[Orionshooter]

My check engine light on the dash just came on. However, there is no indication of a fault, warning or malfunction on the vehicle status screen.
The check engine light is a steady orange.

Vehicle is a 2020 X7M 50 I

Any ideas?

[Chi6488]

Scanner might help or pay dealer

[Orionshooter]

Originally Posted by Chi6488

Scanner might help or pay dealer

I guess what I should have asked for was an explanation as to why it would come on and NOT give me any information on my status screen. Isnt that what the status screen is for?

[Japseroony]

Has the car had a software update at all? If yes there is an issue and you may need to pop into a dealership.

[Orionshooter]

Originally Posted by Japseroony

Has the car had a software update at all? If yes there is an issue and you may need to pop into a dealership.

Thanks Jasper - no recent updates made. Last week, when I checked on updates, the system told me none were available.

This check engine light wouldn’t bother me so much except for the fact warranty appointments are at least three weeks out at my dealership.

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by Orionshooter

I guess what I should have asked for was an explanation as to why it would come on and NOT give me any information on my status screen. Isnt that what the status screen is for?

The Check Engine light is not associated with the VEHICLE STATUS (aka check control system).

The CEL light is associated with the vehicles EMISSIONS system which was a federal protocol that started in 1996. There should be a paragraph about the CEL in your owners manual.

The OBDII mandate is for a common standard for emissions and storage and retrieval of the codes set by the various sensors associated with emissions across all car manufacturers.

The info from your vehicles check control system is BMW system related.

If you have a generic OBD II scanner/reader…you can connect it to the OBD II port in your footwell to retrieve the codes that were set. If you don’t have an OBD II scanner/reader…most automotive stores will read the codes for free. You can then take the 5 digit DTC (diagnostic trouble code) and google it to see what has been posted about it since 1996. Or if you’re still under warranty, you can stop by your local BMW dealership and have them pull the codes.

[Orionshooter]

Wow thanks for all that info qsilver. As luck would have it, check engine light went off this morning. No rhyme or reason - just disappeared and I didn’t do anything - not even checking the gas cap.

[Qsilver7]

Thankfully the light turned off…which means that during your drive cycles…twice the sensor did not detect the same fault. This will cause the light to go off. But if you have an OBD scanner/reader…you can still pull the code that was set. OBD II codes don’t get erased right away. It takes multiple drive cycles before they get erased.

[themama]

Check engine could come ON if the gas cap hasn't been tightened properly after refueling.
It could be a small fix too. However, yeah to get what that code is, you will need obd reader. Even if the light is off, you can still read the stored inactive code until certain point.

[Orionshooter]

Thanks gentleman for all the sound advice. I’ll report back once I get OBD results.

[Wmoyx7]

It could be the flaps in the grille. Happens on my wife X3 M40i