Just months after spending a small fortune of a new mechatronic unit and replacement gearbox, its broken down again... AA just left, timing belt gone.. I cant afford ( and wouldn't if I could) more money to spend on it, any idea if there is a market for a 2014 530 D, 99 K miles with this amount of work due?

Hi Chris

That is sad news but for your information your car has Timing Chains no belts involved so if an AA man told you Belt he is wrong

The engine in your car should be BMW M57N 3.0D unfortunately the Timing Chains guides and tensioner are at the rear of the engine requiring the engine to be removed for service/repair. So labour is high compared to parts cost

What symptoms did you experience and for how long before the AA became involved ?

Dave

Hi Dave, his exact words on his report reads " we have found no comms with OBD, no crank suspected seized engine or internal engine fault, oil level OK, coolant level OK" I understood this was the F10 engine Dave , there were no symptoms, just driving home, warning lights on dash, , Stop Start etc and then it coasted to a strop and just a click when you try to start... AA put his vehicle charger onto the points in the engine bay and it made no difference. No symptoms, just had a new mechantronic unit and replacement gearbox fitted 2 months ago

Hi Chris

Sorry don't trust the AA my neighbour broke down (BMW X5 E53) the AA attended plugged in and their report said no communication with the Gearbox no drive total gearbox failure. Your car Model is F10 the engine designation is M57N

He waited to be recovered to home I plugged in my ISTA diagnostics Gearbox fine Engine ran gearbox selected drive and reverse checked underneath and the Prop was spinning? My diagnosis Rear Diff failed he brought a second hand diff (Ebay) and we fitted it on his drive, he still using the car 5 years on

Me I would get a second opinion before doing anything drastic. Remove the undertray and get a socket on the Crank shaft bolt and turn the engine by hand that will confirm if it is seized or not. No crank could be a multitude of other things from the starter relay to an ECU failure proper diagnostics are needed

Dave

Bit of a long shot, but has the alternator failed? My x5 did and it did exactly the same, even with a jump pack and a battery charger, it wouldn’t fire or crank at communicate as the battery was fully fully flat.

The warning lights came on, then quickly engine lost power. And the car stopped.

Surely if the timing chain snapped it would have made a !Removed! big noise before stopping quickly, not coasting as the engine would still be engaged to the gearbox?

Hi Stu, thank you for jumping in on this.. I've just had another mechanic come out who took the starter off and confirmed its still working. I also got the RAC out as I forgot I had a policy with them through my insurance. He tried the jump start, , attempted to turn the crank from underneath and believes its seized.. I've mentioned the alternator point back to the mechanic for his thoughts as I agree.. The engine warning light came on, the engine stopped and it coasted to a stop and never started again... There was no noise and the gear selector went into neutral.. As I type this, is that a fail safe designed within the car to stop the wheel locking up when the engine seized? Finally, if it is gone , it needs to go as I am not prepared to spend another penny on it.. Any enthusiasts out there who want to take it on?