E46 throttle delay, especially 3 litre
Discussion
Hi,
I have driven a couple of manual 330 Coupes from 2001 and 2002 and they have a delay on the throttle. This can easily be seen by putting the car into first and with about 1500 revs, putting your foot 1/3 way down on the throttle. The power takes just over a second for anything to come in. When I've mentioned it to BMW main dealers, they say they all do that but agree it's not very good.
I presume many of you folks have experience of this. Have you found any way to cure it or do you know whay it's happening?
Many thanks!
I believe (however maybe wrong) that there is a widget called a Clutch Delay Valve that is there to help reduce the strain on the transmission.
I understand, and from my driving experience, that the E36's have it too - if I stamp on my accelerator I get the self same delay, which as before mentioned, rather annoying.
BlackSpider I'm sure will be along soon to confirm
I understand, and from my driving experience, that the E36's have it too - if I stamp on my accelerator I get the self same delay, which as before mentioned, rather annoying.
BlackSpider I'm sure will be along soon to confirm
I was going to post a question about my wife's 52 reg 325ti auto, then I saw this thread. It seems to have a delay from closed throttle e.g. from standing start or after braking, not helped by the first 1/2" or so of travel doing very little followed by a fairly steep throttle response. The throttle curve itself I could adapt to but the delay means we both end up dialling more throttle than needed or setting off like a granny. I was putting it down to the auto box but it sounds like it is a design feature, shame as it compromises what is otherwise a pretty adequate car. The strange thing is that it is not mentioned in any reviews.
Edited by toltec on Tuesday 27th March 16:48
I've not really noticed a thottle delay on my wife's 52-plate 330i SE Sport Touring, but I have definitely noticed the clutch delay that has had me embarrassinly slipping the clutch like a learner on full-bore standing starts on a couple of occasions. Very 
I also think the steering is over-assisted and a bit vague.
It would be nice if one or both of these annoyances could be fixed somehow.
I also think the steering is over-assisted and a bit vague.
It would be nice if one or both of these annoyances could be fixed somehow.
JonRB said:
I've not really noticed a thottle delay on my wife's 52-plate 330i SE Sport Touring, but I have definitely noticed the clutch delay that has had me embarrassinly slipping the clutch like a learner on full-bore standing starts on a couple of occasions. .
I think the OP post and your maladies (and mine and everyone elses) are all the same, but are being interpreted slightly differently. I reckon that its the Clutch Delay Valve in all these cases, as its obvious that I have to be brutal with the clutch and revs (i.e. slight slipping and sidestep) to get away quickly - any simple "lift clutch and dump accelerator" results in momentary hesistance and then woof!
Neil_Bolton said:
I think the OP post and your maladies (and mine and everyone elses) are all the same, but are being interpreted slightly differently. I reckon that its the Clutch Delay Valve in all these cases, as its obvious that I have to be brutal with the clutch and revs (i.e. slight slipping and sidestep) to get away quickly - any simple "lift clutch and dump accelerator" results in momentary hesistance and then woof!
Yep much sliding and sideways action tryin to get away witha bit of pace but i still love it
hi
i had this jerky throttle problem with my 03 face lift 330ci sport manual (6 speed) last year,it went in to bmw on numerous occasions for this problem before they admitted that this was a common complaint and is due to the electronic fly by wire throttle set up and there was nothing they could do,apart from a software upgrade which is supposed to smooth this out,but it made no difference,i think the older models have a normal throttle cable set up and is fine,in the end,i got fed up with the junk and sold it,have now got a 325ci cab auto (on the recommendation from the bmw technician)which has a much smoother take off,although you can feel it very slighty if you are looking for it,it is much nicer to drive but does use loads more fuel than a manual
i had this jerky throttle problem with my 03 face lift 330ci sport manual (6 speed) last year,it went in to bmw on numerous occasions for this problem before they admitted that this was a common complaint and is due to the electronic fly by wire throttle set up and there was nothing they could do,apart from a software upgrade which is supposed to smooth this out,but it made no difference,i think the older models have a normal throttle cable set up and is fine,in the end,i got fed up with the junk and sold it,have now got a 325ci cab auto (on the recommendation from the bmw technician)which has a much smoother take off,although you can feel it very slighty if you are looking for it,it is much nicer to drive but does use loads more fuel than a manual
f1stoxfan said:
hi
i had this jerky throttle problem with my 03 face lift 330ci sport manual (6 speed) last year,it went in to bmw on numerous occasions for this problem before they admitted that this was a common complaint and is due to the electronic fly by wire throttle set up and there was nothing they could do,apart from a software upgrade which is supposed to smooth this out,but it made no difference,i think the older models have a normal throttle cable set up and is fine,in the end,i got fed up with the junk and sold it,have now got a 325ci cab auto (on the recommendation from the bmw technician)which has a much smoother take off,although you can feel it very slighty if you are looking for it,it is much nicer to drive but does use loads more fuel than a manual
i had this jerky throttle problem with my 03 face lift 330ci sport manual (6 speed) last year,it went in to bmw on numerous occasions for this problem before they admitted that this was a common complaint and is due to the electronic fly by wire throttle set up and there was nothing they could do,apart from a software upgrade which is supposed to smooth this out,but it made no difference,i think the older models have a normal throttle cable set up and is fine,in the end,i got fed up with the junk and sold it,have now got a 325ci cab auto (on the recommendation from the bmw technician)which has a much smoother take off,although you can feel it very slighty if you are looking for it,it is much nicer to drive but does use loads more fuel than a manual
I'm hearing the same story from lots of people - that the throttle has this silly delay, yet having test driven a few cars, when I mention it to the dealers, they are all amazed and imply it is my driving style that induces it. How on earth do they get away with this without it appearing in the motoring press and being a documented problem as it seems to affect all E46 cars.
CIS121 said:
f1stoxfan said:
the electronic fly by wire throttle set up and there was nothing they could do,apart from a software upgrade which is supposed to smooth this out,but it made no difference
I'm hearing the same story from lots of people - that the throttle has this silly delay, yet having test driven a few cars, when I mention it to the dealers, they are all amazed and imply it is my driving style that induces it. How on earth do they get away with this without it appearing in the motoring press and being a documented problem as it seems to affect all E46 cars.
I have been told the same that it is my driving style when testin a E46 M3 Manual. My cousin had upgrade after upgrade and it made absolutely no difference at all!
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