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325i Sport Help

906 views 12 replies 4 participants last post by  325imko 
#1 ·
Hi guys , I just got myself a BMW 325i Sport Auto ( Hate auto's but wanted to give it a try )

Well I got few questions about these cars that i hope somewhere here can answer for me.

1. Last mot had an advisory for offside rear shock leaking oil , now im not sure whether i can put SACHS shock in there with the car having a sport suspension so which one should i use ?
2. The revs seems to be acting up a little bit for example if i start the car and rev it to 2k on the way back they stop for a second at 1400rpm then go to around 600-700rpm this isnt normal is it?
Also when i put the car in drive the revs seem to be dropping a little bit and when i pull away it feels like it wants to stall but it doesnt if i put in in neutral its ok they sit still at 600rpm what could it be?

3. When i revved the car after idrove it home then when i turn the engine off a yellow oil light came on telling me the oil is getting low but i checked today and its nearly on max , i did notice the valve cover gasket is bad which im going to change tmw so do you think it could be cause of that?

4. And last i would appreciate if someone would tell me what the best oil and howmany litters does the engine take.

Thanks a lot for any info Land vehicle Vehicle Car Bmw Personal luxury car
 
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#2 ·
If you have sport package yes you should buy sports struts and springs.
Check bmwfans.info for BMW numbers.

Yes is normal idle is high when cold starting and will drop.... uder 1K rpm.
You could check hoses, idle control valve, etc.

If oil level is fine, oil level senor is broken.

There is no best oil, just buy BMW spec LL01 or LL04. I pefer LL01, while LL04 is for newer cars.
Check oil website company e.g. Castrol and you will see how many liters your car need for each application.
 
#3 ·
Hi 325imko

1. If I was you I'd go with a genuine shock, or at least a vehicle specific EOM part. which will work with the sports suspension, anything different and you'll more then likely have problems.

2. If you rev the car after first starting it from cold, as the revs drop it will pause around 1400 rpm. This will be the car trying to decide if it needs to be on fast idle to warm up. I would like to think.
As for the revs dropping in drive. When the cars put into drive the gearbox engages the relevant wet clutch pack to select 1st, the torque converter allows slip until you come off the brakes and then drive is taken up through oil pressure (affectively). This is why when its in drive and the brakes aren't applied the vehicle creeps slowly. Naturally when the vehicle is in drive and the brakes are on although there is oil pressure in the torque converter it slips and won't transfer the engine rotation through to the gearbox. This is probably what is making your revs drop, as in affect the engine is under load and the rpm will be dragged down slightly because of this.

3. My 330Ci does the same thing with the oil light. However mine only does it when the oil is getting low, (Check from cold and see where its at. On mine the oil level can change up to half a litre from cold to operating temperature). If the oil levels ok its more then likely a fault with the sensor. but make sure if the sensors not working you regularly check the oil level.

Hope this helps a little, Kind regards Adam.
 
#4 ·
Thanks guys , i tried searching for a genuine shocks online and found a used one's but they look really good and have only 16k miles on them atleast the seller claims, i will try and find new ones but dont really want to spend a small fortune on them..

But now i got the yellow engine light on it came on just today and stays on even if i switch the engine off and then on again im thinking its something to do with the throttle body cause i noticed that when i put the car in drive and press the gas pedal gently the car isnt moving and it drops the rpm and feels like it will stall i always have to press the throttle a little bit more but that makes for a jerky launch then rather then smoothly pulling away. I got a vag code reader the cheap £10 one from ebay always works on my Audi TQS and i read somewhere that it can be used on BMW aswell is that right? Cheers
 
#5 ·
Best to get it diagnosed first rather than throw money at unknowns to see what codes are stored. Try here for code reader info:

http://www.bimmerforums.co.uk/forum...ded-usb-vagcom-interface-winxp-vista-t102843/

The jerky launch could possibly be an ignition coil or spark plug issue if they haven't been changed in a while.

Get a torch and check the intake hoses from the MAF down to the throttle body in the engine as they split due to age, cause vacuum leaks leading to rough idle and poor throttle response. Change both hoses even if just one of them is split.

While at it, clean the throttle body with carbon cleaner as well as the idle control valve (ICV) as they get dirty with carbon deposits. The ICV can get stuck, but a clean will usually sort it. Clean the MAF with electrical contact spray. All being well you might get better response from the throttle and slightly improved MPG.

The yellow oil light - as said earlier - might be the oil level sensor if you find that it lights up even though your oil levels are ok and there are no leaks anywhere. If it is the sensor, change it during an oil service. The cheap sensors on ebay (I've seen them as low as £5...) will fail in short order, so avoid those like the plague and get the Hella oil level sensor.
 
#7 ·
Thanks mate , I was planning to clean the MAF and throttle body plus ICV i'll have to get at it on the weekend, interesting thing is the engine light is no longer on after i wrotte it here i drove to halfords for some bulbs and noticed its gone hopefully it wont come back but will clean these things as mentioned , im not sure if this might be linked to the engine light but i notice the smoke coming from the exhaust is somehow ''weird'' like im standing at the lights and every few seconds there's a little bit more smoke coming out then its normal then again makes me think the combustion isnt that efficent the car has all the power it should and does not overheat even after hard driving it sits nice and steady in the middle im thinking maybe the spark plugs are not that good ill have a look at them on the weekend but it could also be the oil and oil filter wasnt changed for some time i'll propably use castrol as i do with all my cars..

One question about the power, how can i get the best out of the engine whats the best cold air intake for these engines that wont mess up the MAF , the stock exhaust should be good enough right ? It does sound great with the stock exhaust so dont want to change that really.

BTW i found this code reader : BMW OBD Diagnostics Cable Code reader Ediabas Inpa DIS | eBay
That should do it right? Seems good and well priced. Cheers
 
#9 ·
Is it white smoke from the exhaust? If so, it will usually be steam as a build up of condensation in the CCV gets burned off, a common thing with the 6-cylinder engines in BMWs. It's very noticeable on cold days. Short journeys usually cause this, and the smoke/steam will go away after a good run of the car. I was among an E46 saloon, an E92, and an E60 one cold morning, all with I6 engines, and all steaming like the Flying Scotsman.

If it's blue smoke, it might be oil-related and the worst-case scenario is piston rings. As said, get the code reader, and take it from there.
 
#10 ·
It is white , i checked the oil again twice since i wrotte here and it is low not sure whether there's a leak or the last time i checked it it was not accurate when it was on nearly max but bought castrol oil 5w30 magnatec start stop the new one C3 with air and oil filters will get that changed tomorrow so hopefully there's no leaks or anything.

Ordered the code reader so should be here by monday then i can scan it and see if there is a problem.

Couple of little problems i noticed tho , first you know how the car beeps when the temp is below a certain point well when i put the heater on the car beeps every 5 seconds the temp is jumping from +50C to -40C pretty sure is a sensor but where is it? And another thing my license plate bulbs arent working well one is the other isnt i checked today and could see there's a problem with the connection (see pic ) so i tried to run a copper cable to fill the gap and test whether that will solve it but it still didnt work so im not sure now tbh do you have any ideas ? Cheers Electrical wiring Vehicle door Technology Automotive exterior Bumper
 
#12 ·
Check the contacts for the licence plate bulbs and clean them as deposits might be stopping the bulb completing the circuit. Licence plate bulbs are required for the MOT, so watch out!

The temperature changing might be the ambient (or outside) temperature sensor. This is located in the splash panel under the front bumper ahead of the left (passenger) front wheel. See the photo in this thread for an idea of its location:

https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?1127615-Outside-air-temperature-sensor

The video below, although a bit long, is very useful:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrgeWWZ4dnk
 
#13 ·
Thanks mate , i had the car at a friends garage today and changed the oil but noticed a pretty noticeable oil leak. I started a new thread here have a look there's a pic aswell you might be able to help me cause i cannot figure out where its coming from, cheers.
 
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