e30 Stalling Problem

[ScottySbk]

Hi, I need help with my 1991 318i M42. Basically I bought it a few weeks ago and the day of after about a 2 hour drive just as I drove up to the house it decided to start stalling out. It would start right back up and go a little further and stall out again all the way till I get it to the driveway. It’ll still start no problem but it’ll sputter when revving stall out almost instantly if you rev long enough. Sounds like a fuel starving problem so I changed the fuel pump and fuel filter. When I changed the fuel filter the check engine like turned off but it still stalls. The previous owner replaced the ICV and put a K&N intake in it with a new AFM. I stomp tested and it read 1222 but the check engine light is NOT on but that’s the code it’ll read. Any suggestions ?

[shogun]

Moved to E30 forum

[tomstin]

How long has the car been sitting prior to you purchasing it? Debris in the fuel tank is common in these old cars. Remove the in-tank pump and take a look before filling the tank.

I can't help you with the code.

[mbonder]

Sure you don't have a vacuum leak? I'd check the intake track to see if you have anything ripped/torn there.

[richardodn]

Gas tank is a good guess for your stalling issue. Rust and debris in the tank gets stirred up and clogs the intake screen. Once it's shut off and sitting, junk sinks back down and the car starts just fine.

1222 means air-fuel mixture is off for more than 10 seconds; either rich or lean. Most commonly it's an intake system leak, but you have other red flags. One is the fuel system. I could see a fuel starvation issue setting that code. An improperly adjusted AFM could be another cause. Of course there's the intake leak possibility too. Any or all of them could be affecting you. In any event, ignore the code for now and check out the fuel tank and pump first. After the car has been sitting for a while, remove the fuel pump (have a new gasket on hand) and shine a bright flashlight inside. Take a stick and try to stir up the bottom. If things turn cloudy, you have sediment and is the first thing to deal with.

[ScottySbk]

Alright so my e30 with the M42 one morning decided to have inconsistent no acceleration and would start popping when trying to accelerate. After hold down the pedal towards WOT it’ll finally kick in and jump. Don’t know what to do anymore, new injectors, new fuel pump, new FPR, swapped with spare MAF, new coolant temp sensor, cleaned ICV and all that junk, and new vacuum lines.

[Mikealwa]

Did you check to see if there was debris in the tank? Clogged cats might cause symptoms like that. Can you measure temps pre and post cat after it has run a bit, that's one way to see. I believe there should t be much of a temp drop before and after.