'CHECK ENGINE' pls advise

[bmWXYan]

sup all, :)

i drove up from southern cali to the bay last night (400 miles) and everything was going fine until i hit a bit of a traffic jam... after the slow cruise for about 20 minutes, my 'CHECK ENGINE' light went ON... :help

i don't have my any manuals with me @ the moment, so i don't have a clue what could be wrong?!

please advise on some of the possible diagnosis!! TIA

[dak656]

need some details..... plus you have a 97 so you can't do the gas pedal trick....

[bmWXYan]

hi DAK,

i wish i can provide more details... :(

all i can say is that everything was going fine throughout the drive, or felt fine at least, up to the point when i hit the traffic jam and went on a slow cruise for 15 minutes.

can someone comment on the possibility of the problem sourcing to O2 sensors?
and if O2 sensors are responsible, can i still drive the car around safely, for 400 miles at least?

i have 130k on my car, and i don't think they've ever been replaced...

thanks!

[bmWXYan]

hello again,

i am closed to an AutoZone... from what i've read, they loan the diagnostic tool for free.. is that the case?

if so, how do i use the tool on my 97? thanks

[dak656]

I've never used an OBD2 tool, but if that's what they loan you, there should be a rectangular port right above the drivers left knee, and that's where you plug it in to scan, then follow the scanner directions... but, like I said, I've never used an OBD2 scanner before on a BMW. If they will pull codes for you for free, go for it..... perhaps someone with a '96+ can lend some insight?

[adsingl]

Either autozone has the right adapter to connect to the diag port or they don't, just take it in. Or, see if local BMWCCA member has a peak research tool to give you the code reading. If you get a diag that it's an 02 sensor, you may try to drive it some to get the cat hot and see if the light resets, say 3000rpm; driving at 20mph for some distance may well have "loaded" an 02 sensor. I don't beleive the post cat sensor *edit - WILL* affect how it runs.
Put in some Redline SIL or techron gas conditioner first. I've cleaned up a few 02 errors this way - BUT not on my BMW's(haven't had an 02 sensor code/problem so far). Not certain they'll reset w/o tool.
If you get some other error or it runs poorly, I sure wouldn't go 400 miles before correcting.
Good luck
ADS

[bmWXYan]

thanks for the help DAKM3 and adsingl,

i'm gonna run to autozone first and hopefully get a reading..then move on from there.

i'm away on vacation, so i have limited access to tools, time, etc... and on top of it, i'm not the best mechanic..

adsingl,
if it is the o2 sensors, is the car still safely driveable?

thanks again

[adsingl]

Not 100% on this, but believe you're ok if it is past the cats, as I believe they measure for smog here but don't input that back onto mixture. The one before the cats may affect drivability. I'd like to say it isn't a big deal if it could be confirmed the sensor is bad (completely dead) versus giving a bad reading, but I'm going on a limb/past my real knowledge here. I expect there's a different code if the sensor is properly trying to indicate something is wrong, like the cat itself may be suspect (worn out/malfunctioning), but don't know that w/o significant research. If a cat IS bad, especially if it were clogged, I wouldn't drive that way.
ADS

[bmWXYan]

thanks for the advise adsingl,

i went to autozone earlier and i got the loaner diagnostic tool... plugged it in and i got the reading...
"O2 sensor ckt....." can't remember off the top of my head.... "bank 2 sensor 1"

at this time i'm hoping that it is only the o2 sensor that's bad, so at least i can drive my car back to l.a.

btw, does anyone know which sensor is located on "bank 2 sensor 1"... would this be one of the ones in the front or the back?

[black_box]

I would try to fix that before you drive very far, or get confirmation from someone that knows where that sensor is. My understanding is that the car will run rich, and the unspent fuel running through will toast the catalytic converter ($$)

[RDD]

My CEL came on a few times after I bought my car 3 months ago but the light only stayed on for a day or two. At first when I asked the dealer and the mechanic what was wrong with it they said it was nothing and I probably was driving behind some car with a diesel engine or something. Well, I finally bought my own scan tool and pulled up an o2 sensor code 3 months down the road. I told my mechanic to look at it again and he finally pulled the same code with the scan tool he uses. I got them replaced about 2-3 wks ago and still no CEL so it's been ok so far.

I was told that when the CEL comes on and off like that, it's an early sign that "something" is failing (o2 sensors in my case). My mechanic told me that a friend of his in his jeep has been driving with the CEL on for 2-3 years. I've heard of bad o2 sensors causing problems with cat converters but I think that's only after an extended period of time. Otherwise the only other thing that it may cause is poor emissions and poor fuel economy. Mind you, even after I changed out my o2 sensors, my mpg hasn't really improved much, but at least the CEL hasn't come on.

[clumpymold]

sup all, :)

i drove up from southern cali to the bay last night (400 miles) and everything was going fine until i hit a bit of a traffic jam... after the slow cruise for about 20 minutes, my 'CHECK ENGINE' light went ON... :help

i don't have my any manuals with me @ the moment, so i don't have a clue what could be wrong?!

please advise on some of the possible diagnosis!! TIA
No way?! I just drove up last Friday and I'm still here (SF). We should hang out. I also have a diagnostic tool with me as well as my SRS tool/reader. :D

Anyway, if you need anything, give me a call. I believe I gave you my number a while ago. I'll be here for a few more days. When are you driving back? Where are you staying?

[NakNak]

Hey man dont sweat it. I have had to make the exact same trip multiple times (San Jose to UC Riverside for college) and have had the check engine light come on in 2 different M3's. Both times it was just the coolent or window washer fluid being low. Just fill those up and hopefully it will solve your problem.

[Chongus]

Hey man dont sweat it. I have had to make the exact same trip multiple times (San Jose to UC Riverside for college) and have had the check engine light come on in 2 different M3's. Both times it was just the coolent or window washer fluid being low. Just fill those up and hopefully it will solve your problem.
You are describing "check control" from the OBC. The check engine light is a totally different m,atter, you need the scan tool or do the pedal trick if you are can do so.

[paul e]

If youre going to be getting an obdii code tool, why not spend a little more, and get a real OBDII Scantool; not the kind that just reports fault codes, and lets you rest them, but the kind that does that, but also can read ALL your obdii sensor values, readiness test results, freeze frame data surrouning faults, o2 sensor info, and alot more. AutoXray, possibly available from autozone but also available online at autoxray.com, is a completely self-contained hand-held unit. It does all of the above, and more.

[Patrokloss]

btw, does anyone know which sensor is located on "bank 2 sensor 1"... would this be one of the ones in the front or the back?
Bank 2 is cylinders 4, 5 and 6, the ones closest to the rear of the car. Sensor 1 is the O2 sensor that sits in front of the catylitic converter. This is the first one that went bad on my car as well... I only had 88k miles though. All four of your O2 sensors ought to be about due for replacement by now.

[clumpymold]

If youre going to be getting an obdii code tool, why not spend a little more, and get a real OBDII Scantool; not the kind that just reports fault codes, and lets you rest them, but the kind that does that, but also can read ALL your obdii sensor values, readiness test results, freeze frame data surrouning faults, o2 sensor info, and alot more. AutoXray, possibly available from autozone but also available online at autoxray.com, is a completely self-contained hand-held unit. It does all of the above, and more.
How much do those run? I paid about $35-40 for mine, new, shipped, on eBay, I believe. If it's not too much more, I may consider one. :)

[bmWXYan]

If youre going to be getting an obdii code tool, why not spend a little more, and get a real OBDII Scantool; not the kind that just reports fault codes, and lets you rest them, but the kind that does that, but also can read ALL your obdii sensor values, readiness test results, freeze frame data surrouning faults, o2 sensor info, and alot more. AutoXray, possibly available from autozone but also available online at autoxray.com, is a completely self-contained hand-held unit. It does all of the above, and more.

i got the tool by "renting" it... basically it was free, but i had to put a deposit down just in case i don't return the tool back to AutoZone... thanks for the info though... i'll definitely consider the tool you mentioned if i ever get one

[bmWXYan]

No way?! I just drove up last Friday and I'm still here (SF). We should hang out. I also have a diagnostic tool with me as well as my SRS tool/reader. :D

Anyway, if you need anything, give me a call. I believe I gave you my number a while ago. I'll be here for a few more days. When are you driving back? Where are you staying?

curtis,

what's up man.. i'm going back on monday 9/6
i'm staying in burlingame, about 20 minutes from the 'city'
what do you think of this o2 sensor read? should i drive my car back? will it "toast the cat?"

i think i might have your # in an email.. i'll have to check

i'm going to club 1015 tonight with my girl and a couple of her friends.. if you're still here, you should roll by

[bmWXYan]

BTW,

CEL is off now.. but I did the scan once more with the tool, and I'm still getting the same error reading pointing to the O2 sensor. I just want to make sure that I can drive the car still without causing further damage to other components.. inputs? thanks

[black_box]

sorry, I should have clarified that I don't know how long it would take for the cat to be ruined. Try a search for the catalytic converter or hopefully someone more knowledgable can give you a hand.

[M3Alpine99]

i doubt an autozone will have a BMW diagnostic connector...
a general diag tool will not pull any pertinant information

[adsingl]

i doubt an autozone will have a BMW diagnostic connector...
a general diag tool will not pull any pertinant information

A general tool WILL pull all the stuff mandated by laws that put OBDII in place, like 02 sensor and other smog control stuff, many won't help on the additional BMW specific codes.

ADS

[clumpymold]

curtis,

what's up man.. i'm going back on monday 9/6
i'm staying in burlingame, about 20 minutes from the 'city'
what do you think of this o2 sensor read? should i drive my car back? will it "toast the cat?"

i think i might have your # in an email.. i'll have to check

i'm going to club 1015 tonight with my girl and a couple of her friends.. if you're still here, you should roll by
Oh hey, Yan!

I'm leaving probably Tuesday or Wednesday. I still have some stuff to do tomorrow.

I should have checked my email earlier for the recent posts because I'm now sitting at home bored outta my mind. But I'm studying so I "guess" it's okay. ;)

[Patrokloss]

i doubt an autozone will have a BMW diagnostic connector...
a general diag tool will not pull any pertinant information
The Autozone scan tool works great. OBDII ports are universal. If you want to pay the dealer $80-100 to do the same thing, knock yourself out.