Drive Train Warning

[Andynev1982]

Probably discussed before but I got the dreaded drive train warning message this morning (car goes into limp mode).

Tried turning on and off a few times but wouldn't go away.

Fuel tank was nearly empty and suspected that might have had something to do with it - filled her up with petrol and thankfully all lights / messages disappeared. Very annoying that really low fuel can trigger a message that is used to indicate everything from 'faulty sensor' to 'engine has disintegrated' levels of severity

Thought I'd share as you could easily end up in the BMW Service Centre with this and if nothing is actually wrong with the car then (in the UK at least) you have to pay for the diagnostic work. Diagnostic is not covered by warranty in the UK unless the work identifies that a part covered by the warranty is at fault.

[M6-Coupe]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_pump

[rocky]

i had the same happen to me yesterday. i have a 2015 m5 with 4k miles on it.... i try cold start and the engine sounds terrible....the idle waivers between 3k and 7k.... i turn it off....start it up again....same thing. i turn it off and try again....now i see the warning message saying Drivetrain malfunction. But i was able to drive it 7 miles to the dealership in Irvine. They scoped it and after four hours they found that there was a sensor problem and had to reinstall the latest software..... after that ....no problem. In the meantime they gave me a loaner for the day ...... 528i. Made me appreciate the M5 so much more.

[M6-Coupe]

Originally Posted by rocky

In the meantime they gave me a loaner for the day ...... 528i. Made me appreciate the M5 so much more.

Oh this is completely true!
Last month I had two loaners X4 and X5 back to back (I returned X4 and complained so they gave me X5), but as soon as I got my car back I felt I would be alive again

[bmellion]

Originally Posted by Andynev1982

Probably discussed before but I got the dreaded drive train warning message this morning (car goes into limp mode).

Tried turning on and off a few times but wouldn't go away.

Fuel tank was nearly empty and suspected that might have had something to do with it - filled her up with petrol and thankfully all lights / messages disappeared. Very annoying that really low fuel can trigger a message that is used to indicate everything from 'faulty sensor' to 'engine has disintegrated' levels of severity

Thought I'd share as you could easily end up in the BMW Service Centre with this and if nothing is actually wrong with the car then (in the UK at least) you have to pay for the diagnostic work. Diagnostic is not covered by warranty in the UK unless the work identifies that a part covered by the warranty is at fault.

Happens all the time if you let the tank go below 1/4 tank. Just keep it higher and you should be ok

[bimmer-boy]

So your telling me every time you let the fuel run lower than 1/4 of the reserve, you will always get a drivetrain malfunction error come up, or more than likely come up?

And each time you have to get a software update and the sensor replaced? Surely not..

[bmellion]

Originally Posted by bimmer-boy

So your telling me every time you let the fuel run lower than 1/4 of the reserve, you will always get a drivetrain malfunction error come up, or more than likely come up?

And each time you have to get a software update and the sensor replaced? Surely not..

More likely come up...

[rocky]

respectfully...i disagree.. ive had my m5 since december and i take the gas below a quarter tank all the time and i never throw a code for drivetrain malfunction..... when the warning did show up last week i had a half a tank of gas and it took a software upgrade to fix it.

[wrsbmw]

There is a low pressure fuel sensor and that sometimes is an issue with a low tank. There is also a pump in the tank. Mine failed and the car completely stalled and wouldn't even try to restart. Had to be towed in and they replaced the LPFS first which allowed them to start it once and move it to the garage but that didn't work so they had to replace the tank fuel pump. About two months later I had a HPFP fail. The fuel system is very delicate in these cars. It's a big part of the horsepower they develop with such a small V8.

A lot of people had issues with drivetrain mal errors after letting the fuel get below the warning level or run out completely when the cars were first out. They may have addressed this issue in the 2014 and later models.

[MCarsFan]

Originally Posted by wrsbmw

There is a low pressure fuel sensor and that sometimes is an issue with a low tank. There is also a pump in the tank. Mine failed and the car completely stalled and wouldn't even try to restart. Had to be towed in and they replaced the LPFS first which allowed them to start it once and move it to the garage but that didn't work so they had to replace the tank fuel pump. About two months later I had a HPFP fail. The fuel system is very delicate in these cars. It's a big part of the horsepower they develop with such a small V8.

A lot of people had issues with drivetrain mal errors after letting the fuel get below the warning level or run out completely when the cars were first out. They may have addressed this issue in the 2014 and later models.

I'll have to watch for this..

[M6-Coupe]

Originally Posted by wrsbmw

There is a low pressure fuel sensor and that sometimes is an issue with a low tank. There is also a pump in the tank. Mine failed and the car completely stalled and wouldn't even try to restart. Had to be towed in and they replaced the LPFS first which allowed them to start it once and move it to the garage but that didn't work so they had to replace the tank fuel pump. About two months later I had a HPFP fail. The fuel system is very delicate in these cars. It's a big part of the horsepower they develop with such a small V8.

A lot of people had issues with drivetrain mal errors after letting the fuel get below the warning level or run out completely when the cars were first out. They may have addressed this issue in the 2014 and later models.

Correct.
I always pay extra attention to the level of Fuel left in tank and the type of Fuel. I fill up the tank with 91 (max we have in CA) on Chevron or Mobile gas station which is the high quality gas.