XSeries-forum

good morning and hi

I have just got a 2007 x3 and the front wheels will not drive there is no lights on at all and i have had 4 new tyres fitted with all the same tread depth.
does anyone know anywhere is the Wrexham were i can get this sorted to find out why it want work. or does anyone know what is wrong
John

If the front wheels won’t drive then the first place to check is the fuses. There is one for the xDrive unit - can’t remember the number - and if it blows then I think it leaves you in rear wheel drive only.

If it isn’t that then you will need either BMW or somewhere like a Bosch Autocentre to do an error code read to see what is showing. If you can get underneath it would be worth checking the electrical connectors are all in place and clean, especially at the back of the gearbox and on the transfer box that is mounted there. Then check the front prop shaft and front diff. Are there any unpleasant type noises coming from the transmission?

Unfortunately not all faults generate a warning light (annoyingly) but then we’d probably need a lighting panel to cover them all.

Try sending kkx5 on here a PM. He’s a BMW transmission specialist and will know what else to suggest to look at - and may know of somewhere near to you who can help.

thank you so much mate.
i will do all you said tomo morning. i did not know boch do the checks as well as BMW or is it just a few, i do know there is no noise coming out of the transmission or driveshafts.
you have been a real big help to me

John

I'm guessing it wasn't from a dealer if you just got it otherwise it should be going straight back unless you knowingly bought it with this fault. Are you sure its faulty, how did you find out ? with no warning lights as the front hubs won't be engaged with the power off when you jack a wheel up and can be spun freely ?

i got it private and did not check the x drive . i have removed the fuses all ok but when i have put them back in the abs light and the brake lights are now on

i found out when i tried to get on my drive in the snow only the back wheels were spinning. i will jack it up tomo and see if they drive and turn. after the last comment i left i have driven it for 10 min and the lights have gone out

You just confused the system when the fuses were put back in and a drive has let the abs sensors feedback and reset the system which would suggest all is ok , you might just have been spinning one front wheel maybe ? and without proper winter tyres these cars ability in snow even with 4wd isn't great . You would probably need all 4 wheels of the ground to see whats happening as the fronts are maybe only engaged when the rears are moving, is there a DTC button which is for snow etc to allow some wheelspin as the traction otherwise usually hinders progress by shutting power down just when its needed and losing momentum.

hi just seen your message sorry its late.
i pulled fusses out and put them back in and the abs light stayed on for 5 min then went off. i took it to a garage today as he knows about bmw x3 but not a specialist.
Is he right in saying the following, if its the transfer case or box then the front wheels drive not the back? he can't find a fault on it and we had the car jacked up and only back wheels were driving, the machine says no fault at all
so im wondering if its been disconnected at all

john

I think these are mainly rear wheel drive cars with front when needed but my knowledge in very limited , usually when there is a fault with the transfer box there are lights and codes. Here is a thread I found on some issues but member kkx5 on here fixes these for a living so could maybe offer advise if he is about on whats likely to be the issue and how to proceed. There is a bimmerfest link on the first page by horizon shows how the system works ..

Thread:

https://xdrivers.co.uk/forum/viewtopic. ... hilit=kkx5