E46 328i auto, throttle cable done, feels much slower

[LLC24]

Just had the throttle cable done on my e46 328i auto. The engine light came on shortly after I collected it with the fuel trim bank 1 & 2 codes and the car felt less responsive. Then the next day the engine light turned off and the car had no fault codes again.
When in drive the kickdown drops one gear only, feels very underwhelming and no where near as fast as it was before I took it in. At around 50 mph, if I used the kickdown previously it would drop down to 2nd gear and rev each gear to the redline until I let off, now it drops from 5th to 4th. The revs don’t seem to rise as quickly as before either. Any help would be appreciated.

[helix402]

The new cable (throttle plate angle at idle and full throttle) needs setting up with BMW diagnostic software such as ISTA D or DIS. The throttle body adaptions may need clearing too. The M52tu is was one of the first BMWs to have drive by wire so perhaps BMW were a little cautious in having a cable too. (One of my old threads on a 328i may cover the procedure).

Throttle cable change will have no effect on fuel trim. Most old E46s have perished vacuum pipes or other split pipes that cause these.

[kev b]

I would bet the intake trunking was split when the throttle cable was fitted causing an air leak.

[d_a_n1979]

kev b said:

I would bet the intake trunking was split when the throttle cable was fitted causing an air leak.

This also...

The intake boots split with age, more so around the ribbed sections... All needs to be checked carefully

[LLC24]

I took the car to bmw and they told me they couldn’t do anything for me becuase their technicians haven’t worked on an e46 this old in a long time. However they didn’t charge me for anything and cleaned my car for free so I can’t complain too much I suppose. Cheers guys

[bmwmike]

helix402 said:

The new cable (throttle plate angle at idle and full throttle) needs setting up with BMW diagnostic software such as ISTA D or DIS. The throttle body adaptions may need clearing too. The M52tu is was one of the first BMWs to have drive by wire so perhaps BMW were a little cautious in having a cable too. (One of my old threads on a 328i may cover the procedure).

Throttle cable change will have no effect on fuel trim. Most old E46s have perished vacuum pipes or other split pipes that cause these.

+1 i had to do similar when changing the throttle on my (manual) m52tub25. btw the new cable was so much nicer and lighter.

Something that always puzzled me about the m52tub25 is that the throttle plate max opening was only 85% or thereabouts. Its been a while so i forget the actual number. I tried setting it up so that it opened 100% but the car ran really poorly so I put it all back.

Anyone know why their plates dont open fully? Maybe cable to 85% and computer has the final say on full power..