So no luck tonight. Found that other fusible link and it appeared fine. I jumperd just in case and still no dice. Whatever. Tomorrow I'm going to get to checking the relays and make sure the starter is getting power.
Also, I noticed a buzzing noise coming from under the hood after turning the key on. I took a video so you can hear it.
I highly doubt it's anything related to the no crank scenario but it's still something that sounds like it needs to be addressed, not to mention it has broken ends on it. Kinda looks like a heater control valve.
Last edited by wmrcs; 04-26-2016 at 11:00 AM.
The thing buzzing is your aux water pump, sits under the heater valves; normal. BTW don't break that plastic cover on top of the heater valves; I believe that cover is not so common to find these days...
Have you checked the crankshaft position sensor? For that matter, have you put a code reader on the car or done a stomp test?
Rick
<><
1993 325is - The New Daily?
1998 323is - The Daily Beater
1995 530i - The Alternate Beater
1995 540i/6 Touring - Lord Borthwick
1995 540i - The Donor & Parts Locker - Finally sent to the Crusher - RIP
Alright so I've come to the conclusion that the starter just went caput. Ignition switch checks out, ignition relay (I think that's what I checked) still clicked when I turned the key and I tried jumpering it and still no starter. The starter has power and doesn't make a sound when I turn the key. I checked the ground strap and it looks good, although has a little rust on it. I have been just checking things out for 30 minutes each night after work, so come Saturday morning I'm going to pull the starter and clean the ground strap since I have no plans! I'm hoping that the starter from my 540i will fit the 530i despite the cars being auto vs manual. Everything seems to check out but the starter -- and it is CAKED in grime and is rusty/corroded.
P.S.- Thrilled the double sunroof works! My '95 525iT's sunroof was siliconed shut when I got it.
the starters are all the same b30 to b40, auto to manual. good luck!
-Alex
So got the starters swapped out. Now she cranks but no fire yet! I'm thinking the gas is low/old as hell since it has been sitting for 3-6 years... Spark plugs look basically new too so that's nice. I'm going to run to the gas station and grab some gas for it and hopefully it fires up!
On another note, I finally have all the parts from my first parts order! I still need a lot of parts but this is about $300 worth..
Don't know if any of you guys are into guns or anything either buuuuttt my CrossBreed conceal carry holster is also showing up today.. what a great start to the weekend!
Looks like a good amount of work ahead.
In the E34 hangout section there's a gun topic. Buddy has the crossbreed. Really likes it. I went with StealthGear.
Good to know, I'll check it out! Cool yea my brother has one and he recommended them so that's how I heard about them. They're awesome how customizable they are and I love all the leather choices/cuts! How do you like StealthGear?
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Okay so since I've got the car to crank I've checked:
1. Fuel pump relay/voltage at the pump are good (I can also hear the pump sometimes)
2. CPS is good and verified spark
3. Pulled a plug after some cranking and it was still dry on the tip, so I'm going to guess that there is a blockage somewhere in the fuel system. I've got the battery on a charger and am going to go grab dinner with the wife. The only thing I can think of is to change the fuel filter AND pump from the 540i right now for good measure since they're going that way already at this point considering the age of some these parts.
Any other ideas? I would pull the feed/return lines off the fuel rail to make sure there is fuel in there, but the damn hose clamps on them are in the perfectly wrong angle for it to be convenient right now haha.
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Oh and here's my gun and holster (holster came in the mail an hour ago!)
The neutral/park switch demobilizer? Altho it wouldn't crank... Something tells me it's a fool proofing switch/sensor for some current or previous system... Just scanned the thread quickly and looks great btw, good info
Nah, couldn't be that. Not entirely sure, I'm thinking bad pump or clogged lines/filter right now. Thanks man!
SR9c. How do you like the SR40c? I was torn between the two but I am ecstatic with the 9. Never owned a 9 before and now my wife has a handgun she loves shooting vs a .45 etc.
Oh, definitely glad I got the 9 then! My brother has an XDs in .45... that is a snappy pistol too..
Last edited by wmrcs; 04-24-2016 at 11:38 AM.
Okay back to car talk!
I got the wagon fired up today, yay! The starter was fried, and the fuel pump was toast. Now the next issue is it won't shift into any gear haha! I'm about done spending time on this thing, I just need to finish this swap! If anyone knows of a simple thing to look at for the transmission though that'd be sweet. Could it be something as simple as low/no trans fluid? I did see a small leak on the corner of the pan while I was swapping out the starter and I imagine it has been dripping, undriven, for years.
So tomorrow I'm going to finally register the Touring, give the trans a once over and hopefully get it mobile. If it moves, great, if not, I'm going to hustle through this swap because I miss having my own car! Thanks for the help with diagnosing my no start guys. Much appreciated.
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Oh and there are no trans codes... I'm hoping low fluid so I have a runner while I pull and reseal the B40 and 6 speed.
Rick
<><
1993 325is - The New Daily?
1998 323is - The Daily Beater
1995 530i - The Alternate Beater
1995 540i/6 Touring - Lord Borthwick
1995 540i - The Donor & Parts Locker - Finally sent to the Crusher - RIP
I can move the gear selector all the way up and down no problem, it seems a little light too like it's not actually changing gears. I see the gear changing in my cluster but the cars tone or idle doesn't change. I'm thinking maybe the shift cable is broken, I'm going to go check!
When I had a 740il, the shift cable came unscrewed one time and the shifter just flopped up and down with no resistance. Very easy to screw back together.
I was hoping to look quickly this morning before work but I was running a hair behind schedule so now I have to wait until tonight dangit! I did just realize though, we put the car in neutral no problem while pushing the car when I first got it. I'm hoping it doesn't have enough fluid to fill the valve body or something.
Is the shifter cable broke? Your description matches what happened to me when my cable broke. The difficulty in movement was due the fact the cable was getting hung up in the sleeve. So I could move the shifter from P to D easily but back to P was really difficult. What I was seeing was the console indicator moving not the actual trans mission switching gears.
There really is no difficulty in changing gears and I can hit all of them no problem. The gear even changes in my cluster, it just feels like the transmission has no fluid to fill the valve body so after I briefly inspect the shift cable I'm going to plop some more fluid and a filter in there and see what happens. Thanks for the input.
So I did a quick fluid exchange on my auto trans tonight in hopes the thing might engage. It was certainly trying, but no luck. I could hear the RPM's change like the transmission was putting a load on the motor this time but the car still would rev freely. I'm just moving on since I don't care about that motor/trans anyway (I was just hoping for a drive-able car I could have fun in other than my truck). Tomorrow I am going to get back into the 540i and I'm stoked. Planning to have it pulled this week and ready to get resealed!
BTW, if you guys have any suggestions on what the trans could be doing I'm all ears considering it's worth nothing broken. The fluid when I drained it basically looked like chocolate/old motor oil haha, so I don't have high hopes. But maybe it's something electric not letting the solenoids fully engage or something? IDK. Moving on!
Spent about 2 hours on the 540 last night (YES!). Made a little bit of progress. Got the wiring harness labelled and in a pile on top of the motor because I couldn't easily get the wire off of the back of the alternator (any tips on this with it still in the car?). Pretty much just need to disconnect the power steering and drive-line and out she comes. Hoping to get it pulled on Friday and on the engine stand so I can begin resealing everything and then strip the Touring of it's B30 (which is healthy if anyone in the PNW wants one haha!)
Regarding the wire on the back of the alternator, I chose to cut the wire from inside the wiring box; see picture 4 of this post. This approach makes removing and installing the alternator much easier.
Rick
<><
1993 325is - The New Daily?
1998 323is - The Daily Beater
1995 530i - The Alternate Beater
1995 540i/6 Touring - Lord Borthwick
1995 540i - The Donor & Parts Locker - Finally sent to the Crusher - RIP
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