BMW 523I 2007 Model Stalling

[Deanu]

Hi all hope you are doing well

I recently got a 523i Model BMW which drives like a dream but i have one issue im not able to resolve and not sure if advice has been given previously (did a check couldn't see anything).

I have had the car for about a month now and as it was a private purchase it ran great when test driving it and the only errors was the Angel eyes that was blown,

Now there has been an issue that has recently occurred on the vehicle and its really annoying. The car will drive great when started and it cold, i can drive for around 10 km without any issues and then all of a sudden when at a stop street/robot or slowing down the vehicle will shift to neutral and the car will stall. Leave it for a hour to cool down and there we go again no issues for the next few KM's.

I have my own diagnostics tool which i use on my other vehicle and it has pretty much sorted all issues on the errors

When i ran the first diagnostics on the system it gave me a P0012 A Camshaft Position - Timing Over-Retarded Bank 1 error. Now when i research the error it says it might be dirty oil or a faulty OCV or an ECU error. My problem is if it was the ECU wouldn't it do this when the car was cold as well?
After purchasing the Vehicle as per the previous owner there was an OIL change done about 2000KM back, i then replaced the thermostat and the ocv solenoids, i have also gone through all the Fuses to cancel out any faulty fuse and found 1 or two that i replaced, i also did the fanbelt (keep in mind the issue was there before the fanbelt replacement). After the thermostat has been replaced i also went through the whole bleeding procedure and to ensure there is no airlock i did it about three times. What i have noticed is that when i leave the car for about a day not charging it says High rate of Battery discharge and will lose only the time. I have had a battery and alternator test done at Willards and they could not find anything wrong

Can the Mass airflow sensor or idle control valve cause this issue ? I am running out of options to check and some advice will be highly appreciated what i can check next. I have attached the screenshots of the error code from the diagnostics


Regards Dean

 

[Benji]

Maybe post more details on the car? I am assuming M54 engine?

That error is more likely related to a stuck vanos solenoid? Maybe start there - fairly easy to remove the solenoid and give it a clean and test. However, I dont think your idle issue is related to the vanos, have you checked for vacuum leaks?

Maybe give the ICV a precautionary clean

Does you car kill the battery after standing for a couple days? Finding a battery drain is a ballache, but not too hard if approached in a methodological manner. First google what common battery drain causes are on your platform, then pulling fuses while monitoring battery draw. Would not be related to the idle issue tho.

 

[Deanu]

Hi Benji,

I have replaced both solenoids over the weekend, This is a n52n engine,

The battery drain does not bother me as much yet and i will use the long weekend to start tracing where that might come from, by biggest issue is the stalling.

is there anything specific i need to use to clean the icv and the maf ? I was thinking about doing that tonight and perhaps the throttlebody as well

Regards

 

[Benji]

Hi Benji,

I have replaced both solenoids over the weekend, This is a n52n engine,

The battery drain does not bother me as much yet and i will use the long weekend to start tracing where that might come from, by biggest issue is the stalling.

is there anything specific i need to use to clean the icv and the maf ? I was thinking about doing that tonight and perhaps the throttlebody as well

Regards

OK I do not know these motors at all, do they even have a ICV? Where these not valvetronic? If you have replaced the solenoids, maybe the next step is the cam sensor...

MAF needs a MAF specific cleaner. Throttle body can be cleaned with brake clean