318is not starting

[E30J]

Hey guys,

New to the forum. Just bought an E30 318is and its currently not starting.. Seems to be getting spark but not sure about fuel.. I unplugged right before the fuel filter and turned the key but no fuel comes out, should it when i first turn the key?

Any other things to suggest checking?

The plug that plugs to the air filter is currently disconnected as the filter is not on.. guessing thats just an O2 sensor though and wouldn't stop the engine from starting.

Appreciate any and all help,



Thanks
J

[bigskyis]

If you d/c'd the fuel line at the fuel filter, put a container under it and spin the crank. You should most likely have fuel. If not...could be fuel pump, fuel pump relay, or fuse. O2 sensor is on the passenger side and has nothing to do with the air filter. I am assuming when you say a plug in to the air filter is unplugged you are referring to the connector to the AFM. Hook it up. I am sure people more knowledgeable about this things will ring in shortly.

[E30J]

If you d/c'd the fuel line at the fuel filter, put a container under it and spin the crank. You should most likely have fuel. If not...could be fuel pump, fuel pump relay, or fuse. O2 sensor is on the passenger side and has nothing to do with the air filter. I am assuming when you say a plug in to the air filter is unplugged you are referring to the connector to the AFM. Hook it up. I am sure people more knowledgeable about this things will ring in shortly.

yep did that and no fuel came out. will check the relay and fuse first. then if those are fine guess ill have to swap out the pump. Thanks

oh i would hook up the afm but its not there lol.. hope it will still run w/out it.. my guess is it will just might be a little rough.. My goal is to get the car running and if i cant.. time for a swap

[DesktopDave]

Jump the fuel pump relay terminals 30 & 87. Test the crank position sensor..should see about 680 ohms on pins 1 & 2.  Report back to us.

The car will idle without the AFM, but it won't rev.

[E30J]

Jump the fuel pump relay terminals 30 & 87. Test the crank position sensor..should see about 680 ohms on pins 1 & 2.  Report back to us.

The car will idle without the AFM, but it won't rev.

fuel pump relay is under the black cover where there are 3 relays, correct?

Also i did the 'turn key to on, press gas pedal 5 times in 5 sec' and i keep getting just 1111, 1111, 1111, 1111 it keeps flashing that code and won't stop. tried disconnecting the battery doing it again and same thing.

How do i test the crank position sensor?

[DesktopDave]

Yep, FPR is under the firewall cover. The main relay and O2 heater relay are there too.

Test the resistance of the crank sensor in ohms with a normal multimeter. Even the cheapest $4 Harbor Freight multimeter will do.

[monty23psk]

Jump the fuel pump relay terminals 30 & 87. Test the crank position sensor..should see about 680 ohms on pins 1 & 2.  Report back to us.

The car will idle without the AFM, but it won't rev.

fuel pump relay is under the black cover where there are 3 relays, correct?

Also i did the 'turn key to on, press gas pedal 5 times in 5 sec' and i keep getting just 1111, 1111, 1111, 1111 it keeps flashing that code and won't stop. tried disconnecting the battery doing it again and same thing.

How do i test the crank position sensor?

There is no 1111 code. But you could be seeing 1444 which means no code. After doing the gas pedal thing, the light stays on steady and will then flash. After that it will start the code, with a pause in between.

[E30J]

It blinks for 2.5 seconds then off for a short period then blinks again then the code starts but its just 'flash off flash off flash off flash off' then a short break then same code over and over. Also every light on the dash appears to be on also. Is there a way to reset all of this and possibly get a correct code reading?


P.s thanks for all the input guys. much appreciated. just want to try get her running

[bigskyis]

Well...one thing I would tell you to do is to get a correct AFM hooked up before trying to get "stomp" codes. I am not saying that the "1111" is related but it would strike me that w/o the AFM in line that the DME is going to know something "ain't quite right". When I get home tomorrow, I will dc the AFM and try the stomp code test. Regardless, I am having trouble thinking that you will get this running without the AFM in place. I will also fire up my car and dc the AFM. Curious to see what it does. I thought I had done before and when it is disconnected it died. Could be wrong but won't know until tomorrow.

[bigskyis]

One other thought...if you don't have the AFM/airbox in line,  you are most likely to have open lines to the mess under the intake. This would equate to a massive vacuum leak. Which is not going to help your cause as far as trying to get it started.  Try this...open the throttle body; squirt some either in there; try starting the engine. It should at least kick over. But I am still of the opinion that you are not going to have success without correct AFM in line.

[monty23psk]

can you post video of the lights? Or maybe there is a video of the process on youtube. When you have the key in, position 2, all lights are suppose to be on. When you do the stomp, the CEL will flash but then will go dark for a few seconds, then the the code starts, with a small pause in between the 4 digits and a large pause between the next code and then back to start which is the CEL light on for few seconds to denote the start of the cycle.

[E30J]

Roger that monty, will try get a video asap.


bigskyis i will also try find the arm/airbox but think the car would still start w/out it. and it would show that code plus others not just the same code over and over.. i could be wrong never done this before

[E30J]

Jump the fuel pump relay terminals 30 & 87. Test the crank position sensor..should see about 680 ohms on pins 1 & 2.  Report back to us.

The car will idle without the AFM, but it won't rev.

Tested both orange relays (heater and fuel I believe) and got nothing. Tested the white relay and I'm getting 1.600-1.799

[E30J]

Actually I tested te white relay again and I'm getting 8.0+/- but stil nothin on the orange relays

[DesktopDave]

I meant to test the pigtails from the crank sensor. It comes up from the sensor to a plug near the intake manifold. You should see 680 ohms or so between pins 1 & 2. Don't test the cable going back to the computer/ECU/DME - you can severely damage it with the multimeter doing resistance or continuity tests. Only test for voltage on wires from the DME.

You can also make a couple of small jumper wires for testing. I leave them in the toolkit after I'm done, along with a tested spare main & fuel pump relay. I usually crimp two male spade connectors onto about 4" of 14 gauge wire to eliminate the fuel pump relay. For testing the main relay, crimp two wires into one spade so it makes a "Y" jumper.

To test the fuel pump and wiring, plug one spade into terminal #30 and the other end into term #87. When you turn on the key, you should hear the fuel pump running. If you don't hear the pump, pull the rear seat & the fuel pump access hatch and check the pump connector. They can loosen up over time, or even fall into the connector plug.