Help! Transmission Problems on Brand New 2013 X5 35i

Seatown · 06-23-2012, 12:55 AM

Hello friends,

I have been a long-time visitor to these forums but never made an account until now. I've enjoyed reading about BMWs on these forums as well as seeing photos of all your beautiful X5s.

My folks just picked up a new 2013 X5 35i M sport w/ M Performance pack a week ago. Just a couple hours ago, we were driving on a city road at no more than 35-40 mph when vehicle suddenly started making a revving noise and was stuck at 5,000-5,500 RPM. My dad tried taking his foot off the accelerator, pressing the brake, and even flicked the shift lever to the left into Sport mode but it would not stop. This happened for about 10 seconds until we pulled to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. He then turned it back on and we didn't have a problem on the rest of our 20 minute drive.

This was very weird, especially on a new vehicle with not even 400 miles on it. I've heard fabulous things about the 8-speed transmission in this vehicle so I'm guessing this is a computer glitch or something. Any help would be greatly appreciated. We plan to call our dealership in the morning about this but I'd like to hear the opinions of BMW experts here rather than just the guys at the dealership.

Also, the manual says that you can download songs from CDs onto iDrive. Can this be done from my iPhone as well? One last thing, how can I play my music from my iPhone via Bluetooth? I keep having to connect it via the USB port.

Thanks!

Seatown · 06-23-2012, 11:46 AM

Please!

Jasnb · 06-24-2012, 08:15 AM

That obviously doesn't sound right at all. I would have thought maybe you knicked the shifter but if you tried downshifting with no success, it does sound like a glitch. Probably something to notify your dealer about in case it happens again and you need to bring it in.

As for the downloads - its only off of a CD or USB. For pairing your iPhone, delete your phone if you've paired already and redo the process. At the end of the process when you punch your pair key onto your phone, your iDrive will finalize the process with a list of 'bluetooth options'. Make sure both 'Phone' and 'Audio' are checked off. Once that's done, play music off your iPhone and you should see the 'airplay' option in your playback controls and if you click it your BMW should be an option.

You should be hearing music by now if you've done it right!

I finally got off my ass to figure it out as a result of this post - so thanks to you

richard in NC · 06-24-2012, 08:55 AM

It is possible he did accidently kick it to neutral. All to easy with the electronic shifter. The revs would have climbed (due to no load on the motor) although it wouldn't have forced the high revs.

jacksonb · 01-13-2014, 08:03 PM

Thanks for the useful information.. I also found some info to fixing this Transmission on http://www.twincharlotte.com . They are a local repair shop in Charlotte NC but their blog is full of useful tips and diagnosis for repair…combined with your photos, I was able to solve this problem myself.

06-23-2012, 12:55 AM	#1
Seatown New Member 5 Rep 9 Posts Drives: X5 Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Northwest iTrader: (0)	Help! Transmission Problems on Brand New 2013 X5 35i Hello friends, I have been a long-time visitor to these forums but never made an account until now. I've enjoyed reading about BMWs on these forums as well as seeing photos of all your beautiful X5s. My folks just picked up a new 2013 X5 35i M sport w/ M Performance pack a week ago. Just a couple hours ago, we were driving on a city road at no more than 35-40 mph when vehicle suddenly started making a revving noise and was stuck at 5,000-5,500 RPM. My dad tried taking his foot off the accelerator, pressing the brake, and even flicked the shift lever to the left into Sport mode but it would not stop. This happened for about 10 seconds until we pulled to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. He then turned it back on and we didn't have a problem on the rest of our 20 minute drive. This was very weird, especially on a new vehicle with not even 400 miles on it. I've heard fabulous things about the 8-speed transmission in this vehicle so I'm guessing this is a computer glitch or something. Any help would be greatly appreciated. We plan to call our dealership in the morning about this but I'd like to hear the opinions of BMW experts here rather than just the guys at the dealership. Also, the manual says that you can download songs from CDs onto iDrive. Can this be done from my iPhone as well? One last thing, how can I play my music from my iPhone via Bluetooth? I keep having to connect it via the USB port. Thanks! Last edited by Seatown; 06-23-2012 at 01:16 AM..
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06-23-2012, 11:46 AM	#2
Seatown New Member 5 Rep 9 Posts Drives: X5 Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Northwest iTrader: (0)	Please! __________________ '13 X5 35i ///M Sport + ///M Performance Pack '08 328xi Sport '09 X5 30i Sport - SOLD
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06-24-2012, 08:15 AM	#3
Jasnb Enlisted Member 1 Rep 45 Posts Drives: 2011 328i XDrive Wagon Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Toronto, Ca iTrader: (0)	That obviously doesn't sound right at all. I would have thought maybe you knicked the shifter but if you tried downshifting with no success, it does sound like a glitch. Probably something to notify your dealer about in case it happens again and you need to bring it in. As for the downloads - its only off of a CD or USB. For pairing your iPhone, delete your phone if you've paired already and redo the process. At the end of the process when you punch your pair key onto your phone, your iDrive will finalize the process with a list of 'bluetooth options'. Make sure both 'Phone' and 'Audio' are checked off. Once that's done, play music off your iPhone and you should see the 'airplay' option in your playback controls and if you click it your BMW should be an option. You should be hearing music by now if you've done it right! I finally got off my ass to figure it out as a result of this post - so thanks to you Last edited by Jasnb; 06-24-2012 at 08:46 AM.. Reason: Figured out Bluetooth Audio
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06-24-2012, 08:55 AM	#4
richard in NC Colonel 1229 Rep 2,602 Posts Drives: 2009 Z4 35i Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Charlotte, NC iTrader: (0)	It is possible he did accidently kick it to neutral. All to easy with the electronic shifter. The revs would have climbed (due to no load on the motor) although it wouldn't have forced the high revs.
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01-13-2014, 08:03 PM	#5
jacksonb Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: 128i Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: North Carolina iTrader: (0)	Thanks for the useful information.. I also found some info to fixing this Transmission on http://www.twincharlotte.com . They are a local repair shop in Charlotte NC but their blog is full of useful tips and diagnosis for repair…combined with your photos, I was able to solve this problem myself.
	Appreciate 0 Quote