Greydog

You sure it isn't DMF related I am told they make horrible noises and vibration when they are on the way out?

Just a thought Danny I had vibration under load at around 3000 rpm my engine viscous fan had a damaged blade don't know how it happened but it caused vibration that eventually destroyed the water pump, the second time my water pump failed I decided to investigate and found the damaged fan. Took it off no vibration so I replaced it with an electric fan, but I could feel the vibration in the car.

Morning Danny With Trevor on this a puzzle but puzzles are a challenge and we love a challenge. When the vibration is there do you feel it through the steering or through the seat of your pants? Just trying to get a feel for which end of the car, put your hand on the gear stick do you feel it more? You have changed engine mounts did you change the gear box mounts? Prop Centre bearing? Or could it be DMF related just my thoughts. Dave

Morning Danny With Trevor on this a puzzle but puzzles are a challenge and we love a challenge. When the vibration is there do you feel it through the steering or through the seat of your pants? Just trying to get a feel for which end of the car, put your hand on the gear stick do you feel it more? You have changed engine mounts did you change the gear box mounts? Prop Centre bearing? Or could it be DPF related just my thoughts. Dave

Morning Jim The black and grey unit in the picture is your power steering pump (Electronic Power Steering or EPS) it is part of your steering rack (viewed from the front underneath of your car.Under the front of your car there is a splash guard that is attached to your front bumper and the engine sub frame it is held on with screws and plastic clips. Once that is out of the way you will see the EPS and the plugs the small plug (2) is the plug that connects to the steering torque sensor, I don't have a 3 series I have taken this information from the websites I have given you but it still seems logical that one of these plugs has been dislodged or is damaged after your kerb incident. Dave

Hi Jim Is the power steering back or are you able to drive without it? Looking at www.newtis.info I can see a steering torque sensor but no steering angle sensor? Looking at the drawings there are 3 connectors that are plugged into the back of the EPS (electronic Power Steering) 1 small and 2 larger connectors I still think one of these has been pulled off or damaged. The small connector from the diagrams seems to be connected to the steering torque sensor. Have a look at the attached picture from Newtis connectors 1 & 2 can be safely unplugged but if 3 is unplugged it seems the rack has to be re-calibrated. So did they put it on a ramp and take off the under guard and check? Or did they just plug in and give the diagnostic? If the steering torque sensor is disconnected it would show as a fault but not necessarily be faulty. I would be checking myself before trusting someone who may tell me it needs changing at £xxx when all it needs is plugging back in or maybe an electrical connection repair. I hope the information helps Dave Structure and inner electrical connection Depending on the series, the steering-torque sensor is connected via a plug connection or a direct connection to the EPS control unit. The EPS control unit also provides the earth connection for the steering-torque sensor. Depending on the model series, the plug connection has 6 pins (2 pins assigned) or 5 pins (5 pins or 3 pins assigned). The current pin assignment is located in the wiring diagrams in the ISTA diagnosis system.

Morning Jim That will build your muscles up !! I don't have electric power steering but being logical the steering rack is mounted low down at the front so I would say your bumper issue and the lack of steering input are quite probably related. I would check underneath to see if any connectors have been damaged or pulled out. Your rack will have a small electrically driven pump built in when you turn the wheel the pump is triggered and provides assistance. Have a look at www.realoem.com put the last 7 digits of your Vin in the search box it will bring up your model then look in the steering file. You can also look at www.newtis.info (I just did) There is an electrical connector there that may well have been knocked or damaged. Fingers crossed it is that simple and a few fixing screws and expanding plastic rivets for the trim underneath and you will be OK Dave

Morning Tim Looking at www.realoem.com you have 3 chains 1 lower and 2 upper. Have a look put the last 7 digits of your Vin in the search box and it will bring up your model. If you are going to DIY then www.newtis.info may be a help Dave

Morning Eric Has the Snow meted yet? I did wonder if Clarence's car was one that had suffered a stretched timing chain and the Dealer was ducking any warranty responsibility ?? Dave

Morning Seb Just had a play with our neighbours 5 series in the idrive menu look for "my Car" the "settings" then scroll through the functions and explore. Yes we found auto fold and enabled it now his mirrors fold on lock and unfold on unlock. His car is 4 years old and the Sales Manager had told him it was an extra so for the last 4 years he has been folding his mirrors with the button on the window control he sends his thanks if you hadn't asked the question he still would be. My X5 E53 doesn't have iDrive so I need to access through the diagnostic program there may even be additional stuff hidden that needs to be activated through the diagnostics and it isn't coding it is "tick Box" stuff, turn it On or Off. Dave

Morning Seb My old X5 has a whole page of functions which can be turned on or off from Alarm Chirp or Flash on lock or unlock to Auto Lock (the speed it activates) about 20 or 30 items from memory if I get time today I will plug in and get a screen shot for you. They are all just tick boxes and if they are greyed out then obviously that function isnt available or the module isn't fitted on your car. I would think your model will be similar in that there are so in there will be a host of stuff that the dealer can turn on or off for a handsome fee !! Dave Just a thought Seb but your model will have iDrive so you should have functions like autofold mirrors available in settings in the iDrve,

Hi Tom Welcome to the Forum 7 series to 3 series well the first thing I think you will notice is ride comfort, compared to the 7 the D3 will be rock hard. From memory the power plant is the tried and tested 3.0 straight six twin turbo diesel these motors are pretty bullet proof as long as they are maintained properly and capable of Mega miles. If the service history is all BMW then at 98k I would find a ZF specialist and get the Gearbox serviced as BMW insist on telling us it is sealed for life!! The next thing you should notice is power again from memory around 350 hp and 500+ ft/lbs of torque the thing is an M3 muncher and rare. If it comes off Pictures Pictures Pictures Dave

Hi Just like your Octavia there menu's that will allow the turning on or off of functions Carly for BMW is an App for your smart phone which will allow code reading resetting and activation of stuff for INPA you will need a lap top more complicated (in my view especially getting it running) but very comprehensive, well it is a BMW program after all. Of course it will depend on what you have paid for to be activated at purchase as to what is left to activate. ENJOY Dave.

Morning Seb Welcome to the Forum remember to post some Pic's when you have the beasty home. Dave

I did read that there is a hidden menu you access by pushing and holding the left hand reset button by the speedo try Google there are normally how too's that pop up. Waiting for steam to show is a bit iffy !!

Ha Ha I think we are not that far away in age !!

Yeah but I have an X5 !! may be it will have to put up with the car wash LOL

Hi Michael You won't find a Haynes manual as far as I know? A couple of sites that may help you are www.realoem.com this is a BMW parts list put the last 7 digits of your Vin into the search box and it will bring up your model. Then you can look at the categories it will make sure your getting the correct parts for your car, it also has simple exploded drawings that help to show where bits fit. www.newtis.info is a BMW technical information site (same as used by Dealers) plenty of good information on how to remove/repair stuff just remember in BMW speak repair means replace. You can also look at www.pelicanparts.com it is an American site so doesn't deal with Diesels but apart from the steering on the wrong side pretty much everything else is where it should be, they have great how too's with pictures so as close to Haynes as you can get. Hope these help you Dave

Welcome Andrew Oooh Shiny, looks terrific want to come round and polish mine?? Dave

Welcome Kev Go for the 7 series, daughters never get any cheaper!! When they are tiny babies everyone thinks the first word they say is Mummy, it's not it's Money!! You have had school maybe the horse (done that) driving lessons and the first car, then Uni and then you will have, Dad can you help with the deposit; and you will because we love them to bits even more than our Beemer's Hmmm what am I saying !! Dave

Morning Michael Welcome to the forum, the BMW 3.0d engines are generally as tough as old boots particularly when well maintained. The Police tend to be scrupulous with their mechanical maintenance the wear and tear normally shows inside, worn front seats holes in the dash etc worn carpets. Make a list of jobs everything, then separate them into has to be done now, and do at your leisure. There is plenty of help here if or when you need it. One of our sons workmates brought an ex-police Range Rover and over a period of time found interior bits through specialist breakers and Ebay he still has it, it looks great and has never let him down (not many with rangies can say that) Dave

Morning Thanks Eric I understood what Clarence meant, what is needed is more information. His post gives nothing but the engine type and that the car is 4 years old? Nothing on how long has it been happening? How long has he owned the car? Dieseling in petrol cars is normally caused by timing issues and/or something hot and glowing in the cylinder/cylinders to keep it firing without ignition. Has it covered as many miles as the Starship Enterprise and has carbon buildup which glows hot? is there some cylinder head damage or valve damage (more likely culprit if low miles). Modern petrol engines run lean so a check of the fuel system needs to be carried out to ensure it isn't over fueling, normally this would smell this around the car and in the exhaust. Is it overheating. The poster says it has been back to the Dealer many times, when he says Dealer is it just a car sales place selling all marques where he brought it or a BMW Dealer? If it is a BMW Dealer I would be finding a different one for a proper diagnosis. So back to my original post more information Clarence for us to get our collective heads around your problem. Dave

If he made the sale from his premises and gave you a receipt then that is his tough luck I bet he didn't advertise it as a "private sale" also who did you pay? Good luck with the case Dave

Hi I believe you should be OBD II but supported in the car by BMW's Ibus system check Newtis to be sure but I believe from memory you can read from either OBD socket I use the under dash socket on mine. Depending on the Code Reader you have you may not be able to see all the control units but fingers crossed From your pictures it looks like she has suffered a few "Bodges" through the years and a little "tin worm" I am sure she will be back to health soon.

Welcome Leandre Well your "BMW" life has started with an adventure, you also have enough knowledge and know how to bring the beasty back to full health. At the age of your 5 series your box could be either GM or ZF the GM boxes are not so good, BMW like many other manufacturers decided to tell their customers the box is "sealed for life" as engineers we know that is rubbish but it means the poor old gearbox often dies from abuse not use. A code reader is essential with BMW's as so many of the control modules are interlinked of leading to mis-diagnosis of issues. For us with older models (the X5 and 5 series are cousins) I would recommend either INPA or BMW 1.4.0 as diagnostic tools, I use BMW 1.4.0 loaded on an old laptop which I use just for that purpose. It reads individual modules showing any faults (even intermitent faults) if you investigate the fault it will give a description in plain English as an example my PDC is intermittent a common issue without the reader I could be changing parts to try and fix it the reader showed "rear centre right sensor". So once a month I read all codes and reset, many are I have discovered due to poor earth connections to be expected on a 16 year old car. Cost of BMW 1.4.0 is about £15 A couple of websites for information www.realoem.com this is a BMW parts web site just put the last 7 digits of your Vin in the search box and it will bring up your model it will let you see all parts and part numbers so you know you are getting the right part. It also has small exploded drawings to help. I also use www.newtis.info this is a technical sight as used by BMW dealers which gives "how too" information, torque settings etc. Look forward to some Pics and how you get on Good Luck Dave