E36 Touring- oil issues vanished* and sensor woes...

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

The workhorse is doing a strange thing and I'd like a different point of view. The '98 1.8 BMW 4 pot has always had timely oil changes with a premium semi oil with medium to high quality filters- the paper type. then I sold it at 125,000 miles and it was gone for 2 years, where it covered 20,000 un-serviced miles and was left to die because the suspension fell apart after hitting a kerb but that's besides the point.

So I bought it back with a few more dents in it because I knew the car well and fixed it up with a full service using Valvoline max life which is what I also use in my 635 with no problems, in fact it does what it says on the tin so I'm quite happy with it. Then, when it was due I changed the oil and filter again using Valvoline max life and a Bosch filter. Its now due it's 3rd oil change in a year and it's on 170,000 miles.

 

The thing is this, around when the ambient temperature dropped and about halfway through the service interval I noticed that if I done the usual high speed run of 50 miles and stopped with the engine idling for a bit and then turned it off, upon restarting some hours later, even the next morning, I got that clank you may get when you do an oil change and start it up for the first time and after a second or so it would go.

The engine has performed faultlessly, pulls really well with no strange noises and continues to do so but I am getting this clanking on startup still and it would seem it only happens when the temperature outside is low at around 4 degrees regardless of whether or not I previously left the engine idle after a run. The oil light goes out straight away as normal.

 

I'd hazard a guess that the oil is too thin and is draining down but this is not making sense because it does it when it wants, say three times during 500 miles of commute and only when the outside temperature is low the next day or the engine is cold.

 

It could also be moody (didn't buy this one off of my usual supplier) oil or filter (Bosch), but I bought them off of ebay so that can't* possibly be the case right?

 

As the next change is almost due and given the mileage, would it be worth looking at more specialist oils for high mileage engines if the Maxx life is not up to the job?

 

Is there another problem?

[Bren]

You could try new oil and filter.

BMW 4 pots are not known for smoothness or longevity - at least not the modern ones.

[cort16]

It could be the oil way to the hydraulic tappet is a bit gunked and the oil can’t get there when it’s cold and gloopy. Put some hydraulic tappet treatment Gloop in it and see what happens .

[dollywobbler]

I fitted a cheap Ebay filter to my RAV4, and it clearly didn't have the non-return valve in it, which meant a good clatter every morning and an age for the pressure light to go out. Won't be doing that again!

[Split_Pin]

My old Vectra used to do exactly this, went away after a few seconds. Never got any worse and it was like this for years. If the noise remained then it would be more of a conncern.

[DodgeRover]

No non return valve or a faulty one in the filter would be my guess

[Vince70]

My father has an old E36 with a M43 1.8 4 pot which has done 64000 I’m guessing is the same engine as yours which doesn’t get much use and I changed the oil last year and the engine sounded terrible on startup afterwards and sounded like the timing chain was on the way out as it would rattle on startup for a few seconds (Mannol 5/30 fully synthetic) and sounded like an ecotech Poxhall on startup.

 

He ran it for about a 500 miles with the stuff in the sump and I changed it back to shell helix fully synthetic 5/40 when it was on offer and it’s been fine since so it might be worth changing the oil as other posters have said.

 

To be honest it’s now had about 3 or 4 oil changes in the last 3 years but has only done about 1400 miles in that time so maybe I’m overdoing the oil changes but that’s what comes of buying a pela pump lol.

 

As for oil filters I’ve never found one that gives me trouble on a BMW as it’s just a paper element type I’ve tried cheap ECP ones and Expensive NOS items and both seem ok just remember to change the rubber rings on the filter.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

You know watt (see what I did there), Maxx life is sold in 5W and 10W... I wonder if I...

 

You saying 5W30 Made me think that I may have put in 10W which is thicker when it's cold...

 

(I know W is for winter, not watt, why do people call it watt?)

[LC Torana]

10Wxx?  English winter, that would do it. Too viscous for an OHC modern.  It'd be OK in summer, I imagine.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

So that's why it was £1 cheaper! I knew buying motor oil from an online pet shop dealer would have it's drawbacks.

 

 

Moral of that story folks... read labels first, just because it looks the same doesn't mean it is!

 

Looks like the shitters have solved another mystery!

[Squire_Dawson]

It's an old clapped-out BMW you bought back from a careless owner who by the sound of it didn't give a damn about the car. I doubt it has anything to do with the oil and oil filter.

[danthecapriman]

I had a J reg E36 316 that used to make a fairly loud ticking noise when started from cold. It'd do it every time until it started to warm up then it'd literally just stop one moment and sound fine until the next cold start.

It'd done almost 200k miles though!

[vaughant]

You know watt (see what I did there), Maxx life is sold in 5W and 10W... I wonder if I...

 

You saying 5W30 Made me think that I may have put in 10W which is thicker when it's cold...

 

(I know W is for winter, not watt, why do people call it watt?)

It's "weight" isn't it?

 

EDIT

 

no winter as above but I've genuine never heard it called "watt". A colloquialism perhaps???

[Junkman]

If it's fucked, bridge it.

[dieselassist]

....where it covered 20,000 un-serviced miles and was left to die because the suspension fell apart after hitting a kerb but that's besides the point.....

 

 

...had a similar experience a few years ago replacing a VW 1.9D 1y  - changing out 'like for like' 1.9D (totally jiggerd with high miles) for another allegedly low mileage, @ 70K miles; we 'lobbed it in, but -had lots of trouble with it; injectors stuck n the pump wouldn't draw from the tank etc etc- we changed the pump n fitted all new injectors; its sounded terribly 'tappitedy' till it warmed up; alarmingly so even tho.. we had new oil n filter in it...

 

...dropped the sump n had a look at the oil pump pickup; on these engines they have a a collared in gauze on the oil pump pickup- it looked okay/clean on first inspection, but shining a light behind it it was revealed to be very clagged/gummed up - even soaking it overnight didn't shift all the gum, n we cleaned a few times over with petrol, carb cleaner got it clear of shite again... crimped the gauze bit back into the housing of the oil pump, refitted the sump , oil replenished, the frightening tappetey noises lasted 20-30 seconds n the engine hummed away nicely.... this was a 70K miles engine we expected to just 'bosh in' but I doubt it had ever seen more than one or two oil changes...

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Not whilst you can still hold the steering wheel at 1000 mph in full confidence!

 

If it's fucked, bridge it.

[sierraman]

My brother in laws Corsa does this. Started it when he ran it low on oil once.

[Des]

I lost faith after misplacing a sumpful of weeks old Valvoline when an oil pressure switch popped, refilled with a can of Lidl slop and the engine became markedly quieter and even a little smoother.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Well it done it once again shortly after the last post and hasn't done it since, even starting in -2 degrees. I looked at 5w oil and that is fully synthetic and I have ordered some to try it out. When that finally gets delivered, it'll be going in.

 

On another subject, sensors... the DSC light came on ages ago and eventually knocked out the ABS, conveniently just before winter too but I don't rely on these systems anyway, they are still novel features however, I would like to get it sorted. I need to cobble together some kind of get up to plug into the car and read the parameters if anyone has some recommendations. It doesn't have the regular 'diagnostic plug', just the round connection under the bonnet. Until then, I set about replacing all the sensors as they are pretty cheap and if they come out in one lump I'll have some spares. Ultimately, they can be a pig of a job on the roadside so it would be nice to assemble it all so that in future I've half a chance of getting them out without having to resort to THE HAMMER OF THOR.

So armed with a set of sensors I thought that this Saturday I'd swap the lot... yeah... right!

 

The N/s wheel sensor wouldn't move for toffee so a fight ensued and it got a clump from larry lump hammer and sidney screwdriver which meant it came out in several pieces. Now, these BM's have a shield surrounding the sensor and sensor ring and short of removing the hub, can't be got at inside as they are attached to the backplate by a thousand rivits. Visually, there was nothing untoward this side but an excessive build up of brake dust on the sensor ring which cleaned off lurverly by means of a handy old toothbrush and some WD40. The new sensor fit like a square thing in a round hole so was tailored* in a bespoke* fashion to fit, which it did quite well. 

The O/s however was a different beast. The backplate was flippin well rotturn. This 'shield' was falling to bits and once the sensor was extracted in one piece surprisingly without any major surgery it was noted that the magnetic parts of the sensor were covered in rotten metal debris. See exciting pic below:

 

 

I had no option but to cut off this shield and bin it before it fell off. The backplate looked alright for another few years but was showing signs of giving out. My question now is this: Can it run without this shield in place or will it keep fouling up and buggering the DSC/ ABS system?

For the record, and as no-one seems to know, the warning lights have not gone out but I have the rears to do yet which I can't wait to do* (yes I can) and I suspect I'll need access into the mind of an ECU to read/ erase the faults as the battery disconnect does nothing, contrary to some belief out there.

 

In other news,

 

• Spark plugs came out looking nice and even coloured across all cylinders at 171,000 miles, a little worn so needed fresh things anyway.
• New tailgate struts which actually lift the tailgate!
• I like the Dunlop blue response tyre but as I have found with the sport series on my 635, the rubber starts cracking after 6 months along the tread which is a bit of a downer as they suit the cars well. I've tried formula one's Cooper specials on the back of the 635 because it doesn't do many miles but they are shite in the damp making a trip around a roundabout because drift king* so I don't fancy running these as a daily, time to go uber premium?
• Pads are down too on the slider side of the o/s caliper... darn it, I chucked a second hand unit on there because when I got the car again the caliper was seized solid but the sliders were 'sticky' and binding the disc on the replacement. I thought after extensive cleaning and lubricating that it was job done but although it's not binding, something is sticking on it as that one pad is worn low... time for a new caliper or 2!
• Rot. Front o/s wing has all of a sudden blossomed some rot in spectacular Mercedes style above the arch, time for an arch liner removal and jet wash session when and if the weather ever cheers up. New wing to add to the new sills shopping list, although I am holding out on those until the handful of issues get resolved elsewhere on the car first.
• Rear luggage interior light has started to work when you switch it on! It's never worked since I bought the car the first time around, still doesn't switch from opening the tailgate though. Combined borked wire and dodgy switch I reckon, no big deal though.
• Emergency coil pack on it's way to live in the boot with various other 'get you home' bodgery, it misfired on start up a couple of damp days ago but nothing since and runs ok.
• Replacement cam cover coming too, the existing has been coated in Arthur Daley's engine shine lacquer and now it's old, looks shit. That's a shame because the engine in this cleans up a treat.

 

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

All sounding familiar. The ABS light pinged on with mine 2 weeks ago. Had it scanned, passenger front sensor. New VEMO sensor was 15 quid and I changed it in about an hour. I undo the big nut and remove the hub, beat the old sensor out, clean up the hole with a file and pop the new one in. It's actually quicker. My backplates are also pretty rotten, 20 years old I guess.

 

Unlike the nasty E46, the E36 ABS system recognises a new sensor and self clears the fault code with the ABS light.

 

Mine always elicits a slight tappet tango on cold starts. 181'000, due an oil change about now.

 

Rust is getting a grip of it now, needs some quality* repairs this summer if the fucking rain/cold ever stops.

 

The radio is as useless as ever - the inbuilt arial is as much use as tits on a bull.

 

Fucking good car though, wouldn't be without it.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Cheers, some tips right there. I get on with the radio alright- that business unit it is. Because I drive between north and south quite frequently I have stored stations on fm1 for home and retunes on fm2 for the south.

Thought about binning it though in favour of some Bluetooth thing but still want the autochanger to function. Needs research. I want to look at new backplates but I'd also change the bearings as a matter of course which means I need two spare legs for decent rebuilding. Agreed, it's a very capable old boat. Has yours ever had a clutch? I have a metric tonne of paperwork for mine but no receipt for a clutch...?

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

 Has yours ever had a clutch? I have a metric tonne of paperwork for mine but no receipt for a clutch...?

 

 

 

Yeah, fitted a £5 LuK Ebay one not long after I got it. I won a clutch kit on Ebay and this one was a bit juddery so fitted it it at about 150'000. 

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Juddery... mine done that too for ages when it was cold but Italian style driving seems to have put it to bed. It reminds me now and then on the first few miles from cold that it still is capable of going into judder mode.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Juddery... mine done that too for ages when it was cold but Italian style driving seems to have put it to bed. It reminds me now and then on the first few miles from cold that it still is capable of going into judder mode.

 

 

 

My 318Ti track slag does that. Shits given = 0

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

5w oil in, all new filter and seals, -5 degrees... Clankclankclankityclank...hummmmmmmmm

 

It's back... this morning and afternoon... Dang it! It's got to be a lazy something or other not liking the cold. Maybe try chicken soup?