REX maintenance failure
- Thread starter davesw1
- Start date
Help Support BMW i3 Forum:
SSi3
Well-known member
I haven't had that one (yet)... let us know what it turns out to be.
The REx must be causing people at BMW HQ to pull out their hair... it's non stop problems.
The REx must be causing people at BMW HQ to pull out their hair... it's non stop problems.
RExingIT
Well-known member
What's your battery charge level? The maintenance cycle can only run if it's below 75%
SSi3 said:
NON stop problems? You believe this because a couple dozen people in the forums post issues?
Other then getting the Check Engine light for a week until the car could do its routine maintenance nothing like that here. I guess I am one of the few lucky ones that missed out on all the "NON-STOP" Rex problems.
John
SSi3
Well-known member
itnetpro said:
yes sorry... NON (fat fingered typing)
well you are one of the lucky ones... are you on the i3 facebook page? Its a regular occurrence for people to be posting the various CELs and drivetrain errors. I myself have had numerous CELs in only 5 months of ownership... the REx has quit on me several times while in use at highway speeds. Have had a camshaft position sensor replaced so far, but the same error is back and the car is going in next week (if it makes the 200km drive under its own power), likely will need a new cam this time. It's a terrible implementation, its not reliable, I don't trust it to run when I actually need it and I fully expect it to be completely replaced under warranty at some point in my ownership cycle.
I must be a lucky one. I have never had a problem with the REX. My car has performed without any problems. Flawless for over one year. 2014 i3 with 12000 miles.
Granted, on car may not be indicative of all others, but I do know that people with problems post complaints, and those that have no issues rarely post that there are no problems.
And, I do not use Facebook as my "touchstone" for determining the success or failure of a product. Not everyone is a Facebook addict.
Granted, on car may not be indicative of all others, but I do know that people with problems post complaints, and those that have no issues rarely post that there are no problems.
And, I do not use Facebook as my "touchstone" for determining the success or failure of a product. Not everyone is a Facebook addict.
When I turned it on it was just in the start of the 3rd block ( i'm assuming 25% per block) therefore should be ok, all the warnings flashed up and it said go to BMW service etc.RExingIT said:
I drove to work, called them, they downloaded the errors and said yes we need to have in the workshop, when the guy came with the tow truck i got in to take it out the car park and it said maintenance cycle will begin shortly and no more faults came up, but he said best take it anyway,
While we were manoeuvring on to the truck it didn't start its cycle, but if it wanted to cycle you'd think it was smart enough to wait until the battery was less than 75% and not just throw an error?
anyway its with them now, they say no fault found but software updated, they are doing more tests. The fact that when it came up it said take it immediately to BMW service would make you think there is something wrong
mindmachine
Well-known member
MGS9500 said:
I second you comment, I to have had an exceptional car then, only had the gas tank pressure sensor replaced. Had the check engine light for that only and nothing else. Just now entering 14 month of ownership.
jadnashuanh
Well-known member
Considering that about 1/2 or more of the i3's sold in the USA are the REx variant, and the number of them sold over the last 15+ months, the number of people complaining about the REx is pretty small for a brand-new, first year vehicle. Keep in mind, forums like this tend to get people that have problems, and people without them, tend to not participate. There are a few known issues, and some have been resolved, and others are still in the evaluation stage.
Some have complained that corporate wants to be involved with any repairs on the i3, but I look at it as that is much more reliable to spot trends than maybe getting a monthly or quarterly report from the dealers. Some information is lost in the time interval involved. So, I see this as being more customer proactive than less. Plus, corporate will have much more volume than any individual dealer, and can likely guide the dealership to the best solution, rather than his guess based on limited experience.
Some have complained that corporate wants to be involved with any repairs on the i3, but I look at it as that is much more reliable to spot trends than maybe getting a monthly or quarterly report from the dealers. Some information is lost in the time interval involved. So, I see this as being more customer proactive than less. Plus, corporate will have much more volume than any individual dealer, and can likely guide the dealership to the best solution, rather than his guess based on limited experience.
WoodlandHills
Well-known member
Gosh, it would be really nice to hear that BMW are using their warranty approval process for trend analysis! Is there any evidence that that is actually what is happening?
From reports posted here there are still delays in receiving repair parts with many either back ordered or shipped direct from Germany. One might think that after over a year in production worldwide, an analysis of repair trends and data would have resulted in shorter part supply times, not longer. Just what are they doing with the data, if they are even collecting it? BMW certainly does not appear to be making any use of such data in such an urgent manner as to justify adding another administrative hurdle to even basic warranty repairs. Surely weekly or even daily reports would serve the same purpose and not add to the delays already built into the warranty service system?
Taking an example recently posted here, why does a steering wheel have to come directly from Germany: after a year on the market BMW still does not have a full set of i3 parts in NA? Or is a replacement wheel such a hot item that BMW cannot keep them in stock due to high demand? Either way what possible justification can there be for not stocking such a part at least on the same continent BMW are selling their products? Especially if BMW are analyzing warranty claims with an eye to improving the customer experience by keeping parts on the shelves for rapid delivery....... (Like a premium car company might) In the case of the steering wheel, BMWNA might sell a half dozen a year, how hard can it be to keep them in stock? They are already building at least 20,000 a year and can't manage to keep a couple extra in North America?
From reports posted here there are still delays in receiving repair parts with many either back ordered or shipped direct from Germany. One might think that after over a year in production worldwide, an analysis of repair trends and data would have resulted in shorter part supply times, not longer. Just what are they doing with the data, if they are even collecting it? BMW certainly does not appear to be making any use of such data in such an urgent manner as to justify adding another administrative hurdle to even basic warranty repairs. Surely weekly or even daily reports would serve the same purpose and not add to the delays already built into the warranty service system?
Taking an example recently posted here, why does a steering wheel have to come directly from Germany: after a year on the market BMW still does not have a full set of i3 parts in NA? Or is a replacement wheel such a hot item that BMW cannot keep them in stock due to high demand? Either way what possible justification can there be for not stocking such a part at least on the same continent BMW are selling their products? Especially if BMW are analyzing warranty claims with an eye to improving the customer experience by keeping parts on the shelves for rapid delivery....... (Like a premium car company might) In the case of the steering wheel, BMWNA might sell a half dozen a year, how hard can it be to keep them in stock? They are already building at least 20,000 a year and can't manage to keep a couple extra in North America?
jadnashuanh
Well-known member
It's an 8-hour flight or so from Germany to the east coast of the USA. IOW, a part could show up the next day, about the same timeline as if it were stocked in the USA. ANd, it could make it anywhere in the world in less than a day. It's not necessarily cheaper or better to stock parts locally for something that has not shown to be needed frequently.
WoodlandHills
Well-known member
IIRC there has only been one poster here who has spoken of his dealer flying parts in to fix his car, much more common is the one to two week wait. So yes, it is possible to use air freight to deliver parts worldwide in a timely manner, but there has been no evidence on this forum that BMW does this. And if that is indeed BMWs system what about the impact upon the environment of making such a delivery method standard procedure?
It is funny how a car that is touted as being "green" and "sustainable" could rely upon a system that spews tons of hydrocarbons into the upper atmosphere delivering on-time parts by air freight as opposed to ship or rail delivery to regional distribution centers. Sort of negates that fancy new green factory doesn't it? One small fender bender and the CO2 and hydrocarbon debt created by all that air freight will cancel out any environmental benefit of driving an EV.
It is funny how a car that is touted as being "green" and "sustainable" could rely upon a system that spews tons of hydrocarbons into the upper atmosphere delivering on-time parts by air freight as opposed to ship or rail delivery to regional distribution centers. Sort of negates that fancy new green factory doesn't it? One small fender bender and the CO2 and hydrocarbon debt created by all that air freight will cancel out any environmental benefit of driving an EV.
well I got mine back and as far as i can tell they basically said there is nothing wrong with it, they had the Rex running on maintenance cycle there and it may have been a 1 off, the warning was pretty clear that there had been a failure and send it back to BMW but they think its all ok, what is the gap between maintenance cycles again? 2 months? probably never should have bought a rex living in central london an having a thousand charge points to choose from but first EV and piece of mind etc.
As fallout from my windscreen replacement, I had to have a front pillar body panel renewed. The BMW i dealer missed out a clamp that attaches it to the CFRP frame. As a result, the panel was attached, but slightly looser than normal. When the panel arrived after about 5 days, the dealer realised that it came unpainted, which meant it had to go to the paintshop first, before the 30min repair could be made. They also had to inquire about the paint mix settings (Capparis White).
I think a lot of dealers are still finding their way with products, repairs and stocks - that can also be a contributing factor. To right out accuse BMW of not knowing what they're doing in terms of stock levels is a bit crass, but it appears to be the tone a minority of people on this forum would like to set.
I think a lot of dealers are still finding their way with products, repairs and stocks - that can also be a contributing factor. To right out accuse BMW of not knowing what they're doing in terms of stock levels is a bit crass, but it appears to be the tone a minority of people on this forum would like to set.
You don't need to take it to the dealer when you get the error.
Basically, if you don't use the Rex the car is designed to run a maintenance cycle on the Rex engine so that it does not rot. This only happens on extended non-use of the Rex.
I just got notified last Friday with the same error. The car was fiscally telling me that I did not have enough gas and the battery needed to be taken down under 75% so that I could run a 5-9 minute cycle with the Rex.
During the cycle, the engine will run and charge the battery for 5-9 minutes. So if you see the error all you have to do is make sure the full tank if full and just drive it like normal and the car will run the cycle.
When you think about it, If you mostly drive on battery pack, the engine just sits there rotting away. By having the engine run just 5 minutes every couple of months it keeps it lubricated so it can last longer.
Now, I am a little worried that the dealer asked you to bring it in. It's a feature of the car and it just shows how little training BMW is providing dealers on how to service the i3.
Basically, if you don't use the Rex the car is designed to run a maintenance cycle on the Rex engine so that it does not rot. This only happens on extended non-use of the Rex.
I just got notified last Friday with the same error. The car was fiscally telling me that I did not have enough gas and the battery needed to be taken down under 75% so that I could run a 5-9 minute cycle with the Rex.
During the cycle, the engine will run and charge the battery for 5-9 minutes. So if you see the error all you have to do is make sure the full tank if full and just drive it like normal and the car will run the cycle.
When you think about it, If you mostly drive on battery pack, the engine just sits there rotting away. By having the engine run just 5 minutes every couple of months it keeps it lubricated so it can last longer.
Now, I am a little worried that the dealer asked you to bring it in. It's a feature of the car and it just shows how little training BMW is providing dealers on how to service the i3.
