Car dies in Automatic Carwash

[mnkyjzard]

Earlier today I was going to a Euro meet and decided get a car wash and make my car look semi-decent. I go and get a car wash, I pull up and there is a track system that pulls your car along through the system, I put my car in neutral and take my foot off of the brake. About 3/4 of the way through my car dies, as the system is pulling my car through, I keep trying to start it but it just keeps cranking and not turning on. Thankfully the system had enough power to push my car out of the tunnel and I coasted it around the parking lot into and parked. First thing I checked was to make sure my engine was dry.

The engine was dry, everything appeared to be normal. Thankfully there was an Advanced Auto Parts store right next to the place, so I went and got some starter fluid. After getting it, I put a little amount of starter fluid in the air intake and my car turned on, but then continued to die. I then went and tried to find some gasoline, but it took me over an hour to get some gasoline because there was a power outage and no place could sell gas. Thankfully I was able to get a hold of my sister and she gave me a ride to a gas station a couple of miles away. I return to my car and put some gas back in and tried to start it. But when I tried to start it, the system just clicked once and all electrical systems dim.

I then tried to jump my car and it still did not start.

So I know my battery is dead, is my fuel pump relay shot as well or is it my fuel pump itself? Or could the track from the car wash crush a fuel line?

[kurtf114]

Your DME probaly got wet, its a commen problem with the Auto carwashes.

[mnkyjzard]

Your DME probaly got wet, its a commen problem with the Auto carwashes.

And the cure for this would to be to let my car dry over night and recharge the battery?

[blackbimmer96]

And the cure for this would to be to let my car dry over night and recharge the battery?
you have to take it apart and air dry it. or you might have to get a new one.
your DME i mean.

[silowmichael]

Yeah, I had this problem several times before i figured it out. Rainy season in Florida did it for me. I ordered a used but guaranteed DME from Bav auto recycle and put it in. However, the main cause was water getting into the DME shelf. I had to clean out the drain lines and then i fabbed a little riser to keep it from sitting on the bottom of the shelf.

[angeleus]

Yeah, I had this problem several times before i figured it out. Rainy season in Florida did it for me. I ordered a used but guaranteed DME from Bav auto recycle and put it in. However, the main cause was water getting into the DME shelf. I had to clean out the drain lines and then i fabbed a little riser to keep it from sitting on the bottom of the shelf.
+1 to that. I did that exact thing after my DME issues. I also sealed my DME in a bag to prevent it from ever getting wet.

[freakgeek]

DONT put your DME in a bg, it will overheat eventually, plus that will actually build up condensation inside of your DME worse. Just take some silicone and put it around the wire coming in from the fire wall, that should take care of it.

[savage147]

I had a similar problem, ended up costing me a ton...

I had taken my car through many auto-washes and after the car would chug out and I would be able to restart. But the last auto-wash killed my car completely. I pulled my DME and water literally poured out. Turn out I fried the DME and the power wire for the DME in the harness had become corroded and lost connection. a real S.O.B.

Check to make sure the wires in the harness all have conductivity to the DME

DME's go for around 100-200 on ebay.

[mchkc240]

Yea you are not suppose to bring these cars into auto car wash. Try to open up your DME box and let it dry. It should be fine after that.

[randomy]

Hand wash it! I love spending time with my car and making it beautiful. I'm going to go home and wash it at lunch.

[idriveastick]

Hand wash it! I love spending time with my car and making it beautiful.

+1 to that. :buttrock

[mnkyjzard]

Hand wash it! I love spending time with my car and making it beautiful. I'm going to go home and wash it at lunch.

Rofl, thanks Derek. I got mine to look beautiful on the inside. My girlfriend vacuumed it out while I tried to figure out what was going wrong with it. The worst part is that it snowed the day after I got it washed too, and it is covered in dirt and pollen right now.

[randomy]

it's nice to have a girlfriend....only wish mine would clean my car. Has the condition of your car improved, cracked that DME open yet? Did you get the battery charged?

[idriveastick]

Make your girlfriend fix it. That's what I'd do.

However, being in the IT/industrial electronics field...

MOST circuitry can be "repaired" by letting it dry out for a couple days. However, if anything was shorted, most likely it fried something.

So, I'd say, as everyone else is saying: take it out, open 'er up and dry 'er out. Then, after carefully inspecting everything and making sure there is no black spots (burn spots) or anything popped or out of place..and of course no moisture...toss it back in and hope for the best.

Other than that, you could be screwed. Sorry to be blunt.

[Yovi]

sigh*:confused http://http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1188347

[geero]

mann im seeing so many DME problems on forums lately! haha

[mnkyjzard]

it's nice to have a girlfriend....only wish mine would clean my car. Has the condition of your car improved, cracked that DME open yet? Did you get the battery charged?

I did get the DME cracked open, it has scorch marks on it and was water logged. And there is signs of corrosion and it isn't even the right DME that the model calls for. So I'm assuming it is the second one. I did get the battery charged and the new DME in, but car still no work. At least there isn't the clicking sound of my system resetting when I try to start my car, just a huge drain in amps. I'm thinking that my starter seized. But I will find out Saturday when I tow my car to my brothers house and we can take a look at it.
And the key to getting your girlfriend to clean your car, is to have it break down, and give her the option to stay with the car or walk a mile to the gas station. She chose to stay with my car and ended up cleaning it out cuz she is that awesome.

[freakgeek]

Make sure that you clean out your drains below the windshield, since when they get clogged, thats what causes water to get into your DME.

[mnkyjzard]

Well, I just talked to my mechanic and he said that the reason it isn't starting now is because the DME needs to be aligned to the VIN and car. Ah, one more thing to do.
Edit: Does it matter that the new DME is a red label and the previous DME was a silver label?

[rxcondor]

freakgeek,

Where are the drains below the windshield?

[freakgeek]

Its a series of small tubes, my mechanic cleans them whenever I bring in my car to him, so he pointed them out to me once, so I'm not 100% sure they are the same for all years. I'll ask him next time I see him.

[mnkyjzard]

Any one with answers? Do I need to take my car to the local Bavauto to have the DME realigned? Or do I need to swap the chips from the previous DME into the newer one to get my car to work? And does it matter that the DME that I just swapped is a red label and the previous one was a silver label?

I do know that the previous DME was a different model then was originally made for the year, it was for a 95, and the one that I have is the one made for a 94 like mine. But with the model, there are two different versions. One with the EWS-II and one with out the EWS-II.

[randomy]

I'm sorry Oli, I don't know enough about the DME to offer any advice. I know the DME needs to be aligned with EWS, but I didn't think that pertained to OBD1 vehicles.

[mnkyjzard]

Well.... Gebrahdt has confirmed that the DME does need to be realigned. But they have me freaking out that I bought the wrong computer, the one with out EWS-II.
And now all of my worries have been set aside, the red label is for car pre vanos, and I don't have a Vanos unit in my car. Silver is for vanos.

[Gene1219]

Well.... Gebrahdt has confirmed that the DME does need to be realigned. But they have me freaking out that I bought the wrong computer, the one with out EWS-II.
And now all of my worries have been set aside, the red label is for car pre vanos, and I don't have a Vanos unit in my car. Silver is for vanos.

, YOU don't need to have it aligned. I've used two different (same number ) dme's without any problems. 95 is when ews was started.

For reference. I put a 95 m42 in my 94 without any problems. I purchased an extra dme because I thought I had problem with mine, turned out to be the relay.

I'm selling my red label dme #0261203282 for m/t if you're interested

[mnkyjzard]

, YOU don't need to have it aligned. I've used two different (same number ) dme's without any problems. 95 is when ews was started.

For reference. I put a 95 m42 in my 94 without any problems. I purchased an extra dme because I thought I had problem with mine, turned out to be the relay.

I'm selling my red label dme #0261203282 for m/t if you're interested

Thank you for the offer, but I already bought one. It is the same one as yours, but the previous one was a silver label dme #0261203357. I'll try to swap out some chips tonight, but I'll have to wait till my sister gets home.