Misfires and loss of power

Dan1351 · January 15, 2020

So i got a BMW e90 316i M spec a week ago. There is definitely some problem with it, and I've taken it to 2 mechanics already, but I figured I would ask for advice here as well since they aren't sure what the problem is exactly. The car has trouble starting in the mornings, took 4,5 seconds this morning. Once its on the engine shakes and vibrates and the rpms go up and down. The engine light starts flashing (99% sure because of misfires). When I start driving the car would randomly lose power or acceleration. Like the first few days it was only happening once or twice per day, the engine light just starts flashing and I lose power, but after a few days its happening much more. Today at one point I lost so much power the car went into limp mode or something, I could barely get it moving. Then in 10 minutes it was flying. I am so confused. The first mechanic i took it to showed trouble code "ignition circuit cyl. 3" on his computer, And a few more things as well. The second mechanic took it for a spin while his device was connected to the car and when the light went on and the car lost some power it said "misfire in cyl.3". They arent sure what it is but their first guesses were bad ignition coil or stretched timing chain. Problem is the first is cheap and the second very expensive so I wanted to ask if you guys have any idea which one it could be based on the symptoms?

Thanks a lot!

-Dan

Twin Turbo · January 15, 2020

Replace all coils and plugs.+ air filter.

Your catcoverter may be blocked.

Edited January 16, 2020 by Twin Turbo

Dan1351 · January 17, 2020

On 1/15/2020 at 11:01 PM, Twin Turbo said:

Replace all coils and plugs.+ air filter.

Your catcoverter may be blocked.

Yeah so i changed all the plugs but everything is the same. The guys said they think there is a problem with fuel injector 1. They said the rail seems loose and the idle is very rough the car shakes and rpms drop so low it almost stalls. They said when one of their guys held down that rail of the first fuel injector it worked better. Is it possible its the fuel injector? I also noticed a lot of thick white smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe when i rev up the engine a bit. What do you think?

Twin Turbo · January 17, 2020

Add an injector cleaner,to the tank on next fillup,..

Q: Is the engine loosing oil?

Upload a vid of the engine and the smoke.?

Dan1351 · January 17, 2020

10 minutes ago, Twin Turbo said:

Add an injector cleaner,to the tank on next fillup,..

Q: Is the engine loosing oil?

Upload a vid of the engine and the smoke.?

When i do an oil check it comes up as "OK". I will upload a vid of the engine sound and the white smoke tomorrow. The smoke was a little when i just started the car but when i revved to 3k rpms for a sec and went to check the exhaust, it was dumping white smoke a ton. Engine light is on 24/7 and it starts flashing every 2 mins, probably because of misfires. Idle is really rough, like the needle jumps up and down and drops really low at times like i can feel the vibrations of the engine almost stalling. If i start driving i get misfires and loss of power... especially when i accelerate from a stop, i get almost no power. Clearly wasnt the plugs since i just replaced them. Guys even replaced the ignition coils but they said the car runs better with the old coils so they decided to keep the old ones on. You know how the car has fuel injector rails for each cylinder, they said when they held down the cyl.1 rail the car was idling good, when they let go it went rough again. And they said apparently the previous owner put some tape on the fuel injector 1 bolt to keep it in place. Idk what the hell is happening but its really weird. I have an appointment with a bigger service centre on monday, they will do full diagnostics and see if the injector is the problem. I honestly hope it is at this point, since im scared its something more serious than an injector. ?

Davy · January 17, 2020

If the fuel rail is loose, that's the first thing you have to get addressed. Given the error codes, it does look like one cylinder is behaving erratically.

Devinda_Z · January 18, 2020

@VVTi perhaps Ultimate Motor Works can help?

Dan1351 · January 19, 2020

On 1/17/2020 at 9:11 PM, Twin Turbo said:

Add an injector cleaner,to the tank on next fillup,..

Q: Is the engine loosing oil?

Upload a vid of the engine and the smoke.?

This is the engine noise... https://streamable.com/na05z