Hello,
I recently picked up a '98 318ti. The car has 99,000 miles on it. We bought it even though it was an auto, because it was in great shape and had relatively low miles.
The car has a few issues, most of which I have an idea about. One that I need some help with is a long crank issue. First off, priming the fuel rail via turning the key to ON (activating the fuel pump) does NOT help this problem. Even with multiple primes the car will have this issue. Secondly opening the throttle somewhat during startup does NOT help. It always starts on the second try immediately. My dad's '99 328i actually has the exact same problem.
The car has stored a pending fault for the camshaft position sensor, but has not actually thrown the fault as current (meaning it hasn't happened often enough yet). It has a current fault for fuel trims, P1174.
The exact issue is that the car will crank over just fine, but will not "catch" immediately. Sometimes it will catch after 5-6 seconds of cranking and stumble into a weak idle and finally recover to a smooth idle. Other times I have to turn the key to "OFF" and then try to start again, in which case it always catches immediately and smoothly. Very rarely it starts the first time, usually if the car has recently been shut down but sometimes when it has been sitting for a while, too.
My questions: Could cleaning the ICV help? Could the P1174 (possibly a vacuum leak) have to do with this issue? How could I check to be sure this isn't an EWS issue?
I have a new fuel filter at home waiting to go in, and will be refreshing the cooling system soon which will give me access to the camshaft position sensor plug for replacement. I am hoping that while the intake manifold is off I will be able to fix the P1174. The long-term fuel trim is usually around -6, but the short-term changes wildly at times and can reach -12 or lower.
Thanks for any help!
Last edited by weste46; 08-14-2018 at 10:33 AM.
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Replace the camshaft sensor, only buy true OEM, Seimens or VDO. Ebay has good prices. The part below is for the 318ti
This seller, you can call the 1800 number and order direct, tell him that you saw the ebay auction he'll give a little discount. shipping is usually free and no sales tax usually.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-BMW-3-S...2/352241791796
Attn. NEWBIES: Use the search feature, 98% has already been discussed.
Click the search button, select "search single content type", select the "e36 sub forum" specifically, try the "search titles" then try the "search entire posts".
For the fuel trim issues, fix/find all your vacuum leaks (smoke test it if you have to, watch youtube videos on how to make your own or go to a professional shop). The leak could be a vacuum hose or the valve cover gasket. After that replace your pre-cat oxygen sensors, I don't know if you have one or two.
Your fathers stored camshaft code also simply needs a new camshaft sensor, his is cheaper, again he needs Siemens or VDO OEM brands, that same seller has them for a lot less.
Welcome to the forum!
Attn. NEWBIES: Use the search feature, 98% has already been discussed.
Click the search button, select "search single content type", select the "e36 sub forum" specifically, try the "search titles" then try the "search entire posts".
I replaced my camshaft position sensor but the long crank to start remains.
I also found a broken vacuum line while I was in there. I haven't been able to drive the car much since I put it back together (OFHG started leaking, fixed that but still have to solve my radiator fan issue)
At 101k miles this 318ti has needed more work than I am used to relative to my 277k 330ci so far. Hopefully once I get caught up the car will be reliable for me.
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Test your fuel pump relay, its cheap and easy to do. I would say temperature sensor but you're having issues with even cold starts so that rules that out.
So somehow this problem resolved itself.
The long crank didn't go away immediately following the CPS swap, but now it starts up right away. It may still be a fuel pressure issue, and I've been priming the system in position 2 shortly before cranking.
Now I only have a cat inefficiency code, not a huge deal.
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