1987 BMW 325E no spark and melted ignition wire insulation.

[davvik]

Hey R3v,

I'm helping a friend out right now. His car was starting and running fine for the last few days (he just took it out of storage) but yesterday it wouldn't start at all. It would crank, there was fuel, the air filter is good, the injectors were firing but no spark. The coil wasn't getting any power.

We diagnosed it as a bad main relay because the resistance of the relay coil had an open connection. So he went out and bought a new one and tossed it in. Car still wouldn't start and when he cranked it the main relay melted a wire on it's connector. It was pin 86 of the main relay.

I've verified that the ignition switch turns that green wire (pin 86) hot still. as far as I can tell, the ignition switch works.

Any input is appreciated.

[Cephas]

Do you have a copy of the electrical troubleshooting manual for the car? I would start there and trace the wires that the main relay powers to check them for shorts. Could very well be that a rodent chewed away at something while it was in storage.