E53 3.0d Gremlins, Crank, No Start!

[Juut]

Good Morning all,


Now I will state I have scoured the forums/interwebs for hours so I have a couple of ideas of potential issues however there are inconsistancies I just wanna address to see if anyone can guide me in the right direction.


Was driving yesterday stopped at a junction, pulled away and about 2ft later the engine cut out, No splutter/ Judder No warnings nothing just straight up died.


Tried to restart it would crank but not fire up, It wouldn't even catch slightly. Quickly pulled the fuel pump fuse, cranked a couple times and popped it back in to avail(previous posters suggestion)


Got it towed and back home now



So potential causes I've found are.


1. Ignition Switch - It fits the bill on a few posts but also doesnt.
2. Potentially the fuel pump - Although it did breifly catch this morning for a split second and then cut off again. I'm fairly certain I can also hear the pump going but will get a 2nd set of ears to check today.


Issues that arose in the last couple of weeks prior to this happening, that I think are potentially linked(Ignition switch gremlins?)?


1. Key fob issues - Will no longer remote unlock, will remote lock occasionally ( car still started fine ) Internal lock button locks all doors with no issues and manual lock works fine

2. Key would no longer pair to the car anymore
3. Clown light is blank and no longer lights up
4. When manually unlocking the car the hazards would flash when door was opened until ignition was turned.


I would appreciate any insight as while my knowledge around the workings of BWM's is generally quite good I am at a loss with this one! So far the forums have alluded this is all "potentially" related to the Iggy switch and could well have been exasperated by the low battery voltage. However I was running a juice pack on the battery also but wouldn't start where before I had the same battery voltage it would.



Things I am currently doing:


1. Fully charging battery as this was low (11.7v) after cranking it over I am aware I may have a parasitiic drain somewhere, Battery tester comes back as battery is still good just low.
2. Ignition switch ordered as replacing it is quick and easy and the part is cheap so even so its preventative!
3. Will double check the fuel pump is priming with 2nd set of ears
4. Will do the visor test to see if anything happens (re iggy switch)

[andrewwynn]

How full is your fuel tank? I think the diesel used the same defective design of transfer pump for the left side tank.

If at ≈ 1/4 tank add some fuel, also does diesel have a low pressure fuel test point under the hood you can test for fuel pressure.

The symptom your described pull two feet forward and it shut off exactly describes the standard symptom of a bad cam shaft sensor. When that's the case it will usually start right up. Crank position sensor is however mission critical and if that goes bad car will not start.

I'd wait to know about the 1/4 tank answer before digging deeper.

The key remote radio is a separate radio from the RFID type of function used for starting the car. A proper scanner will tell you which key number is detected by the car to confirm it's working. Also: codes?

[EODguy]

Do you have a scanner?
If so is it bidirectional lime foxwell nt-510, nt-520?
What codes do you have? (Not P-codes but BMW specific.)

Having scanner costs 190-350 USD but with what shops charge to read 1 or 2 uses pays for itself.

Do you have your original head unit installed?

An EWS failure can cause your issues and inputting the unlock code would allow it to run.

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[EODguy]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

How full is your fuel tank? I think the diesel used the same defective design of transfer pump for the left side tank.

If at ≈ 1/4 tank add some fuel, also does diesel have a low pressure fuel test point under the hood you can test for fuel pressure.

The symptom your described pull two feet forward and it shut off exactly describes the standard symptom of a bad cam shaft sensor. When that's the case it will usually start right up. Crank position sensor is however mission critical and if that goes bad car will not start.

I'd wait to know about the 1/4 tank answer before digging deeper.

The key remote radio is a separate radio from the RFID type of function used for starting the car. A proper scanner will tell you which key number is detected by the car to confirm it's working. Also: codes?

I don't know why the fuel level issue escaped me considering my adventures in math while driving.

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[andrewwynn]

Originally Posted by EODguy

I don't know why the fuel level issue escaped me considering my adventures in math while driving.

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Prob the rate of consumption you fill up too often never gets that low. That said anybody with e53 had better pull up test six and drive down to single digits to empty and confirm their transfer pump is working at least once a year (until they rebuild their transfer pump). When monitoring test six the right side should stay at about 1.4L until the left side gets to zero. If the right side starts to drop when there is ≈ 20L left the transfer pump is failing and it's time to rebuild it.

[EODguy]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

Prob the rate of consumption you fill up too often never gets that low. That said anybody with e53 had better pull up test six and drive down to single digits to empty and confirm their transfer pump is working at least once a year (until they rebuild their transfer pump). When monitoring test six the right side should stay at about 1.4L until the left side gets to zero. If the right side starts to drop when there is ≈ 20L left the transfer pump is failing and it's time to rebuild it.

True!

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[Juut]

Hi all,


I have a code reader it's a Snap-On one with BMW Specific keys so I'll get that plugged in once I've got to the garage to collect it! In the meantime brother is bringing his over to take a look to see if anything comes up.


Fuel is just under 1/4, Although I've never had issues with fuel (filler cap is on the right hand side so I'd assume the right side had all the fuel no? ) I'll try adding some more fuel to see if that resolves it, as for the test port there is one but I don't think its something I can do without the equip which I don't have. It is only a schrader valve so I suppose I could just manually poke it down and see if anything sprays out!



If it was the sensors and the car was genuinely shut off from them would that not throw the check engine lights up? I had the same with my E36 Sensors Currently I have no check engine or any other error messages coming up. The car did start very very breifly maybe one fire and then shut off again this morning.


There is no option to input an unlock code, I think that's only certain models with the radio which mine does not have ( Usually appears on the dash cluster as C O D E _ _ _ _ If I remember correctly )


Appreciate the brain storming!

[Juut]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

Prob the rate of consumption you fill up too often never gets that low. That said anybody with e53 had better pull up test six and drive down to single digits to empty and confirm their transfer pump is working at least once a year (until they rebuild their transfer pump). When monitoring test six the right side should stay at about 1.4L until the left side gets to zero. If the right side starts to drop when there is ≈ 20L left the transfer pump is failing and it's time to rebuild it.

Just as a aside, I do run it down weekly as I only do short trips so usually am perma at 1/4 tank.

[andrewwynn]

If under 3/8 of a tank there is exactly 5L of fuel on the right side and everything else is on the left side.

There is a well on the right side where the pump is that holds 5L then it floods over to the left until the left is full and the left and right are combined and fill together. Below about 27L the system is entirely dependent on the transfer pump filling the 5L pump well.

Pull up test six to see what it says is on the right side. If it's not ≈ 1.4L then highly suspect as the problem.

[Juut]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

If under 3/8 of a tank there is exactly 5L of fuel on the right side and everything else is on the left side.

There is a well on the right side where the pump is that holds 5L then it floods over to the left until the left is full and the left and right are combined and fill together. Below about 27L the system is entirely dependent on the transfer pump filling the 5L pump well.

Pull up test six to see what it says is on the right side. If it's not ≈ 1.4L then highly suspect as the problem.

Interesting that's great knowledge thanks for that, I'll run test 6 in a couple hours when out from work, Any ideas on the central locking issues seems they are seperate but also a bug bear! Can't figure out why the key has suddenly stopped letting me re-pair it