Level control system, brake lights, engine oil leak and a lot of diesel clouds

694 Views 5 Replies 3 Participants Last post by matthei, Oct 12, 2021

matthei

Discussion Starter · Oct 11, 2021

Hello, i have a list of problems on a recent bmw purchase, it's a 2006 bmw e61 530xd pre lci, would love to fix these problems but have no idea the source of them. Don't have an OBD tool so need to go off advice.

- The level control system works fine but there is still an error, both sides rise and there is no leak in the bags, the compressor works well too as i can hear it working.

- The brake lights don't work either although the back lights work (the inner red lights) i have replaced them and the error keeps poping up, i have a 12" subwoofer in the back and that might've broken them but i tried replacing the lights and then not using the subwoofer, but the error still pops up after a while, is it broken wires? I have checked the fuses and they aren't burned.

- the biggest problem is the engine leaks oil, the motor is a M57TÜ2. it seems to be coming from the front of the engine and a point on the right side of the engine, here are some photos

Hood Automotive tire Bumper Motor vehicle Vehicle door

Automotive lighting Hood Motor vehicle Automotive design Bumper

Motor vehicle Automotive fuel system Automotive exterior Gas Automotive tire

Automotive tire Motor vehicle Tire Hood Automotive design

(in the middle of the photo in the dark spot is a buildup of oil, no clue what the part is)
I'm not sure where the leak is coming from in photo 1 and 2, but are there any parts where oil circulates in the front of the engine? I'm thinking there is a gasket in the front of the engine where its leaking from.

- and last but not least the diesel clouds, when i accelerate and my rpm exceeds 2,500-3000? rpm a diesel cloud appears, it gets thicker and thicker until the rev limit, there are no egr valves as it has been tuned to 300hp and there doesn't seem to be a noticeable power loss. Is it the dpf? or is it running rich?

Would love for some advice, im quite an amature with my car still and would like these problems fixed before my next stately car check or whatever it's called. Thanks a lot!

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Annolago

· #2 · Oct 11, 2021

First of you need to be better in your description of the problem. You have a fault with the level system but don’t have a scan tool. How are you then told there is a problem. Is via the in car message system or are you guessing or ???
On the lights not working- yes the wires going to the rear hatch tends to brake. After all they are now 15+ years old in your car - however I am really confused about how a subwoofer could have anything to do with the problem. Are you hinting that you are driving around playing music so loud that you are braking the bulbs? If you’re doing that then start saving for hearing aids.. Getting back to the wire issue, you can get a repair cable set to fix the broken wires. Go with a name brand to ensure decent quality cable have been used and not just any cheap set from eBay.
Strongly suggest that you like all new users to the BMW E60 read the “star here” permanent posting. In it you will find a lot of good information on how your car works and how to keep it running. Also if you have a laptop then get a OBD2-usb cable and at minimum a copy off INPA so you can accurately read error codes. Very difficult to guess so most People’s first answer will be what codes you have pulled from your car.
Best of luck

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matthei

Discussion Starter · #3 · Oct 11, 2021

Annolago said:
First of you need to be better in your description of the problem. You have a fault with the level system but don’t have a scan tool. How are you then told there is a problem. Is via the in car message system or are you guessing or ???
On the lights not working- yes the wires going to the rear hatch tends to brake. After all they are now 15+ years old in your car - however I am really confused about how a subwoofer could have anything to do with the problem. Are you hinting that you are driving around playing music so loud that you are braking the bulbs? If you’re doing that then start saving for hearing aids.. Getting back to the wire issue, you can get a repair cable set to fix the broken wires. Go with a name brand to ensure decent quality cable have been used and not just any cheap set from eBay.
Strongly suggest that you like all new users to the BMW E60 read the “star here” permanent posting. In it you will find a lot of good information on how your car works and how to keep it running. Also if you have a laptop then get a OBD2-usb cable and at minimum a copy off INPA so you can accurately read error codes. Very difficult to guess so most People’s first answer will be what codes you have pulled from your car.
Best of luck

The level control system failure pops up as a car message, "Level Control System failure", i was thinking the bass might break the bulbs as it is quite close to the bulbs and pointing torwards them. And yes i know my description is quite bad and yes i know i should get an OBD2 tool or whatever, but I had a hint of hope that maybe just someone would know.

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Annolago

· #4 · Oct 11, 2021

I am sorry but I don’t have a car equipped with air suspension so cannot help you. Have you checked the document in the posting I mentioned above? It is easy to check if the bulb is gone, if you have access to a multi meter and can check resistance.
I would also suggest looking up your car on realoem.com so you can look up part numbers or even get an idea on how things are put together.
Also Newtis.info contains all the repair guides from BMW. Really great source of information.
But again, all is in the “Document ’ that is in the suggested posting mentioned above.

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twh

· #5 · Oct 11, 2021

The tail lights - the car lighting electronics are able to detect a short circuit and shut off that circuit completely. That would lead to you finding fuses and bulbs that are fine, but still not working. If this happened, you would need to determine if indeed there was a short circuit, fix that, and then use the BMW OBD tools to re-enable the short circuit logic for that lighting circuit. Search this forum for a thread that has the required instructions.

Oil leak - Unless you are actually seeing oil on the garage floor and/or you are adding more than one quart/liter between oil changes, I'd just ignore it. All cars that get old weep oil like that picture and create grimy surfaces. That alone does not mean it needs to be "fixed" -- at great cost.

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matthei

Discussion Starter · #6 · Oct 12, 2021

Annolago said:
I am sorry but I don’t have a car equipped with air suspension so cannot help you. Have you checked the document in the posting I mentioned above? It is easy to check if the bulb is gone, if you have access to a multi meter and can check resistance.
I would also suggest looking up your car on realoem.com so you can look up part numbers or even get an idea on how things are put together.
Also Newtis.info contains all the repair guides from BMW. Really great source of information.
But again, all is in the “Document ’ that is in the suggested posting mentioned above.

i checked the document and got some ideas of the errors

twh said:
The tail lights - the car lighting electronics are able to detect a short circuit and shut off that circuit completely. That would lead to you finding fuses and bulbs that are fine, but still not working. If this happened, you would need to determine if indeed there was a short circuit, fix that, and then use the BMW OBD tools to re-enable the short circuit logic for that lighting circuit. Search this forum for a thread that has the required instructions.

Oil leak - Unless you are actually seeing oil on the garage floor and/or you are adding more than one quart/liter between oil changes, I'd just ignore it. All cars that get old weep oil like that picture and create grimy surfaces. That alone does not mean it needs to be "fixed" -- at great cost.

ill check if there is a short, and the thing is yeah it might be normal that it's leaking but it's illegal in finland to have a leaking engine, so it has to be fixed.

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