[bigchieftaco]

Alright, I've had my 2006 330xi for a month now and I really like it.
I'm fighting a very concerning issue that has happened twice now. I'll be driving along a county road, cruise set, and then the car goes into limp mode with "4x4 system and DSC have malfunctioned" message on the iDrive screen.


Restarting the car gets that to go away and out of limp mode.
I don't think its the trifecta dealio with the ABS pump because it doesn't mention ABS when it does it.
I don't have the IBS cable connected to the battery right now because it was like that when I bought the car. I did connect it a couple weeks ago and was getting messages that the battery was low so in a panic of getting stranded, I unplugged it.
I'm guessing this has to do with my battery getting old or dying. I've never had issues starting the car so the other part of me wonders if something major is broken/going out.
I'm not sure how old the battery is, I'll check on lunch. If I remember correctly, it's a BMW battery.

Here's all the errors, maybe there are some unrelated ones (Controlled air flow) you can help me with

[LGCubana]

Hit up a store like Autozone, where they'll test your battery for you.

[jt335i]

I replaced the 5 ½ yr old OEM battery on my 335 back in the summer of 2015 and didn’t experience any of the issues you are having.
Only thing I noticed was the car was very slow, or weak, to crank and my iDrive indicated the “Increased Battery Discharge” message in the morning (going to work) and afternoon (going home).
Tried to charge the battery when I got home from work, but the charger meter said the battery was full so I assumed one of the cells was bad. Took it to my trusted mechanic and he it replaced with an OEM and everything was fine again.

If your battery was dying, you should experience similar weak cranks or the “Increased Battery Discharge” like message. Did you check the terminals to make sure there is no corrosion, or if they might be loose? You may also want to plug a voltmeter to check the battery and alternator to be sure they're putting out the normal voltage. Advance Auto or Autozone (as LGCubana mentioned) can check it for you for free.

[bigchieftaco]

Originally Posted by jt335i

I replaced the 5 ½ yr old OEM battery on my 335 back in the summer of 2015 and didn’t experience any of the issues you are having.
Only thing I noticed was the car was very slow, or weak, to crank and my iDrive indicated the “Increased Battery Discharge” message in the morning (going to work) and afternoon (going home).
Tried to charge the battery when I got home from work, but the charger meter said the battery was full so I assumed one of the cells was bad. Took it to my trusted mechanic and he it replaced with an OEM and everything was fine again.

If your battery was dying, you should experience similar weak cranks or the “Increased Battery Discharge” like message. Did you check the terminals to make sure there is no corrosion, or if they might be loose? You may also want to plug a voltmeter to check the battery and alternator to be sure they're putting out the normal voltage. Advance Auto or Autozone (as LGCubana mentioned) can check it for you for free.

I'll have to have them check it.
I haven't experienced any symptoms of a dying battery. Everything seems fine to me.
I just thought these systems are super sensitive and can be a pain in the ass with batteries. I think it could also be a wheel sensor causing problems. Not sure how to tell which one though.

[bigchieftaco]

Any other input? Might have a few other issues going on.

[401FlaGATOR]

If your car cranks fine then it means your battery has a lot of high current capacity - sign of a good battery.

When the car is running the alternator should have enough to keep the car electronics going unless your battery was a dead load (but it cranks so that can't be it), you would observe other phenomena like dimmed lights etc. if this were case.

Maybe power down any unnecessary loads (radio, DRL, etc.) and see if incidence of failure goes down.

Disclaimer: I don't have an xi so take what I offer with grain of salt.

[bigchieftaco]

It did it twice on my way home last night! I need to get over and test the battery but I'm pretty sure that is not the issue.

Any other suggestions? Not much info online about DSC & 4x4 errors without the ABS error.

[bigchieftaco]

I might have figured out the AWD & DSC errors. I am going to tear into my steering wheel and check the sensor in there, apparently they can get crud on them and cause this issue.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=520467

The problem I was having when searching is people have different configurations. Some don't have AWD and some don't have the i-drive screen so getting the exact same scenario was hard to actually find.
I did see someone over on a different forum have the same setup with same errors on the screen. They ended up replacing the steering wheel sensor for ~$900. I'm going to try my luck with cleaning up the disk.

[Socket]

Originally Posted by bigchieftaco

It did it twice on my way home last night! I need to get over and test the battery but I'm pretty sure that is not the issue.

Any other suggestions? Not much info online about DSC & 4x4 errors without the ABS error.

If you got 5 years out of your battery you are doing well. A dying battery will cause all kinds of weird electrical issues. Mine gave out suddenly (over a day or two) no long crank or anything like that, but weird stuff with stereo, wipers and warning lights... every battery fail is different but is commonly the cause if its 5 years old or more... good luck with the fix mate

[EB89]

Do you have a JB4?

[bigchieftaco]

Originally Posted by EB89

Do you have a JB4?

I do not.

[l3rett]

I just replaced my 6 year old OEM battery. It was still cranking okay but it could not sustain a high enough voltage so if there was a high power demand event at low rpm the alternator couldn't support it and the battery couldn't keep the voltage which would cause odd hiccups and codes. (I think the high demand event was the hpfp spinning up.)

While changing the battery I managed to fully disconnect everything, including the charger, so the car completely lost power. After getting everything hooked up again the car had 15 codes in the dme and was showing the exact same AWD and DSC errors OP was seeing.

I cleared the codes with Carly but the AWD/DSC errors persisted. I cleared all module codes with MHD. Still AWD/DSC. I cleared TCU with xHP but still errors. I reflashed the TCU but still errors. I reflashed the dme and still errors. I finally started the car and drove it around the block and all errors went away.

Not entirely sure what the real problem was but it seemed to be a ghost error due to lack of power.

[bigchieftaco]

This weekend I decided to tear into my steering wheel and check my SAS. It had some crud on it so I got out some alcohol and went to town on the disk. Once I was finished I didn't like the residue that was left so I grabbed some meguiars and buffed it nice and clean.
After reinstalling, I couldn't get the 4x4 and DSC errors to go away. I tried resetting the codes but after 20 feet they would always come back.
I figured I needed to actually reset/calibrate the steering angle sensor. My INPA wasn't working and Saturday morning turned into Sunday afternoon quick. I needed my car for Monday morning work. BimmerGeeks comes in with some clutch remote support. He reinstalled INPA and actually reset my SAS for me. He's amazing to work with btw.
After the reset and ~50 miles, the errors haven't come back. Long term testing will tell if this also fixed my intermittent 4x4 and DSC errors.

Edit: Battery physically looked good. Took it out and checked for swelling and noticed the date was Dec. 2014. It's getting on the older side but still works fine imo.