followed. Engine must be running in order to do the test.

As for the trifecta of lights. Might also be steering angle sensor. Was the battery recently replaced. Try resetting it by having the steering wheel start at 12 o clock position. Then go full lock left, then full lock right, then back to center. See if that clears up the lights.

While the car is moving???? J/K:rofl:

Just jack the left side of the car so that it will empty the gas to the right side of the tank.