New to me x5m, already have a reduced engine power message

[lagniappe_718]

Well I had about 48 hours of a dream come true before it was shattered. Picked up a 2011 x5m with 80k last Friday. Has VRSF catless downpipes. Drove it around that night, Saturday and Sunday. Spirited drives, quiet family drives (8 month old boy), not the slightest problem. Sunday evening I took my dad for a spin, got on it hard in second, upshift and stayed on it. Upshift to 4th then let off and got the dreaded warning. Cycle on and off, still present. Limp it back home fine. Start it again this morning, same thing. I’ve read through a bunch of older threads, that seem to point to any number of vacuum lines. PO just had the whole top end rebuilt, all new vacuum lines, turbo lines, and new turbos. All less than 5k miles. So I don’t think it’s in the valley. Checked the lines at the muffler for the valves, no signs of cracking/leaks. Ran through my scanner this morning with Autel advanced diagnostic and I have a misfire on cylinder 5. Cleared it, and crank back up, immediate stutter, warning, then CEL again. Before I go swapping coil packs to see if it follows, anybody have a similar scenario with an easy fix? I don’t suspect any fuel pump related issues, all the parameters there looked good. Really hoping it’s coil pack or spark plug, or easier. Some pics to entice responses...

[frankenm]

Could be a number of things.....

Why were the turbos replaced?

Why was the top end rebuilt - I’m assuming the heads were off ?

Spark plugs and coils would be the first thing to check if they haven’t been replaced just do it now can get the parts for about 200 and it is peace of mind for a while.

Next would be the fuel system - there is an active recall on fuel injectors 16e-a01 is the number they leak and cause issues if it gets bad enough they will destroy the bottom end completely and you will need to rebuilt it - you can check the bmw recall website to see if it applies to you. DO THIS ASAP

After that there are the vacuum solenoids that control the turbo wastegates, the diverter valves, 4 different fuel pumps 2 high pressure on the engine and two low pressure in the tank, coolant pumps ....

Just start taking your pick if your getting codes for misfires start with t
The plugs and coils since it is the easiest and work your way around.

Welcome to the x5m ownership it is a wonderful love hate relationship

These engine seem crazy but they really are not any different than anything else

[Sophisticated Redneck]

Frankenm summed up everything to check, I'll just add if it turns out to be a coil, DO NOT buy the Bosche coils made in Slovenia. They are crap. Get Eldors or Bremis. Delcos are ok too. Believe me, I've tried just about every brand out there

[lagniappe_718]

thanks frankenm. a lot of your info in another thread i found very useful. SHould have been mores specific,,,the top end i between the heads was rebuilt. ill edit the original post. But he said the oil feed lines were beginning to leak, so he had all of the oil/coolant/vacuum/pcv stuff replaced. was very much a 'while you're in there' owner. he did the downpipes at the same time and just saw fit to rebuild the turbos too.

Ill check the recall site asap, did no think that would cause misfire at first, but certainly stands to reason. All of the fuel pumps seem to be operating normally according to my scan. the only other codes I was getting were for o2/cat circuits. Planning to tune/flash soon which should eliminate those.

if the coils/plugs dont solve it i guess ill start down the vacuum trail :/ going to try and score a set, or at least one, before christmas so i can use some time off to troubleshoot.

[pearlpower]

Definitely try coils. Perhaps swap 5 with 6 and see if the code moves. Check coil connections. I did my coils with Bosch and the hold down clamp would not stay put in half of them. I had to reuse the old hold down clamps on the new coils.

When I received the same error code as you I was able to clear them with my portable Autophix scanner and the X drove fine until I swapped out the coils. https://amzn.to/2Q8ZDTW

[Ebtahi98]

Agreed fully with Franken! / Notorious for coils not exactly as bad as an N 55 or 54 engine but they're still in the league. A two step colder plug would help if you have mods already done to the vehicle NGK laser platinum / 97506 - makes a diff - I have a sneaky suspicion is going to be your coil. Hopefully so that's all it is good luck happy holidays

[lagniappe_718]

Originally Posted by pearlpower

Definitely try coils. Perhaps swap 5 with 6 and see if the code moves. Check coil connections. I did my coils with Bosch and the hold down clamp would not stay put in half of them. I had to reuse the old hold down clamps on the new coils.

When I received the same error code as you I was able to clear them with my portable Autophix scanner and the X drove fine until I swapped out the coils. https://amzn.to/2Q8ZDTW

Ya that was my plan to swap them and see. I'll double check the connections aren't loose first, that would be an ideal fix. Have to wait for some rain to celar out then will give it a try. I could clear the code, and would start fine, but it came back almost immediately after the cold start cycle. And it was definitely a constant miss, could feel it shaking a little and idle sounded off.

Originally Posted by Ebtahi98

Agreed fully with Franken! / Notorious for coils not exactly as bad as an N 55 or 54 engine but they're still in the league. A two step colder plug would help if you have mods already done to the vehicle NGK laser platinum / 97506 - makes a diff - I have a sneaky suspicion is going to be your coil. Hopefully so that's all it is good luck happy holidays

Nice tip on the plugs. I'll grab a set if/when I have to get get coils. Pretty sure I know the answer here, but safe to assume I should just do all 8 and not replace the 1 faulty unit?

[lagniappe_718]

Quick update, Advance auto had an oem Bosch unit in stock so I grabbed one this morning and just threw it in cyl 5. Cleared right up!! So thankful. Probably going to order all 8 and new plugs just because. But so glad it was a simple fix.

[ncbimma]

As mentioned prior, go 1-2 steps colder if you plan to mod and gap appropriately.

[lagniappe_718]

Originally Posted by ncbimma

As mentioned prior, go 1-2 steps colder if you plan to mod and gap appropriately.

Will do. Not planning to go too crazy. Tune, maybe intake, possibly do the suitcase mod on the stock exhaust. Going to try and tackle all the plugs and coils this weekend. Thanks again for the tips!

[igell]

coming from a 335i and being familiar with BMW coils issues.. the first thing i did was to swap out coils and spark plugs right after getting an x5m with 60k on it for a peace of mind. older bmw turbo engine are notorious for going through coils every 40k or so.

[lagniappe_718]

Originally Posted by igell

coming from a 335i and being familiar with BMW coils issues.. the first thing i did was to swap out coils and spark plugs right after getting an x5m with 60k on it for a peace of mind. older bmw turbo engine are notorious for going through coils every 40k or so.

Ya I’ll be adding it to my routine maintenance now. My old e34 540 that was turbo never had coil issues. But I blew through plugs every other month, so there’s that. Ha. Just glad that this was a simple fix and nothing crazy

[Dawgz]

Originally Posted by lagniappe_718

Quick update, Advance auto had an oem Bosch unit in stock so I grabbed one this morning and just threw it in cyl 5. Cleared right up!! So thankful. Probably going to order all 8 and new plugs just because. But so glad it was a simple fix.

Ewwww Bosch

Get Eldor or Delphi

[pdX5M]

Originally Posted by Dawgz

Ewwww Bosch

Get Eldor or Delphi

I second Eldor. They are definitely high quality and cost a bit more than the Bosch and Delphi but are well worth it.

[lagniappe_718]

Originally Posted by Dawgz

Ewwww Bosch

Get Eldor or Delphi

Lol give me a break, it was Christmas Eve so my options were limited. I'll get 8 Eldor and some colder plugs soon.

[Dawgz]

Originally Posted by lagniappe_718

Lol give me a break, it was Christmas Eve so my options were limited. I'll get 8 Eldor and some colder plugs soon.

Nice lol

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by frankenm

Could be a number of things.....

Why were the turbos replaced?

Why was the top end rebuilt - I’m assuming the heads were off ?

Spark plugs and coils would be the first thing to check if they haven’t been replaced just do it now can get the parts for about 200 and it is peace of mind for a while.

Next would be the fuel system - there is an active recall on fuel injectors 16e-a01 is the number they leak and cause issues if it gets bad enough they will destroy the bottom end completely and you will need to rebuilt it - you can check the bmw recall website to see if it applies to you. DO THIS ASAP

After that there are the vacuum solenoids that control the turbo wastegates, the diverter valves, 4 different fuel pumps 2 high pressure on the engine and two low pressure in the tank, coolant pumps ....

Just start taking your pick if your getting codes for misfires start with t
The plugs and coils since it is the easiest and work your way around.

Welcome to the x5m ownership it is a wonderful love hate relationship

These engine seem crazy but they really are not any different than anything else

I'd add that MAP sensors can also go bad on these cars, along with all of the above, causing a range of issues.