My BMW X3 fob has stopped working to open/lock doors but the engine starts. Fob batteries are fine. What should I do next?

10

Asked by Kokodachic Mar 12, 2017 at 07:32 PM about the 2012 BMW X3

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

The Fob for my BMW X3 has stopped working however if I hold the fob to the
steering column the engine will start. This has started since I had my car
serviced.  The service centre say's it is the battery and that needs replacing,
however, I'd like to know why there is enough power in the battery to get the
car started but not enough for my fob to work. Over to you and thanks in
advance..

5 Answers

90

Place your car key on a wireless toothbrush charger overnight. The key can be charged with an inductive coil charger. I charged my key fob after it started acting funny now it works great! Cheaper then buying a new key for 230 bucks.

9 people found this helpful.
30

This just happened to me. Your fob needs a new battery. The generic ones do not last very long so I recommend Energizer or Duracell. They are sold at Walgreens. You can battery replacement on YouTube if you have never had to do this before. Your key can pop the plastic plate on the fob. -Elizabeth

3 people found this helpful.
30

Oh, btw - BMW does not want you stranded, so the fob will work for a little while longer so that you have time to change the battery.

50

Hey I have a 2014 X3 so I had to replace the physical battery. I put in a new CR2450 but I’m still getting the error message :( please help thanks!

5 people found this helpful.

I'm having the same issue now, the batteries came in 2 packs, so I replaced both, the "spare" doesn't work as a remote anymore, there was some corrosion on the circuit board, maybe the transmitter is damaged. Did you get yours tovwork?

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