316i won't start

[stanley]

hello all

I've my 1990 316i up for sale at the moment and a fella was coming to look at it today so i went out to start it and it wouldn't start,it was starting fine yesterday, so i checked the usual suspects but it was getting spark and fuel but it still wount run,i tried giving it a tow and it started to splutter and neary start but wouldn't.

I'm stumped to what it might be, Would it be the crank position sensor?

[jonbuoy]

It maybe the crank shaft sensor but there does'nt seem to be a reason for it to just go
If the car has been sitting for a while try your electrical connections at the coil, give them a clean up and make sure everything is dry. I had this problem before and i also put the ecu in the airing cupboard over night because condensation must have settled in
Unfortunately these car's don't like sitting around and need to be run around occasionally

[Brianmoooore]

Last E30 I bought was a 316 touring that was in the open and hadn't moved for over two years (some kind of legal dispute). The rear hatch wasn't closed properly, both side pockets and the wheel well were full to the brim with water, and the carpets were saturated underneath.
Stuck a new battery in it and a gallon of new petrol, and it fired up like it had been parked yesterday. Let it idle for half an hour to sort the ECU, and drove it 100 miles home, without the slightest problem.
Regards your car, think I'd try the distributor cap and rotor first.

[stanley]

Last E30 I bought was a 316 touring that was in the open and hadn't moved for over two years (some kind of legal dispute). The rear hatch wasn't closed properly, both side pockets and the wheel well were full to the brim with water, and the carpets were saturated underneath.
Stuck a new battery in it and a gallon of new petrol, and it fired up like it had been parked yesterday. Let it idle for half an hour to sort the ECU, and drove it 100 miles home, without the slightest problem.
Regards your car, think I'd try the distributor cap and rotor first.

The dissy cap and rotor are new (75 euro for dissy cap what a robbery), i have spark and its getting fuel thats why i thought it might be the CPS

[Brianmoooore]

CPS can't be completely dead, or you wouldn't be getting a spark or fuel, but they can partly fail and cause problems like this, so it's a possibility.
The E30 I was using on holiday last year also developed a fault with symtoms like yours. Fooled me for a while, as I thought it was fueling OK, but it turned out to be the fuel pump, which would die on cranking, and not produce sufficient pressure.

[stanley]

Sound , I'll try the pump tomorrow and see if its working