pull away shudder! :-( E86 3lt. 125'000.

lee1981 · Post by **lee1981** » Tue Jan 03, 2017 9:02 pm

Hi Gents/Ladies.

Bit of strange one here but hopefully some one has an idea or a direction I can look into diagnosing the problem.
Basically when the engine is under strain I randomly get a shudder. When I say under strain it's most noticeable below the 2k rpm mark and when in say 5th or 6th gear (lazy driving) and just generally pulling away. Sometimes I've noticed if I accelerate gently it's fine but if I put my foot down it appears. I've recently noticed it a couple of times in 1st gear when pulling away harshly which is why I'm getting more concerned.

Sparks are fine and I've cleaned the coils which look ok but I think are the original packs. i don't think it's these however because sometimes the car appears fine.

Feels like she's struggling and shuddering slightly at the same time. I was wondering if it could be the fuel pump/filter or injectors maybe? I've tried running cleaners through the fuel and nothing noticeable has changed.

Any ideas would be much appreciated or tricks I can check to get me started?

Cheers in advance.

Regards,

Lee.

Smartbear · Post by **Smartbear** » Tue Jan 03, 2017 9:04 pm

Hi, at your mileage it could be the dmf developing some slop

Rob

firebobby · Post by **firebobby** » Tue Jan 03, 2017 9:07 pm

Could this be the clutch/fly wheel giving up ??

Ducklakeview · Post by **Ducklakeview** » Tue Jan 03, 2017 9:18 pm

+1 pointing at the DMF. Is it "rattly" when idling?

Mike

lee1981 · Post by **lee1981** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 1:40 am

Cheers for the replies Gents.
No no rattles, sounds to be in pretty good condition if I'm honest. Even when revved. Clutch I'm sure is fine as there's no slip, even on harsh acceleration and after just looking at a few videos on YouTube definitely doesn't sound anything like them. The shudder feels more like a misfire but without the noise if that's any help?

Cheers again,

Lee

raymond.harper · Post by **raymond.harper** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 9:17 am

What petrol are you using ? Main brand, supermarket and what octane ?

Smartbear · Post by **Smartbear** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 10:12 am

raymond.harper wrote:What petrol are you using ? Main brand, supermarket and what octane ?

It's an e86 with the n52 engine, it will run fine on normal unleaded-this sounds like a fault rather than fuel grade issues

Rob

MACK · Post by **MACK** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 11:28 am

I wouldn't rule out the coils, electric faults can be intermittent and sparks/coils etc starting to fail do tend to manifest under load at first. Obviously its difficult to say and it could be a multitude of things, do you have access to a scanner/diagnostic equipment etc just to see if there are any codes stored already?

lee1981 · Post by **lee1981** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 5:46 pm

Hi Gents,
I've literally just had the EML turned off due to o2 sensor post cat needing to be changed. No other faults were found. :-/

I've noticed today a little rattle inside the car when out of gear. If I put my foot on the clutch it disappears so maybe there is an issue with the DMF after all.

I had the issue this morning with the juttering again. Took the car out of gear and just revved noticing it was still doing it?! I turned the car off and on a couple of times and the problem disappeared.... I'm very confused!

Cheers again for the replies.

Mactran · Post by **Mactran** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 9:55 pm

I had that problem on my smart roadster. it ended up being the clutch actuator. not sure if it wil be the same on the zed but could be worth a look.

when you are at low speeds does it jerk forwards?

maxman · Post by **maxman** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 10:15 pm

On one car we had when setting off from a standstill it had a quite severe judder.Turned out to be the centre bearing on the prop shaft.

lee1981 · Post by **lee1981** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 10:40 pm

Hi Gents,

No, no jurking forward just a stutter/judder when under load and a few times when just sitting there revving it's jittered up the rev range. Turn off then back on a few times and it appeared to have gone.

I don't think it's anything to do with the clutch but more to do with fuel or coils. Feels more and more like it's missing the occasional beat. :-/

Cheers again.

Smartbear · Post by **Smartbear** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 11:12 pm

Mactran wrote:I had that problem on my smart roadster. it ended up being the clutch actuator. not sure if it wil be the same on the zed but could be worth a look.

when you are at low speeds does it jerk forwards?

It won't be that, the smart uses a robotised manual engine, the zed has a normal slave cylinder for clutch actuation

Rob

Mactran · Post by **Mactran** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 11:15 pm

Smartbear wrote:
Mactran wrote:I had that problem on my smart roadster. it ended up being the clutch actuator. not sure if it wil be the same on the zed but could be worth a look.

when you are at low speeds does it jerk forwards?
It won't be that, the smart uses a robotised manual engine, the zed has a normal slave cylinder for clutch actuation
Rob

well thats my suggestion out the window. thanks for clearing that up Rob. could have ended up wasting this poor chaps time. sorry

lee1981 · Post by **lee1981** » Fri Jan 06, 2017 1:31 am

Not at all Mactran, any suggestions are very welcome! There things I can look into. Is there any way of checking the coils and testing them or just the case of buying a few new ones first and swapping them around with the old?

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