[TheRetroLab]

Hi gang,

First I would like to state that I am new here, and greatly appreciate the help and insight of you and this BMW community here on this forum. Thank you!

I have searched around this and a few other forums trying to get to the bottom of what is going on, but at best, I find a similar theme: Folks post their issue, which seems strikingly similar to mine, others chime in with similar issues, then it just goes radio silent, and most typically toward the tail end of the forum, folks chime in and say their own version of “what is the solution here?” Or “did you get it fixed, and if so what was it?” And *those* questions never get answered! So, that being said, I would like to share as much information as possible here, as for it has been brought to my attention, that especially when diagnosing a vehicle problem, it’s best to lay it ALL out on the table, even if seemingly over-sharing, so here we go:


It is a 2011 BMW 328i SULEV 2 door coupe located in Nashville, TN with about 120k miles.

Short version of what the issue is: Vehicle shuts off while driving, once it reaches operating temperature of 248/250 degrees. Doesn’t matter what fuel level is, doesn’t matter if it’s on the freeway, backroad, stoplight, temperature outside or time of day / night. The service light comes on the dash, with the icon of the vehicle up on the lift. When the vehicle stalls out, everything stalls out pretty quickly and there is no real ability to accelerate if needed for navigating somewhere safely. As a best practice, once I see that the temperature is getting close to 250, I start driving cautiously and defensively, hugging shoulders of the road, ready to bail and out have to sit somewhere for 30 mins while it cools down.

Codes pulled: 6292 and 6293

Preexisting issue before the current stalling issues started occurring: Small radiator leak at top of radiator, I check the radiator fluid before each drive, and top off if / when necessary. Radiator and all respective hoses are scheduled to be repaired as I type. Engine is not showing any issues of overheating from a traditional perspective, and none of the trouble codes point to that either. Never in the history of this small leak has the engine overheated, steamed, thrown an engine code, had an affect on performance, created a stall, etc.

The day things changed: My better half was driving the vehicle, ran out of gas. After going to deliver her some fuel, I took it straight to a gas station and filled it up. Also put in sea foam fuel treatment.

Vehicle ran fine, until it got to the 248/250 degrees mark, shut off, and has been doing that ever since. After waiting 20/30 minutes, vehicle turns over just fine, as though nothing ever happened. Vehicle will run fine until it gets back to the 248/250 degree mark, and then it’s a crapshoot as to when at any given moment it will shut off again. As others have explained in previous descriptions of this issue, if and when attempting to start at this moment, it is a long crank and the engine won’t really turn over. I never make attempts to do so.

Initially when this happened, it was suggested to me that these vehicles are sensitive to voltages and battery issues, so that is the first thing that I replaced. Took the advice of others online who replaced it with similar-spec battery from Walmart, I actually think it’s a bit over on the cold cranking amps amount. It should be noted that I have not taken the car in to the BMW dealer to have the battery “programmed” with the computer. Is there any chance that could simply be the fix? Seems like a long shot, but y’all know more about this than me.

Other forums have hinted and suggested that the EPK fuel pump relay module can overheat and needs to be replaced. I have ordered a replacement, should be here any day. I had seen on more than one occasion where folks replaced the entire fuel pump, without it fixing the issue, so I haven’t rushed out to buy one of those if not needed.

I have also seen where because of the SULEV vehicle, folks have taken these to dealerships to have all of the service done due to the 15 year / 150k mile warranty free of charge. Only caveat is that I’m in Tennessee, which is not a SULEV state. HOWEVER, is it a saving grace that my current and valid drivers license is a California drivers license? I split my time between California and Tennessee, 51% of my time is spent in CA, so that’s where my DL remains. This BMW is just simply my TN vehicle. If I can only drive it for short stints, having to wait 30 minutes each time to cool down, it would take me *forever* to drive this thing back to CA to have it serviced at a shop there under SULEV. It currently is registered with TN plates, but I have some CA plates I could just slap on there if I were to call Corporate to see about service. Do dealers check the plates and where it is registered? Is the move to call corporate BMW and let them know that it was a SULEV vehicle sold in NJ, I am a CA owner who keeps the car in TN, and I can’t get it back to CA to get the work done because it would take forever to get there breaking down 100 times along the way?

If there is a means to have the SULEV warranty work, then it would be great to think outside the box to make that work. Has anyone here successfully had SULEV service done in a non-SULEV state? Is that impossible? Does it take creativity or persistence?

If the SULEV option is out, then I need to be able to DIY this myself, without having to pay an absolute fortune in BMW service center fees, especially during these pandemic times where work is non-existent.


Things to brainstorm on: If it’s the EPK, does it make sense that it just shuts off once normal running temp hits 250? If it’s the fuel pump, does it make sense that it just shuts off once normal running temp hits 250? Is there some other sensor or relay that I am not aware of, that engine code 6292 and 6293 point toward, that would make the most sense to replace?

Again, any and all help would be greatly appreciated! Cheers!

[matthewjmoser]

I looked at my inpa records bc I took a picture of the codes and i had the same exact codes as you. 6292 and 6293. New fuel pump from fcp fixed it. Pricey but got to me in a day and had my car back on the road. The dealer wasn’t taking any work due to the pandemic and I didn’t want my car being down and out. I wish you luck brother! Glove up. Make sure you have a 1/4 wrench and socket set. 10mm and 7mm I believe

[smass]

As a part-year CA resident, you can get CA plates/registration without a CA title. But I seem to remember DMV walks out to the car to check the VIN so that may be an issue. I would say you have better than 50/50 chance of getting the warranty work using your current CA plates. It is low risk.

[TheRetroLab]

Originally Posted by smass

As a part-year CA resident, you can get CA plates/registration without a CA title. But I seem to remember DMV walks out to the car to check the VIN so that may be an issue. I would say you have better than 50/50 chance of getting the warranty work using your current CA plates. It is low risk.

The caveat is that I have a set of ca plates, but the current plates and registration on it are TN. Do they really check that if it rolls into the service center with "ca plates", or do they just log the vin?

[smass]

You may want to post your question in this thread. https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1324089

[tylat2023]

So original poster, how did you fix it? I'm having the same problem. and already tried changing the fuel module several times. I'm leaning towards replacing the fuel pump now.

As far as sulev, I posted a message (about 2 years ago in this forum) on how I got vermont registration for about $100 although I was in a non-sulev state. and used that get about $3k of work done at my local bmw. hope that helps.