BMW 330i Battery Warning Light? ZHP dead.

lupinsea · 03-07-2008, 01:45 AM

Ok, a week and a half ago (before we got the Volvo) my wife mention that the battery light would come on periodically, then go out after a few minute during her drives. When we checked the owner's manual it said it to pull over, stop driving and call the dealer as it could be:

Alternator
Battery
Drive Belt

Well, as it was somewhat intermittent and seeing as how I was in the middle of a remodel I just parked the BMW and figured I'd keep driving the Jeep and get to the BMW later.

Tonight was sort of later. The transmission went out on the Jeep (see other thread) so that was towed off to the shop. After my wife dropped me off at home just now I figured "maybe I can use the BMW to zip down to the store and pick up dinner real quick. I'll call the dealership in the morning to see about the CPO warranty."

BMW is dead now too.

Not sure what happened, maybe the warning light was the battery itself. But the lights won't turn on (head lights, cabin lights, trunk lights) and when I checked the front jumper cable points with the multi-meter I got a reading of 4.46v off the battery.

So, is it indeed a worn out battery? Or is the battery so low because of either a slipping belt not propperly charging the alternator or is the alternator probably bad?

The belt definitely needs to be changed. I looked at it and it's really cracked on the ribbing all over the place.

IIRC from the service record when I was looking at purchasing the ZHP I think the battery was replaced underwarranty in the first 6 months. . . but that would have been nearly 4-5 years and 78,000 miles ago by now.

Thoughts? Other than "yup, the car's dead?"

Terri Kennedy · 03-07-2008, 02:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lupinsea

Thoughts? Other than "yup, the car's dead?"

You could try putting a charger on the battery, but at 4.something volts I'd say it was dead for good. Get a new battery (better to get one from Interstate - see my post here as the ones from US BMW dealers are so-so). Also check the belt, etc. and keep an eye on the charge in case there is something else wrong that killed the battery. But BMW batteries are really only good for 3-4 years.

Rob · 03-07-2008, 02:33 AM

You could always push start and see what kind of power the alternator is providing. Then you could avoid the dealer all together.

FC · 03-07-2008, 07:46 AM

By all accounts my battery (@ 5 year sand 51K miles and real seasons) should be dead by now. But I drained it the other day by leaving the key in the ignition and after jump-starting it and driving 5 minutes is as good as new still. I've never had the light come on though.

Nick M3 · 03-07-2008, 08:52 AM

It's the alternator. The E46 has more than enough power off the alternator to run the car with a dead battery, so if the battery light comes on, your alternator is on the way out.

FC · 03-07-2008, 09:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick M3

It's the alternator. The E46 has more than enough power off the alternator to run the car with a dead battery, so if the battery light comes on, your alternator is on the way out.

That was my gut feel. Anytime a battery light has come on during a normal drive, the alternator was shot.

On my 190E 2.6, the light come on and off and when I hit a stop sign the car stalled. The battery had enough juice the start the car but after a couple more unavoidable stops, the battery was out of juice and the alternator dead. This happened the day after a drive back from Montreal.

lupinsea · 03-07-2008, 12:34 PM

Hm . . . ok.

So at this point with the battery drained this low it sound like that's damaged too, in addition to the alternator being the original problem.

I called BMW Roadside Assistance this morning and I'm getting a free tow down to the dealership as part of the CPO coverage. The SA said they'll hook the car up to their machine to help figure out what's going on. If (sounds like probably) the battery also needs replacement I don't like the idea of paying nearly 2x as much as a perfectly good aftermarket replacement battery, but if its the alternator then that's covered under the CPO. So, it may be worth less hassle just to take advantage of the free tow and have the car hauled down to the dealership for diagnostic stuff to pinpoint the problem.

I can easily see myself wasting a lot of time running around trying to find someone to jump the car, etc. etc. only to have to have it towed down to the dealership anyways if it turns out it really is the alternator (and Nick's reasoning makes sense).

As it is, my Jeep is in the shop, my wife is at work, and so are all my neighbors. Nobody around to call to help me jump start the car to check the alternator anyways. And if roadside assistance comes out to jumpstart the car I might need them to tow me in anyways.

Hmph.

Anyhoo, Roadside Assistance should be here w/in 60 min.

Nick M3 · 03-07-2008, 12:41 PM

I've blown three alternators in 3'ers. Single least reliable part aside from SMG for me.

FC · 03-07-2008, 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick M3

I've blown three alternators in 3'ers. Single least reliable part aside from SMG for me.

Wow. The 190E alternator was good for 150K and ~12 years.

Nick M3 · 03-07-2008, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FC

Wow. The 190E alternator was good for 150K and ~12 years.

I think RPM life depends on typical RPMs. I think that BMW had to compromise on the E46 M3 because of the rev range.

03-07-2008, 01:45 AM	#1
lupinsea Jeeped Join Date: Sep 2005 Carmudgeonly Ride: Modified Jeep Tj and '07 Miata Location: Seattle Posts: 10,214	BMW 330i Battery Warning Light? ZHP dead. Ok, a week and a half ago (before we got the Volvo) my wife mention that the battery light would come on periodically, then go out after a few minute during her drives. When we checked the owner's manual it said it to pull over, stop driving and call the dealer as it could be: Alternator Battery Drive Belt Well, as it was somewhat intermittent and seeing as how I was in the middle of a remodel I just parked the BMW and figured I'd keep driving the Jeep and get to the BMW later. Tonight was sort of later. The transmission went out on the Jeep (see other thread) so that was towed off to the shop. After my wife dropped me off at home just now I figured "maybe I can use the BMW to zip down to the store and pick up dinner real quick. I'll call the dealership in the morning to see about the CPO warranty." BMW is dead now too. Not sure what happened, maybe the warning light was the battery itself. But the lights won't turn on (head lights, cabin lights, trunk lights) and when I checked the front jumper cable points with the multi-meter I got a reading of 4.46v off the battery. So, is it indeed a worn out battery? Or is the battery so low because of either a slipping belt not propperly charging the alternator or is the alternator probably bad? The belt definitely needs to be changed. I looked at it and it's really cracked on the ribbing all over the place. IIRC from the service record when I was looking at purchasing the ZHP I think the battery was replaced underwarranty in the first 6 months. . . but that would have been nearly 4-5 years and 78,000 miles ago by now. Thoughts? Other than "yup, the car's dead?" __________________ . My website "Jeep is the only true American sports car" - Enzo Ferrari Or something to that effect.

03-07-2008, 08:52 AM	#5
Nick M3 Relic Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Bethesda, MD Posts: 12,458	It's the alternator. The E46 has more than enough power off the alternator to run the car with a dead battery, so if the battery light comes on, your alternator is on the way out. __________________ 2011 M3 2006 Sierra 2500HD 4WD LBZ/Allison 2004 X5 3.0i 6MT 1995 M3 S50B32 1990 325is 1989 M3 S54B32 Hers: 1989 325iX 1996 911 Turbo

03-07-2008, 12:34 PM	#7
lupinsea Jeeped Join Date: Sep 2005 Carmudgeonly Ride: Modified Jeep Tj and '07 Miata Location: Seattle Posts: 10,214	Hm . . . ok. So at this point with the battery drained this low it sound like that's damaged too, in addition to the alternator being the original problem. I called BMW Roadside Assistance this morning and I'm getting a free tow down to the dealership as part of the CPO coverage. The SA said they'll hook the car up to their machine to help figure out what's going on. If (sounds like probably) the battery also needs replacement I don't like the idea of paying nearly 2x as much as a perfectly good aftermarket replacement battery, but if its the alternator then that's covered under the CPO. So, it may be worth less hassle just to take advantage of the free tow and have the car hauled down to the dealership for diagnostic stuff to pinpoint the problem. I can easily see myself wasting a lot of time running around trying to find someone to jump the car, etc. etc. only to have to have it towed down to the dealership anyways if it turns out it really is the alternator (and Nick's reasoning makes sense). As it is, my Jeep is in the shop, my wife is at work, and so are all my neighbors. Nobody around to call to help me jump start the car to check the alternator anyways. And if roadside assistance comes out to jumpstart the car I might need them to tow me in anyways. Hmph. Anyhoo, Roadside Assistance should be here w/in 60 min. __________________ . My website "Jeep is the only true American sports car" - Enzo Ferrari Or something to that effect.

03-07-2008, 12:41 PM	#8
Nick M3 Relic Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Bethesda, MD Posts: 12,458	I've blown three alternators in 3'ers. Single least reliable part aside from SMG for me. __________________ 2011 M3 2006 Sierra 2500HD 4WD LBZ/Allison 2004 X5 3.0i 6MT 1995 M3 S50B32 1990 325is 1989 M3 S54B32 Hers: 1989 325iX 1996 911 Turbo

03-07-2008, 02:33 AM	#3
Rob The user formerly known as rwg Join Date: Oct 2003 Carmudgeonly Ride: Z4 Location: Vegas baby! Posts: 8,261	You could always push start and see what kind of power the alternator is providing. Then you could avoid the dealer all together.

03-07-2008, 07:46 AM	#4
FC Solving problems Join Date: Oct 2003 Carmudgeonly Ride: M5 / 718 GTS / Cooper S / GTI / LR4 Location: Metro Boston Posts: 25,263	By all accounts my battery (@ 5 year sand 51K miles and real seasons) should be dead by now. But I drained it the other day by leaving the key in the ignition and after jump-starting it and driving 5 minutes is as good as new still. I've never had the light come on though.