Parking sensors are how much!

M

Mister Frosty

Member
 Chesterfield
Seem to have the same problem as a number of other Z4 drivers with a faulty rear parking sensor. So I phoned my local dealer, BMW Stratstone in Chesterfield, to be told they cost £120 each and take 2-3 weeks to order. EEK!

Surely they are having a laugh. If these things break as often as they appear to then BMW must be raking it in.

I love the car but have to say its not as well built or as reliable as my Audi A4 :roll: :fuelfire:
 
My parking sensors are intermittent at the moment.

Sometimes I get a long beep when first putting it into reverse, sometimes I don't. Sometimes they start beeping, sometimes they don't - can't really trust it :)

There are a few post on here saying that you can do the fix yourself if you are willing to take off the rear bumper and get your hands a little dirty.

Firstly get someone to go behind the car whilst you put the clutch down in reverse. The person behind the car should be able to put their finger on each sensor and feel it vibrating slightly, or put their ear near to it and hear it clicking. If one of them isn't doing this then you've found the broken one.

Then it seems to be a case of taking off the rear bumper, checking the wiring to make sure nothing has come lose - and if it hasn't ordering a new parking sensor ( It seems like the sensors are the same in the x3 / x5 and z4? ) from ebay, and spraying it the same colour as your car - There have been a few people saying a can of black spray pain from halfords will match a black car close enough - but I've not seen any pictures.

I'm going to do this myself at some point, so all of this information is just stuff I've collected from the forum - I'm sure other people can enlighten us a little more!
 
Strangely having the same problem on my X5. Engaging reverse I get one long beep but as I get close to object no warning of anything close. Tey all tick evenly as I would expect so need to think about what else can be wrong.

Incedentally you're not supposed to spray the sensors with normal paint as it blocks and stops them working correctly.
 
Besides the sensors themselves there is also the control unit which can go. Point to note that on the X5 at least, the corner PDC units are NOT the same as the centre ones.
 
Hi pvr - yep - I reckon I'll have to take a look at the control unit since all the sensors are making a uniform clicking sound.
 
mine went in today with intermittent sensors. The dealer found paint runs on all sensors and the rear left showing as not functioning. They're not sure whether that'd be covered under warranty though? Surely its straightforward enough?

More concerning to me is the paint runs on all the rear sensors (must admit I didn't notice them when I checked the car over). wonder why the rear bumper needed respraying? dealer I bought it from didn't mention anything, do they have any requirement to notify of a repair?
 
To be fair - why would BMW replace components that some body shop might have damaged? It is different if a dealer did the job of course of the repainting.
 
mrklaw said:
mine went in today with intermittent sensors. The dealer found paint runs on all sensors and the rear left showing as not functioning. They're not sure whether that'd be covered under warranty though? Surely its straightforward enough?

More concerning to me is the paint runs on all the rear sensors (must admit I didn't notice them when I checked the car over). wonder why the rear bumper needed respraying? dealer I bought it from didn't mention anything, do they have any requirement to notify of a repair?
Click to expand...

When did you buy the car? Was it a BMW dealer?
 
yes, BMW dealer, AUC, picked up a couple of weeks ago. I rang them immediately and they told me to go to my local dealer, as they're a 90 minute trip away. Said they would sort me out. so still hopeful
 
The sensors on our X5 worked the first Winter we had the car. Stopped working all last summer despite a 'fix' of one new sensor from an indie which only solved the problem for a week :wink: Then they worked all this Winter and are still doing so....weird I call it. I thought the cold and damp caused electrical glitches not solved them!
 
mrklaw said:
wonder why the rear bumper needed respraying? dealer I bought it from didn't mention anything, do they have any requirement to notify of a repair?
Click to expand...

No they dont unfortunately, unless you ask the question outright then they are obliged to tell you, if they know of any repairs that have been carried out.

As for why it needed respraying, unfortunately it is not uncommon for people to trust the sensors, get lazy and not look at all. Until one day they hit something the sensors didn't pick up or that was an odd shape.

I wouldn't think it was more than a scuff but I can imagine this is of little consolation to you.

Similarly, on the few cars that dont have sensors, people parking at the dealership assume that they do have sensors, dont hear a beep, and hit something!! :headbang:
 
cj10jeeper said:
Hi pvr - yep - I reckon I'll have to take a look at the control unit since all the sensors are making a uniform clicking sound.
Click to expand...

Did you ever get to the bottom of this cj10jeeper? Mine are doing exactly the same. Intermittent long beep every so often but after checking the sensors for 'clicking' they all seem to be working fine.
 
This is very interesting. My E46 320d has the same problem. Usually it functions normally, but intermittently it emits a single continuous tone as soon as reverse is engaged. There seems to be no pattern to the problem. I suppose I'll have to reverse over someone and ask them if they can hear any clicking :D
 
Using a hair dryer on the sensors cures quite a few of the problems as well.
 
inkey$ said:
cj10jeeper said:
Hi pvr - yep - I reckon I'll have to take a look at the control unit since all the sensors are making a uniform clicking sound.
Click to expand...

Did you ever get to the bottom of this cj10jeeper? Mine are doing exactly the same. Intermittent long beep every so often but after checking the sensors for 'clicking' they all seem to be working fine.
Click to expand...

Yes - strangely it stopped for a while then recurred. Put Carsoft onto it last weekend and identifield it was a front sensor fault. Removed it fitted the wiring and perfect again.

BTW it was not clicking, so easily identifiable.
 
cj10jeeper said:
Yes - strangely it stopped for a while then recurred. Put Carsoft onto it last weekend and identifield it was a front sensor fault. Removed it fitted the wiring and perfect again.

BTW it was not clicking, so easily identifiable.
Click to expand...

Good to hear. I don't have Carsoft but will mention to the dealer when talking in for a service so they can check it all out first.
 
inkey$ said:
pvr said:
Using a hair dryer on the sensors cures quite a few of the problems as well.
Click to expand...
Really? Exterior planes of them or removal and connectors?
Click to expand...

Whilst in place. Water seems to get into the sensor which makes it stop working, drying them out makes them work again. This is assuming the issue is due to the water ingress, and not just a simple faulty sensor.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom