My car started running very rough this morning. Engine feels tight. Struggling to idle and rev up. I drove to work slowly and when the automatic headlights switched on I noticed the park lights flashing and the interior dash lights also flashing. Could this be a stuffed alternator or bad belt tensionser causing the alternator to not spin properly? Any ideas.
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E46 318i lights flickering
- Thread starter Vin
- Start date
Raybimmer
New member
Check the alternator belt tension .
Check the battery condition .
I would expect with the lights on and the alternator not charging that you would see the lights getting dimmer over time and later the car will misfire under compression as spark breaks up due to a supply voltage problem .
can you get a diagnosis done ?
good luck .
Check the battery condition .
I would expect with the lights on and the alternator not charging that you would see the lights getting dimmer over time and later the car will misfire under compression as spark breaks up due to a supply voltage problem .
can you get a diagnosis done ?
good luck .
Gizmo
Banned
Ok, I fitted a new tensioner and belt to his 318i this afternoon. Checked the voltage with a multimeter and its putting out 14 volts while @ idle. Alternator isn't making any noise. Did a diagnostic test and all seems fine. Vin hasn't replaced the battery since he bought the car several years ago, maybe battery is on its way out yet the car starts fine. Vin will let me know how it goes tomorrow morning.:thumbs:
Maybe a bad earth or loose battery teminal?
Maybe a bad earth or loose battery teminal?
Gizmo
Banned
On diagnostics it recorded misfire 1 and multiple misfire at the correct mileage, leaning towards a sparkplug and or coil pack on cylinder 1. But that doesn't explain the lights flickering...Perhaps voltage reg is starting up on the 115 000km N46. Battery may also be a problem as it hasn't been replaced in years and its the cheapest thing to test.
Hi Guys, Drove the car this morning and it started up and drove fine. It was 4 degrees outside and it idled perfectly well from the start. No flickering lights either. Engine felt fine and picked up speed as normal and didnt sound like a v6. The car not wanting to rev up yesterday could very well be that I was driving on 3 cylinders in keeping with the fuel cut out and misfire error codes Gizmo found. After the car was parked yesterday for a few hours it started up perfectly well with none of the issues of the morning. I dont know if the belt adjuster could have caused all the issues I had yesterday or it was just gremlins.
The car is fine today so will just have to monitor it closely. Thanks again Gizmo for all your help.
The car is fine today so will just have to monitor it closely. Thanks again Gizmo for all your help.
LordPhoenix
New member
Gizmo, are those all your cars in your Signature,
They absolutely beautiful man! :inlove:
My favorite being the two E36's and the far left E46.
They absolutely beautiful man! :inlove:
My favorite being the two E36's and the far left E46.
