[sygazelle]

I took my car in for its first oil service today. In addition to changing the oil and filter, I asked the SA to have the hands free trunk opening feature fixed. He pretty much assured me that they work fine if you kick you foot in the correct way. I pretty much assured him that I'd seen the videos, searched the forums for tricks and hints, read the manual, and did the trunk opening dance in public parking lots and in the privacy of my own garage, all to no avail. My SA said he would have it looked at. Well, I got a call a few hours later from my SA and he said, "You are right, your foot is fine. There is something wrong and we need to reprogram your car to fix it.

They kept the car overnight and updated the software. I picked up the car this afternoon and guess what? The hands free trunk feature works perfectly almost every time now.

I was planning on just living with the fact that it doesn't work like many others on this forum have done. Since it was literally the only thing wrong with the car after 10 months of driving, I figured I would try to get it perfect and I'm glad I did.

So, if you have comfort access and your hands free trunk feature does not work, a software update may do the trick for you.

[Lostsole]

Originally Posted by sygazelle

I took my car in for its first oil service today. In addition to changing the oil and filter, I asked the SA to have the hands free trunk opening feature fixed. He pretty much assured me that they work fine if you kick you foot in the correct way. I pretty much assured him that I'd seen the videos, searched the forums for tricks and hints, read the manual, and did the trunk opening dance in public parking lots and in the privacy of my own garage, all to no avail. My SA said he would have it looked at. Well, I got a call a few hours later from my SA and he said, "You are right, your foot is fine. There is something wrong and we need to reprogram your car to fix it.

They kept the car overnight and updated the software. I picked up the car this afternoon and guess what? The hands free trunk feature works perfectly almost every time now.

I was planning on just living with the fact that it doesn't work like many others on this forum have done. Since it was literally the only thing wrong with the car after 10 months of driving, I figured I would try to get it perfect and I'm glad I did.

So, if you have comfort access and your hands free trunk feature does not work, a software update may do the trick for you.

I had the same problem and the dealer assured me that they tested and it worked fine. I ended up standing further away from the bumper and it works every time. Weird. But it worked for me. I don't have to kick very far under the bumper at all.

[Falafel Combo]

For me this feature has worked flawlessly every time i test it ... Until I actually need it. Then it all of a sudden doesn't work. . I don't care for it much anyway.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by Lostsole

I had the same problem and the dealer assured me that they tested and it worked fine. I ended up standing further away from the bumper and it works every time. Weird. But it worked for me. I don't have to kick very far under the bumper at all.

In my case, they tested it and it didn't work fine. My SA was actually apologetic when he called me to let me know it wasn't me, but an actual problem with the car. My message is this: If you have hands free trunk feature and it is not working, it could be that you are not kicking just right, OR there is a possibility that it will take an SW update to fix it.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by alpinweiss 335i

For me this feature has worked flawlessly every time i test it ... Until I actually need it. Then it all of a sudden doesn't work. . I don't care for it much anyway.

It's really not a big deal for me either. Since my car was working flawlessly otherwise, I thought I would see if they could fix it and they did. Now, I don't have anything to complain about.

[335i_4D]

Originally Posted by Lostsole

I had the same problem and the dealer assured me that they tested and it worked fine. I ended up standing further away from the bumper and it works every time. Weird. But it worked for me. I don't have to kick very far under the bumper at all.

Not weird.

The explanation I've had for this is there's a proximity sensor to prevent you being hit under the chin by being too close...

Imagine that in the news:

A local BMW driver got an uppercut from his trunk at the local ***** store.

[CLittle]

I agree that standing further away gives me nearly 100% success rate with my "kick".

[BimmerQuest]

I took delivery yesterday, and the delivery specialist who walked through everything on the car couldn't get the hands free kick to work. He must have tried it 20 times. Then, my SA tried it after the car had been moved - same thing, no dice. They swore they had never seen this before...and that is absolutely needed to be fixed.

It was comical because when they finally open the trunk with the key fob, the instructions of "how to kick correctly" were hanging down from inside the trunk. They kept trying, and trying...all I could think about was all the people in the forums with "inoperable legs".

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by BimmerQuest

I took delivery yesterday, and the delivery specialist who walked through everything on the car couldn't get the hands free kick to work. He must have tried it 20 times. Then, my SA tried it after the car had been moved - same thing, no dice. They swore they had never seen this before...and that is absolutely needed to be fixed.

It was comical because when they finally open the trunk with the key fob, the instructions of "how to kick correctly" were hanging down from inside the trunk. They kept trying, and trying...all I could think about was all the people in the forums with "inoperable legs".

This feature is not BMW's finest moment. It's a good thing it has nothing to do with how the car actually performs while driving.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by BimmerQuest

I took delivery yesterday, and the delivery specialist who walked through everything on the car couldn't get the hands free kick to work. He must have tried it 20 times. Then, my SA tried it after the car had been moved - same thing, no dice. They swore they had never seen this before...and that is absolutely needed to be fixed.

It was comical because when they finally open the trunk with the key fob, the instructions of "how to kick correctly" were hanging down from inside the trunk. They kept trying, and trying...all I could think about was all the people in the forums with "inoperable legs".

BTW, congratulations on your new car.

[Mobster1983]

There was a thread on this a while back about the "proper" way to make it work. However, the 2014 models seemed to have an upgrade on this feature that makes it much easier to use. Nt sure if it is hardware, software, or a combination of both. I had a loaner 328 for a month (2013) and you had to kick your foot just right. With my 2014 335i, it works perfectly almost every time, and no matters how I kick my foot.

Glad you got yours fixed.