Low mileage 2006 330ci68k milesWhen u turn the key, nothing happens. No clicking. No turning. The lights come on and the AC blows. Just the car won’t start. Tested the battery it’s at 12.5VTurn key a 2nd time and then it starts like normal. Last Night car started and I drove 2 miles to run an errand. Turned off the car. Then tried to start it 5mins later and nothing. 4 attempts and it didn’t start. Lights came on. AC was blowing but car wouldn’t start. No clicking. No struggle to turn. It just wouldnt even attempt to start. Used my portable jump starter to get it going. Started no problem. Tested battery and it was again at 12.4-12.5V. Any idea what’s going on???
>>29134235Insert this text into ChatGPT, get back to us what it says.
>>29134248We live in good times.
>>29134235Clutch switch?
Why is a 2007 Honda Fit more reliable than this?Honda: Just change fluids and brakes/tires and drive. BMW: you didn’t have plans today, did you?
Sounds like an engine immobilizer issue. There's an antenna around the ignition lock that polls the key for a code. If that fails, you get exactly what you experience.
>>29134328Because Hondas are based by nature and bmw started getting good in 70s
>>29134367less likely since a jump pack starts it and it sometimes works normally
>>29134251>GROKTop suspects (in rough order for this behavior)1. Ignition switch (very common on E46s)Worn internal contacts fail to send the start signal reliably. Accessories work fine, but the “start” circuit drops out. Second key turn or slight wiggling often works temporarily. Matches the intermittent “nothing happens” perfectly.2. Starter motor / solenoidClassic intermittent no-crank/no-click on these cars. The solenoid can fail to engage even when voltage is present. Heat soak after a short drive (exactly like your 5-minute stop) often makes it worse. A jump pack can supply the extra current or temporarily overcome a marginal connection, which is why it worked for you.3. Neutral safety / gear position switch (automatic)The transmission-mounted switch (or its wiring) isn’t consistently telling the car it’s in Park/Neutral. Can be intermittent. Try starting in Neutral and/or rocking the shifter while holding the key in the start position.4. Battery cables, grounds, or positive power distributionStatic voltage can look fine (12.4–12.5V) while high-resistance connections prevent the big current the starter needs. The under-hood positive jump post and engine-to-chassis grounds are frequent culprits on these cars. A jump pack effectively bypasses some of that resistance.
>>29134235should have gotten a nissian Z it would save you money in the long run my spic friend.
>>29134443More Mexicans drive those here than bmws.
Read the codes. A K+DCAN cable and whatever thingy that can talk to the modules will save you infinity amounts of money and headaches with this era of BMWs. ISTA (the full five yards of workshop software that does everything and also does automated fault diagnosis and also provides the full proprietary service docs) costs all of 30 bucks to set up, you just grab the cable off your favorite Chinese retailer and grab an "evaluation copy" of the software, and there's no shortage of modern tablet scanners that can understand early 00's BMW-ese.>>29134438That does still sound like an EWS fucky wucky because it completely disables the starter relay when it starts throwing codes. Read them.
>>29134446no they drive 370s and 350s the Aryan drives the Nissian Z but it’s okay little chuddie one day you’ll realize comic books are for faggots
>>29134235>reddit spacingFound your problem - it won't start because it knows its new owner is a faggot wrenchlet
>>29134499>you just didThe same thing.
On pretty much all E series BMWs the immobiliser stops the starter solenoid firing, so if you can hear the starter click then it's not the immobiliser. Everything else good and no click then it's immobiliser or ignition barrel. E46 and E39 can be twatty about battery voltage, if it needs the jump pack then your lazy option may be a new battery as step one.
>>29134594No newfagAdding a single spaceBetween 4 lines of textTo separate the link and quoteFrom the replyIs not reddit spacingReddit spacing when you write out your entire paragraphIn single line sentencesWith spaces in between every single oneBecause you want your post to stand out more
>>29134604This is what I’m guessing. It’s 20yo. The EWS will require a mechanic?
>>29134235>Low mileage 2006 330ci>68k miles>When u turn the key, nothing happens.No shit, just rental car things
>>29134633It's EWS3 so if it has messed up then it's pain time. You can realign them with itsa but in 20 years of bmw stuff I have never had one go so wrong that it needed it. My e39 had a weak battery when I picked it up and as soon as the cold weather came I had some failures to start like your seeing. They hate bad batteries and I doubt that ones much good if its 20 years old.EWS3 issues also tend to be all or nothing, if it goes out the cars dead and no amount of retrying will start it up, especially if the rolling codes go out of sync.
Take it the dealer and don't forgetBringMyWallet
>>29134248Helped me diagnose the 1-2 accumulator piston fastAftermarket transgo spring broke
>>29134633Damn dude you shouldn't have even made this thread before replacing it
>>29134633A new battery (12.5V is kinda on the low end of acceptable) and if that doesn't do it, a scan tool that can read the modules so you can tackle it yourself. Old BMW repairs are a fun minefield of assholes who will absolutely exploit and gouge you because "hey it's a BMW you knew it wouldn't be cheap".
>>29134822wtf?? wtf kind of batteries are you using?
The real tell is when that 12.5 becomes 11.9 after 48 hours parked.
>>29134438Can be completely coincidental.I hope you find the issue, E46s need to be kept around.
>>29134328The beamer in the OP is older than a 2007 Honda Fit
>>29134235You need a new battery, and a high quality one at that. BMWs are niggers about voltage dropping below 12.4v, even temporarily.
It’s been sitting for 2-3 days now. Checked the battery: 12.4VIt’s a BMW dealer battery. 21 months old. Just started right up without any issue tonight.I’m at a loss. Gonna let it sit again and try it on Friday.
>>29134328
>>29136567So tested battery today again. Was at 12.3V. Turned off the auto lights and it went to 12.4. Started no problem again…It starts when I don’t need it. When I need it to get home… then I have problems. So it’s not really a car issue but a being useful and having a purpose issue.
>>29138567See>>29134251
>>29134235Just get a 350z, wrenchlet
>>29138567Idk why nobody on o/ knows anything about cars. This sounds like a voltage drop issue. A scan tool is of no use for it. I suppose it could be immobilizer related so maybe in that case it would help. I any case, bad engine ground most likely. Find the starter relay. If it does it again, jump it. There should be a schematic on the relay to tell you which 2 pins to jump. Grok can propably further explain that. If it still doesn't crank, there's most likely a voltage drop. Voltage drops occur when the circuit can't carry enough current to operate. It could be bad connection or bad cable. Most likely it would be bad ground connection. Remove main engine ground (maybe grok can tell you where that is), sand it down cause it's most likely corroded, and bolt it back up. Google or Ai voltage drop tests for further explanation. There's plenty of YouTube videos as well.
>>29138726>dk why nobody on o/ knows anything about carsThere's no point in diaging ancient euro trash, especially electrical. All the ecus used trash capacitors, whole harness is biodegradable vegan shit. So much better shit you could be doing than nursing some rental car.
>>29138740>I'm retarded and a Wrenchlet so I have no idea how simple starting systems are on literally every car ever madePowering it through the relay skips computers dumass
>>29139161I didn't read the rest of your post I have no idea what you're on about. You are wasting your time just sell it for scrap and get a honda
>>29134235old cars are garbage
>>29139297Nigger I own a newish civic, a bronco, and a mustang. Are you high? Starter needs and always has power.Starter solenoid make starter go burrrUse wire to solenoid to see if starter works at allI bet you're a lube tech still upset euro cars use lug bolts and the tire rotations suck 5% more.Euro cars are junk, I agree, but diagnosis of a no start issue it easy on everyrh8nc
