Again!!

[luiscarlos59]

Ok, so 8 months ago my car went into limp mode all the DSC,DBC, TPM,etc.. lights went on and the dealer replaced me the throttle actuator valve ($2k USD -out of warranty-). Everything seemed to worked fined except that last month I replaced the OEM battery with a new one and just when I thought everything was going to be fine... yesterday my car suddenly went into limp mode again (all the DSC,DBC,TPM,etc) errors...
I can't believe this is happening again..!! I am so disappointed about this car.

I have read that there are two electronic valves that control the bank1 , bank 2. I am thinking that maybe now the other bank is failing.. has anyone had to replace both valves?

Thanks

[Mthrice]

Originally Posted by luiscarlos59

Ok, so 8 months ago my car went into limp mode all the DSC,DBC, TPM,etc.. lights went on and the dealer replaced me the throttle actuator valve ($2k USD -out of warranty-). Everything seemed to worked fined except that last month I replaced the OEM battery with a new one and just when I thought everything was going to be fine... yesterday my car suddenly went into limp mode again (all the DSC,DBC,TPM,etc) errors...
I can't believe this is happening again..!! I am so disappointed about this car.

I have read that there are two electronic valves that control the bank1 , bank 2. I am thinking that maybe now the other bank is failing.. has anyone had to replace both valves?

Thanks

It may be your other throttle actuator, there are two. And yes, many people have had to replace both. Check your warranty info, in California there warrantied for 7yr 70k' under emissions.

[esquire]

Any other mods on the car? Any other recent work on the car?

[Irishace]

I would check codes before guessing.

[edwinm3]

scan it first

[kooolaid]

I actually had same problem couple months ago...Reduced engine power, Drive train malfunction, etc... 5 different warning lights with my car in limp mode...

Went to the dealer and they first diagnosed 2 problems.
1. Battery
2. Throttle sensor (hall sensor) in bank 2

They quoted $600 for battery replacement and coding, and $1000 for replacing throttle sensor ($150 part $850 for 4 hours of labor).

My warranty expired last August so I was very disappointed to find out others saying 'wait til warranty expires'. It seems like BMW coded auto break down after warranty expires...haha

Anyways, they have replaced my battery twice before so it was still under warranty and service advisor told me that there is going to be a recall on the batter so they just recharged it.

And to save some bucks, I bought the part online for $80 and took it to local shop. They were able to replace the part in hour and a half!!! (BMW was asking for 4 hours of labor??!!!)

But the problem was that warning lights were still on and car was still in limp mode...then they found out it was not the sensor but the throttle actuator that was malfunctioning. So basically I had to pay $1500 to replace the part ($1000 part, $500 labor)

Anyways, I'm hoping this won't happen on the other bank now that my warranty expired. And I think it would be wise to buy extended warranty.

[kooolaid]

Originally Posted by Mthrice

It may be your other throttle actuator, there are two. And yes, many people have had to replace both. Check your warranty info, in California there warrantied for 7yr 70k' under emissions.

Is this true? is throttle actuator under warranty for 7 years in CA? Because I paid to replace it!!!

[luiscarlos59]

I have the eissenman exhaust system installed 1 yr ago.

The strange thing is that when I start the car after 12 hours the car starts with no problem, the limp mode happens after I try to start the engine again. Im wondering if this is more a electrical problem? Because if there was a mecanical problem then the valves would not work at startup...

Can this be caused by the new battery?

[Mthrice]

Originally Posted by kooolaid

Is this true? is throttle actuator under warranty for 7 years in CA? Because I paid to replace it!!!

It absolutely is! I was gonna pay to have it done at an independent(cheaper then the dealer), then I saw a thread on here. Checked my warranty booklet and it was, in fact, covered. Took it to Bob Smith and they did it for free!

[kooolaid]

Originally Posted by Mthrice

It absolutely is! I was gonna pay to have it done at an independent(cheaper then the dealer), then I saw a thread on here. Checked my warranty booklet and it was, in fact, covered. Took it to Bob Smith and they did it for free!

Too bad I already paid to have it replaced. But good to know I can go to dealer to replace it if it happens on the other bank.

Just out of curiosity...does anyone think that the dealer intentionally misdiagnosed it first time to make money off of me??? Because the actual problem was with the throttle actuator, not the throttle sensor...

Can the dealer misdiagnose the problem??

[Mthrice]

Originally Posted by kooolaid

Too bad I already paid to have it replaced. But good to know I can go to dealer to replace it if it happens on the other bank.

Just out of curiosity...does anyone think that the dealer intentionally misdiagnosed it first time to make money off of me??? Because the actual problem was with the throttle actuator, not the throttle sensor...

Can the dealer misdiagnose the problem??

I told them what was wrong with mine, they didn't believe me Finally, two days later they said "yeah, its the throttle actuator" Bunch of dumbshits, but at least they did it for free. Not really though, they get paid by BMW for all warranty work they do. So they actually want to do all the warranty work they can, just the techs weren't smart enough to figure it out!

[whats77inaname]

Originally Posted by kooolaid

Too bad I already paid to have it replaced. But good to know I can go to dealer to replace it if it happens on the other bank.

Just out of curiosity...does anyone think that the dealer intentionally misdiagnosed it first time to make money off of me??? Because the actual problem was with the throttle actuator, not the throttle sensor...

Can the dealer misdiagnose the problem??

Too bad my @$$! I would *highly* advise you to go get a f*cking refund and ask to speak to the Service Manager for charging you for a warrantied item in the first place.

[kooolaid]

Maybe you didn't read all my posts. The service was done at a private auto shop, so I can't get the f*cking refund!! Thanks for a stupid advice!

Originally Posted by whats77inaname

Too bad my @$$! I would *highly* advise you to go get a f*cking refund and ask to speak to the Service Manager for charging you for a warrantied item in the first place.

[luiscarlos59]

I have my damaged actuator , is it possible to get fixed instead of buying a new one?

[whats77inaname]

Originally Posted by kooolaid

Maybe you didn't read all my posts. The service was done at a private auto shop, so I can't get the f*cking refund!! Thanks for a stupid advice!

Thought you were the OP, my bad....

But, as for calling my advice "stupid".....being that you paid to replace something that was free under warranty.....mmmmm....yeah.

[jcolley]

Originally Posted by luiscarlos59

I have my damaged actuator , is it possible to get fixed instead of buying a new one?

Google "S85 teardown throttle actuator" and read a bit of that thread. The S85 and S65 actuators are identical and fail the same way. Towards the end of that thread, a guy in the UK is manufacturing replacement gears. No long term reports yet of longevity, but certainly cheaper than a new actuator.

http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e60...-actuator.html

[jcolley]

Also, it takes about 2 hours to swap this on an M5, the M3 shouldn't be much different. The actuators run about $750 or so. $2k is an absolute ripoff and there is a DIY on here somewhere. Just verify the error codes indicate this is the cause first.

[grantmax]

Funny that my e46 M3's dash lit up with the same lights a long time ago and it was the same problem. These are usually easy to fix. I bought the part for $70 at the time and did the labor myself. This board needs more DIYs.

Good luck. More info on the 7yr/70k emissions warranty would be great.

[edwinm3]

Originally Posted by grantmax

Did the labor myself. This board needs more DIYs.

This

[grantmax]

Hopefully as these cars fall out of warranty the DIY section will start to fill up.

A dealership quoted me $1600 to change the coilpacks on the same e46 m3. I bought the parts for $38 and changed them in less than an hour. This happened 2 weeks into my ownership. Life lesson learned.

[luiscarlos59]

The car has been for 8 hours at the dealer, no results yet of the diagnostics

[Sebringjetta]

sorry to hear this....hope it works out