Problems with brand new X5 40d engine
 

I have recently purchased a full spec 40d X5 (twin turbo 3 litre diesel). I am based in Sydney Australia so the on road price tag was amost $150k (thats over $150k USD these days) but anyway that is not my gripe.

After a day or so I noticed a strage metallic whirring (almost wheezing) sound under acceleration at around 2300 rpm. I have had it back to the dealer twice in its first two weeks since pickup (once they held it for 4 days). They acknowledge the sound but cannot fault the car nor can they find a same spec 40d to compare it against because they are quite new and rare in Australia.

Now the problem is getting worse and can be noted on deceleration and slightly under acceleration at 3500rpm.

The car also runs extremely hot and the fan can remain on for up to an hour after the car has been shut down. The heat from the engine could comfort a small city in the depths of winter!

BMW are not doing anything about this and I am bitterly unhappy because I now have a brand new car with less than 1000 kms that sounds like a broken Hyundai.

Does anyone have any insight as to what this might be or any suggestions as to how I might go about indentifying/fixing it?

Many thanks.

PS This is my 3rd diesel X5 so I am familiar with the general characteristics of the X5 diesel engines.

^^ Do you have any lemon laws down under? If the dealer can't fix it in a certain amount of time, does BMW have to buy it back?

Hi, I have a 40d and I don't have any noticable noise like the one you mention. Perhaps the dealer could take it out on the road with a laptop connected to the engine management for diagnostic purposes? You should ask your dealer to call one of the BMW technicians from BMW Australia - many importers have expert troublshooters (such as the guys that train the garage mechanics) that they can bring in to resolve a problem the local guys are struggling with.

My engine does seem hot as well, it gives off a lot of heat after being switched off and I have noticed the fan running after parking even in winter time. Perhaps this is related to the actuated louvers behind the grill that only open when the engine needs additional cooling - I imagine this means the engine comartment is often hotter than it would be otherwise.

Good luck, I hope you get it sorted out soon.

My 4.8 is a useful extra source of heat when I bring it into the garage under my bedroom in cold weather :thumbup:

On the sd and the 4.0d is not that much removed, the oil is continued to circulate after swithing off the engine to ensure that the oil lubricating the turbo is not fried in the bearings leading to turbo failure.
My sd often smells very hot when i pull it into the garage and the cooling fan continue to run also until a safe shutdown temp is arrived at. It's all this efficent dynamics, running the engine hotter giving greater thermal efficency, great whilst out on the road but leads to strange smells and heat in the garage!!!!

@MVDS: Really sorry to hear that all is not well with your X5. I also have an X5 40d in order, and certainly didn't experience anything like you've talked about on the 2 test drives I took. Personally, if the dealer can't sort it, I'd be following up on the 'lemon law' suggestion above (don't know if there is a similar law in Australia), I'd also get a very firm letter of to BMW head office in Australia on the point - I have found that sadly making a mighty fuss and fast (whilst still being reasonable) is often the best way to see action. I thought we were paying through the nose for our cars here in the UK compared to the US, but $150k is another level! Really hope you get it sorted...

Note:

Unless the BMW agrees there IS a problem, no lemon law applies!

sorry to hear that mate! what a bummer.

which dealer did you buy it from? what do you mean BMW are not doing anything about it? did they refuse to fix the problem?

i'd at least ask for a loaner and don't take it back until they have fully rectified the fault!

Thanks for ideas suggestions. Unfortunately Lemon laws dont apply in Australia. I can now claim a trifecta of problems on the X5 40d with a strong burning plastic smell now coming from the engine. The overheating, wheezing sound and burning plastic is worrying but at least it has encouraged BMW to take another look at the vehicle. They have provided me with a loan car whilst it is being investigated. Will keep you all posted.

Can I ask what production/build date your car is? (VIN). Am hoping to order one soon. Hopefully it's not a bad batch. Hope it's all sorted out.

Build Sep 10. Which was the very first LCI run of the 40d. Make sure you ask the dealer to allow a test drive before you accept delivery. Regret not doing that.

Latest update on the problem with the 40d X5 engine is that BMW have told me to keep driving the car until something breaks. What a professional and technically profound solution!!! Nothing more needs to be said really:banghead:

Was suppose to pick up a brand new 40D today, and whole & behold I find a scratch deep enough to be now repainted, and the boot-floor handle scratched to the point it needs to be replaced (?)... And this is suppose to be a brand new car!
Is it still a new car after it's repaired before being delivered??? Not happy!

Paint happens, and this could have happened after you took delivery.

But I would be pretty upset that the dealer couldn't refrain from damaging it until you got it...or at least fix it before you knew about it! (Many new cars are damaged in transit and dealers/BMW repairs them pre-delivery.)

Your choices are limited:
1. Refuse delivery, ask for an undamaged car.
2. Accept it as repaired.

With either option you can request some kind of compensation... indeed, initially picking #1 and moving to #2 might maximize that aspect....

But I assume that once you take delivery, your bargaining power is zero.

GL

A

I had that on my x5 35i ... mine was in the shop for something else but they did a open recall and the sound was gone .... not sure if the reprogramming is what fixed it ... paperwork is in the car .. will update later

MVDS, any update on this? was originally planning to get a 30d but am now considering a 40d ... before i saw this ...

I would be going to town on BMW Australia for this response.

This is pretty bloody average service after spending $150k

My eyeballs dropped onto the floor and refused to go back into the sockets after they saw you paid bloody $150k+ US for a X5 diesel! Man you really have to be a millionaire to be able to afford a rather ordinary automobile down there, dont you? Now I feel great to be in America.

Good luck though in your quest to right the wrong mate.

Same experience with my X5 delivery regarding a deep door scratch that need to be repainted plus "dealer installed" window tint had over 100 bubbles around the edges. Took delivery, paint was perfect, still new and got re-tinted perfectly as well. Dealer did not charge me for the tint jobs as compensation...

Yeah we are lucky that our government does not levy such heavy taxes...yet.

IIRC, luxury and consumer taxes on cars in other countries can average as high as 30-50%:yikes:

Finally picked up the 40D on Monday. All issues sorted.
Twin-Turbo is great.

Any update MVDS on your 40D?

One word: LEMON

Sorry to hear dude.

Forget the sales guys, the delivery manager, the general manager, the service advisor etc., and speak directly to the dealer-principal (if you haven't done so already).

I contacted consumer affairs about my issues, and they said I needed to allow the dealer to 'rectify' the issues to my satisfaction. Failing that, I can take action directly with the manufacturer (BMW not the dealer). We're protected from these sort of dealer BS, especially with the ridiculous prices we pay down here.

**When you raise a complaint via consumer affairs they ring BMW(Australia) on your behalf. Suggest you get in contact with them.

This was my plan of attack if my issues weren't resolved.

Insist on an ex-demo 40D for a loaner vehicle and don't give it back until yours is resolved, as suggested by some members.

Good luck.

I hope the metallic whirring sound has been sorted on your 40D. I've had mine a year now with no issues, other than a bluetooth disconnect problem which BMW have fixed. My fan too overruns with plenty of heat and sometime smell being expelled. I design feature of the engine I understand. The only gripe I have is the overstated fuel economy figures which BWM publish, which was one of the reasons I bought this car in preference to an Audi Q7. Not a concern if you are a US driver (still equivalent to 40p per litre there!), but we're somewhat sensitive to fuel prices here in the UK (GBP 1.38 per litre). My 40d averages 27 mpg on a combination of country roads and motorway each day.

Otherwise the car performs very well and is great to drive, with great torque and superb road holding and no understeer. Off for 2 weeks in the South of France next month, so will give it a good trial on motorways and mountain roads.

Searching for info on this today as my 35D has started the same metallic whirring sound. Only when it's moving, when I slow to a traffic light it stops, but resumes under power. I've also noticed a burning smell when I park in the garage after the 10 minute drive home from work. And it's not spirited driving either...I'm beginning to get a bit nervous...

sorry to hear. i, from sydney, with a 4.8i.
i had other issues and got department of fair trade involved, my issue resoved now. do the same

Diesel noise and smell
 

In the manual, there is reference to the diesel particulate filter routinely burning off soot particles at high temperature and, "during cleaning periods of several minutes, the engine may run less smoothly, ..., noises and a slight amount of smoke may emerge from the exhaust even for a short period after the engine is turned off." Just an FYI.

I don't know what your worried about, you have 3 years warranty, when it breaks they fix it and you get a lone car. Sometimes its hard to fix a problem if the workshop computer is telling the tech's everything is as per the spec.

If a turbo lets go the computer will shut the motor down.

I blew the small radiator infront of the air cooled intercooler on the lefthand side under the fog light, BMW picked up the X5 with there truck, gave me lone car which was on the back of the truck when it arrived and by lunchtime the next day had my own X5 back.

When your X5 breaks down every second week and or its in the workshop for 3-4 weeks then I would complain. When the noise becomes very noticable and the BMW tech work out what it is they will replace it.

Remember the workshops and spares parts dept makes more money for the dealership than the Sales dept does? when there is someting to fix they will do it.

PS. Take it to another dealership.

Just an update on this. Transmission packed it in one week prior to the 3 year warranty. To BMW's credit they basically replaced most of the drivetrain. They gave me a loan car for the 6 weeks it took to get the parts shipped and extended my warranty by 12 months. Whilst I have had to suffer a lemon for 3 years, basically I have a new vehicle again. BMW Australia handled things very well and my loyalty to the brand has been enhanced.

I must say you're very lucky with BMW Australia 's response. I've suffered a suspension issue for 4 years since brand new and had to pull in department of fair trading to get it fixed. For the first four years i did not enjoy my car unfortunately. Issue was only rectified after 4 years, under warranty since mine was a well documented case since the car was new. I had written numerous emails to BMW NA, Aus head office and the dealers, this dragged on for years without much luck until fair trading got involved. Glad u got it fixed.
My first and last BMW.

Get the DPF and EGR checked (diesel particulate filter, Exhaust Gas Recirculation) If any of the 2 have faults it will cause issues. Though I dont think thats your main concern. I was going to say you may be experiencing a High Pop, maybe a bad injector but if its new I doubt that. You may actually have a serious piston slap due to either improper break-in, bad fuel, debris could have gotten in the cylinder etc etc. A diesel engine (especially with the new emissions) will run hotter then Gasoline, its because its a direct injection engine based solely on compression. There are no spark plugs or anything to ignite it, now if something goes awry with break-in or you get bad fuel, your EGR and DPF are malfunctioning or not operating at their peak you can develop bad piston slap and possibly crack the cylinder and blow the engine. Remember unlike gasoline engine diesels need to be idled for a bit and before doing any kind of hard runs the peak operating temp MUST be reached otherwise you will not get complete combustion and the fuel (diesel is much thicker then gas mind you) can stick and can hinder the compression of the piston, also if you increase pressure drastically before the engine has reached its peak or the turbos have fully spooled the piston can heat up too quick and expand causing that piston slap. Ive been in the diesel industry for 12 years and with these new Ultra low sulfur diesel, lowered cetane quantities, and of course these emissions equipment I have seen the reliability of these vehicles go down and have seen all sorts of damage, usually from people new to diesels.

Man, thats a long list of purely speculations.

Kinda hard to just say what it is eactly without seeing it. If you want PM me and i can price out cetane boost and injector cleaner with shipping. It will lubricate the cylinder and even if it doesnt cure the issue, there will still be noticeable increases in performance. Also with diesels its highly recommended to run injector clean regularly otherwise youll have to replace the jets (injectors). The nozzles (again injectors) on diesels are more prone to fouling and if not cleaned can cause damage, not to mention performance loss and rough ride. Also if you dont run injector cleaner youll have to replace the filter more often or risk a clogged nozzle. The cetane booster will help in creating a more complete combustion (cetane also known as hexadecane is like octane C8 H18, but for diesel C16 H34 the higher mol amounts of carbon and hydrogen are the reason diesel produces more power ). Boosting the cetane will yield more energy and create a more complete combustion which also lowers emissions. Again this may help your issue it may not, i cant say for sure as there are many factors that have to be accounted for. I will say this, if you want to retain longetivity and power, use our injector cleaner in conjunction with our cetane booster.

Doublespeak and salesmanship.:bustingup

sales·man·ship

noun \-ˌship\ : the skill of persuading people to buy things or to accept or agree to something





Full Definition of SALESMANSHIP

1
: the skill or art of selling

2
: ability or effectiveness in selling or in presenting persuasively <political salesmanship>

No, that was not salesmanship, that was bullshit.

Im sorry, are those products bad? Please enlighten me and prove every aspect of engineering and chemistry wrong.

Thats strange. Ive owned 4 X5s, 3 of them being diesels and the 40d(still own the 40d and 3.0sd) and have had no issues whatsoever. When I initially bought the 40d (new) I noticed that the blow-off valve is lauder than on the sd, but this is it really. Sorry to hear about this, the BMW dealer should be doing more than they are atm.