Some smartass is going to ask if you checked the air in your tires. As if that would do any good. Other than that, ya got me stumped.

 

Ignition switch?

 

Possibly.

It could also be the starter as it is too dang cold and moisture is really high right now.

Could also be steering wheel angle sensor....

Here is Betsy IV on her way to Bellevue BMW. :crying:

 

Sounds like the starter, or if there is a solenoid...have little working knowledge of our cars systems but in the old days, solenoid, and then check starter if battery is charged. Good luck buddy, I hope it is something simple!!
Bill

 

Did the smg pump prime when you got in? Getting on the flat bed is why I leave mine in N when parking.

 

awww man. I hope its a simple fix. sorry I cant offer any insight. if dan doesn't know, theres no chance in hell I would have a clue. Good luck champ and I'm glad its still under warranty

 

Sorry to hear Dan!

I will hope it is something simple such as the starter.

Good luck!
:cheers:

 

What did you use to charge the battery? It could still be possible as the temperature has an effect on the under-load voltage output of the cells.

If you heard the click when you pressed start, then I believe the EWS (anti-theft) module has done all it's work to verify it's ok to start and passed that signal to the DME. The starter solenoid would likely be the click, so unless it's failed, the starter has failed, or the battery has failed, the engine should turn over.

Hopefully it's a quick fix. I lived in Port Orchard for a year...how do you define "moisture is really high" up there? :grinyes:

 

That sucks, but the timing is impeccable, I'd be on the other side of the warranty!

I'd probably have more sympathy, but Brunhilde is wraped and on blocks for the duration due to all the frozen tundra up here.

She'll be back soon, so enjoy for the rest of us that can't till spring.

 

I am going say that it's your selenoid. I think Betsy knew it was on the way out and wanted to help you get it covered before the warranty runs out. I know the guys at Bellevue BMW will do a great job. Please report back, thanks Dan.

 

Update:

Just got a call from my service advisor.

Starter went out.
He said he never had a starter went out on an M6 before, but there is always a first and no part is perfect. Some parts fail sooner than the others...

Labor to remove and replace starter = 12 hours. Yikes! Glad I have original warranty and also extended warranty.
Labor alone at $165/hour is almost $2,000.00. Yikes!
I will look up in RealOEM and see how much a starter is.

I'm supposed to get my beast back on Wednesday as Monday is a holiday.

Thank you everyone for chiming in. Mike and Bill and a few other members whom I dont know by first name guessed correctly. Starter!

 

Dan,

Sorry to hear of the problem but glad it's properly diagnosed. Even on a flatbed, Betsy IV is beautiful.

Cheers,
Milton

 

Dan,

Sorry to hear of the problem but glad it's properly diagnosed.

+1

also good to hear that it'll be covered under warranty.

 

oh my thank god for warranty

 

Happy to hear that its nothing too complicated. Best of luck hope you manage to get her back before your long weekend.

 

Glad it was under warranty and you are only out of her for a couple of days!

Air is moist up there?? Looked like some dense fog in the pics.

It was 60 here yesterday. I got about 4 hours of driving in. Today the high will be 40 or less... grrrr...

Off to Vegas tomorrow for business and hoping You and I both get nice weather next weekend so you can get the drive in that was cut off this weekend.

Ben

 

Thank you Chad, Jim, Milton, Johnky, Philip, Hasan, Jonny & everyone for the kind words and well wishes. Sincerely appreciated.

You all have a great Sunday.
For the ones that are lucky enough to have nice weather even during winter - have a fun time driving your beast and be safe.

Ben, have a good trip in Vegas!

 

Holy Moly!
12 hours of labor? I wonder where they put the starter-it must be almost incorporated into the block for pete's sake! Keep us posted-love to be able to understand this design...

 

Holy Moly!
12 hours of labor? I wonder where they put the starter-it must be almost incorporated into the block for pete's sake!..

+1

I know people who could have the whole car stripped and shipped in less time than that.....??????

 

Glad it's under warranty! Car still looks great Dan Also the frozen fog looks awesome

 

Glad it seems like Besty should be back quickly. Less than a week should be tolerable.

 

12hr labor OMG does that include their lunch and mid day movie.

 

oh no ;/

i hope the CAR was in N Mode when it comes up to the truc.

If not .. maybe your vanos pump is now damaged. Becouse not all pumps got a freewheeling in it. the chain jumps off of the pump into the timing chain. inside the pump is a ring this will be damaged, i heard on a thread in this board this sound its a loud clacking .
We had this issue in 2005 from the early models.. we came behind this after we saw many of cars who got towed.

i hope you understand what i´m meaning its difficult to write in english

 

Your English is just right.

Yes, the car was in neutral and I was in the driver seat when my car was pulled up the tow truck / flat bed.

 

I read where Sal from Evolve said they see sproket teeth bent on the vanos pumps from the car being moved or towed in gear. Good point. I always leave it in N.

 

Dan, any update?

 

Here's an update today from my service advisor:

"Hi Dan,

We are waiting for the new starter to arrive.
Every check we have done has lead us back to the new starter being faulty. The parts should be here around lunch time today.

We are going to test the new one and compare to the other starters and go from there. I will let you know as I get the part here.

Thank you,
Michael Edwards
Service Advisor
BMW of Bellevue
Direct line:425.957.4853."

It's supposed to be sunny this weekend here in Seattle so I hope to get my beast back very soon.

I also have mods to do to my beast:
Front and rear view camera.
Video Interface Module.
Front and Rear laser Jammers.
Front and Rear tweeter replacements. Etc...

I cant wait....

Thanks for everyone's support. I hope none of you has to go through this starter replacement fiasco....

 

Good starter Karma coming your way. What are the odds of a defective brand new starter? Buy a lottery ticket this week!

 

I know, my SA said they have checked every relay, every fuse, voltage going to the starter terminals are good, every connection, etc. as they know how difficult it is to go through the starter replacement process again.

And it appears the starter they received and already installed is defective / has gone bad after a few starts....

I am guessing the new part they ordered and installed is actually a remanufactured starter. They learned the hard way.....
They should have purchased a brand new one instead.

I am buying lotto tickets for sure. Thanks for the recommendations. And if I win even a small amount - Vickie and I are flying there to sunny southern California one weekend and buy you and Julie dinner.

Good starter Karma coming your way. What are the odds of a defective brand new starter?

Buy a lottery ticket this week!

 

Update 3:

My SA eMailed me this morning:

"Dan, the (2nd) new starter arrived and it is now fully installed. We have started the car a dozen times and everything checks fine so far.
We are going to let it sit for an hour and try to restart it every hour to make sure everything is A OK before you pick up your car and will let you know as we make progress."

Four hours later he called me on the phone:

"Dan, we have started the car now over a dozen times with the 2nd new starter in it, and guess what - it acted up again!!!!!!!!!!

We discovered something new. Part of the wire harness that connects to the starter is corroded and lose. We did not notice this before.
We cleaned the connection with a wire brush, we removed all the corrosion, retightend connection and so far the starter works fine again.

We will continue to start and restart every hour to ensure everything is still fine before we tell you to pick up your car".

So, based on all that - it appears a freaking lose connection is to blame all this time......and they missed it and they had to replace the starter twice.....

I asked them specifically to show me when I pick up the car where this lose connection is so I can share it with you folks as something to watch out for on your beast.

More after I pick up my car tomorrow..

 

Dan,

I'm glad that Betsy is that much closer to coming home. As is often the case on misdiagnosed problems, the complication of our cars and the attention to detail needed by the techs is simply astounding. It seems that if they went over every relay and connection as stated from one of your previous posts, they might have caught this but again...our cars are complicated.

Good luck and please keep us updated!

Best Regards to you and your family!
Milton

 

If I recall correctly, the starter is pretty much a direct shot, or darn near it from the battery cable. Very close to it anyways...Perplexing why this wasn't checked but there is no money in tightening loose cables, or faulty connections.
My sympathies,
Bill