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      12-05-2013, 09:01 AM   #1
archy121
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Drives: X3 E83
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: UK

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NIGHTMARE: Fumes in cabin, Glow Plugs, DPF overload

I'm having a nightmare with my recently bought 2.0D X3 2006 (e83 LCI) and could really do with some pointers.

It came with BMW dealer & independent garage service history. Its done 10K since the last service was done & i was looking to book it in for an early oil change.

Recently I started noticing a diesel smell or exhaust fumes coming into the cabin from the vents when the car was running stationary or crawling in slow traffic. I changed the cabin filter as it was a relatively easy DIY job.
This did not help to solve the problem & it continued to become progressively worse. It is now possible to smell the fumes just by standing next to the engine bay after a drive.

I took it to an independent mechanic & he ran a Bosch diagnostics machine on the engine.

The diagnostics reported glow plug circuit open on 3 cylinders ( code 4212-4222-4232) and Particulate filter system filter overloaded (code 480A-481A).

The mechanic quoted a huge bill & said replacing the glow plugs & DPF was needed to fix things. I was not fully convinced as he seemed to be fully relying on the diagnostics & not applying any personal knowledge or experience.

Couple of days later i took it to another mechanic. He noticed some fine soot that had started building up in the engine bay in front to driver side and top side of bonnet. This might have been there before but i did not notice it.
Originally the mechanic thought it was probably an injector problem causing the smells in the cabin but on seeing the soot he concluded right away that the DPF filter was blocked and would be a costly affair to put right.

My car does not have any particular starting problems that would make me think the glow plugs are related to the fumes. They need attention but not immediately. In the mornings (10-04C UK temp) I put the key in for 20 or so seconds & than turn to start the engine. Rest of the day i can start pretty much straight away. Also I believe that the mileage I'm getting from local driving is lower than it should be and likely to be related to the problems I'm having. No warning lights remain on.

I'm hoping the simultaneous different problems are result of one or possibly two faults that are having a knock on effect & masking the real problem.

Could this be a manifold gasket issue that's allowing fumes to escape into the engine bay ? Or maybe a cracked manifold ? Air filter ?

Ideas on the problem would be really appreciated.
Appreciate 0
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