More sensors - which ones are these...?

[Candycj1]

11/87 euro e24 - these 3 are on the left side of the engine. One looks like it goes to the sump - oil level sensor? The other two disappear into the bowels. Trying to learn as much as i can about this engine so appreciate guidance on what i'm looking at here. The one on the left seems to terminate here with a cap of some sort...

[Brucey]

Your photos are not super clear (not least because they are on photophuckit and to the rest of the world have a stupid and highly obtrusive watermark on them) . If you want to get familiar with your motor there are three ways you can do it

1) Look in an online ETK (realoem or BMWfans perhaps); this will show you which parts are where in a logical fashion. Familiarity with the ETK is incredibly useful in the long run.
2) look in the workshop manual
3) look in the wiring diagrams.

The wire colours in BMWs like this are meaningful and mostly consistent between model variations too. Fuse allocations are not 100% consistent between models however.

cheers

[JCS]

Brucey, I like your name for Photophuckit,
ditch your photosite and Get Google Picasa, its free

[Candycj1]

Your photos are not super clear (not least because they are on photophuckit and to the rest of the world have a stupid and highly obtrusive watermark on them) . If you want to get familiar with your motor there are three ways you can do it

1) Look in an online ETK (realoem or BMWfans perhaps); this will show you which parts are where in a logical fashion. Familiarity with the ETK is incredibly useful in the long run.
2) look in the workshop manual
3) look in the wiring diagrams.

The wire colours in BMWs like this are meaningful and mostly consistent between model variations too. Fuse allocations are not 100% consistent between models however.

cheers

Thanks Brucey - yes i agree with your views on photofeckit, will try picasa as suggested by others!

Ref the tips above, i do use realoem extensively and have the Bentley manual too but still couldn't find or figure out what these sensors were. The symptom i'm specifically trying to diagnose is cutting out when hot - splutters and stops and won't restart until cooled down. Cold starting is no problem. Reading others experience and what Bentley says i thought it might be a speed sensor issue - if i have such a thing at all; i thought i'd also read that the later engines didn't have separate position & speed sensors. OEM says my production date was 11/87 and it is a highline - so that would make it a B35 - would i then have speed and position sensors on the side of the engine here?

Will try and follow the wiring but as they're in the bowels it might mean some disassembly just to find where they go and what colours they are, other guidance and correction of my undoubted wrong assumptions most welcome...!!

[Brucey]

one of the wires will be the oil level sensor but the others I'm not sure about.

The sensors that make your B35 engine run are

a) the front crank sensor and
b) the cam phase sensor (on one of the plug leads)

these don't normally go bad when the engine warms up but you never know.

Some common causes of bad hot running on a non-cat B35 are that there are bad air leaks and/or a worn AFM.

cheers

[Candycj1]

Thanks again. I've checked over the hoses and can't see any perishing or loose fittings so i don't think there are leaks. Is the AFM easy to test / check for wear or is using a known good spare the best / only way to confirm? If the latter, any good Samaritans here have one i can borrow...?

[Brucey]

a good way of testing for air leaks is to (carefully) introduce a fuel external to the inlet manifold at tickover; this might be lighter fuel or gas from a cartridge; anything that you can direct to a specific location really. When the fuel is sucked in a misfire may disappear and the at the least the engine note will change.

AFMs are most easily checked by 'known good substitution'. They can usually be repaired if they are found to be defective, but this is not an easy DIY task.

cheers