just joined need some quick advice if anyone can help!!!:)

[daymo69er]

basically i just got a bmw 318i e30, just a few questions if any off you guys can help me! basically first thing is.....

1..when its cold i have 2 leave her warm up else if i pull away she splutters and cuts out is this normal whens its warm its fine!?

2.. when im driving around if im in 1st and i put my foot down soon as i hit high revs its splutters and then put into second with foot to the floor its splutters in second to...anyone have any idead what this could be?

3.. i get really bad fuel consumption i topped up £35 yesterday done around 90miles and fuel is back on red again and thas like eco driving low revs etc...


if anyone could please help me with any off these questions would be much appreciated!!! if u can getback to me ideal ! thanks folks

[kam-325i]

Check for an air leak in the intake system, pay attenetion to the rubber tube to the Throttle body..

[daymo69er]

okkk thank you will have a look tomorrow now as it is bit to dark out there! thanks if there any other ideas would be ideal , been told about coolant sensor...?

[leeparkes]

Are the revs steady at idle? When was it last serviced?

[daymo69er]

around 2 months ago it was serviced apparently , only just got the car new to the bmw world , and when shes warm she idles fine, but when i start it in the morning i have 2 leave it warm up for a few mins before i drive...

[gnrsoul]

after you have checked for air leaks check the blue temp senser to make sure it working proper.
and does the rev counter stay steady at idle of do they rev up and down a bit?

and i would give it a service even no the last owner says he had just not long done one.

[Billwill]

okkk thank you will have a look tomorrow now as it is bit to dark out there! thanks if there any other ideas would be ideal , been told about coolant sensor...?

I presume you have one of the newer 318i E30s ie. the M40?

The blue temperature sensor is located under the inlet manifold next to the brown temperature gauge sensor. You can get to it to remove it with a bit of juggling about without having to remove the whole intake manifold.
You can measure the resistance of the blue sensor when cold and then heat it up...the values are posted here somehere but they should be in the order of about 2,000 Oms when cold and 200 Ohms when hot.
My m40 had exactly the same symptoms as yours...I did not have to test the Blue sensor as it completely disintergrated when I pulled on the connector

[Grrrmachine]

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... emp_Sensor

Test it before you remove it.

[daymo69er]

i hope so dont really want to go taking her apart already lol! , im thinking off just buying a new one anyways there only around £10er aint they? , if u pull it out water or anything wont come out will it? thanks for the replys!! atleast you guyes reply on the 106 owners hardly anyone writes back!! ,

and air leaks i got a standard airbox and new mass air flow meter comming weekend so im going to revert the intake back to standard see if it saves a bit of fuel! and yeah i no what u mean mate,

also shes a bit tappity someone said about changing the lifters? or something......

[Kos]

can you smell fuel ? there's a fuel hose under the inlet manifold that is usually perished. worth looking at and replacing. mail dealers do a repair kit for it

as for the spluttering at high RPM, its hard to say but i have known valve springs to be tired and this can cause a miss fire at high RPM

[daymo69er]

no mate i cant smell fuel..... and hmmm ill have butchers put new sensor in , new spark plugs n oil etc, and see how it goes then:) , but people thanks alot for the help!!!

[Grrrmachine]

put new sensor in

Don't throw parts at it. The sensor might be fine while the wiring to the ECU is rotten, so you'll have wasted money for nothing.

Just get a multimeter on it.

[Brianmoooore]

put new sensor in

Don't throw parts at it. The sensor might be fine while the wiring to the ECU is rotten, so you'll have wasted money for nothing.

Just get a multimeter on it.

As above! Anything you touch stands a chance of introducing new faults, and there's nothing more fun than sorting multiple, interrelated and usually intermittent electrical faults.

[daymo69er]

okk ill give it a test! , friends got a multimeter i can borrow weekend:) , someone said about changing the lifters to sort the tapppity sound? this right? if so how much does that normaly cost around

[daymo69er]

Just went out to check my air filter......theres a plug going into the mass air flow sensor but then thers a little black plug comming off it and its not plugged into anything??? is this anything i should worry about?

[threelander]

that plug would be for a car fitted with a catalytic convertor i think

[daymo69er]

ahh right so nothing to do with that then , just fitting new fuel filter and plugs:) fingers crossed it makes it a bit better! , then check the sensor weekend

[threelander]

as people have said above check for air leaks to the inlet manifold

[daymo69er]

Ive check for air leaks going to the inlet manifold......theres a pipe connected to it right near the inlet but then just above that theres a half the size pipe which is blocked off , im gettin new standerd filter set up weekend which another mass air flow il get some mass air flow cleaner n give that a go,:) ,

[Grrrmachine]

Air leaks can be in all sorts of places, as the Wiki describes:

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... #Air_Leaks

That same page also shows that you've got an AFM, not MAF. It's a subtle difference, but it means using MAF cleaner won't help at all; the AFM electronics are all sealed up under a plastic lid.

As the Wiki states, check for the rubber plug under the throttle body. If that's all good, test the Throttle Position Switch.

[daymo69er]

how hard is it to take off the throttle body??? , that wiki is brilliant!!!

[Grrrmachine]

Undo the big jubilee clips holding the rubber boot in place, pull it off. Unclip the throttle cable.

Now undo the four 8-mm nuts holding the Throttle body in place. Be careful not to drop the nuts as you undo them. Then pull the TB gently off its mounting threads. Check the condition of the gasket, and undo as many of the rubber pipes connected to the TB as necessary.

And thanks

[daymo69er]

dont sound to hard! illl have a butchers thanks alot budd! well let u no how i get one wen i give it a go:) x

[daymo69er]

lads...i think it could be something to do with my airfilter /sensor on the filter i unplugged it....and idle is lumpy but didnt cut out and didnt splutter! , so i think putting standard air box and and new sensor should do the job will keep you posted!

[daymo69er]

i have changed the amf sensor and its sorted out the idling from cold! so no i can start her up and she doesnt cut out or splutter at low revs but it still splutters at high revs....and im only getting 21mpg , i put in £20 of fuel at £138.9 per liter, is there anything else i can change?

[Billwill]

Check your plugs..only use NGK!

Lift the cover off the rockers and check if the camshaft and rockers are not too worn...that normally stops an M40 from revving high but not really spluttering

Maybe the fuel-pressure regulator is bad...fuel filter blocked?

Did you actually test/replace the Blue sensor?

Maybe you need to check the timing/tension of the cam belt.

On some of the later M40 E30s an extra lenght of cable was placed between the AFM and the harness. Have a look at where the screw-on connection goes to the AFM...check if there is perhaps another section of cable about 18 inches long inserted there...complete with a male and female plug on each end. If this section of cable is there..try removing it.

I had the same problems you descibed and that extra cable section was the cause.

[daymo69er]

thanks for the reply, theres new spark plugs in there i think there bosh ones, so youd say to get ngk yeah? , and the blue sensor was replaced,

and the fuel pressure regulator a friend of mine said this could be broke...do you no where it is and where i could get one from? just to change so there for a piece of mind! because i could do that myself,

but removing the rocker cover and checking the timing i think ill get a garage or someone to check that out, !!! ,

just fitted a new afm and the plug fits in but before the screw on plug theres another plug but it doesnt go anywhere? ....someone said its for cars with a cat.....