BMW i8 Electrical Gremlins: Display Issues & Error Codes

Hey there! I have some experience working on hybrids. I had a similar issue with my 2016 BMW i3 (also looked at the i4 before buying). The symptoms were exactly like yours, dashboard errors and infotainment glitches. Took it to my regular workshop and turned out it was a coding issue. They had to reprogram the vehicle control modules to fix the communication problems. Cost me around 360 Euro but it's been running perfectly since then. What error messages are you seeing specifically? Also, do you have access to the fault codes? That would help narrow down if it's the same problem I had. Keep us posted!

Hey! Thanks for sharing. I just hit 27611 KM and had my latest service done recently. Been dealing with this annoying issue for about a week now. The main error shows "System Malfunction" on the dash, and the infotainment keeps rebooting out of nowhere. Really frustrating since I love my i8 otherwise, but these glitches are making me crazy! The fault code isn't showing up on my usual diagnostic tool, which makes it even more puzzling. Your coding solution sounds promising though, might have to get that checked out. Did your workshop find any correlation between the system errors and the hybrid components?

Hey again! Thanks for the additional details about your i8. That does sound super frustrating, especially right after a service! When I had those issues with my i3, the symptoms started pretty much the same way, that annoying "System Malfunction" warning and unusual reboots. My diagnostic tool also struggled to read the codes initially, which made me think it was just a glitch. But nope, turned out there was actually a communication issue between the hybrid system and the main control modules. In my case, the workshop found that the coding problems were causing the hybrid system to occasionally "disconnect" from the main vehicle controls. That's why everything would go haywire and reboot. It wasn't actually a hardware problem with the hybrid components themselves, just the software getting confused about how to talk to them. Since you mentioned you just had a service, I wonder if something got reset or recoded incorrectly during that? My mechanic mentioned that these high-tech hybrids can be super sensitive to even minor software changes. Might be worth asking your service center if they did any updates during the recent service. After my recoding fix, everything's been working perfectly for the past 8 months. No more unusual reboots or error messages. Such a relief! Let me know if you get it sorted, really curious if it's the same issue I had.

Thanks so much for the detailed explanation! That's really helpful. You're right, I called my service center and apparently they did do a software update during my last service. That timing definitely seems suspicious now. I've booked it in for next week to have them check the coding. The symptoms you described match mine exactly, especially that disconnect between the hybrid system and main controls. It's reassuring to hear your fix has lasted 8 months without issues. Will definitely update once I get it sorted. Really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, you've saved me a lot of worry about potential hardware problems! These hybrid systems are amazing when they work right, but can they be finicky with their software. Thanks again for the help!