[DrivingPassion]

I was stuck in traffic yesterday and all of a sudden this message popped up:

Drivetrain malfunction:
Drive moderately. Maximum drivetrain output not available. Consult service center

What on earth is happening with my 2015 M235i ?
Is it a transmission issue?
Anyone seen this before?

Car was a little sluggish for the last one week when I pressed on the accelerator.

My car is a CPO and good thing it's still under warranty.

[aozer]

I could be any number of things. I had the same error when my charge pipe broke.

[DrivingPassion]

Sent it in and the SA diagnosed it.
It appears that the Turbo waste-gates are malfunctioning.
They ordered a replacement and will change it.

[DrivingPassion]

SA said it will take them a day to dig out all the pieces just to reach the Turbo to replace the waste-gates.

Wow, if I were on my own (without warranty), the labor would have killed me. Are we talking $3-4K ?

[DrivingPassion]

So, am I supposed to baby the Turbo after the waste-gates replacement?

Anyone?

[maolicious]

I had the same issue but when I restarted the car it went away. When I took it to BMW they found the date but said it wasn't anything to worry about.

[DrivingPassion]

The waste-gates have been replaced and so far, the acceleration is back to normal and packs a punch. I am just wondering when it can fail again and what is the likelihood that it will break.

[DrivingPassion]

Since the Turbo waste-gate actuator failed at around 35K miles, should be expecting another failure at 70K ?

The dealer told me this is a heavy-duty labor job and he was glad it was under warranty. I'm thinking it would be like above $5K to do this out of pocket?

Any such trends here about this part failing?

[DrivingPassion]

Looks like there is a trend about this part ....

https://www.2addicts.com/forums/goog...%20actuator%20

[jondagger]

Originally Posted by DrivingPassion

Looks like there is a trend about this part ....

https://www.2addicts.com/forums/goog...%20actuator%20

I used to get that message alot with my JB4 stg 2 going past 130

worrying warning but it would go away and power would be 100% shortly after..... with Bootmod3 never had the issue again! Yet i dont try to top out the car anymore, as I realized it stops accelerating at 166mph, early in 7th gear

I am at 70k... never worried about that shit.. u had a defect

[bryan_G01]

Originally Posted by DrivingPassion

Since the Turbo waste-gate actuator failed at around 35K miles, should be expecting another failure at 70K ?

The dealer told me this is a heavy-duty labor job and he was glad it was under warranty. I'm thinking it would be like above $5K to do this out of pocket?

Any such trends here about this part failing?

more like 8k since they will probably change everything since they are down there. and no guarantee this fixes anything. good luck.

https://www.2addicts.com/forums/show....php?t=1551644

[Poochie]

I get the "Drivetrain Malfunction" from time to time, for no reason, with no set difference in pattern of driving or changes of maintenance logistics..:

When the light appears; I just stop the car, power it off for 30 seconds, restart and drive normally. The MIL then usually disappears. I chalk it up to just the vehicle's way of 'alerting' that something is not kosher, not that there's necessarily a major issue.

My only mod is a Dinantronics stage 1, that's it.. Even with this 'dealer-approved' Dinan S1, piggyback tune, it still recently cause me to fail NY OBD2 inspection, not because of a MIL but it appears the Dinan ECU in it's crafty mode of operation, keeps the vehicle's O2 and cat signal in a not "ready" state to circumvent the original command, all while using the same high-jacked feed to manipulating the fuel load.

Cool stuff but it just shows how nothing, in the name of seeking more power, is full-proof without consequence, short of a BMW factory tune.

What I've notice with BMW over my old school Honda is because of its tight tolerances and FlexRay bus network, all working in unison dictating how vehicle operate; any changes that sets written parameters, causes the software function out of bounds, thus also setting off an alarm. For better or worst. It's up to end-user to determine if there are any significance in the alert.

[pikcachu]

Originally Posted by Poochie

I get the "Drivetrain Malfunction" from time to time, for no reason, with no set difference in pattern of driving or changes of maintenance logistics..:

When the light appears; I just stop the car, power it off for 30 seconds, restart and drive normally. The MIL then usually disappears. I chalk it up to just the vehicle's way of 'alerting' that something is not kosher, not that there's necessarily a major issue.

My only mod is a Dinantronics stage 1, that's it.. Even with this 'dealer-approved' Dinan S1, piggyback tune, it still recently cause me to fail NY OBD2 inspection, not because of a MIL but it appears the Dinan ECU in it's crafty mode of operation, keeps the vehicle's O2 and cat signal in a not "ready" state to circumvent the original command, all while using the same high-jacked feed to manipulating the fuel load.

Cool stuff but it just shows how nothing, in the name of seeking more power, is full-proof without consequence, short of a BMW factory tune.

What I've notice with BMW over my old school Honda is because of its tight tolerances and FlexRay bus network, all working in unison dictating how vehicle operate; any changes that sets written parameters, causes the software function out of bounds, thus also setting off an alarm. For better or worst. It's up to end-user to determine if there are any significance in the alert.

Why don't you use an OBDII reader and scan the code? that way at least you will know what's the fault

[DrivingPassion]

After one year of replacing the turbo wastegate, the early symptoms seem to return.

Cold start followed by reverse gear to back out of garage produces this:
The engine hesitated when the gear engages. It huffed and puffed for a couple of times and then returns to normal.

My OBD Plug is arriving next week. Do you guys think OBD Fusion will see any historical codes?

There are no codes on the dash.

Update:
I cleaned the MAFS and the symptoms dropped by 70% although the MAFS did not look dirty.

[robman23]

I've had this error twice.
The first one was an over boost from the turbo. The turbo was replaced. The 5k was covered by warranty. The second time was this week. Caused by a vanos solenoid, also covered.

Good luck!

[DrivingPassion]

I cleaned the MAFS and this morning that behavior did not show up anymore.
We’ll see in the coming days.