2004 E46 318i auto Hot start problem

[Vin]

Took a drive this Saturday about 50km. Tried to start the car after being parked for 1.5 hours and it refused to start. Tried about 4 times then decided to wait a bit. Opened the bonnet an waited for about 15 minutes. Tried again and on the second try it started. All sort of warning signs on the dash including the transmission warning light cog of death. Decided to try to drive the car home. The car was incredibly low on power and gear changes very rough.The car seemed to be stuck in limp home mode. After about 3 km on the freeway the dash lights up again and revs drop then picks up immediately and I drive slowly home.Tried to start the car after little while and the warning lights are still on but car starts. I disconnect the battery and reconnect and everything is back to normal. Car drives perfectly no warning lights. Start and drive twice more in the next two hours and no further issues.I have had this car for 6 years never had an issue like this. Mileage is now 147km. Any ideas what can cause this problem? The fuel pump relay, fuel pump camshaft and crank sensors have never been changed.

 

[Vin]

Just to update on the symptoms. The car started fine the next morning. Drove for about 25 km and when I stopped at a robot it switched off. This car has never switched off at a robot in 6 years of driving. No warning lights started up immediately. The problem is definately temperature related. The next morning I drove to work and it was fine about 35km. Stopped the car in the parking lot and switched off and tried to restart. It cranked continuously but would not start. After trying to start few times it goes into limp mode with the warnings in the pic below. Disconnected battery to take it out of limp mode. Drove home that same afternoon and after about 15 km on the freeway the dashboard lights up and car goes into limp mode again. It does not switch off but alows me to drive slowly. Seems like only a few gears in operation and excessive throttle is not allowed.
<a href="http://s170.photobucket.com/user/joker_247/media/BMCranksensorfailure.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u278/joker_247/BMCranksensorfailure.jpg" border="0" alt="BM Crank sensor warning lights photo BMCranksensorfailure.jpg"/></a>

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Since I didnt get a single response to my initial post I thought I would give an update to help any one else out there with similar problem.
Did some research on the net and all symptoms I had experienced pointed to crankshaft sensor. According to what I read this a very common problem on this car. Due to the position of this sensor the heat of the engine causes it to fail eventually. I called the stealers and the sensor alone is R1700 :argh: Had the car on a diagnostic machine the next day and lo and behold Crank sensor errors all over the place. Since there was no signals from the crank it caused a ripple effect on other system like DSC and gearbox operation. That explains the warning lights. Crank position sensor was replaced and the car feels perfect again. :ty:

 

[charlopperman]

Hi Vin, I have a 2004 318i Automatic Estate, with 130 000km. I stopped at the mall yesterday, and when we returned, the engine turned, but didnt want to start. Had to call a tow service to get the car to BMW. After they checked the codes, they also told me that it was a faulty crank sensor (R1700) The car goes in tomorrow for the fix. Never had an issue before.
Have you had any recurring problems after they replaced your sensor??