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      01-27-2012, 02:30 PM   #1
shaderman
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idling / stuttering issue

I've had an issue with my X3 since late fall, but it was getting consistently worse, so I brought it into the dealer this week.

When I start the car and it is cold, the idle is very inconsistent, and the engine frequently stutters, shaking the car quite noticeably. Sometimes it won't start. The dealer claimed they were able to reproduce, didn't understand the problem because everything checked out fine, and recommended that I switch to 87 octane fuel instead of 91.

Has anybody else experienced this issue? It seems odd to recommend lower octane fuel to me.
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      01-27-2012, 02:43 PM   #2
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If you are running a the turbo N55 motor I would think twice about moving down to a lower octane.

We have noticed some random revving when the X3 is started, sometimes it will rev up and down between 1,000 and 1,750 RPMs. Kind of embarassing when in public, everyone turns to look and see why we are revving our engine. But, it is still smooth and does not stutter.

Seems like you may be having either a HPFP issue (again if you have the N55 motor) or maybe some other fuel delivery related issues.
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      01-27-2012, 03:16 PM   #3
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DO NOT switch to a lower octane as your N55 motor will run lean.

I too have a feeling that this is a Fuel issue. Next time this happens press the BMW Assist button so that it sends a diagnostic capture of your X3 to your respective service department.

Hopefully this will give them some more info since they cannot replicate it.
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      01-27-2012, 05:20 PM   #4
shaderman
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fiddy yen View Post
DO NOT switch to a lower octane as your N55 motor will run lean.

I too have a feeling that this is a Fuel issue. Next time this happens press the BMW Assist button so that it sends a diagnostic capture of your X3 to your respective service department.

Hopefully this will give them some more info since they cannot replicate it.
As I mentioned originally, they *are* able to replicate, they just can't explain it, or fix it.

I do have the N55.

I'm currently buying my fuel from Shell, using their Premium grade which is 91 octane here in Quebec. I used the same station for several years before with my 2008 Cooper S which never had any trouble.
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      01-27-2012, 05:27 PM   #5
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I should add that this is not the over-revving issue others have reported. In my case, the car starts, and idles around 1100rpms, and keeps dropping below, stutters as if it's going to stop, and then comes back to 1100rpms repeated until the engine is fully warmed up.
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      01-27-2012, 05:29 PM   #6
shaderman
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
There is always the possibility that you may have received a tank of "bad" gasoline, possibly with some water contamination.
Thanks for all the information Lotus. I've been filling 95% of the time at the same station, and this has been happening for months now. The conditions which seem to cause it most are cold weather followed by warmer humid weather.
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      01-27-2012, 09:11 PM   #7
iwinit
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I also noticed for several times that my F10 with N55 engine stuttered when in idle. I didn't realize it was related to fuel. Later, the nearby Sunoco upgraded their premium fuel from 91 to 93. I have not seen the issue again ever since. I have always used Sonoco for many years for my Toyota and never had any problem. It looks like N55 is picky at fuel.
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      01-27-2012, 09:29 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shaderman View Post
Thanks for all the information Lotus. I've been filling 95% of the time at the same station, and this has been happening for months now. The conditions which seem to cause it most are cold weather followed by warmer humid weather.
The only things that 87 octane is going to do for you is to get you fuel out of a different storage tank at your regular station, and perhaps cause knocking/performance issues. It's a half-good/half-bad suggestion.

Just for giggles, do as Lotus suggests and run your tank down. Refill at a station that you do not normally frequent - a Top Tier 91/93 octane gasoline such as Chevron, Esso, PetroCanada, Shell, or Sunoco, and continue to do so until you run through a weather period such as you describe. There's always the possibility, slim as it is, that your usual station has contaminated fuel or a leaking storage tank.
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      01-29-2012, 07:09 AM   #9
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What about the warm/cold aspect causing the problem? Could be a condensation issue in the tank, fuel line or injectors?
Tank full? Fuel line antifreeze?
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      01-29-2012, 08:00 AM   #10
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I would be surprised it is a gas issue because I am getting the same problem many mornings and I always change gas station. The effect is very similar to what I had with my very old car when I was a student. Cracked distributor or wiring was causing this but obviously this is not the case here
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      01-29-2012, 11:26 PM   #11
shaderman
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Quote:
Originally Posted by frankwin View Post
I would be surprised it is a gas issue because I am getting the same problem many mornings and I always change gas station.
Have you reported it to your dealer? What was their conclusion? I'm with BMW Laval ...
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      03-13-2012, 06:23 PM   #12
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Hi. Was there any resolution to this? Thanks.
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      03-13-2012, 09:45 PM   #13
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Any codes?
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      03-16-2012, 07:06 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shaderman View Post
I've had an issue with my X3 since late fall, but it was getting consistently worse, so I brought it into the dealer this week.

When I start the car and it is cold, the idle is very inconsistent, and the engine frequently stutters, shaking the car quite noticeably. Sometimes it won't start. The dealer claimed they were able to reproduce, didn't understand the problem because everything checked out fine, and recommended that I switch to 87 octane fuel instead of 91.

Has anybody else experienced this issue? It seems odd to recommend lower octane fuel to me.
Yea I had the same trouble. On Early morning or after a working day. Turning the engine on and, As the rev goes down to 900-800 rpm, it starts to stutters and shakes the car. I reacted by giving a bit of gas pedal. Not much just to rev up to 1500-2000 rpm. I brought my car for his first maintenance 2 weeks ago (with 36'000 km), they changed the oil, cleared and reseted the memory of the BC. They were unable to find any error in the log of the BC. Since then the car is doing fine. I use 95 octane (we don't have lower octane here).
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