Hey guys, I appreciate if anyone could help with this.
When cold my car seems to have a rough idle. It sounds as if the engine is choking itself. As the engine is turned on the revs drops and the engine nearly dies(engine shaking) but then kicks itself back into life by slightly revving up and does the same over and over again for around 5 minutes. If I touch the accelerator whilst doing this the car will completely die, when the revs drop back down only way to keep it going is to keep revving it. When the car is warm there isn’t any issue with the performance. I recently changed the spark plugs ad I noticed one of the distributor leads has been taped by the previous owner. (D.I.Y job)
1990 316i.
Would be so thankful of an help.
Niall.
Help :( Idle issue
Moderator: martauto
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Brianmoooore
- E30 Zone Team Member

- Posts: 49360
- Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:00 pm
Welcome to the zone!
I doubt if the taped up lead is anything to do with your problem directly, but it might be indicative of the type of (poor) care the car has received in its previous ownership.
Start your quest by testing the coolant (commonly known as the blue) sensor at the socket of the engine ECU, with the engine hot and cold, then move on to testing the throttle position switch.
Check whether the CO adjustment pot on the air flow meter and the throttle butterfly stop on the throttle body show any signs of having been meddled with, and resist any temptation to do so. They were set correctly at the factory, and do not need adjustment.
Testing methods are all in the zone wiki, and if you need any further explanation, ask back on this thread.
I doubt if the taped up lead is anything to do with your problem directly, but it might be indicative of the type of (poor) care the car has received in its previous ownership.
Start your quest by testing the coolant (commonly known as the blue) sensor at the socket of the engine ECU, with the engine hot and cold, then move on to testing the throttle position switch.
Check whether the CO adjustment pot on the air flow meter and the throttle butterfly stop on the throttle body show any signs of having been meddled with, and resist any temptation to do so. They were set correctly at the factory, and do not need adjustment.
Testing methods are all in the zone wiki, and if you need any further explanation, ask back on this thread.
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deevo90
- E30 Zone Newbie

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capri_rob
- Married to the E30 Zone

- Posts: 9678
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- Location: South Staffordshire
Yep thats the one

e30topless said : Proper BMW's have 4 headlights, last of the run was the E30 and E34/E32 anything after that is just complete shite
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Grrrmachine
- E30 Zone Wiki / Team Member

- Posts: 8043
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I'm presuming that between 12:15am and 12:26am you managed to test the coolant sensor, which is why you're looking for a replacement. If that's not the case, DON'T just buy a new sensor and fit it - TEST FIRST.
'89 325i Touring | Touring Resto Thread | In-Dash Screen install
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Brianmoooore
- E30 Zone Team Member

- Posts: 49360
- Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:00 pm
TEST THE ONE YOU HAVE!!!! Don't start randomly replacing parts - this is a) expensive, and b) you are very likely to introduce faults that you didn't have in the first place.
