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4a63 BMW Fault Code – EWS Tampering or EWS Manipulation

 

NOTE 1: Please check our  ‘areas covered’ page to see if you fall within our catchment area. We do not travel outside of this set area. Customers outside this area must arrange recovery to Westerham, Kent if they would like us to fix their vehicle.

The 4a63 fault code is unique to BMW vehicles.

What are the symptoms of this fault?

The car will turn over but not start.

When does the fault occur?

It usually occurs when trying to start the vehicle with a dead battery, but there have been reports of it happening whilst changing the drive battery too.

What does the fault mean?

The vehicle’s ECU and Immobiliser system have ‘lost synchronisation’. In other words the main engine computer is no longer getting the message it needs from the immobilser to start the vehicle.

People have been talking about DME, EWS and CAS. What are they talking about!?

BMW have helpfully named the parts in their cars differently from all other manufacturers, here’s a quick guide:

DME (Digital Motor Electronics) – This is the name for the vehicle’s Engine Control Unit or ECU. It controls all major aspects of your engine and receives reports from all other computerised units in the vehicle.

EWS (Electronic Drive-Away Protection) – This is the vehicle’s immobiliser and stops people driving your vehicle with an unprogrammed key. Late BMW’s, that use a slot key, now have a different immobiliser system called ‘CAS’ – the 4a63 fault code will usually still mention ‘EWS’ on these vehicles though.

CAS (Car Access System) – This is an updated immobilser and anti-theft system. It’s only found on vehicles that use the newer ‘slot-in-the-dash’ keys.

How do I fix the problem?

BMW diagnostics are needed to reset the values in both the DME and the EWS or CAS, this will resync the two units so they can talk to each other again.

Does my car need to go to the main dealers?

No. Autolox are on hand to fix this problem! We have the necessary diagnostics and knowledge to get your BMW back on the road again. We have already helped lots of customers in this exact same situation.

How much does it cost?

We charge a flat rate of £120 for this service. No hidden costs. Please feel free to give us a ring!

32 thoughts on “4a63 BMW Fault Code – EWS Tampering or EWS Manipulation”

  1. ive just had my ECU re-programmed at a ECU specialist and the car still does not start, the engine turns over and that’s it.

    the car is a BMW 520se tdi – REG: PK06 UKT

    we have spoken the the programmers in Derby and they are at a loss they say because there are no error codes it means the ECU is OK

    we have looked online for additional issues and it does state the the ECU may need to be re-synchronised with the EWS code

    do you think this is an issue and do you think you can resolve?

    we are in Southampton, do you travel this far or do you have a branch or engineer that covers this area?

    regards

    mark
    07780 564115

    1. Just had a long conversation with Mark about this issue. In this instance there are no fault codes stored within the ECU (please confirm this with a second scan tool) – so the DME/CAS resync will not be of any help to you. I suggest writing the original flash file back to ECU, a battery support unit must be used throughout this procedure. I wish you the best of luck and if you need any further advice please just give me a ring- 07776 222 722 – Kirk.

    2. Hi there.BMW 320D E90 2005
      I re done my cyl head.now havving a code ews tampering.
      Car cranks but no start.
      No pulse to iniectors aswell no diesel pressure going to rail.
      (Alot of pressure in and into pump)
      People say that there is nothing they can do
      I have the scan reaults
      If i can get assistance via mail pr such.

  2. Bonjour je viens de changer ma batterie
    Bmw 335d et elle veut plus démarré
    J’ai fait un diagnostic avec un logiciel
    De diagnostic sa me mets
    004A63 peut on faire synchroniser
    Dans un autre Garage que chez bmw
    Merci de votre réponse

  3. Hi I have 730d it won’t start it’s showing on code reader 4a63 ews manipulering incorrect random code..only cranks over and over. Can u help please .

    1. Hi Genti,

      I certainly can help. Please check our ‘areas covered page’. If you are in our area then please give us a call – or arrange to bring the vehicle to us.

    1. Hi Tim,

      Your vehicle not turning over is not due to the 4a63 fault code. You have a further issue that is stopping the starter motor from turning. It could be power, the starter itself or the vehicle is immobilised.

  4. E46 2004, all lights come on, pump starts pumping, but when turning key to start, nothing happens, not even a click or a dim in the lights.

    Fault codes on the diagnostics:
    4A42 – Immobilizer no signal
    13 – Key 2 – change code tolerance Increased
    0F – Control Unit – control units reset
    10 – Key 2 – Identification faulty
    12 – Key 2 – Switch code is faulty
    11 – Key 2 – Password is wrong

    How it happened? DDE light came on and after 3 minutes the car lost power and stopped on the road. I had low fuel, so I refilled and one guy recommended to take off battery cables for a system restart, which I did. The car started and I was able to drive home, but the next day it took 20 tries to start it and a couple of days like this until now the engine never turns when turning the key.

    1. Hi Toomas,

      Without attending the vehicle it’s very hard for me to diagnose this fault. Are you in our area? Please check our ‘Areas Covered’ page and give us a call to book an appointment if you fall within our catchment area.

  5. Hi , i have a 2000 1.8i e 46 , i just did a quick scan and got the code dme-ews 3.3 interface ?
    I cleared the code , the car starts and runs fine, i am wondering why this code would have shown on a scan
    Hope you can answer this regards Alan

    1. Hi Alan,

      I imagine this is just an old code that hasn’t been cleared and could have been caused by any number of things. If the car is starting fine then it is definitely nothing to be worried about.

  6. Hi

    I have a 2008 e93 which the battery died I have replaced the battery however it still won’t start. I have had the RAC out who have said ews needs to be reset please could you let me know a rough price and if you do the Orpington area BR6 thanks.

  7. Good day

    I have a 2005 E90 320D. I had a problem with the EWS tampering, I had the set aligned but it lost the setting whilst driving straight after. How is this possible?

    Please help.

    Thanks,
    Kas

    1. Hi Kas,

      You have a power issue somewhere. Realignment is not a permanent fix; if you have low power when trying to start the vehicle then this issue will occur regardless of whether or not you have already had the DME and CAS realigned.

  8. Hi, hope you can help – my 58 E61 535D was sat for a while having the front bumper repaired, cranked but didn’t start, hooked up a friends ‘snap on’ diagnostics unit and it showed the EWS4A63 code, also 62 code at one point – we tried the option of re pairing the cas to the dme but it told us that ‘there is no ews4 installed on this vehicle’
    ??
    can you help at all?

    thanks for your time

    Andy

    1. Hi Andy,

      You are not using diagnostics with dealer level capabilities. If you are in our area then, please contact us on 07776 222 722. Alternatively, you can tow the vehicle to us in Kent.

  9. Hi my bmw cranks over but wont start I had the AA out but they said its fuel pump spoke to garage and they said car needs recording its a bmw e90 320d 07 plate .AA report Patrol found the following fault code/s:System : Engine control 1 – 1LE / Diesel EDC 16C(P)354A63 – Signal immobilizer manipulated. Error Message : Switch code is faulty.4212 – Glow plug, cylinder 1. Error Message : Open circuit.4222 – Glow plug, cylinder 2. Error Message : Open circuit.4232 – Glow plug, cylinder 3. Error Message : Open circuit.3EED – Battery management steady-state current. Error Message : Faulty.Found low fuel pressure. Advised member to get investigated as vehicle has no mot full lift on and pay for use. Member will seek mobile solution first before organising recovery. –

  10. Hi so I just sent my injectors for servicing and while that was taking place someone had come over and took my file to do mapping and loaded the stage 2 software on.

    Now after injectors have been fitted engine wont start but does swing pump comes on but the fault codes showing all has to do with not recieving any communication from the dme.

    Could youll fix this or have any helpful tips for me

    please and thank you
    Matthew

  11. Hi guys i have a bmw e90 320i i have the faulty code 2f44 cdkwfs Ews3.3 i know i have battery tampering code and i have to realine the Cas with the Dme but i did this i have bmw Inpa on a laptop but this happens every i remove the battery terminal or every morning when i go to start the vehicle infect every time i use this vehicle i carry my laptop along for the ride in case of Ews locked i tried everything i changed the Cas locked at wiring im done trying to fix it i wanted to know if the computer box cloud be Decoded as in No more Ews 3.3 can a julie chip be installed or can or has some 1 Decoded they box if so let me know did it work fine

    1. I’m sorry but I don’t know the answer to your questions. The fault code is clearly being caused by an electrical malfunction – it will need an experienced technician to trace the cause.

  12. Hi, my friends bmw 335d e91 2008 was standing still under night and on the morning we were going to start it but it was dead, and then we found out why its was bcs the seatwarmer has been on all night somehow . The car cranks but wont start and it wont show any codes. Please help and sorry for bad english

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