Originally posted by TobyB
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Yup, had the gauge right on the windshield. 43psi at WOT, didn't budge during the misfires, and some were pretty significant. -
I didn't read your original post carefully enough. The bad coil symptoms were different. Prior to the bad coil I had problems with the c191, but was able to clean it up. It looked terrible. When the coil problem cropped up, I thought it was the c191 again and hard wired it in desperation.
So I wouldn't hard wire c191 if it looks fine and you can't get it to misbehave by wiggling it and the wires. Are you getting motronic fault codes? Have you check all the inputs at the motronic unit connector as described in the bentley manual? How about the cps gap setting?Comment
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You don't need to cut it open, just unscrew the top and bottom, pull the rubber weather sleeves back and inspect the back and front. Some electrical cleaner and electrical grease might work wonders.Originally posted by Solo2guy View Post
Mine was shit and I replaced it with one of these
this cured my intermittent no start / misfire problem. It's time consuming to install due to the plug location but the results are worth it if this is the problem.
If you go this way, ping me - I have the wire to wire connections - BMW chose to change the wire colors at that plug, the male pin wire color doesn't necessarily match the output wire color.
Who said the Germans have no sense of humor....Comment
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FIXED!!
Firstly, I want to thank everyone for their help on this. Nice to have so much input for a first time poster.
Now on to the good stuff.
I had cut off the C191 last night and hard wired it in with butt connectors. Not ideal by any stretch, but I figured if it resolved my issues, I could go back and do a proper job of it later.
It did not.
Now I am pissed, I mean kick puppies pissed. So I call my buddy and say "come over before I burn this f**kin thing!!"
We're watching it idle and you can clearly hear a miss. So we figure we'll go back over the basics again...
Yes, it's getting fuel, yes, it's getting spark. I start pulling off leads to see if I can isolate the offending cylinder. Number 2 make absolutely no difference when I pull it off. My friend asks why it's making arcing noises in the distributor cap when the car misses. Related?
To the internet!
Where I find a youtube video of a guy with an e30 that has an issue with the distributor cap arcing against the plastic shield, or more specifically the dust on the plastic sheild, making his car run like crap. I'm skeptical, but I am also desperate.
Off comes the distributor cap, lots of carbon build up on the contacts. Which means lots of arcing. I clean it, put it back on without the plastic cover.
Turn off the garage lights and fire it up. What do it see? The number two spark plug wire is arcing THROUGH the cap to the top bolt the holds the damn distributor cap on. Clear as day.
So, long story short, I put a few pieces of electrical tape on the offending bolt to insulate it and I'll be god damned if the car doesn't run perfect.
Drove it around for an hour. Not even a hint of a miss or problem.
So after all my mucking about over three weeks, it turns out to be a defective (and brand new i might add) distributor cap. I'm not even sure if the cap is the issue, as the number two wire is SO close to that bolt there may be nothing that can be done except to permanently isolate it somehow.
So the lesson here kids is stay off the internet, it clouds your mind with too many possibilities and takes your focus off the basics. I feel dumb but also incredibly happy.
Thanks again everyone.Comment
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I'm sure at this point you're too happy to mind that I told you so with c191 hard wire. Relieved to hear that you solved this.Comment
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Lol, no I don't mind. Like I said, I did the very thing that I keep promising myself every time I trouble shoot a car...keep it simple...stick to the basics and stay the hell off the internet until you've eliminated the core items that make a car run!
Slow learner I guess....
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