Low engine coolant warning after 15k miles

2011

anyone has this happen?

Don't fool around with it -- take it to the dealer and have them fix it. The car is under warranty.

Add more coolant and watch for leaks over the next few days. If no leaks and your oil is not a milky color, problem solved.

Checkout this writeup from Motortrend:

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...e28i_update_9/

If there's no leak under the vehicle, just add some coolant.

Originally Posted by NYX335i

Checkout this writeup from Motortrend:

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...e28i_update_9/

If there's no leak under the vehicle, just add some coolant.

I love how at the bottom it says "Unresolved problem: throttle delay."

I have a 2009 and had this call with my wife in early 2010...

"Brian...why do I have this coolant light on??? I just want to get to work and car is new...why didn't you check it?"

I felt like an ass, bought a gallon of BMW coolant and distilled water on my way home with tail between legs. Mixed 50:50 when I got home and filled 3 qts in expansion tank...

2 years later never lost coolant since. It is what it is and don't worry it is normal.

Had the same thing happen to me at 19,000 miles. No leaks evident. Added coolant and no problem since in 800 miles.

Note that when adding coolant, there are min/max marks on the inside of the reservoir.

Dealer topped it off, but was surprised the light came on only after 15k miles.

What happens if you use straight coolant fluid without mixing it with distill water?

py, keep an eye on the coolant and if the light goes on again -- be sure to get it back to the dealer. There is a reason that liquid is disappearing somewhere. An air block in the heater core can only account for so much -- then the core is filled and no more coolant should be "lost".

Originally Posted by pyao88

2011

anyone has this happen?

Happened a couple of times on my 2009 right after I picked it up. I just topped it off with distilled water (took maybe a cup total) and never had another issue. I'm getting ready to roll 93,000 miles so there was definitely no leak.

I'm pretty sure it's just from working all of the air out of the system from assembly.

Just to add to this, this happened to mine as well at 9K miles.

After another 10k at 25k, low coolant light came on again after parking on the snow for a week. This time I am hundreds of miles away from home. I added a bottle of spring water (17 oz) to fill up around the min line.
I backed the car out I can see some greenish liquid on the snow. I assume that's BMW coolant?

Probably.

My low coolant light came on at 8500 miles. Drove to the dealer and they topped me off no charge. Dealer said that this is a common issue due to the temp these engines run at and given the coolant is 50% water. Evaporation was their explanation. I accepted that. Seems logical.

Originally Posted by Jen4BMW

My low coolant light came on at 8500 miles. Drove to the dealer and they topped me off no charge. Dealer said that this is a common issue due to the temp these engines run at and given the coolant is 50% water. Evaporation was their explanation. I accepted that. Seems logical.

I would not believe what they told you. Of all the vehicles I have owned (dozens) there were only a few that needed topped-up coolant and they either: a) had a leak, or b) had the coolant system serviced (e.g. flushed) and some trapped air made its way to the tank. The system is closed and there should be no reason to have to add coolant/H20 mixture (there should zero evaporation).

Originally Posted by Jen4BMW

My low coolant light came on at 8500 miles. Drove to the dealer and they topped me off no charge. Dealer said that this is a common issue due to the temp these engines run at and given the coolant is 50% water. Evaporation was their explanation. I accepted that. Seems logical.

Just to clarify, the coolant/antifreeze itself is not 50% water. What you buy at the dealer or parts store is 100% coolant. You are supposed to mix in distilled water yourself at a 50% ratio whenever you add more coolant to the vehicle.

Interesting my car had a antifreeze odour that came through the ventilation system periodically... My car also got a low coolant warning too.

Perhaps this is a design fault causing the antifreeze to "boil" over on hot days leaving insufficient volumes on cold days. My car got the low coolant warning late fall.

Originally Posted by lbjgh

Interesting my car had a antifreeze odour that came through the ventilation system periodically... My car also got a low coolant warning too.

Perhaps this is a design fault causing the antifreeze to "boil" over on hot days leaving insufficient volumes on cold days. My car got the low coolant warning late fall.

Hmmm,... I guess I might be picking up some coolant when I pick up the new vehicle .

Screw that... at $50-60K let the manufacturer pay for it. I reset the warning for about three weeks until I could get in to the dealership... It is a manufacturer's fault after all. BMW is lucky the 10 cents worth of antifreeze (they saved) didn't cost them an engine repair.

Originally Posted by noka

Hmmm,... I guess I might be picking up some coolant when I pick up the new vehicle .

Noka,

My warning came up after 20K miles, on a few cold mornings, and went away as soon as my X3 warmed up. I would have dropped by the dealer on the (long) way to work, but I had an oil change scheduled soon. Instead, I splashed a few ounces of bottled water into the reservoir, no more than 2-3 ounces, and added "top up the coolant" to my service list.

Don't waste money on coolant, which the dealer will top up for free. Instead, spend the money on brake dust cleaner for your wheels. You'll need two.

Originally Posted by 02420X3

Noka,

My warning came up after 20K miles, on a few cold mornings, and went away as soon as my X3 warmed up. I would have dropped by the dealer on the (long) way to work, but I had an oil change scheduled soon. Instead, I splashed a few ounces of bottled water into the reservoir, no more than 2-3 ounces, and added "top up the coolant" to my service list.

Don't waste money on coolant, which the dealer will top up for free. Instead, spend the money on brake dust cleaner for your wheels. You'll need two.

OK, I might have over-reacted, especially if it was only a couple of ounces (and assuming you could easily see the reservoir to be able to determine that it wasn't down that much). I'd be more concerned if it needed more than that and possibly diluting the mixture too much. I wonder if there is a sensor design problem (e.g. bad placement, over-sensitive, etc). One thing for certain, in a well-designed system you should not need to add coolant.

Update: Dealer said they did 4 hour pressurize test and found no coolant leak. They said BMW coolant is blue (the leak I found on the snow is greenish like this color http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1815445 ) although I did not check the actual coolant color that's in my 2011 X3 28i.
I will manually check coolant level after another 5k miles to see if it's draining or evaporating since I added 17 oz of bottled water to it.
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1698895

Just so everyone knows, I have read a few articles (see Motor Trend long term test) where the capacity increases due to expansion in the hoses, etc. Seems completely normal (but unique to BMW).

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...e28i_update_9/

http://www.edmunds.com/bmw/x3/2012/l...behind-us.html

So in summary, watch your coolant level and expect to add 1 litre between 15,000 and 20,000 miles.

Originally Posted by c3uo

Just so everyone knows, I have read a few articles (see Motor Trend long term test) where the capacity increases due to expansion in the hoses, etc. Seems completely normal (but unique to BMW).

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...e28i_update_9/

http://www.edmunds.com/bmw/x3/2012/l...behind-us.html

So in summary, watch your coolant level and expect to add 1 litre between 15,000 and 20,000 miles.

It's difficult to believe that hoses could expand enough to accomodate about 15% more coolant. I'm curious, when people had the low coolant message, was there any coolant visible in the reservoir? If some was visible, I wouldn't have a problem driving it to the dealer for a top-up. If not visible, then you really have no clue how low it is and I would be hesitant to risk driving it.

We to got the low coolant light on our 2013 with the 4cyl. Dealer pressured tested, no problems. They said it is inherent in the 4 cyl twin turbo. Makes no sense to me in a sealed system but we'll see I guess.