I recently had my car serviced and the oil changed over the summer, so there were no warning indicators or service issues prior to this incident. I left for work and had no indications of any problems. I drove for about 10-15 minutes when a warning notification popped up stating engine oil pressure low. A few seconds later, the check engine light came on with a notification there was a "drivetrain malfunction". The car started to decrease speed significantly and I pulled over as soon as I could. I turned the car off and waited a couple minutes, then tried to turn it on. The car power/battery was still working properly, but the engine did not start. I had the car towed to the dealership that I use. I was notified that the drivetrain malfunction is due to "timing chain components failure" and the cost is approximately $16,000. I have taken care of any previous recalls and there are no open recalls that exist currently. In 2014, the same situation occurred, in the same car, where I also received a "drivetrain malfunction" and check engine light. During this time my vehicle also stopped working while I was driving it. Both of these incidents happened very quickly, and I am EXTREMELY lucky that no one was injured in either situation. This issue is extremely unsafe and clearly has not been fixed by the required recalls so far. I urge you to look into this further.
2013 BMW 328I transmission complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 23 of 23, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Car stalled while driving on highway due to drivetrain error code. Once stopped, oil pressure loss light came up. No warning lights prior to issue presenting itself at highway speeds. Initial technician belief is timing belt guide failure per other similar reports.
Was driving on the highway in columbus, ohio when an error appeared on my screen for powertrain malfunction, please continue to drive moderately. Smoke came from my exhaust when going over 50 MPH so I pulled over. Turned the car off and back on. Error message went away. Drove 20 MPH home on side road. No smoke appeared. Started my car this morning and over huge smoke clouds (not evaporating) appeared. Called kelly bmw to make an appointment.
Timing chain broke while driving under normal condition. Had to replace entire engine with used engine
Drivetrain malfunction light came on stating to drive moderately. Maximum drivetrain output not available. Consult service center. The codes was cda904 no message (status trailer 0x2e4) receiver engine ecu transmitter trailer. 130f20 exhaust camshaft offset angel to crankshaft outside tolerance; 120408 boost pressure control, cut off pressure rise block after paying $180.00 for diagnostic I was told today that I need to replace the timing chain/ guild. Replace oil pump chain module and replace the valve cover. The timing chain guide is broken. This is crazy my car has 88000 miles and is not paid for. The cost to get this repaired is approxmiately $6,000. There is a current class action lawsuit. Bmw knows that this is a problem but refuses to do a recall. The plaintiffs take issue with two specific defects in the engine's chains. The first defect affects the primary chain, also known as the timing chain, which coordinates the action of the crankshaft, camshafts, and cylinder valves. According to the plaintiffs, the plastic guide assembly for the primary chain is made of a defective polycarbonate material that becomes brittle and breaks apart, creating debris that lodges in the crankshaft drive sprockets. The debris can cause the primary chain to skip, letting the camshafts and crankshaft fall out of sync and possibly damaging or destroying the engine. The second defect affects the secondary chain, which connects the oil pump and balance shaft assembly to the crankshaft. The materials in this assembly can't stand up to high-resistance wear, the plaintiffs say. This defect causes the chain to elongate prematurely, slip, and damage the chain sprocket.
Worried about bmw timing chain in the n20 engine. I've heard so many story of engines getting blown and needing to be replaced. My son drives to school and I'm worried he's gonna get stranded. He's only 16 I want him to be in a safe vehicle. Bmw needs to do a recall on this issue many people are having blown engines with the car not even being close to being paid off.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 bmw 328i. While driving 50 MPH, the oil pump and drivetrain warning indicators illuminated. While depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle violently jerked and stalled. As a result, the contact sustained injuries to the breast, but did not require medical attention. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle, but was unsuccessful. The contact was in heavy traffic and was not able to coast to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to rallye bmw (1 brush hollow rd, westbury, ny 11590, (516) 393-0000) where it was diagnosed that the oil pump and drivetrain needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the repair fees. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and did not assist. The approximate failure mileage was 67,000. The VIN was not available.
On 2016 I was driving on a very busy parkway in the afternoon at about 45 MPH (which is a legal speed limit) when my car started shuddering, shaking and slowing down and a message came on saying "drive train malfunction." I immediately called my husband who told me to pull over and shut off the car for 5 minutes. He managed to calm me down. When I restarted the car, the car could not start I was very scared the car was tow to bmw and they state it was rhe starter that when bad. I had return the care several time to bmw for the same noise I was told the have a tech from the head quarter came out and the car is perfectly fine .the same hing happen 2 year later and I was on the highway during the incident. Bmw service told me the engine fail and I need a new engine which would cost me $10,000 we were reading all the complaints and primarily they are about the drive train malfunction - it has a faulty plastic part, which since 2015 was replaced by a metal part. I was driving in the middle lane of a very busy highway and I could have been killed o). What does it take for bmw or the federal safety agency to issue a recall for this problem - a death or few? There is no way a 5 year old car engine should have fail with just 70,000 miles.
Arrived at home, turned the vehicle off, and saw smoke coming from hood and smell of something burning. Opened the hood, and saw that the smoke was due to oil dripping onto the catalytic converter. There was no fire. The vehicle was then towed to dealer due to risk of fire. Video is available if needed; please contact me.
I have had two drive train malfunction messages since buying the car four months ago. The first message caused my car to stall, and I was stuck in the middle of the road, with the assistance of the police, in st.louis. This second time I had to have the car towed into the dealership (in tacoma wa) where it is currently. I am working with the dealership to resolve the problem. My car is still under cpo warranty and I am concerned that bmw will not be willing to rectify the problem, or give me a vehicle of the same value. I have paid over 26,000 for this vehicle and am concerned about the value of my investment. Both incidents of the error message occurring, I was located on the highway. The first incident occurred in august. The second incident occurred yesterday, october 19th, 2016. "drivetrain malfunction, maximum output not available, consult service center".
I had a powertrain malfunction light come up the first weekend after I leased the car, with barely 250 miles on the odometer! Repairs were done at a bmw authorized service center, the car now has 6000 miles, and the issue is back! This is the 2nd time within the last 6 months this car has had powertrain warnings pop up. Its christmas day, and I have a brand new car (barely 6months old that is), yet I cannot drive it. There should be no reason for a brand new luxury car to breakdown twice for the same reasons within 6 months. I got lucky the car did not shutdown on me and I was close to home so I could limp back home and have it towed. I have heard of others having the same issue and their car shutting down in the middle of the freeway. Bmw is selling a sub standard, untested product, that is potentially unsafe. This needs to be investigated.
Drivetrain malfuction warning light. The car is less then 2 months old under mostly local driving condition in eco or comfort mode.
I started the car and reversed out of my driveway, then proceeded to a very busy intersection without stop light. I accelerated to merge withf traffic and all of the sudden my power was cut dramatically and the car displayed a drive train malfunction error. This prevented me from accelerating at the correct speed and almost created an issue with the vehicles behind me. I then had to pick my child up school and the car continues to behave poorly.
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