I've searched through the boards, but couldn't find this exact problem, so I'm giving this a try. If I missed a thread, feel free to just point me there.
So, just got the M5 today (2001, 92K miles), picked it up about 45 mins from home with a friend. As we were driving back on the highway, at 60mph, the engine just stopped, completely died. Temperature gauge was not even at mid mark. Tried to restart it, no go. Some lights came up on the dashboard, including "CHECK COOLANT LEVEL" and "ENGINE FAILSAFE PROG". But, engine wouldn't start again. Had a hard time even parking it, just coasting.
When parked, we opened up the hood, and there was some smoke coming out, looked like water vapor. Engine bay was pretty clean though. Some water was dripping on the ground, not much. I thought "well, so a cooling hose or the coolant expansion tank just died, dropped all the coolant on the highway, and this is just the remaining stuff". Checked the oil, it looked fine. So, went for a bite, and came back an hour later with some distilled water. We tried to put 3 gallons in, and we could see coolant dripping on the floor, not at a fast rate though. Definitely not at the rate I was pouring it in. So, it's definitely not keeping water in, but that's not the major issue.
I tried to restart engine multiple times, after it had been left to cool for a little while. First thing it says is "CHECK COOLANT LEVEL", and when I wait a few seconds, and actually try to crank it, it displays "ENGINE FAILSAFE PROG" again, albeit the dashboard lights dim significantly when it displays that. Almost as if the starter is trying to crank the engine, but it's stuck somehow, or doesn't have enough amps. I know that just having low coolant shouldn't block the engine from cranking or starting (had this issue on my 540i for a while), so I'm somewhat baffled.
I don't currently have a way to read the codes, so I guess that's all the info I have. Any clues/tips on what I could try or what else I can check, before just throwing it on a tow truck and sending it to my local indy shop? It's currently just parked out on the road, and I may try a couple of things tomorrow morning before just sending it to the shop. Hoping it's just a minor/fixable issue =/
Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
Marcos
So, just got the M5 today (2001, 92K miles), picked it up about 45 mins from home with a friend. As we were driving back on the highway, at 60mph, the engine just stopped, completely died. Temperature gauge was not even at mid mark. Tried to restart it, no go. Some lights came up on the dashboard, including "CHECK COOLANT LEVEL" and "ENGINE FAILSAFE PROG". But, engine wouldn't start again. Had a hard time even parking it, just coasting.
When parked, we opened up the hood, and there was some smoke coming out, looked like water vapor. Engine bay was pretty clean though. Some water was dripping on the ground, not much. I thought "well, so a cooling hose or the coolant expansion tank just died, dropped all the coolant on the highway, and this is just the remaining stuff". Checked the oil, it looked fine. So, went for a bite, and came back an hour later with some distilled water. We tried to put 3 gallons in, and we could see coolant dripping on the floor, not at a fast rate though. Definitely not at the rate I was pouring it in. So, it's definitely not keeping water in, but that's not the major issue.
I tried to restart engine multiple times, after it had been left to cool for a little while. First thing it says is "CHECK COOLANT LEVEL", and when I wait a few seconds, and actually try to crank it, it displays "ENGINE FAILSAFE PROG" again, albeit the dashboard lights dim significantly when it displays that. Almost as if the starter is trying to crank the engine, but it's stuck somehow, or doesn't have enough amps. I know that just having low coolant shouldn't block the engine from cranking or starting (had this issue on my 540i for a while), so I'm somewhat baffled.
I don't currently have a way to read the codes, so I guess that's all the info I have. Any clues/tips on what I could try or what else I can check, before just throwing it on a tow truck and sending it to my local indy shop? It's currently just parked out on the road, and I may try a couple of things tomorrow morning before just sending it to the shop. Hoping it's just a minor/fixable issue =/
Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
Marcos