Here’s why Your BMW Launch Control is not working

BMW consists of many features to give many advantages to the passengers. One of such feature is launch control. Many BMW car owners accepted that this feature gives an experience of satisfaction. But sometimes this feature in BMW stops working. If you are a BMW car owner, then you must know the reason why launch control stop working.

Launch control

The launch control is a feature which allows the drivers to accelerate from stationary while starting. It is available in both street and racing cars. Mainly BMW M series have this feature. This feature enables the driver to reach a required speed in a very less time. So the launch control is highly useful in car racing. In racing cars, the launch control makes the car to reach a required speed for race in a very less time. The operation of launch control is electrical, not mechanical, so to operate, the launch control uses electric accelerator and software installed in car computer. Control of acceleration based on engine specifications and smooth, fast acceleration is possible with the help of the software. When launch control is used, your dashboard will show a sign of a flag on it.

High power delivery to the gearbox makes the car to accelerate faster.

There are some conditions enabling launch control - the road should be perfectly flat, your foot should not be on the brake, the RPM should be more, your car shouldn’t move slightly.

Launch control can be useful in some cases but its repeated use can be very much harmful too. Repeated use of launch control can damage the most essential components of your car, I.e., engine, gearbox, clutch and drive train. To protect such essential parts from wear and tear it is recommended to all BMW owners to use launch control only 50 times or less. After using launch control 50 times, if you again try to enable it, it will damage the engine and gear box severely and you will have to spend much money repairing them.

If you want to use the launch control, then you have to follow the instruction-

a. Completely stop your car while you are driving and then use the shifting lever to enter manual mode of transmission.

b. Select drive logic 3 by using the arrows on gearshift.

c. The button of the center console is pressed for 4 seconds to turn off the DSG.

d. Then the brake pedal is to be pressed and then the gas pedal firmly.

e. You will notice a message on instrument cluster. The message will say ‘launch control ready’ or ‘preparing launch control’. You have to wait until this message pops up.

f. The brake pedal is then to be released so that launch control can be enabled.

Reasons for launch control to stop working

1. Throttle pedal not fully pressed - a foot on your throttle pedal makes it slightly pressed, launch control cannot be used as well as it is bad for your gearbox too.
2. DSG is on
3. Foot on the brakes - foot on the brakes make the RPM low and LC cannot be enabled.
4. 1200 mile service is not done
5. Gear shift is not placed forward
6. You have driven your car for less than 6 miles
7. Clutch not engaged
8. RPM will be 3000 miles or more
9. Car must be warm
10. Active fault codes on engine

What to do?

Before enabling the launch control, please make sure that your car is warmed up well and you must have to drive minimum 6 miles to make the launch control work. Gear should be shifted forward. Press the throttle pedal fully. Your brakes should be released fully, avoid putting foot on brake if you are about to enable launch control. Clutch should be properly engaged. Press the accelerator pedal. Try to enable launch control by the above given steps. If still you are not able to use the launch control, then there must be some active fault codes on your engine. Use a diagnostic code scanner to read the codes and also reset the codes. The shifter must be at S3. Some cars have a specific button to enable launch control, so in these cars you do not need to have a procedure to do that.

Conclusion

Use of launch control feature rarely when needed will be good for your car. Launch control works best if the tires are warm and have best traction to the road. Launch control cannot be enabled if there are faults in your engine and gear box.

We at Germany's Best INC. located at College Avenue in Oakland, CA are the most trusted German auto center in Oakland having over 25 years of exceptional service experience. We carry out maintenance & repair of some of the most popular German cars.