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      07-04-2012, 10:53 AM   #77
Purgatory
Private First Class
Canada
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Drives: 2011 X5 xDrive 5.0
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Calgary

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I thought I would chime in on this thread as there doesn't seem to be a definite answer to this problem (after reading every post in this thread). I have a 2011 X5 5.0i and I have been getting the high battery drain warning every morning. The vehicle is being serviced at Calgary BMW and has been in and out of the shop 4 times in the past month because it has not been solved. Here is a listing of what has been tried and tested:

Current battery (white top non AGM) - re-charged and tested (allegedly working)

Central Computer (BMW called it a DME) - waited 10 days for the part to come in from Germany... installed... they didn't bother to test the vehicle to see if it worked before releasing the vehicle back to me. A piss off. So had to go back to the dealership.

Coolant Pump - I could actually hear the coolant pump running when the vehicle was switched off (more often when I actually locked the vehicle), so this made some sense to me. They replaced the pump yesterday, and left the vehicle overnight and it still had the "high battery drain" warning. Although the draw was less than before according to the technician.

Relay (didn't say which one) - The tech traced the problem to a specific relay. Probably a coolant pump related one, this also seems like a logical place to look as something was clearly making the coolant pump run after the vehicle was switched off, like a sensor or something.

I'm new to the BMW X5 after owning several other BMW's, and this one has by far given me the most trouble. So I have a couple of questions for the forum:

1. I know back in the day turbo charged cars would use "turbo timers" to keep the vehicle running and circulate coolant to the hot turbos. I don't live in a particularly hot climate read: Canada and I don't drive the vehicle hard, so I can't imagine the temperature running up that hot. Does my X5 5.0i have such a feature to circulate coolant after the vehicle is switched off? Has anyone else noticed their vehicle having a "whirring sound" for the coolant pump when the vehicle is off?

2. How does a relay work (in two sentences or less)? I'm an excel nerd so I think of it as an =IF scenario, as in if the temp is high then run the coolant pump. Is this thinking correct?

Thanks for your consideration.

Last edited by Purgatory; 07-05-2012 at 01:17 PM..
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