M5/M6 fault codes, throttle actuator, steering angle sensor?
Discussion
Evening all,
Driving along as normal the other day in my e63 M6 and engine management light came on, few minutes later car goes into limp mode with DSC failure and start assist failure. Drove home panicking and was online most of the night trying to find what it could be.
Next day, no lights nothing, driving as normal until reach optimum engine temperature and straight up engine management light and limp mode DSC failure at same time.
Took car to my local garage the next day and no lights were on, car drove great as normal. He gave me the fault codes
2B15
2B57
5E19
So i type these into various websites, m5board etc
Ive seen various comments of...
its the steering angle sensor, just needs cleaning and putting back
its the throttle actuator needs replacing
there may be some loose wires.
So took it back the garage, opened the car up and looked into it more, he said he cant see a problem with the actuator bank 1.(although from photos ive seen online you wont see a fault/wear unless you look right inside it), he cleared the codes and for two days the car brought no engine management light, no limp mode, i thought great must of been a loose wire or something, gave it a good boot and made sure i was right upto temperature etc but still no limp mode.
Driving along today and after about 5 minutes from cold it went straight into limp mode, i switched it off and on straight away, limp mode and DSC vanished but the engine management light stayed on. Again after 5 minutes DSC failure lit up again, turned car off and on again and again it vanished, still with engine light on though.
I just need some guidance as to what this is because reading all other fourms to do with these fault codes theres at least 4 different things it could be. People have even took theirs to main dealers and had thousands spent before they even realised it was the throttle actuator , f*** that!
What im struggling to understand is if it is actually the throttle actuator that needs replacing, surely i would be able to tell with the power of the car, or it would stay in limp mode until i had it fixed, when not in limp mode the car is as normal, full power available and everything seems fine. - how / why did i go 2 full days of giving it beans with no flashing fault lights?
before i start replacing these parts which are obviously expensive bought new i thought id see what you guys know
many thanks,
malone67
Driving along as normal the other day in my e63 M6 and engine management light came on, few minutes later car goes into limp mode with DSC failure and start assist failure. Drove home panicking and was online most of the night trying to find what it could be.
Next day, no lights nothing, driving as normal until reach optimum engine temperature and straight up engine management light and limp mode DSC failure at same time.
Took car to my local garage the next day and no lights were on, car drove great as normal. He gave me the fault codes
2B15
2B57
5E19
So i type these into various websites, m5board etc
Ive seen various comments of...
its the steering angle sensor, just needs cleaning and putting back
its the throttle actuator needs replacing
there may be some loose wires.
So took it back the garage, opened the car up and looked into it more, he said he cant see a problem with the actuator bank 1.(although from photos ive seen online you wont see a fault/wear unless you look right inside it), he cleared the codes and for two days the car brought no engine management light, no limp mode, i thought great must of been a loose wire or something, gave it a good boot and made sure i was right upto temperature etc but still no limp mode.
Driving along today and after about 5 minutes from cold it went straight into limp mode, i switched it off and on straight away, limp mode and DSC vanished but the engine management light stayed on. Again after 5 minutes DSC failure lit up again, turned car off and on again and again it vanished, still with engine light on though.
I just need some guidance as to what this is because reading all other fourms to do with these fault codes theres at least 4 different things it could be. People have even took theirs to main dealers and had thousands spent before they even realised it was the throttle actuator , f*** that!
What im struggling to understand is if it is actually the throttle actuator that needs replacing, surely i would be able to tell with the power of the car, or it would stay in limp mode until i had it fixed, when not in limp mode the car is as normal, full power available and everything seems fine. - how / why did i go 2 full days of giving it beans with no flashing fault lights?
before i start replacing these parts which are obviously expensive bought new i thought id see what you guys know
many thanks,
malone67
Cheers The End,
I knew the first code was bank 1 actuator but they told me different explanation for the other two
i got - 2b57 safety concept manager -
5e19 CAN engine ECU
Everything seems to be pointing to replacing the bank 1 throttle actuator, i just dont get how if it is dead, how the car can run as normal for certain journeys, then throw me into limp mode, then again back to normal.
I knew the first code was bank 1 actuator but they told me different explanation for the other two
i got - 2b57 safety concept manager -
5e19 CAN engine ECU
Everything seems to be pointing to replacing the bank 1 throttle actuator, i just dont get how if it is dead, how the car can run as normal for certain journeys, then throw me into limp mode, then again back to normal.
One simple test. What is the RPM limit when it goes into limp mode? if the answer is 4500RPM, it is absolutely the throttle actuator.
I've replaced about 20 of these on various cars and disassembled over 50 now.
http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e60-m5-e61-m5-tou...
If you replace the gears soon, there is a good chance the actuator will be fine. If you let it drop into limp mode too many times, the damaged gear teeth cause the (very poorly designed) control board to apply excessive current to the internal motor to try and move the gearing. Over time this damages the MOSFETs on the board and in some cases the MOSFET gate driver circuitry as well.
Alpina527 in the UK has the best (IMO) set of gears I've seen as he uses a combination of brass and plastic for the center counter-gear. Much cheaper to replace the gears than buy a new actuator.
I've replaced about 20 of these on various cars and disassembled over 50 now.
http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e60-m5-e61-m5-tou...
If you replace the gears soon, there is a good chance the actuator will be fine. If you let it drop into limp mode too many times, the damaged gear teeth cause the (very poorly designed) control board to apply excessive current to the internal motor to try and move the gearing. Over time this damages the MOSFETs on the board and in some cases the MOSFET gate driver circuitry as well.
Alpina527 in the UK has the best (IMO) set of gears I've seen as he uses a combination of brass and plastic for the center counter-gear. Much cheaper to replace the gears than buy a new actuator.
Looks like I've got this to do now, same codes (e.g. first P154D, then 2B15, 2B57) all on one drive, around 4krpm rev limit [but wasn't paying attention just that it was very low and drove better 2-3krpm; which makes sense if Bank1 was at idle position!).
Have driven it in limp home for about 30mins... any idea what the chances of needing to replace the actuator or just the gears is?
Thanks!!
Have driven it in limp home for about 30mins... any idea what the chances of needing to replace the actuator or just the gears is?
Thanks!!
R-spec
Seems to be different for all, i didnt bother getting the gears changed/refurbished, because i wasn't willing to wait/have car off the road for a few days.
I bought a 2nd hand actuator and replaced bank 1, been 2 weeks now and im back to having fun again!
Might get rid soon as im out of warranty and get a sweat on every time it beeps at me (below 3oC) thinking something is wrong. However what to get next is a real head scratcher for me!
Seems to be different for all, i didnt bother getting the gears changed/refurbished, because i wasn't willing to wait/have car off the road for a few days.
I bought a 2nd hand actuator and replaced bank 1, been 2 weeks now and im back to having fun again!
Might get rid soon as im out of warranty and get a sweat on every time it beeps at me (below 3oC) thinking something is wrong. However what to get next is a real head scratcher for me!
Thanks. Where did you source the second hand one from? (did you get part numbers to search for it?)...
I keep one of these in the car CR129 and that keeps me sane at least as I know whats gone wrong. It works very well, diagnoses most of the codes from the E60/E63 (I have the M6) but very usefully has a data stream function so codes are great to point you at the problem and then the datastream to help diagnose it further. For example I have no reading from Throttle Position Sensor Bank1, so I expect its not driving the gears.
I still think the E60/E63 are the cheapest way to >500_luxury_BHP :-)
I keep one of these in the car CR129 and that keeps me sane at least as I know whats gone wrong. It works very well, diagnoses most of the codes from the E60/E63 (I have the M6) but very usefully has a data stream function so codes are great to point you at the problem and then the datastream to help diagnose it further. For example I have no reading from Throttle Position Sensor Bank1, so I expect its not driving the gears.
I still think the E60/E63 are the cheapest way to >500_luxury_BHP :-)
Edited by r-spec on Sunday 27th December 23:12
Problem (potentially) solved. I used these guys at ECUTesting recently for my 330i ABS unit and they did a great job. Just seen they'll refurb the throttle actuator too 
ECUTESTING LINK
ECUTESTING LINK
Edited by r-spec on Monday 28th December 21:57
Sorry I didn't reply in here earlier on. I've still got my old faulty one which was replaced by another unit.
SimonPA - i wasn't looking at giving it away for free but will sell it. Not sure on the rules of selling on the forum though?
Drop me a message and take it from there if your still looking for one?
R-Spec, same goes to you.
One thing i'll add, when mine got replaced the car felt alot "stronger" when above 5k rpm
SimonPA - i wasn't looking at giving it away for free but will sell it. Not sure on the rules of selling on the forum though?
Drop me a message and take it from there if your still looking for one?
R-Spec, same goes to you.
One thing i'll add, when mine got replaced the car felt alot "stronger" when above 5k rpm
My M5 went into limp mode last week with the DSC warning on the I drive so I suspect it's one of the throttle actuators. It's booked in at BMW on Thursday. It's the first time I've ever had a problem in over 2 years of ownership so can't complain. We will see how good the Mondial warranty actually is as its the first time I've had to try and use it.
Taking the inlets off is a little bit of a fiddle but it's a relatively simple DIY job to replace the throttle actuators if you are confident and want to keep the costs down.
One test could have been to swap them over. If the fault moves from one bank to the other you have your cause.
Mine went. Maybe tripped 4 times. Replaced the cogs on both with Alpine527's kit and it didn't fix the fault on the dodgy actuator. I marked them to know which one was what and replaced back on the same side. I got a brand new actuator for £700 so I still have the repaired one with the faulty electrics and brand new cogs..
One test could have been to swap them over. If the fault moves from one bank to the other you have your cause.
Mine went. Maybe tripped 4 times. Replaced the cogs on both with Alpine527's kit and it didn't fix the fault on the dodgy actuator. I marked them to know which one was what and replaced back on the same side. I got a brand new actuator for £700 so I still have the repaired one with the faulty electrics and brand new cogs..
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