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Hello every one, I've deciding to finally create an account because I've become increasingly frustrated with my 1992 325I, and hope someone here can help me out. Starting last week my car began shutting off when idling or when in a low gear. First I went straight to my icv and cleaned the hell out of it (wasn't very dirty to begin with). Nothing changed. Next I used some fuel injector cleaner and ran the car for a little in neutral, there was no shut off, until the next day when I drove it for about 30 minutes then after that it would almost instantly turn off after start. Also my rpm gauge went 360 spinning back and forth like crazy. And I also checked my alternator previously so it wasnt that. Now I thought maybe a clogged fuel filter. I spent half the day getting that thing off and the new one on. My filter is the type with one hose at the bottom and one at the top, and it's tucked near my engine at the end of my oil stick. Pain in the Ass to get to. When I finally got it on I attempted to start the car and nothing. Just cranked and cranked then bam gas shoots out. The top hose wasn't clamped all the way so had to take my air filter and everything out again to get it back on. Once I have it back on I think it'll turn on just fine now but nope, still nothing. I checked for any leaks and my gas levels but everything was good so I turned the key to position 2 about 20 times and it still wouldn't start. So I just went to work and thought I would try again after. But I'm just now getting in after trying again with position 2 and still nothing!! I have no idea what could be happening. There's only 2 hoses and I put both on properly and made sure the filter was correct directionaly. I could really use some advice. Please!! Because now I have the shutting off issue as well as not turning on....fml
Last edited by shogun; 01-23-2018 at 06:20 AM. Reason: double posts merged
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Check fuel pressure...probe fuel pump and see if it pumps. also make sure you didn’t put fuel lines backwards which will deadlock fuel pump
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Okay I'm gonna check all of that today, but how would I go about checking the fuel pressure?Originally Posted by Driiven
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So it was shutting off before and after fuel filter replacement. Have you checked your crankshaft and camshaft sensors?
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It was shutting off before the filter replacement but no haven't bee able to get it to start at all after replacement.
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Oops, read that wrong. I know that when I have had a bad camshaft sensor if I turn the key to the on position my rpm would do the exact same thing you described.
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So the engine cranks but car does not start? It's either your cam sensor or your fuel pump, can also be fuel pump relay or DME relay.
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I know this may sound weird but remove your gas cap and see if any air rushes in or out. Also remove your fuel pump and make sure the pump itself is seated correctly.
I had a issue similar to yours and it turned out that my purge valve went bad and was always sucking in air from the tank and caused the tank to pretty much implode and push the pump upwards out of its holder in the sender. Even though i had fuel the pump wouldn't reach it because it was pushed upwards.
You can also test the fuel pump relay by removing the relay and applying battery voltage to terminal 30 and 86 and grounding out terminal 85 and check terminal 87 for voltage. if no voltage at terminal 87 then the relay is bad.
relay.PNG
Also check fuse 18 (15a) in the under hood fuse box for the fuel pump.
fusebox.PNG
Also Check crank and cam sensor resistance readings.
Camshaft sensor should read between 1300-1500ohms
Crankshaft sensor should read between 490-590ohms.
Last edited by Ateyourv8; 01-23-2018 at 04:26 PM.
Member
It is unlikely that a car in California will have issues with the fuel filter. Our gasoline is very clean and the gas tank is plastic so you will not have issues of rust clogging the filter. The only dirt in the filter will come from the gasoline. If you go to Mexico to buy gas, then you will have filtration issues to deal with, but if you stay north of the border you should be able to go a lifetime on the filter that comes with the car. This is a general rule of thumb, your mileage may vary.
It is far more likely that your fuel pump has bit the dust. Far more. Not even close.
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Okay so I checked fuel pump and it's acting normal, fuel pressure is good and lines are correct. Any other thoughts? I was thinking maybe since I had to cut my lines to get them off the filter that they're too short now and since I had to really stretch them to get back on, the way they bend is restricting proper flow to the engine but bot sure so am gonna get new lines late evening.
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Fuel pump was fine before filter change though and seems to be sounding in order.
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