328i E36: engine smoothness

[M3333]

E-bmw said:

You absolutely DON't need to lock the cams, the seals can be changed in 20 min after removing the cam cover with nothing more than a 10mm spanner.

However that may not be the issue anyway, as above check the inlet hose from the MAF to the T/B first, as they perish in the "concertinas".

Has anyone done a decent DIY for this as if its a fairly easy job to complete id like to do it on my e36 328i. Thanks

[Collectingbrass]

Have a look here, it's pretty exhaustive for an E36

http://www.pelicanparts.com/BMW/techarticles/tech_...

[B234R]

Well, this morning I found a workshop that could clear the camshaft position sensor. I feel low revs performance is a bit better, and a certain ticking noise when hot seems disappeared. I don´t think the engine is particularly smooth, however. My old Volvo 850 was a lot smoother.

[BGarside]

Have to admit my 328 is a bit rough from cold though OK once warmed up.

There's a heck of a lot of vacuum pipework under the inlet manifold and I've got a sneaking suspicion that there might be a leak there somewhere. Also going to try some BG44K fuel system cleaner in case dirty injectors might be a factor.

Hope you fix your issue. Will let you know if I can find the problem with mine but a working cam sensor made a big difference!

[B234R]

BGarside said:

Have to admit my 328 is a bit rough from cold though OK once warmed up.

There's a heck of a lot of vacuum pipework under the inlet manifold and I've got a sneaking suspicion that there might be a leak there somewhere. Also going to try some BG44K fuel system cleaner in case dirty injectors might be a factor.

Hope you fix your issue. Will let you know if I can find the problem with mine but a working cam sensor made a big difference!

I´m waiting for VANOS seals to arrive, when I got them I´ll take my 328i to the workshop to change them and I´ll ask the mechanic to remove the intake manifold and look for vaccum leaks.

After a couple of days with the new cam sensor and the error code erased, I see a certain improvement at low revs, and my idle doesn´t fluctuate. My old sensor was on the way out. By the way, I bought the VDO one, almost at half price the original BMW part.

[SebringMan]

Have you fully serviced it at all?

FWIW my friend has a 2000 E46 328i. This was not a smooth runner when he bought it. It now runs on all 6.

What did he do?

In order:

-Plugs ; they were completely fouled up ; that made a nice difference to the running. The INPA "Rough" gauge still showed it was not the smoothest runner
-Oil change ; His car in our opinion had a couple of oil changes skipped or was not run on the best oil. Despite the advise of not to do it we put engine flush into the engine and drained it when warm. We then threw in some cheapo 5W40 for a while and flushed that again. It made the engine alot quieter.

When we checked the "rough" reading on INPA it was way smoother than when he first bought it. The biggest change however were the spark plugs.

[B234R]

Yes, my 328 had a "new" engine last summer, we put a 10w40 oil (Shell HX-7) and a couple of months later we changed the oil again (the same 10W40), filter, air filter, spark plugs Bosch FR78X, water pump and belts. Next oil change I´ll use Motul X-cess 5w40.

[B234R]

Well, new VDO camshaft sensor installed, error code erased, and VANOS seals renewed, and the engine feels transformed. It seems like there is a LOT more torque low down, throttle response has improved, and city driving is infinitely nicer. Exiting a roundabout in 4th gear at only 1200 rpm gives a very decent acceleration.
Now I see how a M52 engine really performs...

Thanks to everybody!

[PaulGT3]

B234R said:

Well, new VDO camshaft sensor installed, error code erased, and VANOS seals renewed, and the engine feels transformed. It seems like there is a LOT more torque low down, throttle response has improved, and city driving is infinitely nicer. Exiting a roundabout in 4th gear at only 1200 rpm gives a very decent acceleration.
Now I see how a M52 engine really performs...

Thanks to everybody!

So satisfying to get an old car running as it should for a little effort!

[BGarside]

Good result: driving:

Maybe I'll try new VANOS seals on mine, if I ever manage to sort a decent gearbox (now on my third).

Is the labour to fit them expensive?

[B234R]

BGarside said:

Good result: driving:

Maybe I'll try new VANOS seals on mine, if I ever manage to sort a decent gearbox (now on my third).

Is the labour to fit them expensive?

My mechanic said it was a bit under 3 hours, he knows E36s very well (he owns two) and had done that job before in others 325i/328i.

[B234R]

This is been a very long story, but it´s driving me mad!!

Since I bought my 328i Touring two years ago the engine didn´t feel nice, it was a bit rough, not very smooth..due to high oil consumption I replaced the engine last summer, and although the "new" engine doesn´t drink any oil (with 5w40 synthetic), it feels exactly the same.

Resignation was my only option, I thought. Perhaps my expectations on BMW´s six cylinder were too high...until yesterday, when I had the chance to drive a 1994 525i Vanos E34. Totally different!! Smooth, gorgeous sound, no vibrations, it felt like a proper straight six. It was delicious. I got off that 525i and drove my 328i. It was like a concrete mixer in comparision.

I know the 525i has a M50 and the 328i a M52, but I can´t believe the difference in harshness can be so great.

My car goes well and mileage is good, it doesn´t stall, INPA says there is no error code and it passes "engine roughness" test well, etc...Using 98 RON gas instead of 95 makes no improvement.

I´m thinking about things that could make the engine "unbalanced" and were transplanted from the old engine to the new. Dual mass flywheel? Crankshaft vibration damper? Any way to test them? I suppose that, if timing chain or tensioners were duff, something really bad would have happened yet...

Please help, because right now I have a can of petrol and a box of matches next to my 328i...

[ChrisDT]

I feel pretty similar to you at present, mine has been fluctuating in idle for a little while now, replaced the Cam sensor with a Delphi part, replaced the air intake boot as mine didn't look brilliant although no holes going all the way through. Replaced the MAF (All of these came up as issues) had a smoke test carried out on it and found one of the pipes that went to the charcoal canister was letting smoke out so that was fixed.

Still running rough! Next think is to rebuild the Vanos I guess as it's showing a mechanical fault with that.

Can we share the petrol, it's quite expensive now - i'll bring the marshmallows!

[Funk]

bearman68 said:

I'd be suspicious of intake leaks after the MAF - seems to be a common issue with BMW generally, especially this era. - And that will make it run rough (ish) Cheapest to do as well.

Yeah, start with the cheapest first. Check the intake boot (after the MAF sensor) - mine had a hole in one of the creases you could put your fist through. If that's all good, check the MAF - I had a cheapy one from eBay which was fine for a few years, the subsequent cheapy was not - I ended up buying a proper Haas one in the end. Once you've checked those, then move onto other, oilier bits.

[ChrisDT]

Have you checked the O2 sensor in the exhaust? Mine has come up with a code for that so that's the next thing I need to change! Luckily I have a pair in my garage from another engine so i'll be putting those in to try them.

[B234R]

ChrisDT said:

I feel pretty similar to you at present, mine has been fluctuating in idle for a little while now, replaced the Cam sensor with a Delphi part, replaced the air intake boot as mine didn't look brilliant although no holes going all the way through. Replaced the MAF (All of these came up as issues) had a smoke test carried out on it and found one of the pipes that went to the charcoal canister was letting smoke out so that was fixed.

Still running rough! Next think is to rebuild the Vanos I guess as it's showing a mechanical fault with that.

Can we share the petrol, it's quite expensive now - i'll bring the marshmallows!

Strangest thing is, sometimes engine is rougher than others.
For example, this morning I started the car, did about 50 back road miles, then I drove a bit around city, the car was more or less decent, not as sweet as that 525i I talked about, but not too bad. I parked it to do a couple of things, restarted the car, and then it was a lot worse.

But I´m not talking about fluctuating idle, shakes, stall, vibrations, lack of performance, high petrol consumption, "objetive" symptoms. My car doesn´t suffer any of those things. It´s about the engine feel. It seems heavy, truck-like, as if it has a big inertia, and coarse. That 525i M50 felt a lot lighter and more pleasant. I´m thinking about buying one and ditching the 328i...

The car was serviced not too much time ago, and had replaced: rubber intake boot, spark plugs, cam sensor, VANOS seals, DME relay, PCV system, lower chain tensioner, engine and geabox mounts, valve cover and spark plugs gasket...INPA showed no error codes and "engine roughness" test was fine. In my car I´m thinking more in something "mechanical"...could a bad dual mass flywheel, gearbox, or crankshaft vibration damper cause that coarseness?

Don´t worry, I have a lot of petrol, more than enough to torch our cars. I´ll bring the beer!

[ChrisDT]

That is odd, I managed to remove the spark plugs from mine yesterday and found 3 different brands in there so fitted NGK R and it seems to idle a lot better but once it's warm it starts hunting again then sorts itself out for a little bit!

If this rain ever stops i'll get the O2 sensor out the exhaust and change it for the spare I have on a whim that will fix it!

Hold onto that petrol, i've a MASSIVE road trip to do next month in it and i'm almost positive it's not going to be ready, still need tires for it (Rears a bit skinny) so I may even be in your neck of the woods!