No crank, no start Issue

Cene · 07-18-2024, 09:27 AM

I have a 2012 BMW 535i xDrive with 139K miles and it was running fine until the CV axle boot on the tore and flung grease all over the wheel well and the car went into limp mode. I do not know the details that happened just before or after since it was a friend who was driving it and he has proceeded to ghost me since then. All I know is that when I got there, It would not start and it had to be dragged onto a flatbed. Did the following procedures:

I replaced both CV axles, since the other was torn as well, and both front wheel sensors. Tried to start it, heard it engage but did not start. Changed the starter and tried again. No joy.

Downloaded ISTA+ and ran a vehicle test. Gave me a multitude of codes that I eventually determined were caused by having a low battery (not knowing about limp mode, my "friend" had probably cranked the car to death before I showed up) and since the battery was as old as the car, I decided to get a new one, registered it and now have no fault codes. Still no joy.
Tested all the fuses both in the trunk and the glove box and they are all good. Thought it might be the crankshaft sensor that might be causing an issue so I replaced it. No joy.
Thought it might be a faulty coil so I replaced all six. Checked the ground to see if there is a voltage drop from battery to engine and it shows it's at 0.01. Still no joy.
Plugged in a charger and repeatedly cranked it (about 5 times in the space of 5 minutes), the starter solenoid overheated and melted the contact to the starter (which was a surprisingly thin gauge to begin with given it is a Bosch starter) so I did a bench test and put back the old one since it clearly wasn't bad. Still no joy.
Have successfully turned the engine by hand so I'm sure that it has not seized, taken a cursory peek at the timing chain and it looks okay, manually put the car in neutral (using screw by tranny), tried to start it both in neutral and after putting it back in park. Still no joy.

I have run out ideas of what it might be and hope you, my fellow enthusiasts, may be able to point me to a possible cause as to why it won't start or even crank. Thank you.

07-18-2024, 09:27 AM	#1
Cene Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: 2012 BMW 535xi iDrive Join Date: Jul 2024 Location: Harrisburg PA iTrader: (0) Garage List 2012 BMW 535i xDrive [0.00]	No crank, no start Issue I have a 2012 BMW 535i xDrive with 139K miles and it was running fine until the CV axle boot on the tore and flung grease all over the wheel well and the car went into limp mode. I do not know the details that happened just before or after since it was a friend who was driving it and he has proceeded to ghost me since then. All I know is that when I got there, It would not start and it had to be dragged onto a flatbed. Did the following procedures: I replaced both CV axles, since the other was torn as well, and both front wheel sensors. Tried to start it, heard it engage but did not start. Changed the starter and tried again. No joy. Downloaded ISTA+ and ran a vehicle test. Gave me a multitude of codes that I eventually determined were caused by having a low battery (not knowing about limp mode, my "friend" had probably cranked the car to death before I showed up) and since the battery was as old as the car, I decided to get a new one, registered it and now have no fault codes. Still no joy. Tested all the fuses both in the trunk and the glove box and they are all good. Thought it might be the crankshaft sensor that might be causing an issue so I replaced it. No joy. Thought it might be a faulty coil so I replaced all six. Checked the ground to see if there is a voltage drop from battery to engine and it shows it's at 0.01. Still no joy. Plugged in a charger and repeatedly cranked it (about 5 times in the space of 5 minutes), the starter solenoid overheated and melted the contact to the starter (which was a surprisingly thin gauge to begin with given it is a Bosch starter) so I did a bench test and put back the old one since it clearly wasn't bad. Still no joy. Have successfully turned the engine by hand so I'm sure that it has not seized, taken a cursory peek at the timing chain and it looks okay, manually put the car in neutral (using screw by tranny), tried to start it both in neutral and after putting it back in park. Still no joy. I have run out ideas of what it might be and hope you, my fellow enthusiasts, may be able to point me to a possible cause as to why it won't start or even crank. Thank you.
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