I had my cam position senor go on my e39 530 and it cost me about $400 at the dealer (same symtoms with the car shutting off at a light). I am not sure if it is covered, but thought I would at least chime in with my pricing experiance. Good luck.

 

The sensor is about $105 after CCA discount and taxes and it takes about 20 min to do the job yourself.

 

camshaft position sensor - intake

I just replaced my cps after 3 months of ignoring the light. It would stall out but rarely. I borrowed a friend's obd2 scanner. It is regularly $80 to buy one and cheaper than going to dealer for one diag.

The part was $133 cad. It took 2 hours to replace because I am clumsy and had to borrow tools mid-way through. Google "e46 Camshaft position sensor replace" and do it yourself. I had my laptop and 4 online instructions for reference.

Also, once it is done, you will know how to get at and clean the MAF sensor and check, hoses, alternator....

My dealership quoted $217 for the part and 1-1.5 hour labour.

 

I am not 100% sure that is the problem. the car idles rough and every once in a while will die on you. I have read that was the problem but I really dont want to spend 100 on a part I dont need. So I am trying to figure out if by taking it in will my 30 co pay for the warranty cover my problem, or is the dealer going to hit me up with some massive bill for investigating the problem.

 

Might be a good time to consider a code reader if you plan to keep this car. A dead/dying CPS will throw a code.

 

that is just the problem....no check engine light. You would think with the car idling bad it would have a light.

 

The fuse might be burned out (I doubt it's a problem with the cluster itself--IIRC all of the instrumentation lighting in the E46 is LED based)--or, worse, the car might have passed through the hands of an unscrupulous dealer or reseller who disabled the SES light deliberately. I've heard of it happening before.

That said, a bad CPS wouldn't be the only thing likely to cause a rough idle or a stalling issue.