Vanos Rebuild Start Hesitation

[heinzboehmer]

Thought the same, but the intake clamps are also a pain in the arse.

They're not that bad once you get the hang of them. Medium sized needle nose pliers (long enough to reach the clamps, but not so big that they can't squeeze through things to reach) are your friend.

Does the positive from the battery go straight to the point in the engine bay to feed the whole car?

No, it goes battery -> BST -> fuse box -> terminal by the hood switch -> starter -> alternator

[jamesfoley]

That sounds like more work than just taking off the intake manifold

Thought the same, but the intake clamps are also a pain in the arse.

Does the positive from the battery go straight to the point in the engine bay to feed the whole car?

Noticed that my wing mirrors were slow to fold again even though voltage is good.

[heinzboehmer]

It's not too bad at all. Jack the left front up, drop the left LCAB lollipop down to give some space, then laydown and reach up to make sure the 13mm nut on the cable is not loose (disconnect batt or the big black cable off the jumper post first).

That sounds like more work than just taking off the intake manifold

[Slideways]

Oh a side side note, what tool do people use to take off the hose clamps and not break them? Is there a special bmw tool? Couldn’t find one and just saw that people use hooked pliers

A good pair of needle nose pliers with the jaws that have those small teeth works and it's a tool that most people have in their tool box. The actual tool is probably something like this - Clamp Plier For Oetiker - https://www.zoro.com/beta-clamp-plier-for-oetiker-14730020/i/G1903637/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=surfaces&utm_campaig n=shopping%20feed&utm_content=free%20google%20shop ping%20clicks&campaignid=19717005309&productid=G19 03637&v=&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIkZSRmtHthQ MVkwOtBh1p7ACbEAQYASABEgKKH_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

[jpy1980]

That is done by removing the intake manifold which is fairly easy.

Oh a side side note, what tool do people use to take off the hose clamps and not break them? Is there a special bmw tool? Couldn’t find one and just saw that people use hooked pliers

[Slideways]

Oh a side note, is this the proper way to change out the starter too?

That is done by removing the intake manifold which is fairly easy.

[jpy1980]

It's not too bad at all. Jack the left front up, drop the left LCAB lollipop down to give some space, then laydown and reach up to make sure the 13mm nut on the cable is not loose (disconnect batt or the big black cable off the jumper post first).

Oh a side note, is this the proper way to change out the starter too?

[sapote]

Will check the grounds, getting to the starter to just check the cables is a bit of a pain. .

It's not too bad at all. Jack the left front up, drop the left LCAB lollipop down to give some space, then laydown and reach up to make sure the 13mm nut on the cable is not loose (disconnect batt or the big black cable off the jumper post first).

[jamesfoley]

This is the new batt?
I would also remove and clean up the cable terminals under the jumper post big nut, the gnd short cable from engine to frame, and the batt cable terminals, just to be sure. And at the starter big cable terminal too.

Yea, it still has the new Exide EK950 I fitted a week ago, voltages all look good.

Will check the grounds, getting to the starter to just check the cables is a bit of a pain. Really need to figure out how to reliably reproduce the issue, I have no idea why its completely random and its annoying the shit out of me now.

[sapote]

Well, it was great while it lasted. Solid week of it running fine, only for it to hesitate again today. 12.7v from the battery with the engine off, so I guess that wasn't the problem.

One way to describe it would be that it feels like the starter motor stops before the engine starts correctly, but the engine catches it self and manages to splutter into life.

This is the new batt?
I would also remove and clean up the cable terminals under the jumper post big nut, the gnd short cable from engine to frame, and the batt cable terminals, just to be sure. And at the starter big cable terminal too.

[jamesfoley]

Well, it was great while it lasted. Solid week of it running fine, only for it to hesitate again today. 12.7v from the battery with the engine off, so I guess that wasn't the problem.

One way to describe it would be that it feels like the starter motor stops before the engine starts correctly, but the engine catches it self and manages to splutter into life.

[sapote]

Assuming it could still potentially be power related, is there a chance that although I see 14v+ from the alternator, its amp output is low? Or my starter is becoming lazy?

Will of course keep an eye on the battery voltage though as parasitic drain could still be an issue.

If you measured 14v+ at the batt posts, then it is a proof that the alternator is doing fine; if it somehow has less amp output then the measured volt at batt should be lower due to batt internal loading.

As about your starter became lazy weak, since both old and new batteries have about the same voltage of 12.6v before cranking, then faster running starter is solely due to batt cranking amperage.

[jamesfoley]

Very interesting as I was thinking about a weak battery was to blame for the hesitation

I get the feeling its not going to be the magical fix I'm hoping for, but it would be nice if it was.

Assuming it could still potentially be power related, is there a chance that although I see 14v+ from the alternator, its amp output is low? Or my starter is becoming lazy?

Will of course keep an eye on the battery voltage though as parasitic drain could still be an issue.

[sapote]

Very interesting as I was thinking about a weak battery was to blame for the hesitation

[jamesfoley]

Not a very interesting update, but swapped out my 6 month old Bosch S5 008 with an Exide EK950, hoping that an AGM battery might last longer with the short trips it does. Bigger battery is a tight squeeze but it does fit without any issues. Back in the phase where it seems to start without any issues, the starter turns noticeably faster now though.

Whats also interesting is my wing mirrors which used to fold at the speed of a asthmatic snail and get stuck, now fold normally...