Tan yellow sludge

[rayyan171]

Hi guys

My E39 BMW 528i has recently been having some stalling issues when coming to a stop. So, as anyone would do so, I opened the bonnet and checked everything. The oil cap seemed to have yellow sludge on it aswell as it being on the rim of the oil fill hole. A google search suggests condensation in the oil, and the suggested fix is to thrash it and redline, of which looks good for the car and me
My mrs drives this car daily for 7 miles, which could mean that the engine doesn't get warm.
Is this the reason why the car stalls? If not, does this sound like a good idea?

[nagsheadwarrior]

Anything that can be fixed by a damn good thrashing sounds like a good idea to me,e39s,sexual deviancy,minor border disputes the lot...............
Whether it is a good idea though I dont know.

[sparks_E39]

My old 528i Auto stalled once and it was in general running rough, EML on intermittently too. Turned out to be a sticking engine timing solenoid valve. The gunk under the filler cap is normal with short journeys plus cold weather.

[Hooli]

Gunk like that under the cap is probably getting into the breathers too & if it has it can make the idle control valve stick causing the engine to stall.

[pringle1988]

I had an e36 328 and during the colder months this would happen to me. I only commute around 7 miles aswell.
My car never actually stalled but the idle would bounce around a little bit until I went on a longer drive and the problem seemed to go away.
Best thing to try is probably take it for a nice long run and hope its as simple as that

[Fleckers]

Italian tue up then

Sounds like you need o take it out and do a long drive and get it proper hot to et it clean the crap out of its self

[kambites]

How much is there and when was the oil last changed? Is there any on the end of the dip-stick?

[steveo3002]

doubt a bit of redlining will sort it out fast , id suggest a oil change and clean as much as you can out with a rag , then some motorway use

as long as theres not loads of it , its not a major worry

[rigga]

7 miles won't get the oil up to temp to burn off condensation, needs a longer run and as said, changing the oil and filter won't hurt it.

[aw51 121565]

One could also drive the car along a faster road/motorway in (say) 4th or even 3rd gear rather than top (assuming it's a manual), as there's no need to do daft speeds while keeping the revs high - this will warm things up nicely without breaking speed limits to any degree .

We're talking of a 30+ mile run though, not just a scoot round the block...

[DrDeAtH]

You need to take the car for a long run. THEN change the oil. You won't boil off all of the sludge just by driving