95 525i little help needed

[eekay]

i just bought a 95 525i with abt 158k miles on it. the engine seems fine and ride is smooth. it does feel like a well kept car although i got a 2-good-2b-true deal.

the check engine light went on a couple of weeks ago and goes on n off from time to time plus i get burning fuel/rubber smell even after short driving. i just moved to portland, OR and don't know much abt repair shops here. i was thinkin abt goin to a nearby autozone and hav it checked there.

any suggestions?

[eekay]

as it turned out.....the check engine light goes away after driving a little in M mode and it comes back after driving a while in S mode. i still get the burning smell though..
id appreciate it if somebody would comment...

thanks in advance..

[mankiks323i]

well first i would probably go to an autozone and let them check the engine light out its free its a start. As for your your fuel rubber smell you will have to do a little investigateing Is there oil leaking in your engine maybe it needs to be washed get the oil and grease crap out of the engine? are the belts in good shape not rubbing against anything?check your tires are they ok? Try to look at all the hoses for any visible damage or wear.. used its tough one

[eekay]

Well, i checked with Autozone and they dont hav diagnostics for 95 or earlier bimmers
i checked fr leaks, didn't find any...
will look fr other stuff u mentioned...thanks

[Mach 5]

I assume it is an Automatic. The burning smell and the CEL might be related to the same issue, a fault in your transmission. Crawl under it and see if it is leaking tranny fluid also check and see if your tranny fluid is low. I would have it checked out soon either by an independant shop or the dealer.
Ben

[eekay]

well i went to a BMW repair shop and they pulled up these codes for the check engine light:

#13: O2 sensor
#63: Knock sensor
#201: Oxygen sensor control

they charged me 23 bux just fr doing this... im thinkin abt gettin' a full inspection/tune-up though.....cuz the inspection meter is on yellow already...

[EXtech]

sounds to me like you have a vacuum leak. The two 02 sensor codes would lead me to believe that the sensor is reading off and has gone beyond it's range. The knock sensor fault would make sense with the 02 sensor codes because with the lean condition from the vacuum leak you are getting spark knock/detonation/pinging. Check all rubber intake boots for cracks and splits top and bottom as well as a secure connection.
As far as your description about the check engine light in relation to the M and S switch, I was suspecting either a faulty switch or more likely coke or other debris within the switch. The other possibility could be the gear selector switch. However, you mentioned no faults for the transmission. Therefore I suspect that the difference in M and S is putting a different load on the engine which affects the lean condition/02 sensors and knocking issue.
The burning smell is most likely not related, although there could be a correlation. However, I would suspect that you either have an oil leak, plastic bag or something on the exhaust or some insulation from the bottom of the floor pan has fallen down and rubbing against the driveshaft/flex coupler.

[eekay]

well i had the O2 sensor tested and replaced and the check engine light's gone now....the guy said that smelling's cuz of a leaking valve cover gasket...that needs to b replaced.

[Maz]

I just found this thread hehe but the same thing happened to my E34 535i(except for the burning smell) and it was everything that you needed replaced!! but it didnt all happen at the same time like yours, first my O2 sensors were spanzing out so it knocked really hard in idle and then a week later it had the problem that you had with it working in different modes, M and E, but it turned out to be the fuel pump on that one!!