So I bit the bullet and paid the $4k for the dealer to fix it. One early surprise is that the range appears to have gotten a significant bump, though I don’t expect it to last. When I checked the Kapa Max a year ago, it was 14.2; today it is 17.7. Go figure.
Thank you so much Art for this very helpful reply. I’m in Atlanta GA, and it is a 2014 BEV. I have not found a local repair shop that works on EVs so I think I may have to bite the bullet and have the dealer replace that SME and Safety Box. After that I’ll either just drive it till it drops or...
Also posted in general discussion because I wasn’t sure which category is best….
BMW dealer says I need a new SME and safety box, which will cost $3900 out the door. I’m assuming there are no other options. Already spent $1k in Oct when the SME went out briefly but it started working again...
BMW dealer says I need a new SME and safety box, which will cost $3900 out the door. Already spent $1k in Oct when the SME went out briefly but it started working again after they replaced the 12v battery and reprogrammed it. Stopped for good last week. The car only has 33k miles, has new tires...
I remember that episode!
It reminds me more of sweating off weight for high school wrestling, wearing a rubber sweatsuit and jumping rope in a steaming shower room.
Hopefully this Atlanta heat will knock my i3 down into a lighter weight class where they give out free high-voltage batteries.
Art, you are a wealth of knowledge and helpfulness. Thank you. I might try to determine that software update version, if I can scrounge up an old flash drive somewhere.
They did not mention anything about a software update, but I noticed that some of my settings were returned to factory default, and the 12 V battery icon is different on my main drive screen. The Kapa Max reading also went up, to 15.4, and my GOM says I’ve now got over 60 miles of range — though...
Thanks everyone for these super helpful replies. It doesn’t sound like there is much I can do other than hope that the hot Georgia weather will take a few more percentage points out of those batteries this summer. I will keep monitoring the Kapa max for now. The dealer test only cost me $200, so...
BMW just tested my 2014 BEV at 72% with 3 months left on the warranty, so I created another post here to get ideas on how to diminish the capacity enough for a replacement: https://www.mybmwi3.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=17723
I was inspired by this thread (https://www.mybmwi3.com/forum/posting.php?mode=reply&t=17400&sid=2c6c29ded0240deaf60cfda493e555e9) about a successful battery replacement, so I just took my 2014 BEV to a BMW dealer. The Kapa max reading when I bought it used in 2017 was 19. I did not recheck it...
Anyone know how to remove these without breaking the clips underneath? I can’t find photos or videos online, or on this forum. Any suggested sites to search would be helpful too. Thank you.