745LI Steering Column Problem will not tilt (go up or down)

[fsarris]

I recently purchased a 2005 BMW 745LI and the power steering column tilt feature will not work. The telescopic portion works fine but the tilt feature is not working. When I move the tilt swithc down or up I can hear the motor make a slight noise like it is trying to move the column and then it immediately stops. The column will not move at all in an upward or downward position. Are there two motors, one for the tilt and one for the telescopic feature or is there one motor? Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your help!

Frankie

[Seven11]

mine used to make a crazy screeching sound but it never stopped working

the dealer replaced the motor

[Boing745]

+1. got mine fixed under factory warranty. Works so much better now

[Keif]

It could be one of the above issues, or, quite frequently a voltage drop will kill some of the good information in the CIM (chassis integration module), which controls the telescoping and tilt functions, and so it freaks out and acts weird in various ways. Get someone to reinitialize the steering column (basically this just moves it as far as possible in and out, and up and down to learn its extents), then delete the position data (just deletes the old bad steering column position memory). Doing these takes no more than 30 seconds for someone who knows their way around their interface (INPA, DIS, etc.). These two things are also documented in BMW's WDS (wiring diagram system) as the remedy for this. After doing those two things it should function properly; if it does not, then I'd definitely look at any error codes indicating a failure like the ones mentioned above. I have to do this every few weeks because I have a weak battery.