Results 1 to 22 of 22

Thread: Odometer changed after battery change- Help!

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Location
    Delaware , USA
    Posts
    11
    My Cars
    2004 325xi ,'02 Ford F150 Supercrew

    Odometer changed after battery change- Help!

    I installed a new battery in my 2004 325xi and everything works Ok but the odometer changed from 83,000 to 49750!
    Has anyone ever seen this problem? Is this normal or is this some kind of freak thing? Is this a dealer only fix? Any help is appreciated!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Near Vancouver,BC
    Posts
    726
    My Cars
    2005 325ci cabrio 5spd
    and....this is a problem? LOL. (freak thing, I would think,...in fact I would go further and consider it a gift from the car angels above)

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Location
    Delaware , USA
    Posts
    11
    My Cars
    2004 325xi ,'02 Ford F150 Supercrew
    It is a problem since the state dmv keeps mileage records and future inspections or a sale will reveal the lower(wrong) mileage!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Dallas, TX
    Posts
    21
    My Cars
    1989 325i
    Quote Originally Posted by ix53204 View Post
    It is a problem since the state dmv keeps mileage records and future inspections or a sale will reveal the lower(wrong) mileage!
    I would think the solution would be glaringly obvious to anyone who's seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Tenn-uh-C
    Posts
    5,954
    My Cars
    ///Sedan Powered.
    Odo glitches have happened before. Try taking the battery loose before bed and reconnecting it in the morning. It might not read correct immediately, but could correct itself within a day.
    Smell that? ......German leather and palm sweat.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    Longwood, FL
    Posts
    5,884
    My Cars
    '93 E30, '01 E46 Mtec I
    are you sure it's displaying miles?
    IF MY CAPS OFFEND YOU, BLOCK ME.
    AND IF YOU NOTICE THE FIRST LETTER OF EACH WORD CAP'ED...... IT'S DONE AUTOMATICALLY BY THE FORUM BECAUSE I TYPE IN ALL CAPS.BUT IT DOESN'T ALWAYS DO THIS, LIKE WHEN I QUOTE OTHER POSTS.AND IF YOU DON'T LIKE THAT, REFER TO FIRST SENTENCE IN MY SIG.







  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Halifax
    Posts
    760
    My Cars
    1996 318IS
    Resale value just went up. $$$

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Near Vancouver,BC
    Posts
    726
    My Cars
    2005 325ci cabrio 5spd
    immediately take it to another state & sell?.... ...or doesn't it work that way in the USA?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Minneapolis
    Posts
    1,614
    My Cars
    Focus 1.0 liter & 318ti
    Does the car have (or did it ever have) the mileage/tamper dot as seen see here?

    http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=429697

    or here

    http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=546646

    I bought an E36 once with the "tamper" dot. For the E36 at least, there's a way to reset the system so it displays the true mileage. I did that and the mileage reset to a different value and the dot went away.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    North Jersey
    Posts
    5,151
    My Cars
    96 M3
    Quote Originally Posted by CirrusSR22 View Post
    I did that and the mileage reset to a different value and the dot went away.
    what mileage did u buy it at? what did it go to?

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Minneapolis
    Posts
    1,614
    My Cars
    Focus 1.0 liter & 318ti
    Quote Originally Posted by N05 View Post
    what mileage did u buy it at? what did it go to?
    I'm trying to remember.... I'm thinking it was about about 151,000 miles and after the reset it went up to roughly 154,000. Not a big change, but it was nice to resolve that dot.

    I bought the car with a bad head gasket but a nice body and interior for $1,400, so I wasn't too concerned about the dot. I ended-up with a really nice 97 318ti for under $2,000.
    Last edited by CirrusSR22; 03-06-2011 at 11:13 PM.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    North Jersey
    Posts
    5,151
    My Cars
    96 M3
    Quote Originally Posted by CirrusSR22 View Post
    I'm trying to remember.... I'm thinking it was about about 151,000 miles and after the reset it went up to roughly 154,000. Not a big change, but it was nice to resolve that dot.

    I bought the car with a bad head gasket but a nice body and interior for $1,300, so I wasn't too concerned about the dot.
    ohh okay well thats not bad then
    sounds like a pretty good deal though

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Location
    Delaware , USA
    Posts
    11
    My Cars
    2004 325xi ,'02 Ford F150 Supercrew
    I took my 325xi back to the dealer. They ran diagnostics on the car and the cluster failed the test. They don't know where the 49751 figure comes from when you disconnect the battery (it does it every time).
    Bottom line: Car is out of warrenty. Dealer says this is not covered by any known defects. Fix is to replace the cluster to the tune of $1016.00. So I paid my $115.50 diag. charge and left.

    Delaware DMV says : no big deal! Just keep track of approximite mileage and report same on sellers sheet at sale time.

    Odometer reads 49850 and counting! By the way, my key has the correct 83311 mileage stored in it, according to the dealer!

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Near Vancouver,BC
    Posts
    726
    My Cars
    2005 325ci cabrio 5spd
    Learned s-thing. Didn't know a keyfob stores odometer reading. (I suppose if one got a new, replacement key, it would have to be keyed to correct current odometer reading vs starting @ zero.)

  15. #15
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    Charleston, SC
    Posts
    1,330
    My Cars
    '15 I01Rex , '11F25
    The diamond shape keys pick up mileage after being in the ignition in about 10mins or 10 miles of driving. I would also be careful about cheap obd2 scanners as we're starting to see cluster failures after attempts to scan the vehicles. The mileage is store in two places depending on the age and version of ews: the cluster and the light control module, any chance the light control module was replaced, or did you have an after market scan tool used?

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Miami, FL
    Posts
    154
    My Cars
    IS250
    Consider it a gift.. I'm going to go swap batteries on my bmw this evening and see if I get such luck, lol..

    Go trade it in..

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Va Beach, VA
    Posts
    338
    My Cars
    '04M3/'Vert/6mt/Cinn/Whi
    Most states' DMV require the last known mileage and date be engraved next to the VIN tag. Could even be a Federal mandate.

    Before changing battery, the installer should jumper another battery at the remote terminals in the engine compartment to prevent erasing of the memory of all items in the car.

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Michigan
    Posts
    13,674
    My Cars
    2005 325Xi
    Quote Originally Posted by Everett#2390 View Post
    Most states' DMV require the last known mileage and date be engraved next to the VIN tag. Could even be a Federal mandate.

    ....
    Wai.. wha .. ???

    The mileage engraved in the dash? You just made that up, didn't you?

    How often does it need to be engraved? Once a year? Every time the car is sold? Just before the battery is disconnected? What if you sell the car and don't have an engraving tool?
    Quote Originally Posted by B4SH View Post
    If anyone knows, it's this guy who knows literally nothing about everything.
    Quote Originally Posted by fcvapor05 View Post
    Do you even OT? The mean 401k around here is probably about $6, what with all the shiny cars and $1,000 watches and donations to get other members' Volvos running.


  19. #19
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Newark
    Posts
    70
    My Cars
    2005 BMW X3
    That's illegal in NJ to tamper with the milage, If you didn't do it don't worry lol. OH well, it is not a bad thing it happened right? ;o

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Lawrenceville, GA
    Posts
    4,329
    My Cars
    VW TDI and Dodge Dart
    Intentionally tampering with the mileage is against the law, having the odometer break isn't. In Georgia, it would simply be titled with an "Odometer Discrepancy" note.

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Minneapolis, MN
    Posts
    633
    My Cars
    Yes
    Quote Originally Posted by robmpulse View Post
    are you sure it's displaying miles?
    If it were km, it would be higher, not lower.

    Quote Originally Posted by Matt Cramer View Post
    Intentionally tampering with the mileage is against the law, having the odometer break isn't. In Georgia, it would simply be titled with an "Odometer Discrepancy" note.
    That's the case for MN too.

  22. #22
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    Peoria Il
    Posts
    3
    My Cars
    2005 525i
    2004 bmw 525i battery died and jumped it and now odometer reads 30,000 miles more? How the heck did this happen?

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •