[LineBacker]

I guess my friend is right. Never buy a first year production model. Too many teething problems with software and the likes. In no particular order... and thank goodness for warranty.

1. Car refused to unlock / lock. Only way to unlock was using the connected app. Car would not start. Both keys defunct. BMW Assist called out but no joy. Car lifted / towed away from drive by BMW.
Solution: Ring antenna replaced, receiver replaced and, two new keys registered to the car.

2. Bass Cut Issue on Harman Kardon. Randomly bass would disappear from music.
Solution: PUMA for this. RAM Booster Replaced.

3. Virtual / Live Cockpit went blank driving. Would sometimes flicker. Intermittently turn on / off.
Solution: Software Update.

4. Auto-hold stuck on.
Solution: Switch / Control Panel Replaced.

5. Apple Car Play. Music would skip, stop and, fast forward by itself.
Solution: Software Update.

6. Mirrors would not fold despite option being selected to fold on lock. Eventually the mirror stopped unfolding.
Solution: Driver mirror motor replaced.

7. Active Grill stopped working.
Solution: Grill motor(s) replaced.

8. High-beam assist not activated above 40 mph on laser lights.
Solution: Software update.

9. Parking Assist Failure.
Solution: Park Assist Module replaced.

10. Cruise Control stopped working.
Solution: Software Update

After a year of bawl ache. I have decided to ditch the G20 and head back to a 4 Gran Coupe. A 440i to be precise. It's tried and tested tech. My initial worries were that the something might happen such as the iDrive being stolen or the steering being taken in the dead of the night but it's a risk worth taking.

I remember a lot of stuff on how to work on the F3X platform when New Tis Info was open source. I had an F30 and F32. Then an F32 and F36. So I know about some of the issues and how to work on the cars, code them etc.

The G20 is a great looker in my view, a pretty sweet ride in terms of improved handling but it is not a massive step forward. I guess it will be like marmite to some.

I drew the line when I could not unlock/start my own car and think if it had been an emergency... well thankfully, I have a Mercedes E400d to fall back on.

I think I will wait for the issues to be ironed out... once all the G20 issues are known/addressed then I may venture back into it.

This thread is for awareness. I am not claiming "watch out" or "don't buy" and may be it was a Friday afternoon car in my case. In total it spent more than 33 days off the road and in the service bay. It worked out as roughly a visit a month and I got to know the Technician on a name basis.

[nil98]

Wow it seems you have had a lemon! I've been living with a G21 340i and had very few issues so far, mostly trivial (or user error), so not bothered to to get the car in to have anything looked at.

[Keith_C]

Obviously just one of those cars, mine was an early production run and not had one problem in over 10,000 miles.

[xenon]

Sorry to hear of your troubles but I guess it’s possible, given volume, to find similar stories regarding any manufacturer and any model. Generally all the BMW I have had were reliable but the F31 was so horrendous in terms of NVH, it was with a bit of trepidation that I ordered my G21.

[LineBacker]

To it’s credit NVH was not an issue. The acoustic glass works well. The sports gear thud was pleasant rather than a jolt. Nothing rattled in the interior. The cabin was well soundproofed other than the artificial engine notes being played in the speakers. Agreed it was a lemon of biblical proportions. What’s lemon car in German? Zitronenauto.

[TTG]

Mine is a July 2019 production and it has been 100% trouble free so far for 15K miles.

As much as the car, it can possibly be your dealer as well continuing to mess things up.

I think these days with quality controls in place, 1st year production myth is quite over. One can always get a bad car but I would not avoid a vehicle just bec when it was produced.

We still own a 2002 Mini Cooper S which clearly as the very 1st year of Mini. It has ben 100% trouble free, I also owned a 2007 E92 335 which was a great car as well.

I think, you might have a lemon but glad to hear, you found a way out of it.

[LineBacker]

That’s a good point on the dealer messing things up. No doubt the techs have had training but it’s new to them in a way. Everything was going back and forth to Germany. So it took longer. Of course HQ would be interested in problems with their newest model. The procedures for service are new too and slightly more expensive. Apparently the oil change is a bit like Mercedes where the oil is sucked out of the engine/drained. It’s a shame. I think it would make a cracking motor if it weren’t for the issues. As said I will hold for the LCi and if it’s not beaver like then I might attempt it again.

[LineBacker]

Originally Posted by TTG

Mine is a July 2019 production and it has been 100% trouble free so far for 15K miles.

As much as the car, it can possibly be your dealer as well continuing to mess things up.

I think these days with quality controls in place, 1st year production myth is quite over. One can always get a bad car but I would not avoid a vehicle just bec when it was produced.

We still own a 2002 Mini Cooper S which clearly as the very 1st year of Mini. It has ben 100% trouble free, I also owned a 2007 E92 335 which was a great car as well.

I think, you might have a lemon but glad to hear, you found a way out of it.

My E92 335 days. Gosh. The water pump. Then the waste gate. Then the HPFP. Then the ABS pump. Other than that it was pretty good. It’s not a bad engine at all. The ancillaries tend to fail rather than the engine.

[themnmd]

2020 M340 since August 2019. Only a few niggles. Worst issue was side mirrors , fixed with software update

[nil98]

May all your problems be little ones! My biggest issue in the G21 is the 12V socket isnt live so I cant run my dashcam.

One month in and just loving it tbh. Almost got the hang of all the gadgets and software. Just need a dry day to test out the launch control

Totally disabled CarPlay now and life is settling down. THat thing was a nice idea but totally takes over the dash. Hated it.

regards
Neil

[ramparts]

That's a lot for one car to have wrong. What was your build date ?

[SemtexGT]

Out of all of these, I can only say the bass cut out happened to me twice and I have 12k miles on the car. Hope you got all the little gremlins out of it!

[NthKent]

Faults (and observations) with my M340i...

1) Squeaking / creaking sunroof
2) Apple CarPlay maps (both Apple and Google) and WhatsApp don’t work - most of the map displays just show small grid lines with no map detail and WhatsApp doesn’t show messages
3) Annoying notification after every startup saying an app is available for an iPod Touch (which actually is NOT available in the App Store) - why does BMW assume people don’t just want to leave iPods permanently plugged in under the front armrest?
4) Misaligned steering wheel (sorted in under ten minutes by local independent garage adjusting the tie rods) - I knew it would be pointless asking the fitters (rather than proper mechanics) BMW dealers employ as they would doubtless have said it couldn’t be done because of all the driver assistance system nonsense. Needless to say, adjustments were done, wheel was straightened, car still tracks dead straight (ties rods wouldn’t affect that anyway) and no warning lights about Lane Assistance (not that I ever have any such systems switched on anyway!)
5) Harman Kardon Surround Sound is much more hollow and boomy sounding than the H-K system I had in my 2018 440i Coupe
6) Sport program for transmission has seemingly been recalibrated and seems to “hang onto gears” (more than same gearbox in my old 440i) and produce silly mock “heel and toe” manual gearbox downchange sounds (again, same setting in my 440i didn’t produce the same theatrics)
7) Cerium Grey is two different colours on the mirror housings and wheels which seems very strange

After a completely trouble free time with my 2018 440i, I am a bit disappointed with the M340i.

[danorman777]

Item 2 is because your phone is logging onto the car's wifi hotspot and hence doesn't have any data to show the maps etc.

Make sure internet check box is unticked in the car settings. If it is then delete and reinstall your phone. The clue is on the carplay screen do you see a wifi symbol or 3G/4G. Wifi symbol means it is using the car's hotspot.

[NthKent]

Originally Posted by danorman777

Item 2 is because your phone is logging onto the car's wifi hotspot and hence doesn't have any data to show the maps etc.

Make sure internet check box is unticked in the car settings. If it is then delete and reinstall your phone. The clue is on the carplay screen do you see a wifi symbol or 3G/4G. Wifi symbol means it is using the car's hotspot.

Thanks very much. After reading this thread AND others (X5 forum) I tried again but this time, before deleting then re-pairing from scratch, I had first changed my iPhone X’s name under Settings - General - About from “Steve’s iPhone X” to “iPhone X”, after which everything worked! The maps are now working and the CarPlay display shows signal strength and 4G (NOT the WiFi symbol). BMW really need to explain these procedures and what is needed in FAR more detail for lay people like me!

Clearly the way the connected device is labelled on the iPhone’s “Settings - About” menu is crucial and the car really only likes devices to be described in very generic terms i.e. “iPhone X” rather than trying to show who’s phone it is!

[danorman777]

Glad it helped, it was driving me batty. I have to repair it once again since as it happened again. I changed my phone name but kept my name in it as it is useful for some other bits I do.

[NthKent]

Originally Posted by danorman777

Glad it helped, it was driving me batty. I have to repair it once again since as it happened again. I changed my phone name but kept my name in it as it is useful for some other bits I do.

The trouble with IT developers is that they always expect end users to have far more basic knowledge about what, of course, seems obvious to those who developed the software but really really isn’t in the real world!

[B6WAF]

1) Squeaking / creaking sunroof


Hi NthKent - did you manage to get your sunroof fixed and if so was it an easy fix ? That's just about the only complaint I've got with my M340i after 17 months, and I've got a walk-in appointment this Thursday for them to look at it. No doubt they will say I need to take it back another time and leave it for 2 days !

[Charlie (Wessex)]

Not had any of those problems.

In the past, I had no problems with the supposedly problematic e60/61 and plenty of problems with the supposedly trouble free e39.

[marksandygill]

Think I'm on maybe 14 new BMWs now and the only issue I've ever had was on a G20, windows stopped working and the mirrors wouldn't retract! Good fun trying to get a ticket at a car park barrier...

Started working again before I got it to a dealer!

[TikiTourer]

Originally Posted by marksandygill

Think I'm on maybe 14 new BMWs now and the only issue I've ever had was on a G20, windows stopped working and the mirrors wouldn't retract! Good fun trying to get a ticket at a car park barrier...

Started working again before I got it to a dealer!

List of problems with my M340i after 26000km = zero.
I have had a few BMWs since my first E46 in Jan 1999. The only one that has had problems was my 2007 E90 335i. Brake squeak when moving off after being at a stop, and an I-Drive problem with the Navi GPS thinking it was 300km away from where the car was. That was easily fixed, the brake squeak need I think 4 service visits.
Since then a 2012 335i, a 2015 428i GC, a 2017 335i and now a 2020 M340i. And my wife is on to her 5th 1 series since 2005..none have had any issues.
Maybe we are just lucky...and I do sympathize with those that have had far too many problems.

[marksandygill]

Originally Posted by TikiTourer

List of problems with my M340i after 26000km = zero.
I have had a few BMWs since my first E46 in Jan 1999. The only one that has had problems was my 2007 E90 335i. Brake squeak when moving off after being at a stop, and an I-Drive problem with the Navi GPS thinking it was 300km away from where the car was. That was easily fixed, the brake squeak need I think 4 service visits.
Since then a 2012 335i, a 2015 428i GC, a 2017 335i and now a 2020 M340i. And my wife is on to her 5th 1 series since 2005..none have had any issues.
Maybe we are just lucky...and I do sympathize with those that have had far too many problems.

A couple of years ago I was looking at getting an i30n so I joined the n-cars forum, the amount of general problems they had was just ridiculous!

No cars are perfect but in general it's not just a case of paying for the badge with BMWs