I'll check that as soon as I get home. What difference does this make?

Dont bother.

I asked 3 questions...

Battery fully charged. The charger is capable of also checking the condition of the alternator.

What does tsb stand for?

That's the BMW shop manual

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Thank you. No I don't have the shop manual. What a headache.

1. TSB is technical service bulletin. BMW also calls it SIB Service information bulletin. This definition is one google search away. Type in SIB or TSB and BMW E70 and Can Bus Short... play with terms... (however I am not sure your faults are due to that, seems a low battery was throwing some odd codes)

Hence the question about fully charged AND alternator


2, newtis.info link IS IN FACT THE SERVICE MANUAL!

3. I've never seen a charger that can adequately test the alternator.

4. What codes now? P3203, 1039, and 1036.???

Thanks for the above info. Yes, all along those were the 3 codes that kept popping up. Strange, after using Carly to clear the codes, now only p3203 shows up on the standard obd2 scanner.

Also wanted to mention that after driving the suv with the ac off, when I pulled up at a stop light and decided to switch it on, the rpms did drop. It was noticeable too as you could also hear it from the sound of the engine. Just a quick drop and right back to normal again was what I experienced. And when I switched it off and on again, it wasn't doing it anymore. I wonder if that's a sign. What is the normal lifespan on an 07 x5 with only 50k on the od? It also seems like a bit of trouble to get to the alternator.

Stop focusing on the alternator.

I assume you don't know much about how engines work, how to troubleshoot codes, computer controlled engine management systems.. Instead, you are carefully listening to the motor, to things you can see and feel and hear, and want to somehow make sense out of those clues to fix your car. "I wonder if that's a sign"

A P3203 ***IS A SIGN***. Trouble shoot THAT.

Yes, thank you, I do feel dumb sometimes, lol. If only this time around, the fault code was as simple as a part that needs to be replaced, I would have done so already. Or even having the same code that another 4.8 e70 owner experiences would be helpful, but no, I'm all alone on this one.

Have you tried checking for water in the trunk area? The e60 had that problem and I've seen other e70 have similar issues.

It centers around water from the tail lights and sunroof drain.

none of my 12vdc outlets work and I suspect it is/ was water. I havent got around to that yet because I'm slowly doing the valve seals.
I've got 112k