BMW 7 Series E38 (1994–2001) — common faults, maintenance guides and repair tips.
In limp mode the gearbox works only in a limited way, for example only in 4th gear. The cause can be the speed sensor, a solenoid (electric valve), th...
The most common causes are a fault in a wheel sensor or its wiring, a broken internal wire or bad solder joint in the ABS unit, the pre-charge pump, a...
The E38 tank is metal and often rusts on the top around the mounting bolt or at the seams of the lower edge. A leak can also come from the base of the...
The most common cause is the electric circulation pump, whose brushes are worn or whose fuse has blown. Then cold air comes out at idle, and you only ...
The most common causes are a vacuum leak, a broken diaphragm in the crankcase vent valve, a stuck idle valve or a faulty mass air flow sensor (MAF). T...
When you hear only a click, the cause is often a weak battery, a poor terminal or ground, a faulty starter motor or loose starter bolts. A chattering ...
The most common causes are a refrigerant leak, a fault in the compressor's magnetic clutch or the compressor, and a break in the fan control. The yell...
The wiper relays (K36 and K37) are in the electronics box under the plastic cover on the right side of the engine bay. Moisture oxidises the relay pin...
Common leak points are the thermostat housing, the expansion tank, the water pump (base of the shaft), the plastic end tanks of the radiator, the hose...
The cause can be cracked or wrongly connected vacuum hoses, a fault in the boost pressure regulator or the actuator rod, or the turbo itself. The vane...
The most common cause is the fuel transfer pump or its filter, so the fuel pressure is not enough. The turbo has also been the cause. To narrow down t...
The most common cause is worn thrust arms (reaction rods), which are often the fault when the vibration comes especially under braking. Other causes i...
The engine runs badly or stalls, power is lost and the car jerks. A crankshaft sensor fault feels like misfiring in steady driving, and a camshaft sen...
The cause is often the battery. The Webasto and its blower draw about 10 A, and a weak battery cannot cope: the voltage can drop from 12.9 V to 11.7 V...
The tank has two halves, and the pump can suck air if its side is empty. Check the number of halves from the instrument cluster. Refuelling or tilting...
1. Bleed with a cold engine, engine switched off. 2. Switch the ignition on so the electric water pump runs. 3. Open the bleed screw next to the expan...
The most common causes are a blown fuse, a worn blower motor (bearings, brushes), a seized blower or a failed resistor. Check the fuses first and meas...
The most common cause is the ignition: a worn distributor cap or rotor, a broken coil or a wiring fault. If the ignition is missing, the injectors do ...
The most common cause is play in the thrust arms (the bushings go soft) or in the lower control arm ball joint. The anti-roll bar links, also called s...
If the service history is unknown, it is worth replacing the pump and thermostat together. The pump can fail without warning at around 200,000 km, and...
The cause is often the bulb socket: poor contact or a loose socket triggers the warning. Bend the contacts tighter, sand them with fine paper and clea...
The most common cause is the alternator voltage regulator or worn brushes. After replacing the regulator and brush pack, the voltage at idle rose to a...
Automatic gearboxes do not usually fail, although individual faults occur. The 5HP24's typical fault is a failing A drum (a clutch part inside the gea...
The cause can be a faulty or leaking oil pressure sensor, a worn oil pump or other pressure fluctuation. Replacing the sensor may fix the fault. Measu...
The codes tell you that the engine management cannot correct the mixture ratio. The cause is typically a broken air flow meter or an intake leak, for ...
The cause can be the driver's door control panel. Replacing the panel with a working one fixed the fault. There are different versions of the panel, f...
Lemförder and Meyle are mentioned as quality brands. In cheap eBay kits the parts are mostly unbranded, so check from the seller's listing whether the...
The car should go to sleep mode in about 15 minutes, and the allowed quiescent current is about 0.05 A. If the draw is higher than this, some module i...
The cause can be a wrongly installed rear caliper spring that pushes the pads away from the disc, or worn grooved discs that the new pads do not seat ...
The injector correction values (adaptation values) should be reset with a diagnostic tool for the new injectors. The system is bled by keeping the ign...