B+ Cable and fusebox fault (complete loss of electrical power)

Mboon · 03-26-2017, 04:03 PM

Hi all,

Has anyone had the fault which kills all electrical power randomly?

It was a massive recall. In America and I have seen the odd post by other E90 owners too.

I am interested to hear your thoughts and how you resolved the issue and if BMW did this free of charge for you?

Thanks

david in germany · 03-27-2017, 01:23 AM

My wife's 328i was recalled, I dropped it off, they replaced the cable, scratched the door trim, gave the car back. I complained about the trim, they denied the trim, I kept complaining, received new trim and all is well.

Mboon · 03-28-2017, 05:18 PM

Mine has been in and still in. Waiting for BMW UK to make a decision on if they cover costs or not

Vishnu · 05-28-2017, 03:58 PM

I had this issue.
Full loss of power. Took them awhile to get the car in.. They tried to charge me a diagnosis fee and I refused to pay. I told them the car didn't start because of a recall.
They quickly changed the receipt

makkan00 · 05-29-2017, 02:27 AM

There is a post circulating on FB showing that there is a recall for the cable.

So if your dealer is not aware of it, ring bmw UK or check dvla website for recalls.

old grey steve · 05-29-2017, 05:57 AM

Just seen this and am on the hoof so gotta be quick, but we've done quite a few of these over the past 8-10 months, first heard of the issue a fair while back but never had a vehicle in with the issue then all of the sudden in they came one after the other same issue same fix. From memory I've got around 10 knackered fuse boxes. If you look carefully at the cable terminal yo the fuse box you'll notice signs of arcing/burning on the terminal, best guess is as this is a sealed unit internally it takes it shorts the various components

but as you cannot see anything I'm not sure just know it creates havoc when the fault occurs. Might see if out of interest one could be broken apart for a look.

But re what goes on you're replacing the cable connector (which has been modified and needs to be of course crimped) to the fuse box and on mote than several occassions the junction box has has to be replaced aswell

Mboon · 05-29-2017, 06:29 AM

I had to pay to get mine sorted. BMW UK didn't want to know. If your vin does not fall under the recall then they will just charge you to fix it.

Terrible stuff from BMW again. Starting to look elsewhere for my next car now. Far too many silly issues with the whole range of cars

oli3 · 05-30-2017, 07:28 AM

There is a current recall happening in the UK on this, I found out recently. Maybe worth calling a dealer with your VIN to ask.

My car had this same issue and actually left me stranded for half an hour in Belgium once when it cut out on the motorway. Wiggled the cable like a mofo and made it back.

Actually got round to fixing it with my old man, ex-mechanic, we took out the glove box, took out the fuse box which was quite difficult and what had happened was the b+ cable connector had melted and the metal prongs were not making good contact with the fuse box.

To sort it we chipped off some of the melted plastic and closed the metal progs to make a tight connection. Car's been 100% going on more than 6 months now not a single cut out.

Of course your cable may be in a different condition, but it may just be that the prongs need closing tight.

Just remembered there is a guy in Southampton that does this fix from bimmerforums I can send you his number if you want.

03-26-2017, 04:03 PM	#1
Mboon Private 19 Rep 85 Posts Drives: E90 LCI Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Somerset iTrader: (0)	B+ Cable and fusebox fault (complete loss of electrical power) Hi all, Has anyone had the fault which kills all electrical power randomly? It was a massive recall. In America and I have seen the odd post by other E90 owners too. I am interested to hear your thoughts and how you resolved the issue and if BMW did this free of charge for you? Thanks
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03-27-2017, 01:23 AM	#2
david in germany Lieutenant Colonel 729 Rep 1,815 Posts Drives: 118i, 335i and 328i Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Mannheim Germany iTrader: (2)	My wife's 328i was recalled, I dropped it off, they replaced the cable, scratched the door trim, gave the car back. I complained about the trim, they denied the trim, I kept complaining, received new trim and all is well. __________________ 2009 118i Monaco Blue "Maximillion" 2009 335i Saphire Black M Sport "Leopold" Cobb stage 2 aggressive tune, Mishimoto FMIC, Cobb charge pipe, Cobb catted down pipes, Forge diverter valves, BMS inlets and DCI, Cyba scoops and M Individual Audio retrofit and M3 gauge cluster retrofit. 2011 328i Titan Silver M Sport "Franzel" <--Wife's car
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03-28-2017, 05:18 PM	#3
Mboon Private 19 Rep 85 Posts Drives: E90 LCI Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Somerset iTrader: (0)	Mine has been in and still in. Waiting for BMW UK to make a decision on if they cover costs or not
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05-28-2017, 03:58 PM	#4
Vishnu Private 10 Rep 71 Posts Drives: 335i Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Toronto iTrader: (0)	I had this issue. Full loss of power. Took them awhile to get the car in.. They tried to charge me a diagnosis fee and I refused to pay. I told them the car didn't start because of a recall. They quickly changed the receipt
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05-29-2017, 02:27 AM	#5
makkan00 Major General 886 Rep 9,097 Posts Drives: F83 and F36 Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Essex iTrader: (56)	There is a post circulating on FB showing that there is a recall for the cable. So if your dealer is not aware of it, ring bmw UK or check dvla website for recalls. __________________ F36 Xdrive for her - HUD, park assist, heated steering wheel, rear camera, Apple car play F36 RWD for him - HK, M sports pack, GTS tail light, Apple car play
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05-29-2017, 05:57 AM	#6
old grey steve Colonel 283 Rep 2,796 Posts Drives: MK 7.5 Golf R Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: UK in Hertfordshire iTrader: (2)	Just seen this and am on the hoof so gotta be quick, but we've done quite a few of these over the past 8-10 months, first heard of the issue a fair while back but never had a vehicle in with the issue then all of the sudden in they came one after the other same issue same fix. From memory I've got around 10 knackered fuse boxes. If you look carefully at the cable terminal yo the fuse box you'll notice signs of arcing/burning on the terminal, best guess is as this is a sealed unit internally it takes it shorts the various components but as you cannot see anything I'm not sure just know it creates havoc when the fault occurs. Might see if out of interest one could be broken apart for a look. But re what goes on you're replacing the cable connector (which has been modified and needs to be of course crimped) to the fuse box and on mote than several occassions the junction box has has to be replaced aswell __________________
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05-29-2017, 06:29 AM	#7
Mboon Private 19 Rep 85 Posts Drives: E90 LCI Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Somerset iTrader: (0)	I had to pay to get mine sorted. BMW UK didn't want to know. If your vin does not fall under the recall then they will just charge you to fix it. Terrible stuff from BMW again. Starting to look elsewhere for my next car now. Far too many silly issues with the whole range of cars
	Appreciate 0 Quote

05-30-2017, 07:28 AM	#8
oli3 Private First Class 42 Rep 192 Posts Drives: BMW Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Helsinki iTrader: (1)	There is a current recall happening in the UK on this, I found out recently. Maybe worth calling a dealer with your VIN to ask. My car had this same issue and actually left me stranded for half an hour in Belgium once when it cut out on the motorway. Wiggled the cable like a mofo and made it back. Actually got round to fixing it with my old man, ex-mechanic, we took out the glove box, took out the fuse box which was quite difficult and what had happened was the b+ cable connector had melted and the metal prongs were not making good contact with the fuse box. To sort it we chipped off some of the melted plastic and closed the metal progs to make a tight connection. Car's been 100% going on more than 6 months now not a single cut out. Of course your cable may be in a different condition, but it may just be that the prongs need closing tight. Just remembered there is a guy in Southampton that does this fix from bimmerforums I can send you his number if you want.
	Appreciate 0 Quote