Weird Problem - E46 BMW 318i N42

S

Syl

Member
tai88 said:
That thing that controls the electronics! mine f'd out a year ago, had it replaced with a second hand one for R1500.

I'd go the second hand route. Mine is behaving itself since.. 15000 is a raping

the symptoms I had were windows not winding, not unlocking doors with remote. not starting sometimes.
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Yip I will definetely be looking second hand, 15000 is mad and just not worth it to me.

Where'd you get yours from?
 
Z

zaleonardz

Well-known member
Been thinking of your issues on your car on the way home.

You are suffering from bus corruption.

That EGS clicking, the fuel relay, the non starting, the other freakish stuff.

Your wiring is stuffed, i am sure of it......

It could be any of the modules in your car that is corrupting the bus.

It could be a DME issue as well, but that does not explain the clicking of the EGS, that wierd fuel pressure relay.

Give me a few days with a multimeter and some valium, and I will sort that car out :)
 
S

Syl

Member
zaleonardz@DentDoctor said:
Been thinking of your issues on your car on the way home.

You are suffering from bus corruption.

That EGS clicking, the fuel relay, the non starting, the other freakish stuff.

Your wiring is stuffed, i am sure of it......

It could be any of the modules in your car that is corrupting the bus.

It could be a DME issue as well, but that does not explain the clicking of the EGS, that wierd fuel pressure relay.

Give me a few days with a multimeter and some valium, and I will sort that car out :)
Click to expand...

Haha. I will contact you soon Leonard!!
Just trying to find some valium here somewhere! ...:rollsmile:
 
F

Falcon

Member
XMAX said:
Fear not. if it is the Valvetronic motor, it is not that expensive. Mine cost me R1700 to replace, with labour. If you are doing this, i would advise an De-sludge and an oil change.
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Hey buddy sorry to bother you but I just got a ridiculous qoute for changing the valvetronic actuator motor from a mechanic here...do you know any reasonable bm mechanics in the vaal are or could you tell me where i can get that vvt motor cheaper in jhb?

Thanks in advance buddy.

oh car is e46 318i 2004.

Ahmed
 
Leekay

Leekay

New member
Woooow where did you changed your VVT Motor at that price? Im in Jhb myself.

XMAX said:
My best advice would be to go to someone who can get the codes read.

No sure where youre from.

Also, that N42 doesnt have Vanos. It has a Valvetronic which controls the "Extra" cam. The Valvetronic system consists of a motor and some sensors. If this system starts to fail you would experience symptoms similar to what youre having right now.

Its kind of tough to know exactly what the problem is but Ive personally experienced the Valveltronic System Failure, with similar symptoms.

Fear not. if it is the Valvetronic motor, it is not that expensive. Mine cost me R1700 to replace, with labour. If you are doing this, i would advise an De-sludge and an oil change.

P.S. even if it is not this problem, i suggest a De-Sludge / oil flush and oil change as preventive maintenance.


Hope this helped. Depending on where you are, there may be members on this forum who can assist you in reading the codes. If not, find a reputable mechanic to get the codes read.
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Where did you changed your VVT MOTOR at that price? was it new or second hand as its not advicibe to use the second hand.
 
D

DIY enthusiast

New member
Good Day to all Fanatics

My car recently started idling rough & it has a loss of power in the rev range between 1500 - 2200 Rpm. Had the car on diagnostic but no volt report. I recently red a article that stated the MAF sensor could be the culprit & it does not always show on the diagnostic. I was told, it could also be the fuel rail pressure sensor.
I am quite sure that it is the Maf, but would like to be 100% sure that this is the problem before I end up replacing good working parts.

My question is, is there anyone that can assist me with a 100% working MAF to test my car.

P.s. I have cleaned the MAF with MAF cleaner, done a lot of other inspections but came to the conclusion that it could be either.

Thanks for a grate forum
 
A

alanouli

New member
HI Guys.

So I've been reading all the posts for a problem similar to what I'm having and the closest seems to be the one mentioned by Trigger. However mine differs in that the idling, spluttering and loss of power never leads to a stall and happens as soon as the engine reaches optimal operating temperature. No mater how long the car has been standing whether its a day or a week it starts first time every time and runs absolutely fine until the engine warms up, which seems to take a little longer now the weather is really cold. Now I get a good 30 mins drive before the engine starts playing up rather than the 10 to 20 previous to winter. Once the engine warms up all logical performance goes out the window and the idling goes haywire. It drops to between 4k and 5k revs almost like its about to stall but then jumps back up to between 10k and 12k every second or so. It does this continuously for maybe 2 or 3 mins then settles back down to normal for a few minutes maybe as long as 7 or 8 mins before it all starts again. Then the spluttering starts and I'd have to rev sometimes up to 30k just to move off. Lately it seems like its actually getting worse. Now the thing is If I'm driving at high speeds i.e. on the motorway these symtoms are none existant but as soon as my speed drops to anything less than 40MPH (60 KPH) then the problem comes back. Last year I had a similar problem but there was nothing wrong with the idling. For example the car would be running fine, I'd pull up at the lights, have no problems but when they go green and i try to accelerate away the engine would suddenly go flat and lose power for a few seconds before roaring back to life. When I took it to the garage back in July I got it back a week later running almost perfect but within 3 months the problems I mentioned at the beginning started. Does anyone know what is causing this. When I take it to the garage this time I want to have an idea of what my bill will be. The last time I had to sell one of my kidneys.
img_20130730_wa0001_840753554.jpg
 
F30Sline

F30Sline

New member
Wolverine said:
tai88 said:
Wolverine said:
Syl said:
Wolverine said:
Try testing the motor by putting direct power to it...if the motor spins, you know it's working...if it doesnt, then you can be sure it's stuck.
It should work on the same principle as any other motor if im correct.

Bought a new valvetronic motor from SMG Durban today, R2648 after asking for 20 % discount (normal price R3300)

Going to have it fitted and programmed tomorrow.
Click to expand...

I got a quote from the bmw dealer today at R3150.
And am waiting for a price from another guy.

How did you get 20% off??

Keep us up to date man! Seriously hope it solves the problem hey!!
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You have to ask for the 20% discount or they'll never give it to you. If you in Durban, take a trip to SMG Durban and ask for Neeren in the parts dept.

Tell hime you want the part and to also load the discount or you.

Whatever you do, don't even think of chucking a second hand valvetronic in there..you'll never start the car.

My car is going in at 8am tomorrow. Will keep you guys posted.

tai88 said:
Wolverine said:
Hi Tai,

I'm having my valvetronic motor replaced tomorrow. Will keep you guys updated.

What symtom's is your car displaying Tai? If not that serious it may just be a vacuum leak of air mass meter? Do you know how to test or these bro?

These N42 engines can be like women at times...can make you cry! except they can't talk!:blab:
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HAHA... well I have had a few occasions where my car bogs down and coughs when pulling away. And once again, NO CODES WHATSOEVER. It also makes a vibrating noise when climbing those first rpms, after 2500 its smooth.
Then a bit of rough idle here and there(which I am guessing could be the recall bremi ignition coils lossing spark) and intermittent white-ish blue-ish smoke plumes from the exhaust. Oh and a permanent petrol smell :yuck:

I'd love to hear good news from you because my N42 has 260000 on the clock and is starting to ask me for some love.

Oh the balloon over the dipstick tube should suck in a bit to show your vacuum is good, mine checked out good here. also a plastic bag over the oil filler cap should suck in, have'nt tried this one yet.

Air flow meter, if faulty you unplug and idle should stabilise. Tried this a while back and no difference for me.
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- If you remove the plug and it has no effect on the idle, then the plug is shot. (Bremi is a good after market part, made in Germany i believe)

The smoke from your exhaust system could be condensation thats burning out..does water also spray out from your exhaust pipe? Take the car for a drive but using low gears, this generally burns out the vapour in the exhaust system.

You may not want to hear this but if the smoke has a ting of blu in it, it's most probably taking oil..any oil loss noticed?

The rich petrol smell is also a characteristic of the valvtronic motor. Remember these engines dont have idle control valves on them..the valvetronic does that job. Like in my case, if you take a plug out, you may find it wet with petrol...reason is that the fuel is going into the chamber but no air to burn it (air+fuel=combustion)

Hope this info helps guys, im not a mac but this is what I have learnt about these engines.
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I doubt the smoke is vapour because I drive this car on the highways daily, anywhere from 30-200 km per day.

The bremi ignition coils have been recalled in some countries, so I'm going to wrap them in 3m rubber tape to see if it makes a difference before I go out and buy bosch coils.

It doesn't seem to be burning oil, maybe it is but only small amounts? because my oil level hasn't dropped yet.. well atleast not from what I can see..

Do you think that maybe since I replaced the CCV 500km ago there is some gunk that needs to be cleared through?

Thank you so much you are a very informed individual!
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Check the breather pipe from the CCV to the intake manifold. This is found under the plasic cover on the right hand top of the engine.

This breather pipe becomes moist with oil and vapours over time and basically breaks apart. If the car is idleing and you pull the pipe out (the end leading into the intake - you'll see grey'ish' black smoke puffing out - is this similar to what you see coming out of your exhaust? (The car will switch off as soon as you pull this breather piper out)

If you going for Bosch coils, which are the best, try Goldwagon, they now stock a wide range of BMW parts and rather reasonable on prices.

One more thing, if your car has accessive oil in it...then it will smoke a bit till it burns off...how long have you been having this smoking problem for?:=):
Click to expand...



I had this exact problem on my 318i N42 motor. It was the brittle rubber pipe under the plastic cover above the intake. New hose from BMW was R 350 and a 5 minute job to replace on a Saturday morning.
 
T

theron30s

New member
hi Guys

i am having similar problems with my bmw N42. this morning she had a bad miss and no power i took the cam and MAF sensors out proir to this and cleaned it she ran like a dream for about 5 days and this morning she had no power and a really bad miss . is there anyone around midrand that can run a diagnostic for me.
 
K

Kaveer Girraj

New member
Hi SYL

I hope you are well.

Did you perhaps fix the issue of the throttle body and fuel pump running without the key?

I have a 318i N42, was starting and switching off and just never started the next morning. The throttle body and fuel pump relay runs wild without the key in and when they do the car doesn't start unless battery is unplugged and left for a very long time. It will crank though.

Hope someone here can help out it is my daily driver.

Thanks!
 
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