# Bad Bimmer Day



## DSPTurtle (Oct 4, 2003)

So I fire up the 540i this a.m. to a terrible knocking noise coming from under the hood. I pop the hood to get a closer listen. Seems to be coming from under the brand new passenger side valve cover  . It increases frequency as I slowly rev up the motor. Sounds a lot like a flat hydro lifter although our cars are overhead cams. Maybe one of the cam followers went flat. Oh well, hopefully it will be covered under CPO. :dunno: 

Then, on my way home tonight (56 miles commute each way) I hear a tire going down. Almost thought it was not mine because the car continued to track straight at 80mph. But, when I slowly put the brakes on I knew I was in trouble :yikes: . Pulled over to the side of the road... one of my brand new (three weeks old) 245/40 18 Michelin Pilot Sport All Season tires was flat as a pancake :bawling: . No biggie I thought, a quick swap of the spare (17" original)... yeah right... 14 psi in the spare  (I carry a dial style pressure gauge but no air pump). So I says to myself, "self... fu(k it, who cares it is a spare." I make the swap in 7 minutes. Drive 30 miles to the nearest gas station with the steering wheel cocked 30 degrees to overcome the low tire. :drive: 
On the drive I dial up my friendly tire provider and tell him of my woes... luckily I bought road hazard. However, he can't find a tire until Monday so I am screwed on getting into work Monday :violent: 

Just another day in the life of a Bimmer owner. :stupid: 
Oh yeah, all this after I spent the lunch hour lecturing a coworker on the importance of preventative maintenance :liar: 

I can't wait till tomorrow and the beginning of the next BMW adventure :jack: 

Anyone know why the knocking noise might be occurring? 
JB
PS and now this f'ing post won't take because I have too many smileys... the irony is that I was the guy trying to give BF bandwidth back by killing the DIY section.


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## DZeckhausen (Mar 11, 2003)

DSPTurtle said:


> No biggie I thought, a quick swap of the spare (17" original)... yeah right... 14 psi in the spare  (I carry a dial style pressure gauge but no air pump). So I says to myself, "self... fu(k it, who cares it is a spare." I make the swap in 7 minutes. Drive 30 miles to the nearest gas station with the steering wheel cocked 30 degrees to overcome the low tire. :drive:


Sorry to hear about your car woes. 

This should serve as a reminder to everyone. Go out this weekend and pop the trunk and check the pressure in your spare tire. In order to make it easier, Griots Garage sells a flexible tire inflation extender that saves you from having to unbolt and remove the spare to check it or fill it. I suggest you fill the tire to 50 psi, since it will likely have dropped to 35 psi by the time you need it. You can always let air out.


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## DSPTurtle (Oct 4, 2003)

The real :nono::nono::nono::nono::nono: of it is that I have been telling myself to check that spare for the last three weeks and had just been too darn busy/lazy.
If the trunk is empty it is really a breeze to pull the floor up and check it. I would think a tire place shoudl check the spare as a courtesy when you buy new tires from them... now how is that for an excuse.
BTW Anyone got any ideas on the knocking sound?
JB


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## DSPTurtle (Oct 4, 2003)

Okay, now it is not just a knocking sound. Now, when I shut the motor down, after a few seconds I hear a high pitched whistle. Kinda sounds like a small amount of air escaping under high pressure. At first I thought it was the spare tire losing air but it has happened three times now. I can hear it coming from the same area as the knocking sound. Anyone have any ideas?
JB


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## DSPTurtle (Oct 4, 2003)

The noise turned out to be a failing A/C compressor. It sure sounded like it was coming from the valve cover but... the A/C compressor is on the front passenger side of the motor right under the area that I thought the noise was coming from. My tech told me that the really bad ones actually sound like a machine gun as the engine is revved up. I never even thought to turn off the A/C to see if that could be the problem. 
Also, they changed the ICV valve and it feels like a new car. Hopefully I will get the replaced tire back soon so I can be in full bling-bling.
JB


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## LmtdSlip (May 28, 2003)

DSPTurtle said:


> The real :nono::nono::nono::nono::nono: of it is that I have been telling myself to check that spare for the last three weeks and had just been too darn busy/lazy.
> If the trunk is empty it is really a breeze to pull the floor up and check it.
> JB


I just checked mine a week or so ago and was pleasanlty surprised to find that it was at the proper pressure. :thumbup:

I put in 5 psi more just incase I forget to check it for another year.


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