335 Had the Shakes This Morning

[daddyO]

On my way to work, it suddenly started to hesitate and shake both at idle and under acceleration, like a spark plug wire came loose. Check Engine light came on, so I turned around and headed to the dealer. While on the way the low fuel warning illuminated. At the dealer, they pluged it in, and said one of the cylinders showed a combustion misfire due to low fuel level (computer said 35 mile range left). SA said the high-pressure fuel pump is sensitive to low fuel levels. Cleared the fault and I drove it away, running fine. So I guess from now on I'll try to refill with about 1/4 left. Anybody experience this?

[Jhunter]

I have been at that low a level of fuel before (though not often) but have never had any issues. Like you I will pay more attention in the future.

[mryakan]

Happened once on my e36, I let it get that low and all sorts of lights starting coming on and the car felt like it is falling apart. Quick U-turn and 1 km into a gas station to give it some juice again and all was well. The CEL cleared by itself after a while. Never before and never after had I let a car run that low on gas. It's like wrapping a plastic bag on your head and telling you to run a 100m. :nono

[aftp302]

Interesting. I've had mine down to ~25 miles remaining several times and never had this issue. Something to keep in mind though if it does happen to me.

[mryakan]

Interesting. I've had mine down to ~25 miles remaining several times and never had this issue. Something to keep in mind though if it does happen to me.
Best to not let it get that low. 40 miles or 60 km is the lowest I'd let it go.

[htownlovaboy]

i always let it go to 5 miles before i fill up. ive got 15000 miles and i never had any problems. Twice i went all the way to 0 where it just has dashes on the screen and no problems.

[sor]

I'm sure the grade of the streets makes a difference as well. It may read 30 miles but if you hit a slope it's going to react differently. Also, I believe the estimate is based on your average MPG, so if you drive hard most of the time, then drive conservatively when you're almost out of gas then it might say you have fewer miles left than you actually do, of course the opposite is true as well.

[mryakan]

i always let it go to 5 miles before i fill up. ive got 15000 miles and i never had any problems. Twice i went all the way to 0 where it just has dashes on the screen and no problems.
The question is why take a chance of getting stranded by the side of the road waiting for AAA or BMW RSA to give you gas. Is it that bad to fill up a bit early!:dunno

[htownlovaboy]

the computer gauge in my bmw has always been accurate. Plus i had a 02 m3 before that had an accurate gauge. ive never ran out of gas thank god.

[Bandit335]

I must admit I too sometime wait till it hits zero. I have driven for at least 10 miles past the point where it said zero. There is always more juice left than indicated. Never a problem. I know that it will be my fault if I ever stall but on the other hand the damn electronic fuel indicator is so inaccurate I will probably blame it on BMW if I do stall. I'll tell them to design a fuel indicator that doesn't say 30 miles and then 10 miles later says 0.

Having said that it is wise not to go below 1/4 of tank as there is a higher chance of bad fuel experiences and foreign objects, especially when it gets cold.

My in-law's VW Taureg had the shakes and ran like a run down tank last weekend although it had lots of gas in it. Everything stopped when roadside assistance came to tow it. They towed it anyway but could not duplicate the problem and no engine codes registered. There is always a chance of some water in the tank but I don't think that was it. BTW, be glad you have a BMW as any other company I dealt with has far inferior service. Her VW only has 29k miles on it but they asked a thousand questions as to not cover it under warranty in case something was wrong. Spark plugs and other things would have been a maintenance issue and likely not covered by VW.

[trek1500]

On my way to work, it suddenly started to hesitate and shake both at idle and under acceleration, like a spark plug wire came loose. Check Engine light came on, so I turned around and headed to the dealer. While on the way the low fuel warning illuminated. At the dealer, they pluged it in, and said one of the cylinders showed a combustion misfire due to low fuel level (computer said 35 mile range left). SA said the high-pressure fuel pump is sensitive to low fuel levels. Cleared the fault and I drove it away, running fine. So I guess from now on I'll try to refill with about 1/4 left. Anybody experience this?

I'm a new 335i owner..thanks for the tip! I always fill up at 1/4 anyways so I guess force of habit is a good thing...but it's nice to read these threads for info and feedback...

[Blue Streek]

On my way to work, it suddenly started to hesitate and shake both at idle and under acceleration, like a spark plug wire came loose. Check Engine light came on, so I turned around and headed to the dealer. While on the way the low fuel warning illuminated. At the dealer, they pluged it in, and said one of the cylinders showed a combustion misfire due to low fuel level (computer said 35 mile range left). SA said the high-pressure fuel pump is sensitive to low fuel levels. Cleared the fault and I drove it away, running fine. So I guess from now on I'll try to refill with about 1/4 left. Anybody experience this?

My car doesn't shake... but when I park my car and get out after a more "enjoyable" ride without any passengers, I find that I'm shaking for a few minutes. What's up with that? I can't stand or sit still because I'm shaking.

[mryakan]

My car doesn't shake... but when I park my car and get out after a more "enjoyable" ride without any passengers, I find that I'm shaking for a few minutes. What's up with that? I can't stand or sit still because I'm shaking.
Cops were on your tail? :pullover:D

[SpunkyE30nOk]

ive taken my lil ol e30 past the 0 on my obc (yes bmws of the 80s had em too :stickoutt) and it just shows the 2 hyphen signs.. how many miles are you e90/92 guys getting? I usually get 300-320 miles a tank and i have a 14.5/15 gal tank.

[Rosh]

On my way to work, it suddenly started to hesitate and shake both at idle and under acceleration, like a spark plug wire came loose. Check Engine light came on, so I turned around and headed to the dealer. While on the way the low fuel warning illuminated. At the dealer, they pluged it in, and said one of the cylinders showed a combustion misfire due to low fuel level (computer said 35 mile range left). SA said the high-pressure fuel pump is sensitive to low fuel levels. Cleared the fault and I drove it away, running fine. So I guess from now on I'll try to refill with about 1/4 left. Anybody experience this?

I went to test drive a 335 sedan few weeks back at a CPO dealer. I started it and all seemed fine. As soon as I took it out of the parking lot on to the street, it started shaking and the engine light came on. The sales guy was kinda scared and thot that he was going to lose his job. So.. I made a U turn and headed back. Weird thing is.. that I exactly remember the fueltank to be 75% full. Also .. when we reached back to the dealership.. we restarted the car .. everything suddenly seemed fine.

And yeah the explanation sales guy gave me was that I have to let the turbochargers complete one full cycle.. then only i should go beyond like.. 2000 rpm.. I dont think it is true though.

Not sure what happened though.. but I personally dont think that it may have something "surely" to do with fuel level.

[aftp302]

I went to test drive a 335 sedan few weeks back at a CPO dealer. I started it and all seemed fine. As soon as I took it out of the parking lot on to the street, it started shaking and the engine light came on. The sales guy was kinda scared and thot that he was going to lose his job. So.. I made a U turn and headed back. Weird thing is.. that I exactly remember the fueltank to be 75% full. Also .. when we reached back to the dealership.. we restarted the car .. everything suddenly seemed fine.

And yeah the explanation sales guy gave me was that I have to let the turbochargers complete one full cycle.. then only i should go beyond like.. 2000 rpm.. I dont think it is true though.

He shouldn't lose his job for a car having issues on a test drive, but he SHOULD lose his job for spewing BS like what he told you about the turbos. What a moron.

I have a lot of respect for someone who says, "I don't know what's wrong, but I'll let you know when I find out". What I don't EVER have respect for is someone who just makes shit up. I would not buy a car from that salesman or dealership, if they BS about one thing, they're sure to do it about others as well.

/end rant

[ezbmr]

A BMW mechanic once told me that a CEL could happen just becuase you were running low on gas, supposedly running low can also hurt the fuel pump. I always run low, never had a problem, except that one time when I had to push it up to the gas station...lol

[PeterC4]

I've made it to the gas station with 0 kms left on fuel. I didn't notice any hesitation or shaking ...except for me. I drove to work thinking I had 19 kms left and would fill up on my way home...when I started the car it showed 0!

[Gambit Mtrsprt]

Having said that it is wise not to go below 1/4 of tank as there is a higher chance of bad fuel experiences and foreign objects, especially when it gets cold.

Why do you say this? I ask because it has been my exact experience. :)

- I can understand getting down to the last 1/2 gallon could put more of whatever foreign matter was in the tank up to your pump, but the last 1/4 tank?

- As for the temperature, would it have to do with the ease of the fuel to vaporize or something?

I've had my 335i since around June or July and never had an issue in the warm summer months. But, since it's gotten colder, I do occasionally get rough idle immediately before or after a fuel fill-up, which I usually do with only one or two gallons left.

[mryakan]

Why do you say this? I ask because it has been my exact experience. :)

- I can understand getting down to the last 1/2 gallon could put more of whatever foreign matter was in the tank up to your pump, but the last 1/4 tank?

- As for the temperature, would it have to do with the ease of the fuel to vaporize or something?

I've had my 335i since around June or July and never had an issue in the warm summer months. But, since it's gotten colder, I do occasionally get rough idle immediately before or after a fuel fill-up, which I usually do with only one or two gallons left.

The less fuel in the tank, the more air in it, the more chance humidity could be in that air too, the more likely it will cause freezing in the fuel lines o very cold days. Common wisdom is to try to keep your tank as full as possible in the really cold winter days, but not everyone follows common wisdom (not even I unfortunately, at least not on a consistent basis, but I keep trying to).