[GearHead335i]

The x5/x6 forums are pretty dead and we need some help ASAP, please!


So my friends X5 is giving us some issues and I am out of ideas. Here’s the run down;

Car needed a front diff and since it required a sub frame drop, we decided to have a mechanic do it. Pick up the car and the swapped front diff solved the noise he was experiencing. Although the car now had no AC, the compressor wasn’t spinning. When he dropped off the car it had some of the best AC I’d ever experienced lol.

Bring the car back to the mechanic he runs the car for any codes and it says ac compressor fault, he says it’s the compressor but maybe the pressure sensor. Drive the car about an hour back to his house after that. Car seems to be running great other than no ac.

We order the pressure sensor before the compressor, while we are waiting I did the oil filter housing gasket and condenser gasket. After I’m done, we take the car for a test drive and 5 min into it the car completely shuts off, puts itself into neutral, we pull over. Try to restart the car, nothing, just a click, won’t crank anything. Grab jumper cables, nothings just a click when we hit the start/stop button.

Get the car towed to his house, I’m looking over the car and realize that the chassis ground strap is completely corroded and frayed and holding on by a few strands of wire. I’m thinking that’s the problem. Run the car for codes and we get 32E3 (EWS-DME interface hardware fault).

We replace the chassis ground strap with the new one, also replace the CAS relay, after doing some research and a lot of people said it’s all there no crank no start issue. The battery was low from us trying to start it and by the looks of it it was the original battery from 2012 so we decided to replace that as well.

Go to start it, nothing, no crank, no start.

Talk to our buddy that works at and in the shop and he said it was probably the starter. He said sometimes when the chassis ground strap is no good the car will send too much power to the starter and burn it out.

We order a starter from FCP EURO, install it, go to start it, nothing.

Every time we ran the codes from when the car stalled while on the test drive, we got the same 32E3 EWS-DME fault code. After we tried to start the car, we cleared the codes, tried to start again, nothing, ran the code and same Thing keeps popping up 32E3 EWS-DME fault code.

Little background, car had MHD stage 2 flashed on it before taking it to the mechanic to have the differential swapped out, not sure if he cleared something or did something with the computer but we’ve taken the car to BMW to get work done, the FRM Footwell module replaced under recall and they reset computers and it did nothing so I doubt it but wanted to add that.

Also after trying to start the car the I Drive pops up a yellow message for the 4X4 system and then after the key is out of the ignition, it shows a yellow error message for the parking brake.

The comfort access also has not been working, specifically not having to put the key in the ignition feature. Car will not start unless key is pushed in the ignition when before the car could be sitting for 48 hours, a week, two weeks, and He could get back in it and as long as the keys were in the car We could start it without putting in the ignition. So we also replace the key battery thinking that would fix it but no dice.

Symptoms-car shut off while driving and would not restart, seemed like a dead battery because of the no click no crank symptoms. Even with a new battery though and starter there still no crank no start.

So parts replaced
-battery
-chassis ground strap
-starter
-CAS relay
-new key battery

At this point we are out of ideas and ANY HELP WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!


Thanks in advance guys!

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

I wonder if the DME is bad.

[GearHead335i]

Originally Posted by Welcome to NBA Jam

I wonder if the DME is bad.

When I run the codes through MHD it says “ECU status-Normal Operation”. Not sure if that matters.

[dpaul]

Doubt very much the DME is bad

Originally Posted by Quinnhogue7

Car needed a front diff and since it required a sub frame drop, we decided to have a mechanic do it. Pick up the car and the swapped front diff solved the noise he was experiencing. Although the car now had no AC, the compressor wasn’t spinning. When he dropped off the car it had some of the best AC I’d ever experienced lol.

Pretty clear your mechanic broke the AC, either the sensor, or more likely just pulled too hard on a connector

Run the car for codes and we get 32E3 (EWS-DME interface hardware fault).
Talk to our buddy that works at and in the shop and he said it was probably the starter. He said sometimes when the chassis ground strap is no good the car will send too much power to the starter and burn it out.

Your buddy is beyond incompetent. That is the most ridiculous analysis I've yet come across. Is this the same mechanic who broke your AC?

The comfort access also has not been working, specifically not having to put the key in the ignition feature. Car will not start unless key is pushed in the ignition

And is the appearance of this problem coincident with the others you've described?

So parts replaced
-battery
-chassis ground strap
-starter
-CAS relay
-new key battery

So, obviously you've got an electrical problem, which to be fair can be quite difficult to trouble shoot. Start by making sure you've got B+ in the places where you expect it to be. Measure the voltage (with respect to ground) at the battery terminal and at the jumper point in the engine compartment. Possibly you've got the common (recall issued) problem of bad B+ connection at the fuse box (JBBF). You can google it


Thanks in advance guys!

[Uunfamousjay]

Check the power distribution box that sits on top of the motor or the ibs cables

[Serf27]

Been seeing engines seizing after ofhg a lot lately.

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1614465