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Car Forum / BMW Cars / April 2008

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starting troubles

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jacobite - 03 Apr 2008 15:23 GMT
BMW 3 series i18 1994 M43  mode.  lAfter the car had stood unused,
over winter , for 2 months it proved difficult to start. The battery
was flat but after recharging etc. this problem was resolved.
Unfortunately it now takes soon time to start after engaging the
ignition. It takes about 3 turnovers before it kicks in( before it
came alive immediately). I have changed the plugs.  Has anyone any
ideas about what I should check etc

Thanks
Scott Dorsey - 04 Apr 2008 15:18 GMT
>BMW 3 series i18 1994 M43  mode.  lAfter the car had stood unused,
>over winter , for 2 months it proved difficult to start. The battery
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>came alive immediately). I have changed the plugs.  Has anyone any
>ideas about what I should check etc

Well, if you left the car over the winter without any protection, you
have at least gunked your fuel filter up and maybe even the injectors.
If you've got fuel that's been sitting for six months, it's got all
kinds of varnish precipitating out of it and even the high pressure BMW
system which is almost immune to clogging can fail.

Your battery is probably on its way out, too.

If it were my car, I'd change the fuel filter before doing anything
else, and I'd run a couple tanks of gas with a lot of injector
cleaner in it.  I'd check the fuel pressure at the rail next.

When you changed the plugs, what did they look like?

Next year, put fuel stabilizer in the tank, and run the engine to get
the stabilized fuel everywhere through the system.  Pull the plugs and
squirt a little WD-40 in each cylinder, and disconnect the battery.  
Put the battery on a float-charger if possible.  When the time comes to
restart in the spring, check the battery condition, and turn it over
without the plugs to get the WD-40 residue out of there before starting
the first time.
--scott

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"C'est un Nagra.  C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Sam Savoca - 04 Apr 2008 19:30 GMT
> Well, if you left the car over the winter without any protection, you
> have at least gunked your fuel filter up and maybe even the injectors.
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
> the first time.
> --scott

You mean winterize it like a boat.

Sam S.
Scott Dorsey - 04 Apr 2008 20:13 GMT
>"Scott Dorsey" <kludge@panix.com> wrote in message
>>
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>
>You mean winterize it like a boat.

Yes, precisely.  Very common thing for people up North who keep a nice car for
the summer and a beater car for the winter.
--scott

Signature

"C'est un Nagra.  C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

jacobite - 18 Apr 2008 17:06 GMT
> >BMW 3 series i18 1994 M43  mode.  lAfter the car had stood unused,
> >over winter , for 2 months it proved difficult to start. The battery
[quoted text clipped - 29 lines]
> --
> "C'est un Nagra.  C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

thanks alot for your reply. I suspest the filter as the battery was
tested okay. Thanks again for your assistance
Jeff Strickland - 04 Apr 2008 18:09 GMT
If you turn the key and it starts within about 5 seconds, it is normal. You
should not be concerned that it once started in a second, and now it takes
3. You will drive yourself to drink chasing this kind of problem.

> BMW 3 series i18 1994 M43  mode.  lAfter the car had stood unused,
> over winter , for 2 months it proved difficult to start. The battery
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>
> Thanks
Ulf - 04 Apr 2008 18:42 GMT
> BMW 3 series i18 1994 M43  mode.  lAfter the car had stood unused,
> over winter , for 2 months it proved difficult to start. The battery
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> came alive immediately). I have changed the plugs.  Has anyone any
> ideas about what I should check etc

2 months shouldn't matter, so don't worry about it. Use up the old fuel
and see if things improve after a refill. Don't bother replacing
anything because of this, other than normal service of course. It
usually takes longer to start in cold weather too.

> Thanks
Ulf
 
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