530e Brakes

jmatero · 10-12-2018, 12:00 PM

I've owned 4 hybrids and 2 EVs (including the i3) so I'm familiar with regen braking and blended braking. However, the brake behavior in my new 530e is so bad it's making me hate the car. There seems to be no way to get the car to slow to a stop without constant minute adjustments to the pedal. And the stop itself is ALWAYS a hard clamp down as though at the very last second you've mashed the pedal. I've been driving the car now for 3 months and have yet to adapt to this. In any other car I've owned, steady pressure on the pedal results in a gradual stop. In the 530e, I press steadily and sometimes the car will continue on as though I'm not pressing. Other times the pedal pressure will drop under my foot so it's never consistent. Drove with the dealer service manager and he felt it too but said "Personally I find it annoying but they all do it... these cars have huge brakes" LOL. I find it impossible to accept that this is normal operating behavior. Is anyone else experiencing this? If you did were you able to get it resolved?

Pierre Louis · 10-13-2018, 02:56 PM

This reminds me when a neurosurgeon friend of mine described his experience with a self-driving car: "drives like a beginner teenager"

--HAL 9000: "I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that" is also in our future-- ha ha.

PL

bananas2 · 10-13-2018, 05:15 PM

Same issue. No idea how I didn't notice it on my test drive. I've learned to use the adaptive cruise control as much as possible. It stops way smoother than I can ever hope to with this car.

530iDriver · 10-14-2018, 08:27 PM

That's alarming, isn't it?

vanilepuding · 10-15-2018, 12:17 PM

Sounds to me that your auto hold function is on , try turning that off.

enigma01 · 10-15-2018, 08:15 PM

This is what happens when you have a brake by wire. I test drove ICE versions (i.e. 540i) which also didn't feel fully natural and progressive.

The 530e also has an auxiliary vacuum pump which is activated at or below 5MPH, which may be contributing to the variation in stopping power and pedal travel.

Since my 530e is still breaking in, I have been babying the brake to notice it yet.

10-12-2018, 12:00 PM	#1
jmatero Private First Class 41 Rep 124 Posts Drives: 2024 iX xDrive50 Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: San Jose, CA iTrader: (0) Garage List 2024 BMW iX xDRIVE50 [0.00]	530e Brakes - hard to modulate, hard stops. I've owned 4 hybrids and 2 EVs (including the i3) so I'm familiar with regen braking and blended braking. However, the brake behavior in my new 530e is so bad it's making me hate the car. There seems to be no way to get the car to slow to a stop without constant minute adjustments to the pedal. And the stop itself is ALWAYS a hard clamp down as though at the very last second you've mashed the pedal. I've been driving the car now for 3 months and have yet to adapt to this. In any other car I've owned, steady pressure on the pedal results in a gradual stop. In the 530e, I press steadily and sometimes the car will continue on as though I'm not pressing. Other times the pedal pressure will drop under my foot so it's never consistent. Drove with the dealer service manager and he felt it too but said "Personally I find it annoying but they all do it... these cars have huge brakes" LOL. I find it impossible to accept that this is normal operating behavior. Is anyone else experiencing this? If you did were you able to get it resolved?
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10-13-2018, 02:56 PM	#2
Pierre Louis Captain 158 Rep 866 Posts Drives: 2016 535d Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Savannah GA iTrader: (0)	This reminds me when a neurosurgeon friend of mine described his experience with a self-driving car: "drives like a beginner teenager" --HAL 9000: "I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that" is also in our future-- ha ha. PL
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10-13-2018, 05:15 PM	#3
bananas2 Enlisted Member 7 Rep 33 Posts Drives: 530e Join Date: May 2018 Location: CA iTrader: (0)	Same issue. No idea how I didn't notice it on my test drive. I've learned to use the adaptive cruise control as much as possible. It stops way smoother than I can ever hope to with this car.
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10-14-2018, 08:27 PM	#4
530iDriver Colonel 1708 Rep 2,539 Posts Drives: 2017 BMW 530i Join Date: May 2018 Location: Florida iTrader: (0)	That's alarming, isn't it? __________________ 2017 BMW 530i, Sport Line,Alpine White, Canberra Beige Sensatec, 19 inch V-Spoke wheels, basic plain Jane build with no options whatsoever..... "Less is more". Before: 2011 BMW 328i E90 sedan, Platinum Bronze Metallic, Dakota Brown leather, 17 inch wheels, 6-speed auto, N52 6 Cyl inline N/A goodness....
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10-15-2018, 12:17 PM	#5
vanilepuding Enlisted Member 15 Rep 40 Posts Drives: bmw 530e Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: belgium iTrader: (0)	Sounds to me that your auto hold function is on , try turning that off.
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10-15-2018, 08:15 PM	#6
enigma01 Fight On! 109 Rep 325 Posts Drives: e92 M3; g30 530e Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Rancho Santa Fe iTrader: (0)	This is what happens when you have a brake by wire. I test drove ICE versions (i.e. 540i) which also didn't feel fully natural and progressive. The 530e also has an auxiliary vacuum pump which is activated at or below 5MPH, which may be contributing to the variation in stopping power and pedal travel. Since my 530e is still breaking in, I have been babying the brake to notice it yet.
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