[mrh335]

I have a 2011 535i with a June 2010 production.

Whenever a call is made from the car using any one of 5 different iPhones ranging from iPhone 4, 4s, and 5, the other caller has a very difficult time hearing while driving down the road. They hear lots of road noise and wind and the person in the car's voice keeps cutting out. Inside the car, there are no issues hearing the other person.

While sitting still and not moving, this is not an issue.

It has been in for service for this issue at least 4 times and the mic has been replaced, boosted, etc with no performance improvement.

Additionally, when given a loaner car such as another 5 series or 7 series, there are no issues at all when making a call over bluetooth and in fact, the person receiving the call outside the car says it is crystal clear and they can't even tell the speaker phone is being used and this is at highway speeds. I have performed this test myself from inside and outside the car.

The issue seems to be with the car or communication system of some sort. Living in Chicago, this is difficult as it is hands free and not having the bluetooth feature is annoying.

Does anyone have a similar issue or words of wisdom I can pass to BMW service?

Is there anything more major they can replace or should I start asking for a replacement car (this seems silly)?

The issue has persisted since the car was bought new in 2010 and multiple service visits have not resolved.

[Luigi524TD]

Your microphone could be faulty - if you're under warranty get it checked out!

Road and wind noise is often a problem because the placement of the microphone in the headliner where it picks up noise emanating from the sunroof and windshield. I suppose better noise-filtering would help but I find that my 2013 F10 535xDrive is a lot quieter than my '07 530xi was. I can actually drive with the sunroof panel open and don't hear any wind buffeting even at speeds < 70mph.

Can you arrange for a test drive in a newer F10 to see if your car has a wind noise problem that can be "fixed"?

[dr.mba]

I had a 2007 E60 and no one ever complained about the quality of the calls in fact the majority of people were astonished to learn I was using the hands free option. I have had people comment on my phone calls in the car more so while on the freeway than in town. I honestly never was too bothered with this but knew it wasnt as good as the old car for some reason. I would be most interested in knowing if and when someone figures the problem. My car is a late May 2010 build.

M

[mrh335]

As I mentioned, we do not have this issue in any of the loaner cars which include newer 5 and 7 series.

Also, the mic has already been replaced and that was the most recent change.

What else can be replaced?

Is there an entire communications computer or something that could be faulty?

The other issue is that sitting still, it works well and that's how they always check it to find no fault. Driving at 30 MPH or more causes the issues. The last visit they said they did this and it worked well. My thought is they could probably hear, but have never tried it in another car which is unbelievably good with no background noise.

[dd2000]

I have a 2011 535i with an August 2010 production. I'm having exactly same problems as mrh335.

I have replaced both driver's and passenger's microphones. It was getting better, but I still have the same problem intermittently. I have other cars from Lexus and Toyota; they are as quiet as in office.

I’m still trying to figure this out by myself.

[jetblack328]

have you guys figured out the problem with the mic? I have an 07' 328 with the same exact problem. folks on the other end say that it sounds like super loud road noise. Any findings?

[aalucca]

same problem !! 535 2011

[Rubi_Desuza]

I searched on every forum on internet and eventually end up fixing this by disabling the Bluetooth option.