Fuel - Revision history

Grrrmachine at 08:36, 20 January 2014

2014-01-20T08:36:19Z

Grrrmachine at 08:32, 20 January 2014

2014-01-20T08:32:58Z

Grrrmachine at 14:52, 8 February 2013

2013-02-08T14:52:30Z

Grrrmachine at 08:11, 7 February 2013

2013-02-07T08:11:29Z

Grrrmachine at 07:10, 16 July 2012

2012-07-16T07:10:35Z

Grrrmachine at 17:08, 21 June 2012

2012-06-21T17:08:41Z

Grrrmachine at 12:44, 21 April 2012

2012-04-21T12:44:09Z

Grrrmachine at 12:34, 21 April 2012

2012-04-21T12:34:32Z

Grrrmachine at 06:12, 10 April 2012

2012-04-10T06:12:04Z

Grrrmachine at 06:11, 10 April 2012

2012-04-10T06:11:28Z

←Older revision		Revision as of 08:36, 20 January 2014
Line 49:		Line 49:

	The level sender is held to the fuel pump housing by four screws, and must be removed before attempting to remove the pump housing from the tank. Learn more about [[Fuel_Pump_Replacement\|replacing the fuel pump]].		The level sender is held to the fuel pump housing by four screws, and must be removed before attempting to remove the pump housing from the tank. Learn more about [[Fuel_Pump_Replacement\|replacing the fuel pump]].
		+
		+	For the lowly [316i] carburreted model, fuel pressure comes from a mechanical membrane pump driven by the camshaft. It is located over the inlet manifold over cylinder n°1, held in place by two nuts, and throws an output in between 0,1 an 0,3 bar on idle.

	==Fuel Level Senders==		==Fuel Level Senders==

@@ Line 97: / Line 97: @@
 ==Carburettor==
-The lowliest model, the 316, was kitted out with the same carburettor technology that had seen service in the [[E21]], based around the Pierburg 2BE carburettor. While massively advanced at the time, these carbs have since proved to be unreliable to the point of hateful, and almost any fuelling the 316 suffers from can be traced back to the Pierburg unit.
+The lowliest model, the 316, was kitted out with the same carburettor technology that had seen service in the [[E21]], starting with the Pierburg 2B4 carburettor before "upgrading" to the Ecotronic 2BE in 1984. These later carbs make use of a Bosch electronic control module, nr 0 260 200 002.
 A proven solution is to replace the entire setup with an equivalent carburettor from Weber. Learn more about [[Weber_Carburettors|Weber carburettors]].

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 All E30s have their fuel tanks mounted under the rear seat bench. However, a number of tanks were fitted to the range depending on age, engine size and body style.
-The standard E30 tank is a '''55L''' unit, with the [[Fuel#Fuel_Pump|fuel pump]] and a [[Fuel#Fuel_Level_Sender|level sender]] screwed into the top and accessible under the rear seats. For Tourings and facelift [[M20]]-engined cars a larger '''63L''' tank was fitted. These two tanks are interchangeable, but
+The standard E30 tank is a '''55L''' unit, with the [[Fuel#Fuel_Pump|fuel pump]] and a [[Fuel#Fuel_Level_Sender|level sender]] screwed into the top and accessible under the rear seats. For Tourings and facelift [[M20]]-engined cars a larger '''63L''' tank was fitted. These two tanks are interchangeable.
 The carbureted [[316]] does not have its fuel pump in the tank. Because of that, fuel tanks for that car don't have a '''swirl chamber''', which is basically a cup inside the tank to keep the pump submerged in fuel at all times. If you try to fit a fuel pump into these tanks as part of a tank swap or engine upgrade, you may experience fuel starvation on sharp left-hand corners.

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 ==Fuel Tank==
 [[Image:FuelTank63l.jpg|thumb|right|140px|63L Fuel Tank]]
-The E30 range benefited from two different fuel tanks; a 55L and 63L. Tourings and facelift [[M20]]-engined cars will have the larger tank.
+All E30s have their fuel tanks mounted under the rear seat bench. However, a number of tanks were fitted to the range depending on age, engine size and body style.
-Both tanks are fitted with a [[Fuel#Fuel_Pump|pump housing]], to which are mounted the fuel pump itself and a [[Fuel#Fuel_Level_Sender|level sender]].
+The standard E30 tank is a '''55L''' unit, with the [[Fuel#Fuel_Pump|fuel pump]] and a [[Fuel#Fuel_Level_Sender|level sender]] screwed into the top and accessible under the rear seats. For Tourings and facelift [[M20]]-engined cars a larger '''63L''' tank was fitted. These two tanks are interchangeable, but
-Because of the low placement of the fuel tank into the floor pan, a central channel was required to allow the prop shaft to travel under the car; this channel effectively separates the tank into two halves.
+The carbureted [[316]] does not have its fuel pump in the tank. Because of that, fuel tanks for that car don't have a '''swirl chamber''', which is basically a cup inside the tank to keep the pump submerged in fuel at all times. If you try to fit a fuel pump into these tanks as part of a tank swap or engine upgrade, you may experience fuel starvation on sharp left-hand corners.
-The 55L tank has a pipe connecting the two halves together at the bottom, so the level in each side is always the same, except after long corners, and so is only fitted with a single level sensor.
+Identifying which tank you have is relatively simple. Because of the low placement of the fuel tank into the floor pan, a central channel was required to allow the prop shaft to travel under the car; this channel effectively separates the tank into two halves. The 55L tank has a pipe connecting the two halves together at the bottom, so the level in each side is always the same, except after long corners, and so is only fitted with a single level sensor.
-The 63 litre tank has a much more sophisticated internal syphon system to transfer fuel from the Left side to the right, which results in the levels in the two halves not being the same. For this reason, the 63 litre tank has a sensor in each half, connected in series, to give an average level for the [[Instruments#Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]].
+The 63 litre tank has a much more sophisticated internal syphon system to transfer fuel from the left side to the right, which results in the levels in the two halves not being the same. For this reason, the 63 litre tank has a sensor in each half, connected in series, to give an average level for the [[Instruments#Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]]. If fitting this larger tank to a standard car, it must be paired with the appropriate [[Instruments#Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]] in the dash cluster and will also need a return fuel line fitted.
 Learn more about [[Replacing_Fuel_Tank|replacing the fuel tank]].

@@ Line 87: / Line 87: @@
 The injectors are considered one of the most important components in a well-running engine, and one of the best ways to get more power from your old engine is to get the injectors back into good working order by cleaning them, and fitting new pintle caps if necessary. Learn more about [[Cleaning_injectors|cleaning your injectors]].
-Injectors do not need to be upgraded, and there is no benefit in fitting bigger injectors to a standard E30 [[Engines|engine]]. Many people believe that [[M5x|M50]] injectors are an upgrade; they can be, but only if the rest of the engine has been substantially modified already and remapped accordingly. Fitting bigger engines alone will only result in [[Fuel#Rich_Running|rich running]], causing damage to your engine in the long run.
+Injectors do not need to be upgraded, and there is no benefit in fitting bigger injectors to a standard E30 [[Engines|engine]]. Many people believe that [[M5x|M50]] injectors are an upgrade; they can be, but only if the rest of the engine has been substantially modified already and remapped accordingly. Fitting bigger injectors alone will only result in [[Fuel#Rich_Running|rich running]], causing damage to your engine in the long run.
 ==Fuel Pressure Regulator==

←Older revision		Revision as of 17:08, 21 June 2012
Line 4:		Line 4:

	''For [[M21\|Diesel engines]], jump to the [[Fuel#Diesel\|Diesel]] section of this page or learn more about [[Diesel]].''		''For [[M21\|Diesel engines]], jump to the [[Fuel#Diesel\|Diesel]] section of this page or learn more about [[Diesel]].''
		+
		+	''This article primarily focuses on [[Motronic]] fuelling. For earlier fuel systems, learn more about [[Jetronic]].''

	=Overview=		=Overview=

@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 ==Fuel Pump==
-[[Image:BMWE30318i2012001.jpg|thumb|right|140px|[[318i]] fuel pump (white plug) with sender (black plug)]]
+[[Image:FuelPump.jpg|thumb|right|140px|Fuel pump with sender]]
 The fuel pump is a relatively simple construction comprised of three components; the pump housing, the pump itself, and a fuel-level sender. The pump is a 12V electric unit by Bosch.
-Because of the two types of tank, there are two types of pump housing. A 55L pump housing will have two pipes on it, while a 62L pump housing will have only one.
+Because of the two types of tank, there are two types of pump housing. A 55L pump housing will have two pipes on it, while a 63L pump housing will have only one.
-A two-pipe housing can be used on a 62 litre tank, provided the second pipe is blanked off, and the pipe that was connected to it re routed to a stub pipe on the side of the 62 litre tank. If this pipe is not re-routed, you will only be able to use the fuel in the RH side.
+A two-pipe housing can be used on a 63 litre tank, provided the second pipe is blanked off, and the pipe that was connected to it re routed to a stub pipe on the side of the 63 litre tank. If this pipe is not re-routed, you will only be able to use the fuel in the RH side.
 A single pipe housing cannot be used in a 55 litre tank, as there will be nowhere to connect the return line from the fuel rail, although the basic pump can be swapped between the two types.
@@ Line 49: / Line 49: @@
 ==Fuel Level Senders==
-While all pumps are equipped with a level sender, 62L tanks contain a second level sender on the left side of the tank, wired in series with the first. The construction of each sender is a basic float, which bridges two lengths of resistive wire. When the float is at the top, the wires are bridged close to their terminals, and thus read a low resistance. As the fuel level drops, so does the float, moving the bridge down the wires and thus increasing the resistance. In this way, each level sender works as a 60 Ohm resistor, reading zero Ohms for a full tank and 60 Ohms when empty.
+Therefore the gauge for a 55 litre tank needs to read empty when in series with 60 ohms, but for a 63 litre tank gauge, it must read zero when in series with 120 ohms. Both need to read full when in series with zero ohms. This is why there are two types of [[Instruments#Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]] available for the E30.
-Therefore the gauge for a 55 litre tank needs to read empty when in series with 60 ohms, but for a 62 litre tank gauge, it must read zero when in series with 120 ohms. Both need to read full when in series with zero ohms. This is why there are two types of [[Instruments#Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]] available for the E30.
+A 63 litre tank can be used with just a single level sensor, but the indicated level will vary, depending on the respective levels in the two halves.
 If your [[Instruments##Fuel_Gauge|fuel gauge]] is flickering, a broken sender is a common culprit. To check, pull the plug off them, one at a time, and short together the relevant pins in the plug, with less than half a tank of fuel on board.

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 ''For [[M21|Diesel engines]], jump to the [[Fuel#Diesel|Diesel]] section of this page or learn more about [[Diesel]].''
 =Overview=
@@ Line 11: / Line 9: @@
 The fuel system on E30 engines [[M20]], [[M40]], [[M42]] and [[S14]] is a petrol injection system. Pressurised fuel is delivered from the tank to [[Fuel#Injectors|injectors]], which squirt fuel into each cylinder in turn, at times controlled by the [[ECU]]. It is then ignited by the [[Ignition|ignition]] system, and turned into lovely lovely horsepower.
-The [[M10]] engine was also available in a fuel-injected version, but the base model [[316]] used a more traditional [[Fuel#Carburettor|carburettor]] setup, with ignition controlled by a mechanical [[Igntion#Distributor|distributor]].
+The [[M10]] engine was also available in a fuel-injected version, but the base model [[316]] used a more traditional [[Fuel#Carburettor|carburettor]] setup, with ignition controlled by a mechanical [[Ignition#Distributor|distributor]].
 =Components=

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 The fuel system on E30 engines [[M20]], [[M40]], [[M42]] and [[S14]] is a petrol injection system. Pressurised fuel is delivered from the tank to [[Fuel#Injectors|injectors]], which squirt fuel into each cylinder in turn, at times controlled by the [[ECU]]. It is then ignited by the [[Ignition|ignition]] system, and turned into lovely lovely horsepower.
 =Components=
@@ Line 92: / Line 94: @@
 The FPR is mounted to the end of the fuel rail, closest to the radiator. It has a small rubber tube connecting it to the top of the [[Intake#Intake_Manifold|intake manifold]], and also connects to the returning fuel hose. It is a simple diaphragm valve, sucked and blown by the intake manifold pressure to open or close the fuel flow. Failure of this diaphragm can result in rich running, lumpy idles, poor fuel economy and even engine failure. Despite this, the FPR does not have a reputation for unreliability.
 ==Carbon Canister==