[Nathan]

I am such a dumbass. I left my parking lights on today by accident and came out after 6 hours and of course, my battery was dead.

However, i was pleasantly surprised to find out that the BMW Assist function actually works well. I hit the button, and Gregory came online instantly. He did warn me that the roadside service charge was covered up to $100 (i was surprised) but it didn't matter in this case because they found a dealer to do the jump down the road.

45 minutes later, a uniformed guy showed up, jumped my car for me, and get this - he also filled my washer fluid and checked my coolant! Now that is freakin excellent service!

[saury316]

Wow that is pretty good...hmm...if we take the BMW assist feature...the service is only covered the first year right or all four years?
If only first year, what is the service charge for subsquent years?

[zero619]

It's only for first year. My dealer quoted me at 240 per year afterwards.

[sergiodimarco]

Does the car come with automatic headlights, doesnt that meen they turn off automatically when the ignition is turned off?

[saury316]

Originally Posted by sergiodimarco

Does the car come with automatic headlights, doesnt that meen they turn off automatically when the ignition is turned off?

You have to set the switch to auto head lights...i guess he didnt though and had it set to parking lights.

[KUweatherman]

Shame on you, were you driving with your parking lights on...fog lights too I'm guessing?

Good note though, nice to see BMW Assist actually assisting you.

[Athos]

Maybe I'm missing something but I'm not sure I completely understand the Assist value proposition. I understand the value of automatic notification (to the service) when airbags are deployed, in case, for example, the driver runs into a tree and is disabled in the car or even unconscious. This could save your life and that probably justifies the cost alone.

But spending all this dough so you don't have to make a cell phone call to emergency road service doesn't make sense to me. I've got a AAA membership (about $40 a year) that gets me the same thing. They often show up in 15 to 20 minutes after the call. They don't check my washer fluid but I can swing that for $200 a year (not to mention the initial cost of the Assist as a standalone option or as part of the cost of the premium package). Is Assist a satellite connection and does it have complete geographic coverage with no dead spots (unlike a cell phone)? If that's true that would be another reason to get it.

[silverado]

Athos,

As you said, the first part may justify the cost alone. I think it uses a built-in cell phone, so there would be dead spots.

[Broken1]

Ok. Here is my question. You left your parking lights on...as in the four rings right? HOW does that run your battery flat in 6 hours? I often park my car on a street somewhere, and if it's dark, I turn my parking lights on (sometimes on both sides). Go to a dinner, or a party and 5 or 6 hours I emerge...
Will I not be able to do this in my E90 without calling BMW OnCall? ...I thought that was the whole point of parking lights...

[Armen52]

I was also surprised that the parking lights ran down the battery completely in only 6 hours.

[Nathan]

Guys, no idea why the battery went dead in 6 hours, but i'm guessing those angel eyes and the ambers drained her all the way down.

BMW Assist came with my premium package, so its not like i asked for it. It does use a Satellite Connection. BMW Assist then notified Roadside Assistance.

If you didn't have BMW Assist, you could just call the 800 number for Roadside Assistance directly, and they would come out and jump or tow you, which is covered for the first 4 years.

I probably will not renew after my 1 year is done, but they have some other plans available with Assist as well, check the website.

Fog lights were not on, just Parking lights. I think the infactuation with the Angel Eyes have worn off after this incident.

Auto Headlamps would auto turn off when you stopped the car, i had the parking lights on, like i mentioned before.

[KUweatherman]

Originally Posted by Nathan

Fog lights were not on, just Parking lights. I think the infactuation with the Angel Eyes have worn off after this incident.

My apologies then, lol. The whole thing is kinda weird it seems. However, BMW has been having this battery issue over the last couple years. If we would let X3s or even the 5 series sit at our dealership for more than two weeks without moving them, the battery would be dead. This was without any lights on too. All the computer stuff is a serious drain on the car.

Do you happen to have iDrive too?

edit: Duh, let me answer my own question. Yes you do since you posted the picture. I think the iDrive is another reason for the battery drain.

[Kimo]

Originally Posted by KUweatherman

The whole thing is kinda weird it seems. However, BMW has been having this battery issue over the last couple years.

Not just the last couple years.
Try since the early '90s with the E31!!
I have a '92 850i (E31, 12 cyl., Black on black, 38K miles) sitting in the garage. The car uses not one, but TWO monster batteries -- one on each side of the trunk. The current draw, at REST, without anything running, on this beast is such that it will be dead in a week if not either driven or smart charged. This is a well known phenomenon in E31s, and we all use the little Deltran smart tenders if our cars are not daily drivers (www.batterytender.com).

Nathan -- maybe you need one of these Deltrans and a LONG extension cord for next time you park at night

Mike

[BMW 2006]

I've owned BMW's since the late 80's. All have had battery issues. My 325 &
525i BMW's if they were not driven at least every 3rd or 4th day... DEAD battery....I was able to take care of the problem by purchasing a "Battery Tender" great product. A little FYI.... try not to JUMP Start any BMW as it will
FRY the Computer... did this to my 1st BMW. If it should go dead in the Garage... just use a battery charger for a few hours to charge the battery... saves the Computer!

[KUweatherman]

What gets me then is if BMW has known of their battery woes since the early 90s, why havent they done anything to fix it? "Hey, I've got a great idea! Let's hook up a bunch of computers to our already weak batteries." Then you've got the Guiness guy over on the other side going, "Brilliant!"

edit: Now down to the 80s for said battery problem.

[Athos]

Originally Posted by Nathan

Guys, no idea why the battery went dead in 6 hours, but i'm guessing those angel eyes and the ambers drained her all the way down... I think the infactuation with the Angel Eyes have worn off after this incident...

Don't understand. Do parking lights work differently with the angel eyes than without them?

[LEDZEP]

BMW Assist is good. I had the unfortunate occasion to use mine when I was rear ended. They sent the cop there for me. My favorite part was when he asked "is anyone hurt", and I said "not yet".

I think I had Gregory too, by the way.

[silverado]

Originally Posted by Nathan

It does use a Satellite Connection. BMW Assist then notified Roadside Assistance.

What kind of satellte connection does it use? Are you saying that it has a satellite phone? I thought it uses GPS (which is satellite-based) to determine your location, but uses cellular service to transmit your location data and to talk to you.

[silverado]

This site has some details about BMW Assist. It does use cellular service, but its phone apparently has "5 times the power of your cell phone’s maximum 0.6 watt output", so it has a better chance at getting connections.

[KUweatherman]

This isnt about BMW Assist, but it's a funny story about OnStar.

Last year, I was at the Autoshow In Motion here in Kansas City. It's an autoshow where you actually get to drive the cars around a set course. Anyways, some guy was driving a GTO around the course when another person slowed down for no reason. The GTO driver had to slam on the brakes before he rearended this slow person. Apparently he got so close to the other car or did something else which set off the "Automatic Collision Notification" (as the BMW Assist website calls it). An OnStar person came online and asked if he (GTO Driver) was alright since they had received notification of an accident. He just told her he was alright and driving the car at a test event. She thanked him and hung up, lol.

I guess the point is, this stuff works but I dont think it's worth the extra money after the first year. Especially if you have a cell phone and the Roadside Assistance # handy.

[LEDZEP]

Originally Posted by KUweatherman

I guess the point is, this stuff works but I dont think it's worth the extra money after the first year. Especially if you have a cell phone and the Roadside Assistance # handy.

Everything is a matter of opinion of course. But the ability to track the vehicle if stolen is a nice plus. Also, that roadside assistance number and cell phone aren't going to help you much if you are not conscious. BMW Assist will summon emergency help to you if you do not answer - and they will notifiy the person you listed to notify. To me, that's worth a couple hundred bucks a year.

[silverado]

KUweatherman,

Sorry, but I am not sure why this is a funny story It actually sounds like good service to me.