E36 318i doesn't like the cold!
Discussion
Like the title says I have a E36 318i which keeps stalling when very cold. It will start again no problem as long as you give it some throttle.
When starting from cold the car doen't idle smoothly. The idle point is about 800rpm and the car will fall to about 600rpm then blip the throttle to say 1000rpm then fall to 550rpm then blip to 1100rpm then fall to 500rpm etc. until it either starts comming back to a smooth idle again after about 20 seconds, or if it's really cold it will keep going until it drops too low and stalls
But even when you get it to a smooth idle and drive off comming to any form of a stop again in the next 1-15 mins (depending on the weather) is a problem. If you very slowly lower the revs in gear when coming to a halt it's ok but if you have to stop normally as soon as you dip the clutch the revs fall and the car will stall.
This only happend on cold mornings, anyone got any ideas?
BTW I have just had the car MOT'd and asked the specialist to take a look at the problem, they carried out a systems check on the engine but found no fault, they did clean the idle valve which they said was very dirty but this has not fixed the problem, although it might have improved it a bit.
Thanks for any idea
When starting from cold the car doen't idle smoothly. The idle point is about 800rpm and the car will fall to about 600rpm then blip the throttle to say 1000rpm then fall to 550rpm then blip to 1100rpm then fall to 500rpm etc. until it either starts comming back to a smooth idle again after about 20 seconds, or if it's really cold it will keep going until it drops too low and stalls
But even when you get it to a smooth idle and drive off comming to any form of a stop again in the next 1-15 mins (depending on the weather) is a problem. If you very slowly lower the revs in gear when coming to a halt it's ok but if you have to stop normally as soon as you dip the clutch the revs fall and the car will stall.
This only happend on cold mornings, anyone got any ideas?
BTW I have just had the car MOT'd and asked the specialist to take a look at the problem, they carried out a systems check on the engine but found no fault, they did clean the idle valve which they said was very dirty but this has not fixed the problem, although it might have improved it a bit.
Thanks for any idea
I had a similar problem with an old E36 320 I had a few years back.
Problems at idle, stalling, and then it would rev like mad until i turned the engine off..
Went to my local BM specialist and they replaced the idle control valve.. Problem sorted!!
This was on an auto though, so unsure if that would make a difference??
Cost was around to £200 mark I think...
Problems at idle, stalling, and then it would rev like mad until i turned the engine off..
Went to my local BM specialist and they replaced the idle control valve.. Problem sorted!!
This was on an auto though, so unsure if that would make a difference??
Cost was around to £200 mark I think...
Could be a sticky idle valve as Dimsum suggests, they get a coating of oily residue that thickens up in the cold. Try removing it and cleaning it with carb cleaner or similar solvent.
Also check the crankcase breather a popular cause of rough running, with the engine at tickover loosen the oil cap and try to remove it, it should come off fairly easy, if it is very hard to remove the crankcase vaccumn could be too great caused by a split diaphragm in the breather valve.
Also check the crankcase breather a popular cause of rough running, with the engine at tickover loosen the oil cap and try to remove it, it should come off fairly easy, if it is very hard to remove the crankcase vaccumn could be too great caused by a split diaphragm in the breather valve.
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