2006 M3 - hard to start when cold?

no

My 2003.5 had problems starting in cold weather, real cold weather. On four occasions during last winter it had full electrical power but refused to crank and did not make a click. On three occasions the problem fixed itself after 10-20 minutes. On one occasion the car had to be flat-bedded to the dealer.

They first looked at the keys to make sure they were functioning properly. When the problem occurred, it didn't make any difference which key I used. They replaced the EWS module. The problem remained. They next replaced the main fuel relay and the starter motor. The problem has not returned.

you may have a slow drain on the battery

that is possisable or you may need maybe a upgrade for the comp. in your car.... but i think sence you only got your car a week that you may have a slow leak in the electric from the battery.
bobm3 :dunno: :dunno:

cold start poblem , dont matter if its cold or not go to bmw i think they flash ur ecu and u will be good to go

I've been having the same problems actually. Its not too cold outside, but in the mornings it struggles to start. Happened three times so far this week, but never did it before that. Gonna wait and see if it continues.

Its weird cuz it only happens in the morning when the car's been sitting overnight. :dunno:

Dealership time. Take it in especially since it is brand new.

Thank you for the inputs guys. I am really freaked out; what is this? :bawling: This morning the check engine light went on after the second start attempt (which was successful).

I am sorry to hear you are having so many problems. Definitely Dealership time now.

I have a similar cold start problem with my M3. On cold mornings, the M3 doesn't start until the 2nd try. Throughout the rest of the day, or on warm mornings, it starts fine. When it was still under warranty last year, the dealer "re-flashed the ECU" but the problem never went away. Since then, my warranty has expired, but everyone else I've talked to thinks it's a problem related to fuel delivery. FWIW good luck!

-Andy

try turning the key to the on position and waitin 5-10 seconds before starting it. this lets the fuel pump prime first.

t1gerb0y said:

I have a similar cold start problem with my M3. On cold mornings, the M3 doesn't start until the 2nd try. Throughout the rest of the day, or on warm mornings, it starts fine. When it was still under warranty last year, the dealer "re-flashed the ECU" but the problem never went away. Since then, my warranty has expired, but everyone else I've talked to thinks it's a problem related to fuel delivery. FWIW good luck!

-Andy

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I took the car to the dealer today. They found a fault related to the fuel expansion tank. The P/N listed on the invoice I got from them (16-13-6-764-191) is for a leak diagnostic pump. RealOEM has a nice diagram for the whole fuel ventilation system.

I am cusrious to see if it starts on the first try tomorrow morning :bow:

I HAD THE SAME EXACT PROBLEM...took it to the dealership...they couldnt find anything...now, it just works...dont get it...BTW...ALOT of 06 M3s have had this problem...

Funfgang said:

I HAD THE SAME EXACT PROBLEM...took it to the dealership...they couldnt find anything...now, it just works...dont get it...BTW...ALOT of 06 M3s have had this problem...

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I had the same problem. This only happened on cold startups. I noticed when i turn the key to position one, then wait untill the "beeps" stop, then I turn it on, and starts normal sometimes. This occured when I had the k&n 63 intake installed. I took it out and went to the dealer and checked everything, and it hasent happened for one week so far. I have the stock intake now, and it's running good. No more cold start problems.

I have the same issue, gonna wait til the 1200 mile break in service for them to check out, very annoying, not even 600 miles on the car!

hposu33 said:

I have the same issue, gonna wait til the 1200 mile break in service for them to check out, very annoying, not even 600 miles on the car!

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Hmmm....It's probably the coils. If you had a intake I would say put it back to stock {that's what I did and problem went away}.

bmwphd said:

I took the car to the dealer today. They found a fault related to the fuel expansion tank. The P/N listed on the invoice I got from them (16-13-6-764-191) is for a leak diagnostic pump. RealOEM has a nice diagram for the whole fuel ventilation system.

I am cusrious to see if it starts on the first try tomorrow morning :bow:

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Nice... I hope that fixes it for you.

$90 part, but it looks like a PITA to replace.

Thanks,
Andy

1700 miles on mine('06) and im experiencing this for a while now. im gonna try switching gas brand to see if that helps.

t1gerb0y said:

Nice... I hope that fixes it for you.

$90 part, but it looks like a PITA to replace.

Thanks,
Andy

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5/12/2006: It started fine :clap: I won't get very excited though because so did it yesterday morning before taking it to the dealer. Both yesterday and today it was warmer and more humid than the other days.

The SA said that the part they replaced was cracked! On a 250 mile car? What's up with BMW? A lot of people seem to experience the problem; really embarassing for on M3 chocking up when starting:thumbdwn:

t1gerb0y said:

Nice... I hope that fixes it for you.

$90 part, but it looks like a PITA to replace.

Thanks,
Andy

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Andy,

It took ~2hrs from the time I dropped it off until they called me saying that they fixed it. I don't know exactly where the fuel expansion tank it is on the M3; I looked at the repair manual for the regular E46s and it seems that one has to remove the wheel and the wheel well cover to get access to it. I'll spend more time this weekend trying to figure out where it is and how they did it.