Closed-circuit current consistently over 50mA should be addressed. Depending on the vehicle’s equipment, closed-circuit current by vehicle model is approximately as follows:
For BMW model and chassis designation chart go here.
E31
50 milliamps after 16 minutes
E32
50 milliamps after 16 minutes
E34
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E36, Z3
30 milliamps after 16 minutes
E38
50 milliamps after 16 minutes
E39
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E46
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E60, E61, E63, E64
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes
E65, E66
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes
E53
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E70, E71, E72
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes with TCU (30 minutes without TCU)
E83
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E82, E88
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes with TCU (30 minutes without TCU)
E90, E91, E92, E93
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes with TCU (30 minutes without TCU)
E85
40 milliamps after 16 minutes
E89
40 milliamps after 60-70 minutes with TCU (30 minutes without TCU)
E52
50 milliamps after 16 minutes
F01, F02, F07
7-21 milliamps after 30 minutes
Thanks for this post. I just found that a CD changer interface (aftermarket) called BMWPILA was causing 50+ mA current drain and it wasn’t even hooked up to the CD changer. Now I’m down to about 30mA in my ’00 Z3 and for what it’s worth it gets down to that level after about 30 seconds from opening/closing the door. I sat in the car for 30 minutes and didn’t see any extra drop.