BMW vehicles are one of the German leading car brands in luxury, comfort, style, and performance. But, even your sleek, glorified X5 or the 3 series could experience some problems but will give you a sign of what the problem is and how to fix it.
The issue here is, how do you identify these heads-up so that you can take the immediate, needed measures of repair or maintenance to keep the vehicle in a perfect health state?
As the case may be, it could be that a triangle with an exclamation mark has remained on the dashboard. I bet you must have checked service info on the iDrive, checked the tire pressures, or even read the manual, but it doesn’t state anything about that particular icon, and you don’t still feel anything is wrong.
So why does the icon keeps popping up? Let’s find out!
What does a BMW triangle with an exclamation point mean?
In short, Just as your instinct must have told you, the triangle with an “!” in it means there is a problem that needs to be checked.
Generally speaking, the icon is simply an “alert signal” of the vehicle for all sorts of notifications, which may show that the gas is running low, tires are too common, the tire pressure monitor needs to be reset, or any other vehicle faults.
The triangle with an “!” on your dashboard is a call for Check Control, which could mean many different issues messages, so you will have to access it to know the exact problem.
I personally recommended investing in a BMW OBD2 scanner which will help you quickly and easily diagnose and clear fault codes, saving you time and money on trips to the mechanic.
How do you check the BMW Control message?
As mentioned earlier, the check control system is part of the vehicle electronics that monitors almost all the vehicle’s functions. If there is a vehicle problem, you will likely see the triangle icon with an exclamation mark in it.
So how do you detect the exact message to take necessary actions? Follow these three steps: P.S: The little lever on the turn signal stalk is
BUTTON 1, while that button positioned on the end of the stalk is BUTTON 2
Step 1:
You want to make sure the correct symbol in question appears in the display. So, flick the button either upward or downward continuously until you see the icon, which will come with Check Control.
Step 2:
Press button 2 to see the Check Control message prompting the triangle icon to display all this while. It will come with a text message on the Control Display on what the problem is. If there are no check control messages, what will appear is “Check Ok.”
Step 3:
Now that you see the problem, take the needed action, which might be to go service. If there are no control messages, push button 1 to check for other messages.
What are the possible causes of the triangle with an exclamation point?
Traction control system:
The icon could mean that there is a fault within this control system, which means that at that moment, it is not operating as it should.
This happens, especially when we unknowingly switch it off. So by turning it on back, the blinking exclamation mark in a triangle could stop.
If this is happening while driving, you want to make sure you are driving with much caution, given that there is no traction control at the time.
Service date or miles alarm:
The message behind the icon could also be interpreted as an alarm to the service date or mileage covered. In other words, it may mean that the ideal service date for something has been passed.
Other causes:
The two possibilities above, or any other problem that must have caused the icon you are seeing, can only be detected when you access the check control message to know exactly what the problem is.
It may not be any of these because I remember a time I had this on mine, and after checking, I realized it was just because I had not set the clock.
Full list of BMW warning lights
BMW dash warning lights are grouped into red, yellow, green, and blue lights, among other symbols and indicators.
The red dash warning lights give messages on the safety belt, braking system, parking brake, seat belt, and rear safety belt. In contrast, yellow lights indicates a problem with the engine, steering system, tire pressure, and dynamic stability.
BMW blue dash lights are usually about high beams, fog lights, lane departure, low beams, parking lights, or even turn signals.
In Summary
Warning lights and indicators are to tell you about vehicle problems that demand need immediate attention. There are multiple BMW dash warning lights, and the exclamation mark in a triangle is one of them.
However, this particular icon can be an indicator of different kinds of problems associated with vehicle functionality.
So far, we have seen what the triangle with an exclamation mark icon means in the BMW dashboard, how to detect the problem the sign is trying to indicate, and what to do next. Further questions? I’ll be in the comments.
