[NRudy]

I'm curious if anyone has ideas about what could be causing this.

I purchased the car two weeks ago and 1 day after I got the engine management warning reduced power. After turning the engine off and back on all was fine, once again it happened same deal, reduced power engine off and one car turns over fine, full power. I got the engine checked by a garage (random one as i only needed the codes) who wiped the codes as he said they were not active codes he didn't write them down and couldnt recall them ....., Since then no codes have come up at all.

However now this there is a really loud ticking sound on cold starts until the engine warms up, the there is a loud ticking on acceleration and at times the car idles at 7/800 rpm and not the normal 600 for no apparent reason at all. on start up at times it coughs before firing up also. At times when it idles the engines seems to wobble for no reason even though the revs look stable. I at times have a really strong smell of petrol (i use shell Vpower) which also seems to another concern.

A little back ground of the car might off a little more insight. The car has done 67k miles 1 lady owner, parked in a garage and for the last 3 years only did 9k. The car was serviced by BMW had a new water pump in Feb of this year. Just had an oil change done but in addition i don't think any other maintenance items were changed over the 3 years (other than 3 oil changes) due to the low mileage driven.

As no codes are coming up I'm struggling to know where to start, I have BMW warranty upto 100k miles (paid for monthly) and a third party warranty for 6 months but as no codes are coming up it seems I cant get any assistance with it.

Im also stuck with a exhaust flat rattle which seems to be causing the exhaust to rasp on acceleration then gargle when the revs come down which seems impossible to fix also.

Any tips on how i should go about this?

[Vish8895]

What's she like on start up? Any long cranks? Common issues with the 335i that may be worth mentioning are; Coil packs, injectors, caked intake track and the dreaded HPFP (high pressure fuel pump).

Can't say much more myself but have a look at those areas and see if they seem similar, although the fact you aren't getting any codes is confusing.

[NRudy]

The cranks seem to be long on occasion, when I did get the first diagnostic done It had a few codes up but he wiped them over a week ago and nothing at all is coming up now. the codes I saw were something about Vanos and Fuel pump low pressure.

Its baffling me, I think I might run it in to BMW end of the month and get them to look over it as there is definitely something wrong but the car seems to be playing games.

No further engine management lights or anything its simply ticking loud on cold start and acceleration, long cranks and idling high for seemingly no reason according to the diagnostic.

[BashShah]

Order of things to check and report by to us:

1) is your OFHG leaking? (Do you see engine oil on the front of your engine? Like a stream of it)
Possible causing the ticking.
2) is the ticking metallic or electrical?
3) get a borescope of your intake ports? (Let's see how bad they are) might need a walnut blast. Very important.
4) consider replacing plugs and coils....all of them.
Regardless let's just rule it out.
5) what had are you using and from what pump?
6) vanos solenoids clean and swap.
7) BG44k or Techron Concentrate in 2 tanks back to back (injector cleaner)
8) full adaptation reset. Buy a USB to obdii cable. Invest in it.
9) if you are experiencing long cranks....then its the HPFP....not LPFP.
10) don't ever erase codes, even not present codes before writing them down.

Borescope first.

DN

[Meeni]

If you have a warranty, use it. No code doesn't mean you can't get it serviced, especially if the idle is erratic.

Could be a host of things, top of the list being vanos solenoid, an ignition coil, etc, etc.

[Vish8895]

Originally Posted by NRudy

The cranks seem to be long on occasion, when I did get the first diagnostic done It had a few codes up but he wiped them over a week ago and nothing at all is coming up now. the codes I saw were something about Vanos and Fuel pump low pressure.

Its baffling me, I think I might run it in to BMW end of the month and get them to look over it as there is definitely something wrong but the car seems to be playing games.

No further engine management lights or anything its simply ticking loud on cold start and acceleration, long cranks and idling high for seemingly no reason according to the diagnostic.

On the occasions it does give long cranks, is it similar to this:

?

[NRudy]

Vish, my long cracks in comparison are not that long at all. they last around 1-2 seconds then it fires up.

For instance like today the crank was normal, more or less instant, the ticking / rattle was still there but it idled normally and when left idling after it warmed up sounded perfectly normal.

When accelerating last night i wound down the window to simply listen. on acceleration i could hear the ticking noise then when it was decelerating around 2-3k rpm i got like a fizzing sounds and as it dropped the exhaust gargled. I feel i have lost power from 2 weeks ago but again still no codes at all.

I agree with the code erased thing, i didnt ask him to do it, he just did it and i was like what did they say at which point he looked at me puzzled. i got it checked by another garage after this and they simply said weve driven it cant find fault and there is no codes at all so we cant find anything.

I know im not imagining it, the startup the idle the ticking noise all shouldnt be there. the exhaust rattle is the flap which seems to be loose and is causing the sound to change constantly and rattle when the revs drop.

All in all it sounds like quite an expensive fix especially for a car ive had for 16 days which i am not happy about at all.

[Meeni]

If you add the exhaust rattle to the picture if may be a turbo problem.

[NRudy]

I was thinking wastegate or turbos all along, but then all the other things made me think it could be something else.

Im really hoping BMW can diagnose something even if it hasnt got to the point its throwing codes everywhere yet.

[Vish8895]

Hmm sounds interesting. Glad that it doesn't appear to be HPFP though (one less for the count!).

I'll stay subscribed to find out what BMW say!

[NRudy]

Well I have it booked in for Wednesday at a whopping £102p/h but ill have more info following that so ill keep you posted.

Just another note, driving home this evening on the motorway had it in DS mode, accelerated to 70ish not really hard either and boom engine management again. I've never been so happy to see that as now I know when BMW look at it, the code will be stored so they will have an idea of what's going on.

Strange point was the car actually felt a lot smoother when cruising with the reduced power thing than it does normally.

[Vish8895]

That is very strange. I'm no mechanic and don't claim to be so would be very interested in what they say.

You should get your hands on BMWhat, it's one brilliant app and let's you read codes etc with ease. I scan every week or so to keep my mind at ease haha!

[NRudy]

Ok so my car went into BMW.... I am more confused now than I was before it went in.

The asked me to drop my car off Tuesday evening so they could keep it overnight and hear the ticking noise. I agreed for 1hour diagnosis hoping they could find out what the problem was.

I got a call the next day around 10:30 from the technician. He said we started it this morning and heard the loud ticking sound, after a minute the ticking noise went away... we have put it on the diagnosis machine and it says low boost pressure... he hands me back to the service manager who says they have exhausted the hour and need a further 2 to diagnose what's wrong. I argued that it doesn't take an hour to find that out, I could have told them this within 10 minutes. After a long discussion I agree to 2 more hours at a potential cost of £306.

I heard nothing until I called them at 4pm at which point they say they still cant find out what it is so can they have it another night and they will pay any additional costs. They then agree to give me a courtesy car (2015 120d xdrive msport). I agree to this. Now I have just been to collect my car as there is nothing wrong... or so he told me on the phone.

I get there he said the senior technician has checked it and the manager has been out in it and its fine. However after the health check they have found out that the car has an engine leak, they don't know why, an auto gearbox leak they don't know why and a cracked rear shock sleeve.... they also added air to my nitrogen filled tyres...... Oh but they did "recode" my car, ticking noise is still there and I'm no wiser to what the hells going on.

I'm totally lost at what to do now....

[Vish8895]

Jheeze. That is one hell of a list developing there!!

If it was me I would take their list to an indie or if you have any friends who work in garages and just see how much of it holds true. But I am always cautious of being ripped off, maybe overly so.

Sorry to hear this though mate, keep the updates coming.

[NRudy]

Luckily my cousin currently works for an indie specialist and he spoke to his boss who said he would get it looked at for me. Its there currently i hope to hear something shortly.

Since getting it back and they have done the recoding i havent pushed the car too hard but noticed its not as responsive at all in normal drive mode and seems less reluctant to kick down, i havent tried sports mode yet.

The ticking noise is still there on a morning but not as loud once warm. I still have the rattle noise when revs are dropping from 3,500 - 3000 so i assume i defo have a wastegate problems and the recoding is the fix from BMW.

BMW were obsessed that my warranty wouldn't cover my car even though its still under 70k, it seemed to be the driving force to why they wouldn't inspect my car properly but i cant see how this is correct. BMW quoted me the warranty price on my car, i'm paying a heft cost for it so how they can just act like my warranty means nothing is beyond me.

[Vish8895]

Originally Posted by NRudy

Luckily my cousin currently works for an indie specialist and he spoke to his boss who said he would get it looked at for me. Its there currently i hope to hear something shortly.

Since getting it back and they have done the recoding i havent pushed the car too hard but noticed its not as responsive at all in normal drive mode and seems less reluctant to kick down, i havent tried sports mode yet.

The ticking noise is still there on a morning but not as loud once warm. I still have the rattle noise when revs are dropping from 3,500 - 3000 so i assume i defo have a wastegate problems and the recoding is the fix from BMW.

BMW were obsessed that my warranty wouldn't cover my car even though its still under 70k, it seemed to be the driving force to why they wouldn't inspect my car properly but i cant see how this is correct. BMW quoted me the warranty price on my car, i'm paying a heft cost for it so how they can just act like my warranty means nothing is beyond me.

Yes that's what I'd do! Shame though because that could all get very expensive!!

[NRudy]

Well things have moved swiftly in the right direction.

I contacted the BMW warranty who asked all the details regarding my vehicle confirming my service history and everything else, also checking the previous claims on my vehicle under warranty from new (there were none). As BMW have checked my car and give it a clean bill of health of all parts warranty cover they have confirmed that my car is infact under warranty.

As for the other problems, the gearbox leak is from the rear sump and i have been quoted £420 to repair, the dealer i purchased the car from has agreed to foot the bill for this. The Indie who is doing the repair will then steam clean the engine to remove the oil then re inspect in a few days to confirm where it is leaking from. Again this cost will go to the dealer.

I do think i have the dreaded wastegate rattle due to the fact i get a loud mechanical rattle when the car is reved around 3500 and rattles down to around 3000 ish. Everything has been checked so thats all it can be coils and injectors are fine according to BMW.

Next course of action is to go see BMW now as when they put my car back together correctly as now when at motorway speeds i have a whistle coming from the engine bay which isn't mechanical its more air squeaking through the engine bay (like a wind whistle). and Also get them to recheck the turbo's for the wastegate rattle then sort them under warranty.

Gearbox repair is booked in for Friday for the day. Hopefully in the next 2 weeks i should have my gearbox and engine leak repaired and my turbo's replaced. we shall see.

[Vish8895]

Wow that is a step in the right direction! Glad I have warranty now! This car does make me paranoid haha!

[NRudy]

Well mine always comes with something else, im defo low on boost especially higher up the rev range, the boost seems to drop in the higher revs so every gear change I get a strong pull which falls off quick. Loud turbo spool down on hard gear changes too. im really hoping my turbos are just on their way out and them being replaced fixes everything.

[Vish8895]

Originally Posted by NRudy

Well mine always comes with something else, im defo low on boost especially higher up the rev range, the boost seems to drop in the higher revs so every gear change I get a strong pull which falls off quick. Loud turbo spool down on hard gear changes too. im really hoping my turbos are just on their way out and them being replaced fixes everything.

Hmm lets hope! Did you have any issues convincing/informing the BMW dealer that the turbos had in fact been given extended warranty? And can you remind me what that warranty was?

Cheers

[NRudy]

I went to the dealership today and he came for a test drive with me. He could hear the rattle when accelerating and told me, he never revved the engine that hard and only drove it in drive (D not DS) mode so the revs never went up to 3-4k to hear it and the rattle stopped on idle from cold after the engine warmed up.

After the test drive we did the test I've seen on you tube which is unplugging the vacuum lines and revving the engine which resulted in no rattle, put the lines back in and the rattle came back again.

So right now my dilemma is i have is i have BMW extended warranty (£73 per month purchased from the website) but as with any warranty will they cover this, he confirmed its 1 day to remove and check the turbos which is £812, if warranty cover this it will only cost me £100 (excess) for 2 new turbos, if they don't it will cost me £812. The other things like the poor idle and such are probably hpfp or injectors but as the problems are only now and again they cant replace them as they are within normal operating levels when checked. He said he checked them quite a few times trying to see if they would fail the tests but they wouldnt.

He did tell me that all these parts if they are causing intermitent problems will get worse and fail and i can take it to get fixed but until them im kind of stuck.

[Jägerelite_N54]

I hope bmw does right and fixes her up, it's a shame that they deny warranty claims when the car is near end of warranty.