Bad XM radio reception

My i3 has poor XM radio reception that it got cut off all the time, where my other cars don't have the problem except when I'm under the bridges or surrendered by tall buildings.
I took it for service but they didn't find anything wrong with the antenna, and told me that's just how it is.
Anyone has similar issue? Or is it like that BMW told me, it's reception just sucks?

don't have much reception issues, but it's a garbled mess for me. The SiriusXM audio quality is the worst i've even heard.

Yes I too have reception issues, trees, building and small overpasses. Can't stand the quality of the sound as compared to Bluetooth/IPHONE playlist or FM.

I guess I'm not the only one....it sucks but that's a little comforting....
Yeah, XM radio quality isn't exactly top notch so I usually listen to the news. Now with I3's signal reception:
"President Obama just announced (static noise...............)"
"Next, a shocking news to all (static noise............)"
"Coming up, the traffic alert for those on (static noise........)"

:shock: :shock:

I did not renew my subscription, partly because of the quality and the fact I can get a quite good variety of FM stations where I drive the car. While I had it during the first year, mine seemed clear when I had reception, but with the tree-lined roads, often had dropouts that I do not experience with the FM radio. Didn't run into tall buildings being a problem very often, as I live in a small city where they are not very common or really all that many stories. I think a slightly bigger buffer would avoid many of the dropouts at the detriment to the transmission delay, which, in reality, isn't a big issue to me.

My XM reception is also terrible. Driving the same roads that never had a problem I. My Leaf give me just snippets of songs in my i3.

Is there any recourse? Seems that we were sold a design that doesn't work.

I use Sirius in several other electric cars (Focus electric, Volt, and RAV-4 EV) and it works quite well. When you go through a tunnel or stop under an overpass, it stops of course. But in normal use it's very reliable.

But the AM radio works in all those other cars as well. Maybe something about the BMW design that causes both problems?

Carbon fiber verses a steel chassis probably has a lot to do with it. It's harder to get a good ground plane for radios and to shield things from extraneous RF. To do so would mean adding weight, which goes against the end goal or maximizing range.

My reception is not as good as it has been on all the previous BMWs I've owned. This receiver seems more sensitive to tree cover or other interference. For the most part I have very good reception. It's just the occasional dropout I wasn't accustomed to.

Now, here's the interesting part. I just had my car in for service and the did they updated it with the latest s/w. To my surprise, the reception is better! I know this for certain as every time I enter my work or home garage I know at what point I lose reception. Now I can actually park my car and still get reception!

I called the service manager about this. His feeling is that it's probably related to Sirius adding ground stations. I think it's too coincidental. I think something changed in the car, not with Sirius service.

Try getting the latest update and see if it makes a difference. Note: most s/w updates are not required, so even if you go for your required services (brakes, etc.) you will not get any update unless you ask for it.

nismowu said:

My i3 has poor XM radio reception that it got cut off all the time, where my other cars don't have the problem except when I'm under the bridges or surrendered by tall buildings.
I took it for service but they didn't find anything wrong with the antenna, and told me that's just how it is.
Anyone has similar issue? Or is it like that BMW told me, it's reception just sucks?

Click to expand...

For what it's worth, I have had no problems whatsoever with Sirius reception in my 2014 i3 BEV. And I live/drive in the San Francisco Bay area, with lots of big hills and other things that one might expect to cause problems. However, though I have no problems with my Sirius reception, I do have frequent issues with the car's FM HD reception, with the signal dropping out way too often. As with all things technology related, YMMV.

Some places have more ground repeater stations than others, which can help the reception on Sirius over direct from the satellite.