BMW USED CARS

E36 Starter Troubleshooting

If the starter tucos the engine slowly or fails to operate when the ignition is in the start position, check the battery first. Inspect the starter wires, terminals, and ground connections for good contact. In particular, make sure the ground connections between the battery, the body and the engine are completely clean and tight. If no faults can be found, the starter may be faulty and should be replaced.

A high oxygen level in the engine exhaust indicates a lean corairfuel mixture and a low oxygen level indicates a rich mixture . The oxygen sensor, shown in Fig. 10, measures the oxygen content in the exhaust gas and generates a variable voltage signal . Using that feedback signal as an input, the DMEcontrol module fine tunes the air-fuel mixture.
As the oxygen sensor ages, its ability to react quickly to changing conditions deteriorates, and it mayeventually cease to produce any signal at all. To check the operation of the oxygen sensor, see 130 Fuel Injection:

The airbags are triggered by impacts coming from the directions shown in the illustration. Note that the supplementary protection against lateral impact is available only on vehicles equipped with optional door-mounted airbags.

Indicator lamp in instrument cluster
The indicator lamp comes on from ignition key position 1 to indicate that the system is operational.
System operational:
* The indicator lamp comes on briefly. System malfunction:
* The indicator lamp fails to come on.
* Indicator lamp lights up for approx. 4 seconds, goes out briefly and then lights up again.

A system malfunction could prevent the system from responding to an impact occurring within its normal response range.

Please have your authorized BMW Retailer inspect and repair the system as soon as possible.

ABS enhances active safety by helping to prevent the wheels from locking under braking. When the front wheels slide, the driver loses steering control over the vehicle. Traction loss at the rear wheels can cause the rear end to break into uncontrolled over steer.

ABS is designed to meet two essential requirements during every application:

* to help provide vehicle stability on all types of road surface (asphalt, cement, dirt, moisture, snow and ice).
* to help to retain steering and maneuvering capability under the same conditions

However, certain important considerations must be borne in mind in connection with these requirements: Not even ABS can suspend the normal laws of physics. ABS alone can not prevent accidents when the brakes are applied without an adequate safety interval between vehicles, when the car reaches excessive rates of lateral acceleration in curves, or if aquaplaning occurs. Responsibility for these types of situations remains in the hands (and feet) of the driver. You should never allow the added safety of ABS to lull you into a false sense of security, or mislead you into taking increased risks that could affect your own safety and that of others.