MHD issues on the N55 engine

[AmuroRay]

Sounds like a boost leak to me - have you smoke tested it? Recheck the Chargepipe and make sure you put the Oring on properly as well.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

Sounds like a boost leak to me - have you smoke tested it? Recheck the Chargepipe and make sure you put the Oring on properly as well.

Smoked tested, couldn't find anything. BTW, smoke test has a regulated pressure of 1-2 psi, so it's not enough to really push through the boost leak joints. As I test the vehicle in drive, I only encounter problems when going beyond 10-12 psi. So my smoker can't really help.

I've already got the whole front end out over the weekend, going to double-clamp going back in, and will also install the Wagner FMIC again, too.

[yupetc]

Folks, finally got the car buttoned back together after doing some Cerakote on the sway bar and also the brakes.

As planned, I've rechecked all joints in an attempt to find boost leak. On this iteration, I've removed the entire front end, took off the intercooler and its plumbing, checked and cleaned all joints, replaced with new gaskets/O-rings, and buttoned everything back together with Wagner Tuning intercooler.

Under stock 0 map, everything's fine. No issues. Write in MHD stage 2+, same thing happened, cylinder 6 misfire plus multiple misfire are the codes I got, and injector 6 got disabled after that; car's in limp mode until I restart the car. Except for this time, it feels like the boost does comes on slightly quicker (probably because of the way I've tightly clamped everything down this time, previous install probably has some leaky joints).

Anyway, will be buying the Logging package this week and run some logs to present up here. Really looking for good help this time.

One other suspicion, I did set up a jig where I'm able to pull the injectors out and jet it through with some carb cleaner spray. So I did take out all 6 injectors and respray them, check on their spray pattern, etc. The injectors all appear healthy with consistent spray pattern. But one thing I noticed, which is totally my own fault: I found that the decoupling element on Injector 6 to be missing. And that's my own fault for when I was doing this build, I missed a decoupling ring completely. I think at high boost, this missing decoupling ring could play the leak and cause a compromised sealing situation for that cylinder. Probably why I'm getting a fuel cut off only on this particular cylinder after the misfiring.

Funny thing is, upon my rebuild, the first few weeks drove fine with the MHD stage 2 tune. It was that one time I gun down that gas pedal to pass someone and really put the car on sustained high boost then the Christmas Lights on the dash / limp mode / come to find boost leaks.

Anyway, for that injector, I've installed a new seal, put in the decoupler ring, and install the injector back. But same thing, cylinder 6 misfire, and limp mode on Stage 2 tune. It works mighty fine on stage 0. So weird. Does anyone know of experiences with a bad injector seal or decoupling issue? How can this be rectified because I suspect when it does leak through the injector hole, pressure and velocity of the air and even fuel mixture must both be high, could it erode any part of the head where the combustion gas/fluid blow through?

[lonestar22]

I know you have a new coil. But did you try swapping them? If your injector is turning off then you're getting fuel and not spark.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by lonestar22

I know you have a new coil. But did you try swapping them? If your injector is turning off then you're getting fuel and not spark.

Tried those already, same results. culprit is on Cylinder 6. I even swapped injector 6 with injector 1, and coded them in the ISTA. Same result.

I did notice a slight wet/blackening around the injector pulled from cylinder 6. And it's got brand new decoupler and Teflon seal. So if that's a blow-by through the injector port, I'll have to look for ways to repair that. Some research says replace the head, some says add copper seals, more Teflon tape, etc. I'll be looking to drill the port out and thread in a new sleeve or something.

This is the kit I'll be using to repair injector port #6: https://ppifpr.com/ppi-BMW-injector-bore-repair-kit/

[yupetc]

Well folks, I've only ordered from PPI and there seems to be an issue with UPS. They really took a dump and either lost my package or forget to make some updates. Missed the deadline completely and now there aren't any tracking update since Friday.

I quickly contacted PPI through FB chat, and they quickly got on top of the situation. And if UPS doesn't sort things out, PPI said they'll overnight another kit to get my car back on the road soon. Considering having to buy another head, this repair kit seems to be the way to go without spending the big bucks. And having a responsible dealer like PPI definitely helps. Highly recommend these guys.

Anyhow, just can't wait to get the injector port fixed and see if I can get the full boost out of MHD stage 2+. Stay tuned.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Well folks, I've only ordered from PPI and there seems to be an issue with UPS. They really took a dump and either lost my package or forget to make some updates. Missed the deadline completely and now there aren't any tracking update since Friday.

I quickly contacted PPI through FB chat, and they quickly got on top of the situation. And if UPS doesn't sort things out, PPI said they'll overnight another kit to get my car back on the road soon. Considering having to buy another head, this repair kit seems to be the way to go without spending the big bucks. And having a responsible dealer like PPI definitely helps. Highly recommend these guys.

Anyhow, just can't wait to get the injector port fixed and see if I can get the full boost out of MHD stage 2+. Stay tuned.

You can buy heads cheap(er) on car-parts.com just in case. Hope everything works out well

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

You can buy heads cheap(er) on car-parts.com just in case. Hope everything works out well

Thought about it, and still doubt whether if it's a gamble. The N55 heads are common to find some bad scratches on the VANOs and Intake cams bearing ledge. I've re-surfaced the journal and applied Cerakote Micro-Slick on mine.
And if it just so happens the next head has a slightly bad injector port or any other issues, I may have wasted that money, too. I just gotta make sure I do this PPI kit correctly, then this head will have a robust outcome after all. Most importantly, I'm not looking forward to do another head and timing job. It was easy enough to do when I was building the motor off the car. Now that the motor's on the car, I just hope to minimize the overhaul.

Thanks for the pointer, buddy.

[yupetc]

Quick update, I did get a chance to take down the whole front end and go from the turbo inlet port to test for boost leak with an adapter. At around 15psi, using simple green spray, I was able to catch a leak around the cold side of the intercooler joint; and it happens only when that pipe moves a little bit. The hot side is jointed by CTS piping and it's leaking at around 20+psi. I'm suspecting the intercooler connection could be a little off spec. We're talking about very miniscule fitment issues here. And it's why it's so hard to catch a boost leak in these things. Anyway, tomorrow I'll change back to stock intercooler with stock hot side charge pipe and run the same test. If boost leaks are addressed and I still get the issues, I'll look up on generating some logs through MHD and post it up here.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Thought about it, and still doubt whether if it's a gamble. The N55 heads are common to find some bad scratches on the VANOs and Intake cams bearing ledge. I've re-surfaced the journal and applied Cerakote Micro-Slick on mine.
And if it just so happens the next head has a slightly bad injector port or any other issues, I may have wasted that money, too. I just gotta make sure I do this PPI kit correctly, then this head will have a robust outcome after all. Most importantly, I'm not looking forward to do another head and timing job. It was easy enough to do when I was building the motor off the car. Now that the motor's on the car, I just hope to minimize the overhaul.

Thanks for the pointer, buddy.

I said ‘heads’ but I meant Valvecover.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

I said ‘heads’ but I meant Valvecover.

Bit difference, isn't it, eh? I bought my valvecover from FCP, and it's OEM. At some point if I'll have to do another gasket job, I'll just replace the whole valvecover with them. But my current valvecover is brand new from the rebuild.

[Monkeypoop]

Maybe i missed it, but what intercooler are you using?

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by Monkeypoop

Maybe i missed it, but what intercooler are you using?

I do not want to over-reveal, so a clue is WT. When I was ordering for FMIC, VRSF was back-ordered for too many months. So I went with WT, paying a much higher cost. But I'll say though, boost was no problem until after 13-14psi. Could be a bad CTS charge pipe joint, too.

[Monkeypoop]

Originally Posted by yupetc

I do not want to over-reveal, so a clue is WT. When I was ordering for FMIC, VRSF was back-ordered for too many months. So I went with WT, paying a much higher cost. But I'll say though, boost was no problem until after 13-14psi. Could be a bad CTS charge pipe joint, too.

I got a VRSF ready to install and just wanted to be aware of any potential issues. Thanks.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by Monkeypoop

I got a VRSF ready to install and just wanted to be aware of any potential issues. Thanks.

Just to shed some tips ahead, on our F15 X5, the factory intercooler isn't mounted by any screws. It simply just sits inside a series of plastic shrouds and bottom girdle. But there are pre-formed slots to keep it sort of secured. Due to the way an aftermarket FMIC is manufactured, they will all lack those pre-formed slotting features to sit the intercooler in place. From the pictures, WT and VRSF aren't that different. So I reckon you'll face the same issues I've had. And on WT's I even had to trim those welded tabs and trim the factory plastic shrouds/girdles to make sit flush. So this is likely an issue for you.

Another issue I have is that the upgraded FMIC is quite large, and even when I got mine to "sit tight" into where it needs to be; the S-shaped cold side joint is forced into fitment a little bit. That joint is my biggest boost leak beyond 14psi. Anything lower than that it's fine. And this leak is even amplified when I emulate engine movement it leaks even more. Plus this pipe is plastic, so it's likely to deform at the joint or even crack going down the road. So far I haven't been able to locate an upgraded version of this pipe.

On my car, I have the CTS charge pipe between the turbo outlet and the intercooler. That joint seems fine and secure, but the turbo jointing has a slight angle to the connection. After all, this is all aftermarket parts, and fitment may seem great by looks, I had to use a boost leak tester with emulated engine movement to seek ghost boost leaks.

Each time you deal with this, you're having to remove the whole front end, radiator, fan, a/c condenser; it's not a small job. This time buttoning everything up and going back in, I'll change everything back to stock, even the intercooler. So far I've observed, even under 105 deg-F summer ambient temperature, I'm seeing about 123-125 degrees with OEM intercooler and I get 111-115 degrees with WT. Sitting at idle, while heat soaking, OEM intercooler yields 135-140 degrees while WT keeps it right under 125 degrees. Your results may vary greatly from mine since I've Cerakoted the whole turbo from headers all the way to downpipe (on turbo, I Cerakoted it inside out on the turbine side). So at least the effect of heat from the turbo side could be lower than yours. Anyways, I hope your experience to be different than mine. At least for now, I'll stick with a stock piping setup; I'm keeping the VRSF throttle side charge pipe, though.

[Monkeypoop]

@yupetc great info… thanks. So ultimately is there any setup with aftermarket that is not gonna cause a boost leak? I have seen others running exactly what I am trying to accomplish, but did they run into similar results with a boost leak? I have not seen anything when searching…

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by Monkeypoop

@yupetc great info… thanks. So ultimately is there any setup with aftermarket that is not gonna cause a boost leak? I have seen others running exactly what I am trying to accomplish, but did they run into similar results with a boost leak? I have not seen anything when searching…

I've been hopping across other forums (chassis code other than our F15), and yeah a lot of F30's and E90's I've seen enough good reviews on their setup. However, those are different intake and slightly different intercooler plumbing than our F15 N55's. And even a F15 VRSF intercooler I've seen people having issues with it. So unless someone has had some direct bolt-on plug-and-play friend intercooler to share, I've folded my cards today. I finally managed to get my boost leak test done correctly and was able to stage up the psi increments.

Here's my finding:
My TIC charge pipe is CTS, and it's my opinion to say that the CTS metal section is too long. It comes all the way to the intercooler joint, only short by 1-2 inches and let the rest of it be a silicone sleeve; by the time I tighten it up, it yields a very rigid fastening of joints altogether, and there's no compensation to engine movement. This joint held up to 25psi if engine doesn't move at all. Then I emulated some movement by shaking the intercooler only a slight, it drops down to 18psi because the soap starts to see air seepage.

My Intercooler exit is connected to a brand new OEM plastic CP, and because the intercooler is fatter than the stock intercooler; plus its installation location did not end up being exactly same as stock intercooler's position, it forces this plastic charge pipe to angle funny by a little bit. This is very evident because there's a rubber holder/insert between this charge pipe and the radiator fan (I can't install this rubber insert because the intercooler forces the charge pipe to be out of place beyond tolerance. Through boost leak test I was detecting a seepage beyond 10psi. And if I shake the intercooler a slight, it'll leak large; never was able to achieve an angle of insert so that the intercooler joint doesn't leak at all (unless I dial the boost down to below 10psi).

Lastly, and it's my own memory mistake; this whole time I thought I have the VRSF throttle-joint charge pipe, I really have a CTS charge pipe. I actually installed the VRSF onto a friend's X5 when she turned her car to me for repair. Anyway, long story short, through boost leak test, I've found a big leak at the joint between the S-shaped OEM cold side charge pipe and the CTS connection. What had happened was the CTS's joint has a weak end ring as it has collapsed a little bit; though all of this is aluminum and should be quite strong, but I guess I had tightened up the worm gear clamp too hard. It collapsed inward, causing a leak. I was able to use a harbor freight exhaust pipe expander to fix this joint.

I ended up switching back to OEM turbo to IC charge pipe, OEM intercooler, OEM (yet another purchase) S-pipe, and a repaired CTS throttle joint CP. My last boost leak test with this setup yields no leak, was able to step safely through 20psi, 25psi, 28psi. The instruction from the boost leak test kit says there's no need to go beyond 20psi for test. But I'll say it takes nearly all OEM parts to be able to hold beyond 20psi of boost, except for the throttle joint CP. I have 3 broken OEM throttle-joint CP's, and they all leak at the same place: at base glue joint for the EVAP vent hose connection. So I'll say an upgraded throttle-joint CP is a must. All other pieces can be OEM and be fine, in fact, OEM pieces allows some movement between the engine and the intercooler, so when we all drive hard and engine had to twist or deflect, the OEM pieces have the best degree of yield to compensate it.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Bit difference, isn't it, eh? I bought my valvecover from FCP, and it's OEM. At some point if I'll have to do another gasket job, I'll just replace the whole valvecover with them. But my current valvecover is brand new from the rebuild.

heads = car-parts.com
Valvecover = Rockauto. I was tired when I wrote and edited what I said, but it looks like you're on the right track.

[yupetc]

I'm getting the infamous 101f01 active code coupled with a ghost 104b01 code right now.

Based on my understanding it's due to a comparison of vacuum pressure against the throttle angle under no boost situation. It doesn't affect drivability nor idle, but it bugs the heck out of me having to look at occasional engine light on my dash. Worst part is when the engine light comes on I know it's that same code, but what if there are other codes which may then come up, it would of been masked by this current engine fault code.

Anyways, in the past two weeks, I've basically replaced every possible part except for the valvecover or checking the head for cracks. Going to do the valvecover tomorrow. And if that doesn't work, I'll do a compression test again to see if between when I got the motor built to now there could be a slight loss of compression somewhere. If it's compression issues, I'll likely need to source another head on car-parts.

[yupetc]

Got the new valvecover replaced. Both 101F01 and 104B01 codes are gone. I think when I was running the boost leak test, I didn't get the oil cover cap open in time. Must have popped a valve or did something to the pcv diaphragm. After the new valvecover the codes are gone. At least for the first 40 miles so far. Let's see if it ever comes back.

[yupetc]

Finally got time to get back on the forums again. I need to update everyone that the misfiring issue is completely resolved. Car is back up running on MHD stage 2 w/93-Oct again, and it feels strong.

I ended up changing out all of the ignition coilpacks (again). This time, I went with the Eldor coilpacks after watching a BMW ignition coilpack primer by VehicularDIY on youtube channel. My past coilpacks were Bosch (OEM), then Delphi, Delphi again, then finally Eldor. NOTE: on this car I've always been replacing all 6 coilpacks every time I tinker with them. The Bosch and Delphi coilpacks worked fine under stock map, then on stage 2, it would work for a few weeks until it just keeps misfiring under heavy load. I had to flash it back to stock map for these coilpacks to work, but under load with foot all the way down, it would hesitate with a fish-bite feel when going up the rpms. After fitting up with the Eldor coilpacks, it's been going strong for 4 weeks now; and I was able to stage up on the MHD and I've been running stage 2 without an issue for 2 weeks already. Once I get a chance to put the Wagner intercooler back on, I'll flash again to stage 2+ and call it.


One lingering issue still persists, car drives fine, got plenty of power to go. But I get a set of shadow engine codes: 101F01 and 104B01 and for the love of God, I just couldn't come down to locate the problem. It does startup a bit funny, but it'll only be the first 3-5 seconds starting up and idling down. Other than that the car drives great. I also noticed when I run stock map, these codes also persists. And note that even on stock map, I'm still on MHD's stage 0 because I need it to take care of the catless DP issues. Two suspicions I currently have are:

First: On MHD options, I have it set at "quiet start-up", not sure if this triggers a monitoring error by the DME.
Second: On a whim, I went in-depth with part-number searching under RealOEM. And I come across two different part numbers for the MAP sensor:
1) 13627599042 (Up to 7/2016)
2) 13628644432 (From 7/2016)

I'm in my office right now, so I couldn't look at these part numbers, but there's a large possibility that I may not have the right MAP sensor in place. My car is 2015, and when I typed in 13627599042 and bought them from FCPeuro, without paying much attention, all the parts they sell are 13625644432, and according to the superseding summary, these two sensors are NOT EXCHANGEABLE, respectively. So I'm suspecting I could have bought the newer MAP while I'm supposed to be on the old MAP. Will report once I get a chance to look further into this.

[Monkeypoop]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Finally got time to get back on the forums again. I need to update to everyone that the misfiring issue is completely resolved. Car is back up running on MHD stage 2 w/93-Oct again, and it feels strong.

I ended up changing out all of the ignition coilpacks (again). This time, I went with the Eldor coilpacks after watching a BMW ignition coilpack primer by VehicularDIY on youtube channel. My past coilpacks were Bosch (OEM), then Delphi, Delphi, then finally Eldor. The Bosch and Delphi coilpacks worked fine under stock map, then on stage 2, it would work for a few weeks until it just keeps misfiring under heavy load. I had to flash it back to stock map for these coilpacks to work, but under load with foot all the way down, it would hesitate with a fish-bite feel when going up the rpms. After fitting up with the Eldor coilpacks, it's been going strong for 4 weeks now; and I was able to stage up on the MHD and I've been running stage 2 without an issue for 2 weeks already. Once I get a chance to put the Wagner intercooler back on, I'll flash again to stage 2+ and call it.


One lingering issue still persists, car drives fine, got plenty of power to go. But I get a set of shadow engine codes: 101F01 and 104B01 and for the love of God, I just couldn't come down to locate the problem. It does startup a bit funny, but it'll only be the first 3-5 seconds starting up and idling down. Other than that the car drives great. I also noticed when I run stock map, these codes don't appear. So I'm suspecting it's likely a tune issue. If someone has experienced this and knows a solution, I'm all ears.

Happen to have the exact part # for the eldor coils? I believe I have a similar issue starting to happen…