car wont start

my wife went to go get in the bmw today and it would just sit and turn over. everything else worked. it almost acted like it was not getting fuel. it is a bmw x3 2005. any suggestions?

thanks, Wyatt

Ha! My wife had the exact same problem this morning. I tried a few times and it finally started... was running rough for a while and finally stabilized. 70k on the clock and this is the first issue we ever had. Bad gas?

i dont think so it wouldnt even run. it would just crank. its cold here but she parks in the garage with the heater on so its like 60 degrees in there. the only think i can think is the fuel pump maybe.

any ideas on how to test a bmw fuel pump? is it like an old chevy and you can beat on the take and get it to pump?

Originally Posted by wyathnt

i dont think so it wouldnt even run. it would just crank. its cold here but she parks in the garage with the heater on so its like 60 degrees in there. the only think i can think is the fuel pump maybe.

any ideas on how to test a bmw fuel pump? is it like an old chevy and you can beat on the take and get it to pump?

Yep, my first thought was that it's a bad fuel pump. Yes, you can hit the top of it and it will sometimes start up to at least get you back home. You need to take up the rear seat and there will be an access door and rubber seal on the rear passenger side. Take that off and you will see a white cover - that's the fuel pump. Have someone turn the key to position 2 and see if you can hear the pump working. You may be able to hear it even without removing the seat. I would hit that a few times to see if it'll start - it worked for me on my 330i a few months back. It's a pretty easy job to replace it.

thanks for the advice. ill have to check it out. that was my first thought but i guess if that dont work off to the shop it goes

well i got it started. weirdest thing i ever seen. went home tore it apart and the fuel pump was working. then tried to start it again. batt was dead jumped it. it started died. stared again died and then ran for a few seconds and ran like crap but then cleaned up. im thinking the wife got water in her fuel some where but its running fine for now.

That's good news. Not to encourage you to waste money, but this may mean that the fuel pump is on it's way out. I'd keep an eye on it and see if it happens again.

ya i will do. it just smoked a lil when it stared to kinda like it had water built up in the cad. so....... i will keep an eye on it. thanks for all the help