M40 stalling when cold

[JF008]

Hi, my 318i always stall when I 3 point turn at the end of my street, only when the engine is cold and it is worse on the reversing gear.. The idling is a bit lumpy in general too. Any idea what causes this?

[greg124]

Have to let mine idle for about 30 seconds before setting off when its cold, it then settles to a smooth idle and will set off fine.

[bmw9818]

i had that! on full lock it used to cut out and took alot of cranking to start,

check the fuel lines as mine were leaking bad, on start up it dumps extra fuel and most of mine was squirting out and dripping onto the gearbox,

[JF008]

full lock makes things worse indeed, thanks for the tips and I will check those fuel lines!

[Billwill]

If your idle is a bit lumpy then check for air leaks, clean the ICV, check spark plugs and check the operation of the Throttle Position Switch. Also check your blue sensor although that normally only affects cold starts.

My M40 also sometimes tries to stall at full lock of the power steering...maybe the power steering pump is getting tired

[Grrrmachine]

Full lock will always put the steering pump under increased strain, so it's common for the revs to drop at that time. You need to explore why you've got a low or weak idle to start with, and this could be due to air leaks, fuel leaks or weak spark; lots of things to investigate.

[JF008]

Thanks guys, I have new spark plugs, air filter+intake boot & intake manifold gasket.. I will investigate the other items mentionned!!

[greg124]

When you get to the bottom of it, please post the results on here for the benefit of others.

[Brianmoooore]

If they've never been done, a rebuild of your injectors is long overdue, and could certainly be relevant to your symptoms. If you look in our traders' section, you will find "injectortune", who will charge you £46 for a full rebuild of your four.

[JF008]

So far all I did due the continuous rain.. 2 cans of STP fuel injector cleaner... and problem solved!... not. I will do a proper maintenance on it in due course : )

[JF008]

Ok, problem solved. Cleaned ICV and patched air leak. Bottom line, my local conventional garage are a bunch of spazs and my local mod shop are heros !! Takes me some time to get stuff sorted as a work abroad hence the delay in posting results...