DESPERATE-very bad engine problems
 

Hello,
I want to start by THANK YOU to anyone who will reply,I am really desperate because of my engine problems with my X5 (E53,2000,4.4i/286HP,163.000km)
It started 3 months ago,the yellow light (engine service) flashing while the car was running on high RPM's...it flashed couple of times,then it stayed ON.
Now the car has lost significant amount of power,it accelerates slower and is not running more than 160-180km/hour.Even at this speed if it's being "pushed" the engine starts shaking badly and it needs an engine stop,then it will run again.Anywhere near 4000rpm's the engine shaking starts again.
Before it starts shaking the yellow light is flashing again(when the acceleration is being pushed towards the end)
I went to my mechanic,he reset the sensor to see what is happening.After around 100km it went back on again.
The software reading from the tester gives different results depending on the actual software being used :confused:
On one tester it said the lambda sensors after the catalytic converters need changing.I changed those,still no result.
On a different tester it said the camshaft sensor and the acceleration sensor need changing(haven't changed them yet) It also says "MISFIRE on Cylinder 1,6,8" I've also changed the ignition sparks and engine oil.
On another tester it said the thermostat (hopefully it's the same in english as it is in romanian) and the engine fun needs changing,but this seems curious to me,as the engine temperature is normal .Also,the tester should not be able to tell if these are damaged?

WHAT SHOULD I CHANGE ? I don't wanna change something that it works,it already cost me a fortune fixing other stuff.

Please,help...very much appreciated.

My friend, at this point you have no choice but to spend some money here and fix your X. Trying to cut any corners, can damage your X even more down the line. Seems to me that you haven't really maintained your X or the previous owner didn't really do much to it. Meaning having kept up with preventative maintenance. Either way, yes camshaft sensor sounds like something that can make the engine shake, acceleration sensor sounds right too, since you said the X doesn't accelerate properly. Have you done water pump, thermostat, belts, hoses, new plugs, etc.... on this X yet? Maybe your coils are are going bad since you have misfire at 1,6,8.... Sounds to me that your going to have to dish some money out here and get this baby fixed. Or, it will give you more problems and maybe stop running. Good Luck

I would get it to BMW experienced mechanic soon. As above, you are having problems probably too serious to drive it.

Start changing the cheaper parts first. Especially the ones that involve the least amount of labor. Getting an independent tech look at it is for sure a good idea.

Thank you for taking the time to answer. I've done waterpump last year,it failed at 138.000km(now it has 163.000km).Belts,air filter as well.Spark plugs a week ago.
The BMW service in Romania is really c*ap,not going to them ever again..It took them 2 months to change the waterpump last year!!!I'm using experienced third party mechanics...not many options in this damn country.
I haven't change the thermostat yet -isn't the engine supposed to run hot if the thermostat fails? The engine temp in normal at all times.
Should I go for camshaft sensor+acceleration sensor changing before or after the coils?

well try the coils first, then if still there is a problem, do the rest... Good luck...

Did you check the error code? If you have cylinders which misfired the code should tell you which ones. I agree with BimmerDud, start with the coils. Do not drive your X until this is fixed as you are damaging the engine

Get the error codes and post them here then the "collective" can assimilate the problems and work out how to proceed.
Just throwing parts at it can turn expensive.

Codered, we have some of the finest people on this forum, we all can get down to the bottom of this for you. This way you will know what to do. Sit tight, give us the info as Zulu stated above, and let the "collective" take it from there.

It says Misfire on Cylinders 1,6,8...We've taken the coils out of the sparks early this morning,there is a lot of motor oil in them.It seems the rubber sealings are worn-off so the oil enters into the coils. We intend to replace those rubber parts/joints and then the coils..
You're really scared me with the engine damage..is this irreversible damage?already driven 1000km like this :(( No one told me here this can cause damage to the engine.Max speed is now 160-180km/h,will it get back to 210km/h and proper acceleration ever again? :((

I suggest you replace all the 8 coils and see what happens. If you still run engine so hard, it will damage the engine irreversibly. Remember, when you test the car, do not push it hard.

Sounds quite simple from what you've said.... if you have oil in the coils then you are simply shorting out the spark, causing loss of power and misfire. No major damage should be done as fuel mixture is simply washing the bore and being exhausted.

Obviously you don't want this to go on very long as washing the bore eliminates lubrication, so as others have said, DON'T DRIVE until you've found the cause.

Cheers

I would say it is you're valve covers leaking oil into the plug holes shorting the spark to ground this can make a car miss stumble hesitate shake all kinds of problems I would change the valve cover gaskets and clean the coil packs with brake cleaner make sure the plug boots fit the plugs tight if not replace them oil will swell them up most likley the coil packs will be ok good luck.

Like I said before, your X is in need of maintenance, asap. Valve cover gaskets for sure, and not only that make sure you change all of the washer, because those also tend to leak into the coil bay. The washers are the one's that you screw in the valve covers. Trust me, I had my valve cover gaskets done and they didn't change the washers, oil still leaked into the bay. Good luck.

Thank you Bimmerdude again for the support,much much appreciated.
Tomorrow we will clean the oil from the coils and gaskets. My mechanic talks about some sort of rubber joints,are them the same thing as you're taking ? Should we replace all 8 coils or the ones that seem faulty.
For now we've replaced:all spark plugs,engine oil,2 lambda sensors after the catalytic converter
I will definitely make some pictures of the engine/coils/gaskets etc and post the pictures in here so maybe some of you can see the exact thing.

I really count on x5world as the last resort for help...

I would clean up the coils and replace the rubber plug leads (short rubber things from coil packs to plugs) and then see how it runs. That, plus the gasket job may be all you need.
GL.

Yep, that is correct, rubber joints. Change those as well, since you have to take them out anyway. Good Luck, and yes post the pics. Let everyone know what happens. Good Luck...

Cylinder head gaskets are the source of problem, then the coils.

We're starting to fix them today at 3pm local time...4 more hours to go...we've purchased what was needed....very reasonable cost for all the rubber joints...95Euros
Hopefully i'll be able to post the pics later in the evening
Regards,

Yes post the pics. Good Luck...

That's your problem, valve cover gasket. Oil in the spark plug hole is shorting the plugs.

You do realize this thread is from 2007...lol!:rofl:

Didn't realize it was that old. LOL