[MJBradley1967]

The local police came knocking on my door last night to tell me my X5 had made an SOS Alert call.

It was still in it's parking spot and I had the below on the display when I went out this morning.

Has anyone else's vehicle done this? It has been raining for days. Any chance it's a water related thing?

[TurtleBoy]

You likely have a leak in your fin. Take it to a dealer and hopefully they will replace it under warranty.

[Bogey99]

Originally Posted by TurtleBoy

You likely have a leak in your fin. Take it to a dealer and hopefully they will replace it under warranty.

‘leak in your fin’ is a new one for me. Sounds like telling someone to top off their blinker fluid.

(I know you’re most likely correct, it just struck me as funny)

[dwwStL]

Originally Posted by TurtleBoy

You likely have a leak in your fin. Take it to a dealer and hopefully they will replace it under warranty.

I have no idea what a fin is and how it could/would leak, much less cause my car to call the police.

Would this be a coolant leak on a sensor that made the car think it was in an accident?

[blinsc]

Originally Posted by dwwStL

I have no idea what a fin is and how it could/would leak, much less cause my car to call the police.

Would this be a coolant leak on a sensor that made the car think it was in an accident?

They're talking about the "shark fin" antenna on the top of the car. Apparently, it can leak and cause issues with any of the connected services including SOS. There are a lot of threads about people having to get theirs replaced.

[TurtleBoy]

Originally Posted by dwwStL

I have no idea what a fin is and how it could/would leak, much less cause my car to call the police.

Would this be a coolant leak on a sensor that made the car think it was in an accident?

Yes, what blinsc said above. There were some production issues, and I also believe a design issue as the problems continue, that caused the shark fin antenna cover to leak. In most cases dealers are handling it under warranty but we have seen some refuse saying it was due to pressurized water when washing the car.

It is worth the OP's time to get it checked just in case that was the cause.

[dwwStL]

Originally Posted by TurtleBoy

Yes, what blinsc said above. There were some production issues, and I also believe a design issue as the problems continue, that caused the shark fin antenna cover to leak. In most cases dealers are handling it under warranty but we have seen some refuse saying it was due to pressurized water when washing the car.

It is worth the OP's time to get it checked just in case that was the cause.

Helpful as always and thank you. I think we can all agree that our car randomly calling 911 is less than ideal and worth a trip to the dealer to get fixed.

Something so minor triggering an auto emergency call seems like a system design defect. I love that my car (and my iPhone too) will detect an accident and call for help. But an impact detection should be required for an auto call versus a fender bender.

[TurtleBoy]

Originally Posted by dwwStL

Helpful as always and thank you. I think we can all agree that our car randomly calling 911 is less than ideal and worth a trip to the dealer to get fixed.

I find it odd that something so minor will trigger an auto emergency call. To me this is a system design defect. I love that my car (and my iPhone too) will detect an accident and call for help. But an impact detection should be required for an auto call versus a fender bender.

My guess, and that is all it is, was that water ingress caused a problem that caused it to make a call. In most cases we have seen the vehicle gets an SOS malfunction error and then the TCU needs to be replaced as well as the shark fin covered repaired/replaced.