BMW E46 Performance Issues

Asked by Alec Nov 03, 2018 at 04:16 PM about the 2003 BMW 3 Series 325i Sedan RWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

So I am new to the BMW world. I'm a Volvo tech so
a lot of things translate but I've never encountered
an issue like this before. Basically the car runs
great if I am just driving normally. If I run the car
hard, I can notice a lack of power. At about 5k rpm
at full throttle (usually 2nd or 3rd gear) it will
severely bog down and will have a clicking noise.
Then the car will run very rough until I restart it and
it's fine until I put a lot of load on it again. I do have
a CEL for secondary air injection but since that is
emissions based you would think it wouldnt affect
performance. Spark plugs and coils are new. Fresh
oil change. I havent checked specifically for
vacuum leaks but usually you would hear one if it
was substantial enough to cause performance
issues, and that doesnt account for the clicking
noise. What else should I check?

2 Answers

Alec answered 6 years ago

Yes, it appears to be working properly. No signs of wear and it is intact. I held my stethoscope to it and it didnt sound abnormal.

Mark helpful

Alec answered 6 years ago

I can smoke it when I go back to the shop on monday. But what could the clicking noise be?

Mark helpful

Your Answer:

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