Car alarm randomly went off

bryanhoag · 04-23-2020, 08:20 AM

Had my stock 2013 Z4 car alarm go off last night and can't figure out why. It was parked outside not covered. It is under camera surveillance. Reviewed the footage. Nobody attempting to break in. No falling branches or debris. Can't figure out what set it off. Only thing that has been done recently is I replaced and registered a new battery... but that was about a week ago.

Any thoughts? What activities will trigger the stock alarm?

Kessler35is · 04-24-2020, 01:59 AM

I've had a flying bug trapped inside that set mine off before like that.

bryanhoag · 04-25-2020, 01:50 AM

I suppose that's a possibility.

Follow up question... Is it possible to lock the car without arming the alarm?

Kessler35is · 05-05-2020, 10:49 AM

Yes and no.

You can press the lock button 3 times quick and the security light will go solid before blinking. This lowers the security level of the system to door entry and ignition tampering only.

It should disable hood, trunk, and motion in the interior.

I know this mode works on my 2015 X5 because I had a hood sensor issue and if I just locked it normally it would set the alarm off randomly. If I locked it into this mode it wouldn't go off since it semi-disabled the system.

The light will still flash like normal after the solid red light.

bryanhoag · 07-01-2020, 06:46 PM

Follow up to my original post with a new issue/quirk.

Firstly, I found that I was able to press lock once and then press lock again within 10 seconds which resulted in the brief solid red light and a locked car with no alarm. (pressing lock 3x quickly also achieved the same result). With the first press of the lock button, the car would beep once and the doors would physically lock.

Now I am having a different result on some (but not all) occasions. The new result is that I press lock once, which results in a single beep and the doors physically locking. The second press of the lock button within 10 seconds now results in a double beep with the door locks sounding like they're trying to lock again. The sustained red light does not occur when this happens.

Any idea what's going on? I was thinking that a double beep occurred with unlocking. But, the car does not unlock when I hear the double beep in this scenario.

Any help appreciated!

04-23-2020, 08:20 AM	#1
bryanhoag Second Lieutenant 43 Rep 248 Posts Drives: 2013 Z4 sDrive 35i 6MT Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Charlotte, NC iTrader: (0)	Car alarm randomly went off Had my stock 2013 Z4 car alarm go off last night and can't figure out why. It was parked outside not covered. It is under camera surveillance. Reviewed the footage. Nobody attempting to break in. No falling branches or debris. Can't figure out what set it off. Only thing that has been done recently is I replaced and registered a new battery... but that was about a week ago. Any thoughts? What activities will trigger the stock alarm?
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04-24-2020, 01:59 AM	#2
Kessler35is Second Lieutenant 48 Rep 247 Posts Drives: 2015 F15 50i, 2016 E89 35is Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Tupelo, MS. iTrader: (0) Garage List 2016 Z4 35is [0.00] 2015 X5 50i [0.00]	I've had a flying bug trapped inside that set mine off before like that.
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04-25-2020, 01:50 AM	#3
bryanhoag Second Lieutenant 43 Rep 248 Posts Drives: 2013 Z4 sDrive 35i 6MT Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Charlotte, NC iTrader: (0)	I suppose that's a possibility. Follow up question... Is it possible to lock the car without arming the alarm?
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05-05-2020, 10:49 AM	#4
Kessler35is Second Lieutenant 48 Rep 247 Posts Drives: 2015 F15 50i, 2016 E89 35is Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Tupelo, MS. iTrader: (0) Garage List 2016 Z4 35is [0.00] 2015 X5 50i [0.00]	Yes and no. You can press the lock button 3 times quick and the security light will go solid before blinking. This lowers the security level of the system to door entry and ignition tampering only. It should disable hood, trunk, and motion in the interior. I know this mode works on my 2015 X5 because I had a hood sensor issue and if I just locked it normally it would set the alarm off randomly. If I locked it into this mode it wouldn't go off since it semi-disabled the system. The light will still flash like normal after the solid red light.
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07-01-2020, 06:46 PM	#5
bryanhoag Second Lieutenant 43 Rep 248 Posts Drives: 2013 Z4 sDrive 35i 6MT Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Charlotte, NC iTrader: (0)	Follow up to my original post with a new issue/quirk. Firstly, I found that I was able to press lock once and then press lock again within 10 seconds which resulted in the brief solid red light and a locked car with no alarm. (pressing lock 3x quickly also achieved the same result). With the first press of the lock button, the car would beep once and the doors would physically lock. Now I am having a different result on some (but not all) occasions. The new result is that I press lock once, which results in a single beep and the doors physically locking. The second press of the lock button within 10 seconds now results in a double beep with the door locks sounding like they're trying to lock again. The sustained red light does not occur when this happens. Any idea what's going on? I was thinking that a double beep occurred with unlocking. But, the car does not unlock when I hear the double beep in this scenario. Any help appreciated!
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