[TonM3]

I don't know that I have ever had a car more that 1 or 2 MPH different. I wouldn't care that much except I assume I am depreciating the car faster than I should (since the odometer would overstate distance traveled) and fooling myself on milage.
Is this normal?
Would a dealer fix it?

[turbobeagle]

Originally Posted by TonM3

I don't know that I have ever had a car more that 1 or 2 MPH different. I wouldn't care that much except I assume I am depreciating the car faster than I should (since the odometer would overstate distance traveled) and fooling myself on milage.
Is this normal?
Would a dealer fix it?

I believe the odometer remains accurate. It’s just the speedometer that is configured to read a bit high. It may be codable.

[alex2364]

Speedometer is separate from odometer. Normal for BMWs to higher reading speedometer and accurate odometer.

[MADBMWX5MC]

Originally Posted by TonM3

I don't know that I have ever had a car more that 1 or 2 MPH different. I wouldn't care that much except I assume I am depreciating the car faster than I should (since the odometer would overstate distance traveled) and fooling myself on milage.
Is this normal?
Would a dealer fix it?

Just want to ensure I understand your concern...your actual spedo is faster than the speed shown on the OEM Nav?

[Sportstick]

Do you have your original wheels and tires?

[newtoncd8]

Same situation in my 2022 X4 M40i with OEM wheel setup. When GPS says I am going 77mph, the BMW speedo is registering 80mph. I have always wondered about the odometer part too.

[Fredcohiba]

This subject has been broached before on this sire and yes, it is common for ~ +3 mph more than actual.

[TonM3]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

Do you have your original wheels and tires?

Original wheels, DWS 06 but same exact size.

[Spacecoast]

Originally Posted by Fredcohiba

This subject has been broached before on this sire and yes, it is common for ~ +3 mph more than actual.

BMW has been doing this for years. My '86 E30 read a few % high and my '03 E46 read a few % high.

[DaveyGJ]

Motorcycles always read 10% high. Seems cars do it too.

Protects them from being sued if you get a speeding ticket.

[MADBMWX5MC]

Originally Posted by newtoncd8

Same situation in my 2022 X4 M40i with OEM wheel setup. When GPS says I am going 77mph, the BMW speedo is registering 80mph. I have always wondered about the odometer part too.

Team, could this be because the speedo is actually an actual reading of your car's speed and the GPS may experience some latency due to satelite/tower connection?

[spangle1980]

%age

There is another thread on this topic some months back. I weighed in at the time strongly believing the same with BMW that is like 10% or so out, thus 30mph=33mph. This was good since I confirmed it with a GPS, indeed 30=33. So I was convinced.

Then I got told I was wrong, I was like WTF. In fact I assumed, based on that 30mph data point, my 10% was true. Any scientists out there would flame anyone using ONE datapoint to validate a theory. So the dude(s) were like it's +3 across the board. Thus I was happily cruising on motorways at 80mph thinking that's only 2mph over the 70 limit. In fact (if I recall correctly) 70mph(GPS)=73mph(speedo) or thereabouts.

So endeth my ramblings :->. It appears to be a fixed value uplift across the board.

[X3rd Time Is a Charm]

I’ve noticed at the higher speeds it’s pretty much 3 MPH faster consistently . Mine seems to vary at lower speeds, like between 1-2 MPH Off . But no doubt it’s definitely off . Not quite sure why ??

[TonM3]

Originally Posted by X3rd Time Is a Charm

I’ve noticed at the higher speeds it’s pretty much 3 MPH faster consistently . Mine seems to vary at lower speeds, like between 1-2 MPH Off . But no doubt it’s definitely off . Not quite sure why ??

That actually would be a more satisfying answer. If they add 3mph as a fixed amount above a certain speed, then it is likely planned as opposed to a percentage off. The former would be something they could differentiate though an algorithm easily between the odometer and the spedo than a percentage that would be more likely due to calibration.

I will test this out on my commute home.

[TonM3]

Originally Posted by DaveyGJ

Motorcycles always read 10% high. Seems cars do it too.

Protects them from being sued if you get a speeding ticket.

My wife's car is never more than 1 mph off. This must be a German thing

[Radar314]

Has anyone actually performed a test to determine if the odometer is calibrated correctly? I would like to see if the speedometer, which displays higher than actual speed, is indeed separate from the odometer that records distance. My 2019 x3 M40i speedometer reads 2 to 3 mph faster than both a waze readout and a handheld gps at a speed of 40 mph.

[turbobeagle]

This is my 4th BMW and a high speedo has been present in all. It’s a widely known thing I believe. There are regulations which dictate that a speedo must never read low, and BMW is extra cautious compared to other brands.

[TonM3]

Originally Posted by Radar314

Has anyone actually performed a test to determine if the odometer is calibrated correctly? I would like to see if the speedometer, which displays higher than actual speed, is indeed separate from the odometer that records distance. My 2019 x3 M40i speedometer reads 2 to 3 mph faster than both a waze readout and a handheld gps at a speed of 40 mph.

I will test that out as well. My commute home is about 20 miles. I will take the exact route from the GPS and not vary for traffic and see if the trip meter matches the distance when I arrive.

[vrships]

I am surprised that this is not a well known fact: car manufacturers intentionally made the speedometer faster than actual by ~5% all over the world, due to laws and regulations and liability nonsense.

Does the car know accurately how much it's traveling internally from the DME? Of course, this is so easy to do because the car read the rotational speed so precisely for almost every rotational component and does calculations thousands of times per second. Even if you change the tire size , those can be adapted immediately like nothing. It only overestimate the result for you to see.

If you have Bimmercode or any ENET scanner , you will see the DME has a more accurate reading which is slower than the speedometer but almost identical to any GPS device when compared ;and there is something like a speedeter correction that can be toggled in Bimmercode

[Det013]

No Speedos are accurate as they still rely on wheel rotation to calculate speed. There will even be a difference between new tyres and older worn tyres. Every car I have owned ( and I've had plenty) will show a higher speed than actual speed. Can you imagine if for whatever reason it shows a little less and you got a ticket for speeding! "Sue BMW, shouldn't happen on a $100,000 car!" Yet if it reads a bit under, no risk of speeding fines!
Every car make will read under. Look at it this way, a 30cm (12inch) ruler will be different in length just by ambient temperature change. So a cold tyre compared to a hot tyre will have a different rotational distance.

[TonM3]

It was about 0.5 miles off odometer vs GPS, explainable by tire wear.
For those going all Tesla... BMW can do no wrong, and if they did it's for your own good. I have another car that is within 1 mph. 3 mph at 30 is ridiculous.

[kmickey]

Originally Posted by TonM3

I don't know that I have ever had a car more that 1 or 2 MPH different. I wouldn't care that much except I assume I am depreciating the car faster than I should (since the odometer would overstate distance traveled) and fooling myself on milage.
Is this normal?
Would a dealer fix it?

Same on my 2000 Z3. It’s a BMW thing for at least a quarter century.