looking for a good shop or mechanic
 

We've hit a wall with the car :mad:

Still wont stay on unless being rev'ed, otherwise idles really badly then slowly stalls. We replaced the engine as the original had a blown head gasket. The new engine has been dynoed, was fine. Replaced all of the gaskets, most of the sensors and belts as well. Also changed the fuel filter while we were down there.

After research we checked the following as well:
Knock sensors - replaced
camshaft sensor -not throwing code
vacuum lines/seals - didnt find any leaks
idle control valve & sensor - cleaned valve, changed sensor
mass air flow sensor - ran same disconnected
cleaned fuel injectors & pumped out the old gas and put fresh in as it has been sitting 8 months

Frankly we're stumped and almost ready to part it out (hes more than ready :frown:) Have a sneaky suspicion its something small and simple to fix, just cant find it.

Anyone have a suggestion as to a good shop or mechanic in Santa Rosa or Sonoma Co in general? Or maybe Napa Co? somewhere within about 100 miles from Jenner. The family mechanic is not BMW fluent, and no longer just down the road.

Try another Mass Air Flow sensor. Evie, what year is your TI? One of us likely has a spare you can try or maybe you're close enough to a member who can pull theirs and try it on your car.

Also, I see you all checked, but it could also be a vacuum leak. It's easy to miss a hose or cracked bellows, hose or fitting. Just saying...

NorCal - Anyone close to Jenner? :cool:

i work in sonoma.

i just picked up a new stock TI. you can maybe come to my workplace and i can have you test out my MAF

I can highly recommend North Bay Bavarian in Santa Rosa. They aren't the cheapest, but their work is excellent and they're probably the most knowledgeable shop around.

I'd offer to help since I'm only about 40 minutes from Jenner, but I don't have any experience to give in this instance unfortunately :redface:

Off topic: I was out there a few months ago taking photos for the ti calendar, the coast is so beautiful!
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...6645-1_1re.jpg
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...6708-1-1re.jpg

Best of luck!

Jaime, nice shots! If you're out there, the extent of the help would be to remove your MAF and let her try it on her car. It should behave differently connected vs not connected. One of our SoCal friends just went through a similar condition.

Let's see Evie's response as I missed if she has a M42 or M44. I have spares for both, just a little further away. :rolleyes:

Any place good to eat there? I might be tempted to make the drive just for the view. :cool:

Sounds like the TI is not drivable to get down there. Thanks tho John for the offer! :cool:

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I've heard there are a couple good restaurants, yeah! Lots of fun twisty roads in the hills too :tongue:

Maybe our next meet can be a drive up there if we don't do a fix-it session again. I like driving the twisty coastline. :cool:

So, I will likely be in Fairfield Sunday. If no one has a spare, I can bring a MAF for Evie, just need to know which motor she has. Not sure how we get it to her TI, but it will be 50 miles closer. :rolleyes:

That would be cool! We could meet at my place in Windsor, then caravan out to the coast. Lots of scenic overlooks where we can do photoshoots, or stop at the redwood forests as well.

I wouldn't anticipate many people since it's a lot farther out than the central Vallejo location, but could be an awesome adventure for those able to make the trip!

Ya, I'd prolly think about the "Inn at the beach" as it's a little further drive for me unless we started early. :cool:

Wow. Just wow. Thank you guys so much for the responses! :biggrin:

I have a 96. the last 7 of the vin is AS95578, i believe it was originally a M44. Unless there is a way to tell on the new motor, I'd need to call up the shop we got it from for more info.

Its about a 30 min drive from Windsor, I live on the Russian River, about halfway between Jenner and Gurneville. There ARE nice places to eat out here :wink:. Not far from Bodega Bay either, right down Hwy 1.

Right now we're both a little under the weather, and I think next weekend would work better for us anyway. So if anyone could make a trip and lend a hand then we'd appreciate it.

Nice pics! You were at Goat Rock Beach right?

Yes John, thanks for the offer :smile:. and no its not driveable :frown:

Evie, take a picture of your motor and post it. You may need 5 or more posts before you can post a picture. We can confirm the motor if we can see it.


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Is there an easy visual difference between the two? Supposedly the shop used the vin to match the motor (or so i'm being told)... but he says the wiring harness was slightly different. :eek:

I'll try to get a pic tomorrow after the sun comes over the hill.

Assuming it is a M44, there are two emission setups for 96 I believe. That would be the difference in the wiring.

The MAF for the M44 is black cylinderical Bosch plastic tube.
http://i402.photobucket.com/albums/p...psqqw1nppk.jpg

The AFM for the M42 is attached to the top of the air box and is made of Aluminum.
http://i402.photobucket.com/albums/p...psoube1jb1.jpg

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