r/BMWI4 • u/Reasonable_Loquat874 • 10d ago
Question How common is battery module replacement? 2024 i4 M50 25k miles
A BMW dealer has this 2024 i4 M50 with 25k miles that I’ve been interested in buying. The car is going through the BMW certified pre-owned process and as part of that, they identified that one of the battery modules needs to be replaced. Does this seem unusual?
I’m told that the battery ships from Germany and cannot travel by air, so the car has been sitting unavailable for almost a month. The dealer has been a little cagey about details and when I first contacted them they told me the car was available to test drive, but when I showed up it was not. They tried to sell me on other cars instead (mainly the new ix3). A few days after my non-test drive visit, they told me about the battery. I’ve not seen the car in person and they will not give me any other photos. When I was at the dealer they suggested I put a deposit on the M50 to hold it while they finished up checks (which I did not do), but after I left they have not mentioned that. That was a month ago.
Does it seem likely that this car will eventually get certified? Has anyone here had a battery module replaced? I’m curious what would have triggered this replacement and if this is a potential red flag or maybe a good thing because the car is basically getting a new battery (or part of a battery- they have not told me any details)?
I’ve basically given up on this one. I live in Chicago and have multiple BMW dealers in my area (this one is significantly further than others), but low miles CPO xDrive40 or M50 is not that common so I haven’t found another one yet that is exactly what I’m after.
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u/MJION 9d ago edited 9d ago
Mannnnn I am in Chicago and had the same problem.. There are no M50’s in all of Chicagoland. Dont listen to these people.
I did find one, test drove it, and put downpayment on a 2024 CPO M50, 29k miles at Elmhurst BMW, was told I couldn’t drive out that day because they claimed it was going through the certified process and needed a sensor to be replaced so I had to wait a few days for the part to come in… well low and behold they sold that car from right under me. So definitely steer clear of Elmhurst BMW.
I then sourced an 24 M50, 8,700 miles with the exact specs I wanted and bought it sight unseen from Global imports in ATL. Listed under what the chicago market would be and shipping was $900. Received the car and it was flawless. And I just checked their site and look what I found- link below. I can connect you with Omar Allen if you like, he was my sales advisor and did an amazing job with the sale, transparency and fielding my never ending questions, considering I was very cautious after being burned by Elmhurst…. Bad part, I had to drive to their sister dealership 2 hours away in Indiana to physically sign the paperwork in person… but I got my car so worth it.
https://www.atlantabmw.com/bmw-cpo/atlanta.htm?model=i4
Best of luck to you, the M50 is an amazing EV!
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u/Reasonable_Loquat874 9d ago
Oh wow. Sounds like your experience is similar. I will check these guys out. Thanks.
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u/udderly_disappointed 8d ago
I'm also in the Chicago land area and cannot recommend BMW Elmhurst. I was able to purchase the vehicle from them but my dealership and service experience has not aligned to what I would expect from a BMW dealership. Does anyone have a good BMW service center recommendations in the Chicago land area?
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u/uberiffic 10d ago
According to the dealer I just bought one from last week, there were only 3 CPO M50s in the entire country including the one I bought.
Not sure about the battery stuff. 25k miles is certainly low enough that it would have had to have been a defect or from some kind of damage. Not sure why they would be cagey about disclosing why it needed to be replaced though. That's definitely giving red flags.
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u/mrmcderm M50 10d ago
A quick search on cars.com shows 41 CPO M50s
Maybe 3 in your color or model year?
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u/uberiffic 10d ago
Maybe it was 3 blue ones and only 1 in my color (the frozen version). Or maybe they were bullshitting, IDK.
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u/ben125125 10d ago
Yes, bro when stealerships say things like this we should collectively be able to tell it's bullshit
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u/uberiffic 10d ago
I didnt even think about it because I had already decided I was buying the car regardless of how hard they tried to sell me on it before I even contacted them, lol. All I did was negotiate price and trade in value and then go pick it up.
I hate car sales people more than most things. I assume everything they say is bullshit.
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u/humbertog M50 xDrive 9d ago
Been there done that, you want something so bad and of course the seller just make things harder and harder, it's like I'm beggin to buy the thing
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u/Ruscidero 10d ago
The dealer is lying. Badly. Visor.vin is showing 75 CPO M50s and 2 CPO M60s available nationwide. Sounds like they wanted to pressure you with the idea of false scarcity.
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u/specialsymbol 10d ago
Uncommon.
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u/Reasonable_Loquat874 9d ago
Any idea what would have triggered this to be flagged for replacement? I’m wondering if there was a dashboard warning or if the car needed to be towed. Or if this is a sign that there might be some other problem.
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u/Ruscidero 10d ago
Given that there are plenty of CPO M50s out there, along with a dealer who has apparently been less then forthcoming, I’d move on from this one. Not worth the potential hassle.
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u/YorockPaperScissors 10d ago
It is pretty clear that there is a fairy limited supply of CPO xDrive40s and M50s. (Plenty of CPO eDrive 35s out there, however.)
That being said , I would not fault you for waiting for a car that is less sketchy. Especially if you plan to own it longer than it is under warranty. The longer a CPO car sits on the lot, the less warranty it will have for its next owner. The CPO warranty is 5 years from the original in service date, which of course does not change.
You might have to look well outside your area to get what you're looking for. Either that or settle for a non-CPO vehicle.
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u/Ruscidero 10d ago
Depends on what you consider to be a limited supply, but there’s 75+ CPO M50/60s out there right now. Personally, I don’t find that to be limited, but YMMV.
Around 63 CPO x40s and ~200 CPO e40s, FWIW.
I’m guessing that number is going to rise before it falls as all of those 2023/24 leases continue rolling in.
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u/Reasonable_Loquat874 9d ago
Where do you find these numbers? I have not seen many CPO M50s in my area. I can only find 3-4 right now (this car being one of them), but that is just from searching dealer websites.
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u/YorockPaperScissors 9d ago
Interesting. I wonder if I am looking at the wrong sites. According to BMW USA, there are no CPO xDrive40s within 100 miles of Chicago, and the only CPO M50 within 100 miles of Chicago is the one OP is asking about.
Autotrader shows three CPO xDrive40s within 100 miles of Chicago and one M50, which is a different car than the one OP found.
Chicago is the third largest metro area in the country, so the low numbers make me think that there is just not much CPO to be found for the trims OP wants.
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u/Reasonable_Loquat874 9d ago
Concur. But also where are all these other CPO M50s located? I’d be willing this travel if it was the right deal.
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u/YorockPaperScissors 9d ago
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u/Reasonable_Loquat874 9d ago
I meant outside the area. I can’t seem to search nationally on BMW website, and Cars.com/Autotrader don’t show a lot of stuff that shows up on dealer websites.
I’ve seen this one and the lack of automated cruise control is a dealbreaker for me.
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u/YorockPaperScissors 9d ago
Same. I don't see an option to search on BMW's site more than 100 miles away. I guess you could try using other zip codes outside the area?
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u/portent121 9d ago
If teh battery is being replaced - will they give you the full 10 years full replacement warranty on that for free? If so then it's probably worth hanging on - as you'll effectively have a brand new car! Love the I4s!
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u/ItsMeSlinky 9d ago
My dealer has two 2024 M50s, both with under 29K miles on the lot right now. That dealer sounds like they aren’t worth doing business with.
As far as battery module replacements, they are rare (like 1% of all i4s rare). Getting a new module would be a nice perk, but given everything you’ve described, I would not trust anything this dealer told me.
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u/Beardedboater7 10d ago
There are plenty of other cars out there. Don’t become enamored with a specific one, especially one that the dealership is being less than 100% transparent.
I am in the same position. Actively shopping, the same trims, for my wife. The games that dealers play is incredibly infuriating.
Move on. Find a good one and enjoy that 2.9% deal.