[grsd03]

Hi, I've noticed that when I park my m40i in the garage after a drive, it smells like burning oil or rubber. Has anyone else noticed or experienced this? Wondering if it's something to be concerned about. Only has 28k KM and I do not see any visible signs of leaks in the engine bay.

[FLM40i]

I have the same issue on my 2020 with 1600 miles. Has been like that since new. I have looked it over and find no leaks. I had the dealer check it as well and they could not find anything. It doesn’t seem right to me but I don’t know what else to do. I don’t smell it as much when I open the hood, it seems like it comes more from the front wheel opening. I can run our SQ5 hard and park it and no smell at all.
Has yours always had the smell?

[fsugatorbait2]

Originally Posted by FLM40i

I have the same issue on my 2020 with 1600 miles. Has been like that since new. I have looked it over and find no leaks. I had the dealer check it as well and they could not find anything. It doesn't seem right to me but I don't know what else to do. I don't smell it as much when I open the hood, it seems like it comes more from the front wheel opening. I can run our SQ5 hard and park it and no smell at all.
Has yours always had the smell?

Same here. 34k miles. Noticed it at first when it was new, but that went away before 1k miles. Recently it's come back after either a long drive or aggressive driving. No oil stains in the garage and I've never needed to top off the oil.

[FLM40i]

Originally Posted by fsugatorbait2

Same here. 34k miles. Noticed it at first when it was new, but that went away before 1k miles. Recently it's come back after either a long drive or aggressive driving. No oil stains in the garage and I've never needed to top off the oil.

I agree it is more after a long or aggressive drive.

[grsd03]

Originally Posted by FLM40i

I have the same issue on my 2020 with 1600 miles. Has been like that since new. I have looked it over and find no leaks. I had the dealer check it as well and they could not find anything. It doesn't seem right to me but I don't know what else to do. I don't smell it as much when I open the hood, it seems like it comes more from the front wheel opening. I can run our SQ5 hard and park it and no smell at all.
Has yours always had the smell?

Never noticed it before because it was parked outside. Now that it's in the garage right away after driving it's definitely noticeable. Wonder what it could be?

[383vett]

Look underneath and make sure the exhaust system doesn't have a plastic bag wrapped around it.

[clivem2]

Maybe it’s why the tyres don’t last long. Burning them up!

[FLM40i]

Definitely nothing like a bag on the exhaust, have checked.
Not sure what it could be.

[clivem2]

It it were a diesel I’d say it’s the DPF regen...but it’s not.

[Frode D]

I read about this on a faccebook page yesterday. They had the heater in the ventilation go bad

[tbdbitl]

I am getting a smell in the car that is strong, but I have medical issues and cannot smell it correctly. My wife says it doesn't smell like burning oil, but she is basing that on a comparison to following an old clunker down the road. She thinks that it is Carbon Monoxide, but that has no odor.

I checked the ventilation system settings via iDrive, and the Auto setting is enabled. Not an aggressive driver - I have 2019 x3 xdrive 30i. It usually happens after coming down a hill, noticeable soon after the bottom, but happens at other places too. The car is 22 months old, and has 10K miles on it. Has not been driven much lately due to Covid,

One odd thing that occurred yesterday which is cannot think is related, was an alert about the car key status. The car was running, we had driven a few miles (no smell at the time), and had stopped at a Post Office to put some letters in the mailbox. My wife jumped out to handle it, (Right front door), and I got a message that the key was missing or defective, and the car could not be started. Can't remember for sure, but the car may not have been in Park. The car did not require starting - was either in idle or Auto Start was in effect. Drove off to another location where the same scenario occurred. We got to our destination, The car was parked and motor turned off, and later started with no problem. Key fob batteries were replaced approximately 8 months ago. (Got a message that the "Batteries were empty" at that time!

Looked over the car when I got home, underneath seemed clear, I too have no oil spots in the garage. Removed the panels next to the Hood hinges Checked under the windshield on the firewall but only a few dry leaves in there. Have looked for mouse nests or other surprises, but nothing seen.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

JWL

[FLM40i]

I have had mine back to the dealer recently and they still don’t find anything. Basically saying that is how it is. Nothing is leaking. Not much else I can do but maybe try a different dealer.

[tbdbitl]

Took my X3 in to the dealer yesterday, and got it back today with some positive response. The tech took the cover off the motor, and discovered a small leak from the oil fill cap - this could not be seen with the cover in place. The leak was coming from the seal on the fill cap being improperly seated. The leak was mostly going back, falling onto the exhaust system. When the car was driven downhill, and then perhaps stopped, the oil leak was running forward on the block and was dripping onto the Turbo. This was causing the pungent odor, as the Turbo is hotter, and as the car was slowing for the stop, the odor was picked up by the climate control system, and brought into the cabin.

The "normal" leak, since it occurred as the car was being driven, was mostly being carried back and under the car, and not into the area where it was picked up by the climate control system. I also believe that oil dripping in the exhaust was less likely to have an offensive smell.

The tech reseated the seal on the oil fill cap and then steam cleaned the oil from the engine. He test drove the car for an extended period, and could not smell anything inside the car. No oil was leaking from the cap. I drove the car home with no order noted. Hopefully this solves the problem.

As I noted in my first post - my car is an xdrive30i, while the earlier posts were m40i models so obviously the engines are not the same. However, I think there is a couple of common threads here Both engines have covers that make searching for the source of the leak difficult. I do not know for sure sure, but I would be willing to think that the design of the oil fill cap would be similar, so it might be worth the time to remove the fill cap, and check the seal on the cap to see if it is seated properly.

JWL

[FLM40i]

I have had the cover off several times with a light and looked all around and nothing. Dealer did the same but mine is an M40i

[Fast400]

Could be oil burning off around the filter area if there's been a recent oil change. Much care has to be taken to change the filter and not make a mess on the B58 engine. If it's done 'assembly line' style oil will definately spew over.

[Chitown_vroom]

I have a pretty new ‘24 m40i that seems to have this issue since the beginning (now 1k miles). There is nothing noticeable inside the cabin really but when you get out of the car after parking in the garage, a kind of odor hits you. It’s kind of faint but like an oil kind of smell, not fuel. Even my wife and kids that aren’t usually tuned to smells at all will comment on it. As I smell around I can most easily detect it near the windshield at the hood kind of slowly wafting out. It’s the winter here and I have not been driving the vehicle hard at all since it’s still within break-in.

It’s only been 1k miles but the oil still shows full. I thought maybe it was just related to the new engine but then I found this thread and it made me have doubts.

Any one else with this or thoughts on normalcy versus a defect? Based on the thread, I’m not real keen on taking it to the dealer to have them shrug at me but also want to get it documented if it’s some early stage problem.

[ContactPatch]

Originally Posted by Chitown_vroom

It’s only been 1k miles but the oil still shows full. I thought maybe it was just related to the new engine but then I found this thread and it made me have doubts.

Any one else with this or thoughts on normalcy versus a defect? Based on the thread, I’m not real keen on taking it to the dealer to have them shrug at me but also want to get it documented if it’s some early stage problem.

I had some similar odors on a new Audi a couple years ago. The odor was excess Cosmoline: a waxy petroleum based rust inhibitor that was burning/evaporating off the car. The odor lasted several thousands miles and was completely harmless. Do you have brownish waxy drips below the car near anything that gets hot: engine, exhaust, radiator, etc?

[Chitown_vroom]

Originally Posted by ContactPatch

I had some similar odors on a new Audi a couple years ago. The odor was excess Cosmoline: a waxy petroleum based rust inhibitor that was burning/evaporating off the car. The odor lasted several thousands miles and was completely harmless. Do you have brownish waxy drips below the car near anything that gets hot: engine, exhaust, radiator, etc?

Not that I have noticed so far (it’s winter and snowy so the garage floor is a crime scene of water, pebbles, and salt residue) but I’m going to be on the lookout now! If I see something definitive I will report back. My suspicion (hope maybe?) was that it related to new parts heating/wearing/burning off coatings but then again I’ve had multiple other new non-BMW vehicles and never had this smell after 1,000 miles. Thanks for taking the time to reply!

[Chitown_vroom]

Originally Posted by Chitown_vroom

Not that I have noticed so far (it’s winter and snowy so the garage floor is a crime scene of water, pebbles, and salt residue) but I’m going to be on the lookout now! If I see something definitive I will report back. My suspicion (hope maybe?) was that it related to new parts heating/wearing/burning off coatings but then again I’ve had multiple other new non-BMW vehicles and never had this smell after 1,000 miles. Thanks for taking the time to reply!

Well, the smell seems to be getting stronger. After a fairly normal city stop/go drive with no beating on the engine, I was smelling it coming into the cabin and under the hood. No drips on the floor at all.

I made an appointment with the dealer to take a look.

Unrelated but related - are they going to take issue with me coding the default drive mode to Sport Individual to avoid the auto stop/start? I can obviously revert it but wasn’t sure if I should be worried about doing it to avoid “customization”.

[bocabimmer]

They shouldn’t but who knows if they’re going to be jerks.

Could it be coolant? I’m having a burning coolant smell.

[Chitown_vroom]

Originally Posted by bocabimmer

They shouldn’t but who knows if they’re going to be jerks.

Could it be coolant? I’m having a burning coolant smell.

Coolant usually has a sweetish smell from the glycol, right? If so, I don’t think it’s coolant. It smells more like an old school mechanic shop which I equate with old/burned oil.

[peeezy]

ive noticed it mostly after or when using sport plus mode only.