[m235hou]

Had my m235 CV manual (no mods) for 11 days and the check engine light came on

Anyone know of common issues with m235's? There doesn't seem to be anything obvious wrong with the car and when I took it to the dealership this morning just to have them check to make sure nothing major was wrong, they were fully booked so turned me away.

[Spydeputy]

95% of the time it has to do with emissions.

[midlifecrisis]

Could be a lot of things - anything from a loose gas cap to a faulty sensor. If the light's amber, it can generally wait for a scheduled service. If it's red, you shouldn't drive the car. Does the vehicle status in the Idrive menu give you any more info?

[m235hou]

Originally Posted by Spydeputy

95% of the time it has to do with emissions.

What do you mean emissions? What would be wrong?

Originally Posted by midlifecrisis

Could be a lot of things - anything from a loose gas cap to a faulty sensor. If the light's amber, it can generally wait for a scheduled service. If it's red, you shouldn't drive the car. Does the vehicle status in the Idrive menu give you any more info?

Checked the gas cap so no go there. iDrive indicates everything's okay.... The light is solid yellow/amber.

[Spydeputy]

Like midlife said, a faulty emissions sensor to a loose gas cap.
Just stop by the dealer and have them read the code.

[midlifecrisis]

My original post may have been a little unclear. I'd schedule service to address the light as soon as possible, as opposed to waiting for the next oil change. I just wouldn't feel the need to run right over to the dealer. I'm a little surprised the dealer didn't offer to read the code, but they're probably short staffed and slammed this week - like a lot of other businesses.

[JChristie]

I think most of the major auto part chains in the US will scan your error code for free. I’d suggest heading to one and getting your code checked. As everyone said, it’s probably something quite minor, but you’ll at least have the peace of mind of knowing what it is until you get in to the dealership.

On a side note, OBDII readers are a great investment for diagnosing problems such as this. Some dealerships will charge just to read your code so the readers quickly pay for themselves.

[m235hou]

Thanks all. Made an appointment for 8am tomorrow morning.

midlifecrisis - I was also very surprised when the service advisor said something like "it's not quick as we have to test drive and fix the issue" when I asked him if he can just do a quick read of the code..... Did seem like they were fully booked today though.

JChristie - Hopefully BMW doesn't charge me to check the code when the car is 11 days old.

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by m235hou

Thanks all. Made an appointment for 8am tomorrow morning.

midlifecrisis - I was also very surprised when the service advisor said something like "it's not quick as we have to test drive and fix the issue" when I asked him if he can just do a quick read of the code..... Did seem like they were fully booked today though.

JChristie - Hopefully BMW doesn't charge me to check the code when the car is 11 days old.

They won't charge you for anything assuming you bought the car new. Everything free except tires.

[m235hou]

Originally Posted by BEM-S4

They won't charge you for anything assuming you bought the car new. Everything free except tires.

Great, thanks! Will be pissed if something major is wrong with the car especially since I bought two new BMW's this month (our first BMW's).

Will update after my service appointment tomorrow.

[JChristie]

Originally Posted by m235hou

JChristie - Hopefully BMW doesn't charge me to check the code when the car is 11 days old.

Sorry, to be more clear, I don't think they would/should charge you while in warrant, but still a handy tool to have.

[wjones14]

Obviously, with the car still under warranty and less than 2 weeks old, you should expect the dealer to check out the CEL and fix anything that may be wrong.

An inexpensive option for your own code reader is to get an OBDII wireless adapter and mate it with an app on your mobile device. I bought a Wi-Fi adapter from amazon for about $20 and bought the Dash Command app for my iPod Touch for $10. Not only can this setup read engine codes, but it also gives you a way to display gauges that didn't come with your car - such as oil and water temp for starters.

[doublevanosrc]

In for update..

[merlin3008]

It is more than likely something minor. However, I would be really annoyed if I just bought two new cars from a dealership and they turned me away when I had a check engine light on. With an 11 day old car, they should have given you a loaner and fit it in. There is something called overtime. You might want to tell your salesperson about this. The last thing he/she wants is for the service department to sour your relationship with the brand.

[overcoil]

Originally Posted by merlin3008

It is more than likely something minor. However, I would be really annoyed if I just bought two new cars from a dealership and they turned me away when I had a check engine light on. With an 11 day old car, they should have given you a loaner and fit it in. There is something called overtime. You might want to tell your salesperson about this. The last thing he/she wants is for the service department to sour your relationship with the brand.

Your exactly right. Very well stated and excellent advice.

[m235hou]

Originally Posted by merlin3008

It is more than likely something minor. However, I would be really annoyed if I just bought two new cars from a dealership and they turned me away when I had a check engine light on. With an 11 day old car, they should have given you a loaner and fit it in. There is something called overtime. You might want to tell your salesperson about this. The last thing he/she wants is for the service department to sour your relationship with the brand.

Thanks for the advice. You hit the spot on the reason I was upset at the service dept as I was very annoyed that they turned me away when the car is brand new.

Just got back from the dealership. The o2 sensor was faulty (hopefully not a sign of things to come, knock on wood) and 3 hours later was fixed.

And of course they ran my soft-top through the automatic car wash

[overcoil]

^^^
Getting a bad sensor shouldn't be a sign of things to come. Both my Mercedes had bad sensors early on and then they both ran to over 100k miles with amazing reliability.

Did the automatic car wash do any cosmetic marring? Hope it came out fine.

[m235hou]

Originally Posted by ScottSinger

^^^
Getting a bad sensor shouldn't be a sign of things to come. Both my Mercedes had bad sensors early on and then they both ran to over 100k miles with amazing reliability.

Did the automatic car wash do any cosmetic marring? Hope it came out fine.

Thanks. Good to get reassurance re: bad sensors. I don't think there's any cosmetic damage but will check again later today.