2011 135i troubles

[mfmac]

what's up everyone - another new guy here.

back story: purchased my 135 (alpine white, red interior, n55, 6mt) back in July last year right before i left for work in singapore for 6 months. i had it for about two weeks before i left. driving home from work on the highway and downshifted to 5th to get some speed to make my exit - not a ton of pedal really. the car went limp and i had to coast to the shoulder to turn it off and on again. fast forward, back from work and the car is still going limp in the same fashion. doesnt matter if im driving with some fun in mind or just casually commuting.

i checked codes with a friend (everyone has one) before i left and had quite a few, 13 in total i think. since then ive been getting all sorts of codes that all seem to be related to charge pressure being too high. ill try to figure out how to post some pics below. bare with me and thanks for taking a moment to read this.

so far after researching some of these codes on this forum, youtube, and a few other places, ive replaced; maf sensor, boost solenoid, both intake and exhaust vanos solenoids, and spark plugs (just now). the car seems to be running really rough but i think the plugs had a lot to do with that - they were not awful, but certainly not pretty.

this is my 2nd bmw, first with mods. old car was a stock 2010 335i xdrive. the 135 has full active autowerks exhaust, burger motorsports intake, metal charge pipe and what sounds like an aftermarket BOV - the 335 didnt make these sounds, thats for sure. its also on eibach lowering springs that i plan on getting rid of. that being said, im waiting on the burger jack pads and circular jack stands i ordered so i can get underneath the car and have a look. i have no idea what it was tuned with last but i did buy the MHD wifi adapter to read codes and hopefully reset everything back and work my way up to stage 1 or 1+ if it will run correctly.

pics inc. any ideas or recommendations are greatly appreciated. i love this car so much and i just want to be able to get in and enjoy it.

[wheela]

I believe n55's measure airflow with the MAF sensor, and fueling is based on that reading. However, they also have a TMAP (temperature + manifold absolute pressure) sensor on the intake manifold. My understanding is that the computer also calculates an air flow based on the values from the TMAP and uses it as a sanity check against the measurement from the MAF sensor. So when these values are too far enough apart, you start getting codes related to implausible amounts of airflow. To me it seems your codes are related to the TMAP sensor, and implausible amounts of air flow. I'd probably double-check the connection to your TMAP sensor, and if the connection seems good but the problem persists, then I'd probably go ahead and replace the TMAP. Not to recommend just throwing parts at your problem, but in this case it seems like the codes are really pointing to the TMAP sensor.

A way you could gain more confidence - if the MAF sensor is ever unplugged, the car will revert to running fueling based on the airflow calculation based on the TMAP. So when people have a poorly running car due to a bad MAF, it will usually run well if they unplug the MAF. I imagine the opposite is also true if it's your TMAP that's bad. You could try unplugging your MAF, and if your car starts running crappy, it would point to an issue with your TMAP. But tread lightly if you try this.

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!

[________]

Boost leak.

[Josh-PA]

is it burning oil / smoking a lot? Onesie is probably right it is either a vacuum leak or boost leak. Mine had a bad turbo seal and was leaking oil through the turbo. I chased the 28A0 error for a long time before replacing the turbo. Everything has been good since.

[mfmac]

you guys rock. i see the tmap sensor in the burger intake and the map(?) sensor on the intake manifold and another on the charge pipe. the charge pipe sensor is brand new but the intake manifold sensor is not - do those need to be the same exact sensors? i would imagine they operate similarly but there has to be subtle differences between the two. if i can get this heat shield back on ill try testing the tmap and see how it does.

in terms of a boost leak, what exactly does that mean? am i looking at replacing critical and most likely expensive parts? i enjoy working on it but am still learning things as i go. i probably spend more time reading forums and watching youtube to make sure im doing things right than i do actually working on the car. i have the bentley publishers e90 repair manual but that only goes so far or im just not looking in the right chapters.

the car burns a little oil and smokes when cruising on the highway. it seems that it does well until i reach the peak of a hill and the engine can relax a bit - that's when it bogs down slightly and dumps thick white smoke. it usually clears in a few seconds and goes right back to normal. i dont have a vacuum leak test kit so ill have to get it over to the shop for that part.

thanks again to everyone for taking a few moment. i have lots more research to do

[________]

With a boost leak you’re likely not replacing anything (other than cheap O rings or silicone sleeves).

What you need is to do a smoke test and find out where it’s leaking. Chances (99%) are it’s leaking somewhere. It normally is, but sometimes we don’t feel it. Sometimes it’s big enough to throw a code.

If you don’t have a smoke machine, take it to a shop to identify the leak. They will run it from the air filter hose and it’ll show any leaks from the turbo compressor, all the way to the throttle body. It leaks at the turbo intake (there’s an O ring there that might need to be replaced, but I doubt that would throw a code) and more normally after the compressor, leaking from the turbo to the intercooler or from the intercooler to the intake plenum.

It might just be a loose hose. Tighten the clamps first and see if it makes it better.

[mfmac]

awesome. gonna get everything put back together and give it a shot today. thanks again

[wheela]

I missed that you have a burger intake. That can through off your airflow readings from your MAF (unless you tuned for it) since the cross section and aiflow characteristcs are different than the stock intake pipe. I don't think it throws it off much, some people get codes and issues from it, others don't. But it's good for you to keep that in mind.

The sensor in the burger intake is the MAF (mass air flow) sensor, and the ones in the charge pipe and intake manifold are both TMAP's. Per realoem, the charge pipe TMAP and intake manifold TMAP are the same.

Boost leak is a really good idea. The description in that 280e code about pressure too high during coastdown seems suspicious to me though. Does "during coastdown" mean in overrun (foot off the gas, but still in gear and coasting)? I wouldn't expect a boost leak to cause excess pressure in overrun? That and the codes about errors with the absolute pressure sensor make me suspect something with one if the TMAP's. Hmmm, not sure how to check this without just swapping them, but if the connectors for your two TMAP's got swapped, then your DME would think there is too much pressure in the manifold during overrun because that sensor should be behind the throttle plate and seeing vacuum. Another cause could be that blow off valve not opening properly, but I doubt that since you said you can hear it venting.

[mfmac]

Update: new ngk plugs and some maf cleaner made a huge difference. going to try clearing codes and see what it does. next step i think im going to try is reflash to stock with my mhd adapter and work up to 1 or 1+. im going on vacation this weekend so ill have to wait on the smoke test until after i get home but i have a feeling you guys are right and that will explain a lot more.

thanks for the help - will update again when im able.

[mfmac]

back from vacation and finally had some time to mess around with the 135 some more.

since returning home ive changed the brakes to the low dust ceramic pad which made a huge difference in terms of dust collecting on the wheels but the stopping power isnt as great - even tho the old pads were definitely shot. i knew that going in to it and will just continue to keep that stopping power in mind. i ordered the BMS cowl filters to get rid of the cowl in the car and what a difference that makes in noise. super stoked on how much better i can hear everything in the engine bay while driving. BMS oil cc is on its way as well.

i finally purchased the mhd super license and flashed stage 2 on 91oct (always either chevron or shell premium in the car. hopefully the gas in socal isnt too bad) the flash finished in 10mins 8secs and it seems to be running much better now under normal loads but when i rip it, it looks like the throttle is closing for a brief second a few times between 3-4500 rpm. im still trying to learn how to read this log and its difficult on my phone - any recommendations on computer software that will open that file?

also, after i flashed the car, turned it off and waited about a minute before turning it back on. checked codes again and the only one its giving me is vin invalid or missing. is that a typical thing after flashing with mhd?

[mfmac]

Originally Posted by wheela

The sensor in the burger intake is the MAF (mass air flow) sensor, and the ones in the charge pipe and intake manifold are both TMAP's. Per realoem, the charge pipe TMAP and intake manifold TMAP are the same.

ill order another new TMAP for the intake manifold from rockauto - same part as the one installed in the charge pipe. if adjusting the tune fixes it, i just have a backup sensor when needed.

smoke test should be done next week if i can get out of work in time for the shop to do it.

[Mercado402]

Had similar issues, didn’t drive my car for 8 months and now it only drives in D1 and D2. Ideas on why it won’t shift further than that? 2013 BMW 135is

[mfmac]

Originally Posted by mfmac

im still trying to learn how to read this log and its difficult on my phone - any recommendations on computer software that will open that file?

found 94boosted's post here. going to work thru this as well
https://www.docdroid.net/IyQ24N5/int...d-datalogs-pdf

datazap.me for reading these logs. so much nicer than on the phone lol
https://datazap.me/u/mfmac/94boosted...og=0&data=3-11

[TWO STEP TEX]

I just had a similar issue. I checked for potatoes but couldn't find anything. Took it to a shop and it turned out to be a cracked valve cover. Same codes too, I replaced the maf after trying to clean it and checked all the intercooler piping.

[mfmac]

Originally Posted by TWO STEP TEX

I just had a similar issue. I checked for potatoes but couldn't find anything. Took it to a shop and it turned out to be a cracked valve cover. Same codes too, I replaced the maf after trying to clean it and checked all the intercooler piping.

did you just replace the valve cover with OE? ive sorta been looking at the vargas turbo aluminum n55 covers in red (red interior) and the aluminum intake manifolds from some of the other shops... nothing that needs to be purchased as of right now but i may end up going that direction if needed. the car is in the shop for the smoke test right now so here's to hoping for the best.

i still need to test the intake maf - mentioned in an earlier reply - but ill probably just end up ordering a new one because it needs new coils anyway. i tried using some maf cleaner on both mafs and the map sensor and it seemed to help for maybe one or two drives but then it was hard to notice a difference. maybe i just got used to it?

this car is so much fun to drive when it runs properly and i love it. ive learned a ton about the n55 and its been fun working thru these issues as they have come up. thanks for the reply

[mfmac]

[mfmac]

update: car is back from the shop - still not throwing any codes but the symptoms persist. there is a small vacuum leak in the valve cover and they think the intake throttle actuator is the reason the throttle is closing under heavy load and above 3500-4500 rpm. going to just have to drive it until i get some sort of hard code.

does anyone have any experience with the vargas aluminum valve covers? that red looks so mean

[DWN-N-OUT]

I'm not sure if something has changed but when I looked into the Vargas VC for my 135 it was listed on the website as engine that it didn't fit and it was only for N55/S55's with EWG turbos. I'd hate to see you spend $1100-$1300 and have it not fit.

[mfmac]

Originally Posted by DWN-N-OUT

I'm not sure if something has changed but when I looked into the Vargas VC for my 135 it was listed on the website as engine that it didn't fit and it was only for N55/S55's with EWG turbos. I'd hate to see you spend $1100-$1300 and have it not fit.

thanks for the input - i decided to just buy a new oem cover and will try to get that completed this weekend. i wonder why the engineers at bmw decided to use plastic to begin with? there has to be some sort of r&d and made them go that direction and im sure cost as well. i got the valve cover in the mail day before yesterday and will probably order all the required gaskets and anything else that can reasonably be replaced today so they're all here by friday.

driving to work this morning and the car seemed to be running and idling a little rough. its still dumping thick white smoke from time to time on the highway - usually after a slight incline, in addition to an odd smell? im leaving again to work overseas for awhile here soon so i may just end up going a different direction entirely. ive been watching this closely for awhile now https://www.1addicts.com/forums/show....php?t=1825027

[mfmac]

valve cover, VC gasket, coils replaced. plugs gapped to .022. ALL of the different codes for anything related to air pressure too low, high, plausible, all of them - are gone. the cracked valve cover is no joke. the only 3 codes left are:

3106 - Catalytic converter: Efficiency below limit value. (it doesnt have cats)

and

2BDE - Fuel high pressure on enabling of injection: pressure too low
2BF0 - Kraftstoffhochdruck bei ober nach Freigabe der Einspritzung (2. Umweltbedingungssatz nach Zeitverzoger): Druck zu niedrig

HPFP is bad? electrical? i saw a posts on here and e90post and man, it seems like people get absolutely destroyed for genuinely asking for help with this issue. ill definitely do some more research before i ask anyone for any help or advice even remotely related to bmw fuel pumps...

another note: big thanks to the help and input ive received so far! i definitely could not have done this without you and some personal friends!

the 135 is (almost) alive!!

[niceast]

replace hpfp, sounds like a problem I had
replaced mine in 2020 60-70k miles,
car was a 2011 *knock on luck's door still going well 100k miles*
I think i spent 500$ for the part and a weekend under the hood,
I wish to forum was facebook style forum chat is so outdated and slow.

but here to help -niceast

[germanlight]

Also my old 135i, i always come across with 3f05 ECU code. When i check it on the web resource , it says " MIL switched off " (https://bmwfaultcodes.com/3f05) . But when i try to fix it in my garage, it is difficult to reset it...