Engine Light Question

[///SharkFin]

Hi everyone,

I am in the market for a new 1M coupe (in Australia), and I already have my eye on a fine specimen. However, I am concerned about the engine light that shows on the dash. The car has done 30K km, and is 2 years old.

This particular car has the following upgrades:

Full DP-back Akrapovic Evolution Titanium exhaust system
AR Design 3" DPs with ceramic coating
AFE Single Cone (Covered) Stage 2 Air Intake
Evolution Racewerks Charge Pipe with Forge Divertor valves
Evolution Racewerkes Competition Series N54 FMIC

However, when I inspected the car, it showed an engine light on the dashboard.

As part of the ad, the sale would include a Cobb Accessport V2: so I assume the seller would have flashed the ECU when the upgrades to the exhaust were carried out.

BMW service said they could not clear the code because of the aftermarket exhaust. I am not one to take my car to the track (I just want to own a 1M!), so I just would like the engine light to show when there is a true problem with the engine, and to not mask one just because I am running catless DPs

I have tried to research this problem quite extensively (although I am still no expert on this matter). My thinking is: the engine light is showing because of the catless downpipes. So if I am able to change the DPs back to OEM ones, and return the ECU to the stock map, I should be fine with my purchase without too many future headaches. (Akrapovic says that their full setup without the downpipes will not set off any EWL).

BUT

if the ECU has been flashed to accommodate the catless DPs, then why would the engine light still show up at 30K km? Might there be a hidden problem with the engine? Is my proposed solution of swapping out for OEM DPs going to work? Am I asking for problems?

I really want this car, but this one issue is standing in my way. Can anyone help me to settle my worries (so that I may buy) or confirm them (so that I will walk away from the sale)?

Sorry for my long (first) post!

[robertm]

Really simple to figure out what's going on. Plug a code reader into the OBD II port and see what codes come up. If it's nothing more than O2 sensor related then you will be fine. If there is something more then time to reevaluate.

Note, when you plug in the code reader you will be able to clear codes too. When you do this it will take about 50miles before the O2 sensor issue pops back up and throws the check engine soon light.

[///SharkFin]

Thanks for your feedback, robertm.

Say the O2 reading is the only ever problem this engine light has shown on this particular car, does this mean that the engine light can come on intermittently and needs clearing with the Cobb, due to the catless DPs? Despite proper flashing of the ECU?

Also, can the Cobb Accessport V2 detect and clear ALL engine codes? Are there sinister engine problems that it cannot detect and clear?

[Snertz]

You can use the AP to read all codes, no need for an extra reader. The AP is able to suppress the CEL for missing cats, once it's activated in the map there's no need to do it again periodically.

IIRC the OTS Stg2 and above maps have this function turned on already, but if it doesn't you can just activate it by opening the maps in AccessTuner Race and checking off the boxes for P29F4 and P29F5 in advanced engine parameters. P29F4 and P29F5 are the codes for missing primary cats.

[robertm]

Don't have a Cobb but what he said sounds correct.

Good luck with purchase!

[-cj-]

The AP will suppress the CEL for the lack of cats, and only that warning. Other CELs will continue to display if you have a problem. The AP can also be used to read the codes. Chances are the AP was "unmarried" (ie: car was returned to stock) when you drove it, so with the stock tune you'll get a CEL for the catless DPs.

You can also get a "DPFIX" from BMS, which plugs into the ECU and sends the proper voltage to the ECU to mimic properly functioning O2 sensors. I use this for dealership visits, since I unflash before service.

[///SharkFin]

Thanks for the help, everyone. I will meet with the seller again soon and take a look at the codes that the AP is spitting out.

Would dealerships refuse to work on an engine whose ECU has been tampered with, when the EWL does come on again for another (more sinister) reason in the future?

Why would service not have been able to "clear the engine light" when I asked them about it? Do they simply just stand back, turn their heads away and cross their index fingers at the EWL like they saw a vampire, when they realise that there is an aftermarket exhaust attached to the car's underbelly?

As you can probably tell, I'm a very risk averse person who wants this 1M. I'm appreciating all the help I can get on this to go through with the purchase

[Zuzu]

OP: If the car is White with Black rims and has Performance Steering wheel, I might know the original owner, PLUS , Peter@Advan Performance Centre Auburn, carried out all the mod installations on this car.

Even still, give Peter a call on 02-96483366..
http://advanperformance.com.au/

[///SharkFin]

Nope, it wasn't the one that you are thinking of.

Didn't end up getting it, someone beat me to it

[///SharkFin]

Lol. Well at least it found a good home! I'll keep looking

I'm sure ur having fun with it and all the solutions for any potential problems are in this thread for you