E92 M3 Won't start?

[Matski]

Hi guys,

Asking on behalf of a friend.

New M3 E92, went in for a dent to pulled out of the back end, its been jacked up, painted.. no parts changed/removed... now it just won't fire? Turns over, but won't fire.

Anything obvious?

[M_ZVER]

Hmmmm, very interesting. I been around body shops most of my life, although i don't work in one and never seen that that happen with a bmw (usually the bat dies or they start but the dash board is lit up with lights). But it is very strange why the car wouldn't start. Was the battery disconnected during ding repair. Where was the repair done and exactly what parts were removed/fixed?

[Matski]

No, the end of the fuel filler as unbolted to allow for easier masking, but nothing else was touched. The battery wasn't disconnected until after the fault had emerged, to try and clear any ecu glitches.

[M_ZVER]

That could you be your friends problem. The fact that the fuel filter was unbolted means that there is no pressure in the fuel hence the crank but no start. I am not positive how the fuel system works in this car because they are fairly new cars. I know that the High pressure fuel pumps used to break on 335i but is not a problem on m3 (although it has happened). But the fact that one end was disconnected means that pressure was released and maybe not enough fuel is getting to the injectors. I would ask your friend to go to a BMW dealer(without the car) and go find a technician and ask questions. I would found it helpful to do that but be aware some of them are idiots. Let us know how it turns out and I will try to ask mechanics I know that might be able to help.

[Georgeair]

I'm pretty sure he meant what he wrote - fuel FILLER. At first read, I thought the same thing; opened up the fuel line and lost all pressure. On closer look, realized it didn't actually say filter.

If it's like most modern cars that trigger a code if the cap isn't on tight, it could still be a bad re-installation of the fuel filler neck allowing a vacuum leak.

[FredVMI]

Originally Posted by samma155

That could you be your friends problem. The fact that the fuel filter was unbolted means that there is no pressure in the fuel hence the crank but no start. I am not positive how the fuel system works in this car because they are fairly new cars. I know that the High pressure fuel pumps used to break on 335i but is not a problem on m3 (although it has happened). But the fact that one end was disconnected means that pressure was released and maybe not enough fuel is getting to the injectors. I would ask your friend to go to a BMW dealer(without the car) and go find a technician and ask questions. I would found it helpful to do that but be aware some of them are idiots. Let us know how it turns out and I will try to ask mechanics I know that might be able to help.

Originally Posted by Georgeair

I'm pretty sure he meant what he wrote - fuel FILLER. At first read, I thought the same thing; opened up the fuel line and lost all pressure. On closer look, realized it didn't actually say filter.

If it's like most modern cars that trigger a code if the cap isn't on tight, it could still be a bad re-installation of the fuel filler neck allowing a vacuum leak.

I would think that insufficient fuel would cause one or more error messages. Are there any? One possible error message would be for "increased emissions". That would result from a misfire in one or more cylinders due to inadequate fuel. A service tech would be able to see a code for the misfire, but the only error message displayed would be for the emissions. Interesting problem.

[elm3]

Was there any welding done on the car at all? If so and the bat. was not disconnected, your ecu might be fried. I used to work at a body shop for 10 years. We disconnected the bat. plus any body ground. This was done for the ECU to be safe.

[M_ZVER]

Yes. I apologize,I do mean Filler, just a habit of saying filter. Keep us updated on what's happening and good luck