BMW - THE ANNOYING HESITATION AND HOW TO FIX IT 

Really appreaciate these videos timm, grew up in my dads 645 when I was 2 or 3 and after selling the old gal and buying a newer 650 in 2010, it passed down to me when i went to uni last year and i hope to make it last forever (no worry she's not being abused)

Brilliant thanks, just got a 645ci and this is great advice explained in an easy to understand way!

Tim, you are gold! I was hesitant to purchase the 650i due to its age and common problems (which are ludicrously expensive). But your guidance has given me the confidence and knowledge to know the issues to look out for and how to fix. Cheers buddy. Time for me to search for a mechanic to tag along, before I purchase the car 🙂

Awesome Timm. It's all music to me. I put my 97 540i into sport mode (left) and away she goes. If I was really crawling along behind a truck I'd go left and down for third. You just add detail to the stuff I instinctively know and worked out and that's why I appreciate your videos so much. Didn't know about the torque converter stuff.

A very good explanation - much appreciated - thank you !

Thank-you for this. I always wondered why my E46 330ci was reluctant to initially accelerate hard in Drive and seemed quite happy just cruising along. Then I realised that Sport mode and changing down wakes the car up, and it knows you mean business!

Good chat, useful every day, and 100% accurate for me. Some of this is new analysis to me and greatly improves performance on demand in my 328i. Some of this gives the words needed to explain that certain performance lag I have long observed and have been trying to overcome. How the doodad mechanically works with the flux capacitor is new to me. The power lag when flooring the gas pedal of my 328i has always been disappointing because flooring it does not instantly produce speed and and power wanted in exchange for max use of fuel. One second is too long to wait to get up and go. Sport Mode alone is enough performance for most situations but laying the shift on top of Sport Mode gives the instant muscle that is sometimes needed. Improving traffic flow for others is half the fun. This maneuver makes driving better for me and drivers near me who want to pass, change lanes, or are unsighted of the road and traffic ahead.

Iv always thought that of my e63 but assumed that it was something to do with a sensor or just old age. So now I can stop worrying about it . Kinda all makes sense now that it's been explained. And this bit of advice costs me nothing. Which is unusual for my old car 😀👍Thanks again Timm .

Can't wait to try this, always helpful

Glad to see the 650i back on the road! looking forward to more posts

Good bit of rehab there thanks. I'm glad you got the 650 back too.

Slow drivers in the fast lane? Must be from the USA. Everyone does that here. And if you pass via slow lane, they get road rage from the ego bruising.

I own a 2005 645ci with right at 75k miles. I just a few days ago drove it “spiritiddly” for about 100 miles on a nice country road and the car performed very well and as expected. Last night I decided to take my wife for gelato and less than a mile down the road pulling out of my neighborhood the car suddenly shut down and stopped with no warning. A big red light came on that I have never seen before. It would not restart for a couple of minutes but finally did. I was able to get the car home but just as I was pulling in the driveway I noticed reduced engine power came on. Once parked I turned it off and restarted it and everything went back to normal. I do keep the car on a batty tender so the voltage was good. What would possibly have caused this very worrisome episode? Thank you for all of the driveway hints and repairs. I recently was able to replace my cabin filters and flush the under hood drains with your help. Keep it up all of this is very much appreciated!

❤😂 I want to try this but it's raining 🌧 😊 TY for sharing 💖

Im so glad i found this channel! Although I havent needed the advice for anything in particular yet, I know there will be a video here for when i need it! The question i had about this video was for manual applications. I presume the manual version would be to downshift to 4th, and rev match? (if your car has 5 gears, and you want to accelerate into a gap on the motorway)?

Brilliant! I have a manual, so other techniques to make the car understand you mean business, but same concept. You need to communicate with the car to get the car to talk to you and give you the best that it has. This is the antithesis of the appliance/car mentality that is popular these days. 😊

Just brilliant! Gotta try this now also after I had changed spark plugs, stuck DISA valves, all the possible oils and liquids; and cleaned vanos solenoids and valves. 😀 (tbh all those things needed to be changed anyway long time ago also, but previous owner apparently didn't bother... so not sad about changing them. got rid of rough idle and horrible fuel consumption, but the hesitation was still there...)

Nice 1 Tim now i know 1 more to ad to my problems i think it was my worn valve guide

Great video. Two things you missed. One: kickdown; if you press the throttle request pedal to the obvious bottom the car will take seconds to decide to break the TC clutch and downshift but if you push extra hard to "105 %" that will instantly signal the engine you want instant power. It will immediately down shift to the lowest gear available (often this will break traction so current speed and surface conditions matter) Two: and this one's my favorite; say you just need to add 10-15 mph to get to a better position to merge etc, as you are aware pushing the throttle request pedal one inch will do very little at cruising speed. If instead you quickly bump the pedal first to 2" down immediately pulling back to 1" down you'll get the exact effect of "left and up" without having to touch the gear request knob. You'll get TC clutch disengaged and one or two gears shift depending how far you retreat from that 2" bump on the throttle request. You can keep on the pedal the car will stay in the lower gear but as you bring the pedal up it'll naturally shift back to cruising gear and lock the torque converter back up. Try it I'm betting you'd find you use it half as often as the left up method. Caveat; when I had e53 I used the left/up method much more but now with n55 and 8 gears it's more like 70/30 bump throttle vs. up: left. Great explanation on how to tell the car when you want some power on demand and love the video on Valvetronic that's how I found your channel. Subscribed!

Great video as always.

Left up or Left up and up, thanks Tim will try that out.. appreciate your comments and insight into the quirks of the BMW.

Excellent video!

Timm its nice to see your car back on the road after the last videos with the problem of the Oil leak from the Filter Housing. Nice to see you crusing along the road and hit the Sport mode :D Nice video with good infos as well again! love your videos! Good to hear that the e31 is making Progress in the background! Keep up the good work Mate! Greetings from Germany!

Earned a sub from me, I'm gonna try it the next time I go to accelerate cause for some reason lately its just been bogging down accelerating after I've already stopped needing the power as much and its kinda annoying (2007 328i touring, so not expecting too much power but rather just not bogging down)

Hi Timm.. great content as always. What’s your thoughts/opinions on a xhp flash on the gearbox? It seems to be a popular mod to do on these cars.

Nice one Thank you

Hello. Thank you for all great videos - very helpful. What’s the difference between putting the gear shifter to left and using SPORT button?

Just discovered your channel. I thought you were the great David Ike at first glance 😊

1000% this. Been doing it for years.. As Timm says, it becomes a second nature movement, and it also lets passengers in your car know, that they should brace themselves. 😂 Throwing it into sport mode also puts the pedal into a more direct mode mode with the throttle, or some some would say more sensitive. Experience with an e53 4.8is and e39 M5 (manual). The e38 740 doesn’t have steptronic, so I can only drop it down a gear. I wasn’t aware of the why behind the torque converter lockup, I only knew it worked. 😅

Does switching it to DS mode and back do any damage ? I feel like I shouldn't do it very often, although it feels needed when I need the power.

never knew about this, going to try it in the 840 when i finally get it back after some long awaited work

Great tip. Have you ever experienced funny drivetrain/gearbox behaviors around 30mph? Seems like it either keeps spinning at 3000RPM or upshifts way too aggressively, making the car super sluggish. Only an issue around 30mph.

Thanks Tim. Another great vid. I drive my 630i like this to get the best out of it, but mine has a different intermittent hesitation where the engine literally does not fire on any cylinders for a second or so if I press the accelerator anything like quickly. If I lift off before the revs have died off completely and reapply smoothly, no issues. If I don't lift off, the engine will die completely or backfire through the inlet manifold. It only happens once every blue moon (every 3 or 4 weeks) when driving, and using the the method in this video certainly reduces the occurrence. I can force it to happen when not driving by just pressing the accelerator quickly to the floor from idle (once the engine is warmed up). It won't happen if the engine is cold and still on fast idle. I don't know if you remember the accelerator pump on an old school carb? If this pump wasn't squirting fuel down the throat of the carb during fast throttle opening, you would get exactly the same symptom as I'm seeing. No faults ever showing in the ECU. I' plan to remove and check the DISA valves and the VANOS solenoids first as they are easy to do, but both of these should be throwing codes if not working...? Any ideas..?

In my experience, hesitation and poor low-end torque can at times be attributed to failed knock sensors. Now that's a fun replacement.

Very good. 👍🏾🎼🎩.

Enjoy your videos and was hoping the one about resetting the upper and lower limits on the window might be an easy solution to my problem, but no go 😢 I have a 2004 BMW 645ci convertible. The rear passenger quarter window drops when the top is opened, but does not come back to full up, only about 3/4, when the top raised to the closed position. If the top is in the closed position the window goes down but only comes up to about 3/4 position. In other words, no problem lowering the window at anytime, but it only comes up to the 3/4 position. In both cases, a very slight pull on the top of the window while raising it draws it past the 3/4 position and it finishes rises nicely on its own to full up. Any suggestions, or is it the dreaded regulator replacement issue? Thank you!

Hi Tim....... thanks for reading this comment 🙂 . I think BMWs were the best cars in the world .....(as i,m a mechanic with health problems presently) . I own a BMW 1 series petrol 2005 and it past it's MOT after the rusty servo was replaced and i drove it home so gentle ...... and parked it up a few weeks ago (i use a little Fiat) . The plugs were replaced and air filter and the garage were great 🙂 . PROBLEMS AGAIN ALREADY 😞 .......... pulling about 20 degrees to the right and when i gently pull to the left ........ the DTM light pops on and it misfires at 2,000 rpm ... ... Yeh...... i will track the wheels straight ..... and just pull fuses until it,s driveable without ABS or DTR ... ... Ahhhhhhhh !!!!!............. those old 7 series ?????............ best cars in the world then . This one i own ???................. I ummmm sense it's "trouble" ..... like a student designed it ... ... Thanks for reading 🙂.......... (My little Fiat is just "happy") ..........lol

You can also use Inpa software to adjust minimum valve lift - the computers generally adjust this for you over time based on how you drive, but it's good to set it up for your own preference - it should be between 0.2 and 0.8 mm. The lower the minimal valve lift, the lower the consumption and the more responsive the engine is. With Inpa you can also adjust transmission adaptations then take the car out on a few different routes and run it through its paces. It will then adjust shift points, throttle response etc. It is a brilliant system when you understand it. As for the video in general, if you just press the sport button it will drop down two gears and allow for an easy overtake. You should also run the throttle body adaptation procedure every few months and the car will become much more responsive. To me personally it looks like your valve lift is set too high and the TBA should be done. I have the 650i coupe and for overtakes I never have to move the lever as it just kicks down two gears or so depending on how much I press the fun pedal. If you want your gearbox to be more responsive, an xhp tune is good and it will actually prolong it's life. It's quite cheap and easy to install. I have the stage 1 as this is after all primarily a GT car and it has to be smooth. Stage 2 and 3 are quite aggressive.

Slow drivers in lane 2 or 3 🤦🏼…I thought it was illegal now? Good to see you enjoying the Sport mode, you keep the car in such good order it will handle anything!

Love the videos tim, i do have a questiom for you, i have a 2010 bmw 550i and i habe this hesitation problem along with a bucking idle but the rpm does not bounce about its just a rough idle, any ideas?

True that but only on a 500+hp not a 330-340hp there is alot of weight on the six series, however on a wet road not advisable to punch it, especially if you have traction control off.

Thanks Tim. Any thoughts on noticeable symptoms of a failing torque converter lock up clutch?

Very cool, does launch mode make a difference when you do this maneuver? Love the tips!

😂😂😂😂😂brilliant loving the sense of humour

How do you do this on a m340 i 2020 ??

Thank You for advice, it works even without vanos or valvetronic in e39 540i when crusing. I was hoping it would eliminate thinking when start from 0-60, but not. Performence mode not help either...I think I need to replace the knock sensors

hard to explain my problem, but under light acceleration i get this "hesitation" in the induction noise only, sounds like its cutting out but power delivery is still smooth. problem i also have sometimes is the car just jerks when id hit the throttle and i have to pull over then it just shuts off. im replacing the valvetronic actuater but not confident itll fix since i get that weird induction noise even with the actuater unplugged. my idle and coldstarts are better with it unplugged though. already replaced fuel pumps, sensors, coils and plugs. valvetronic codes do come up but only after stalling out and reflashing the car so itll start.

Gonna have to try this with my 2010 550I M Sport. I rebuilt the engine and transmission at 160,000 miles. I was getting the transmission malfunctioning a lot before. Got it twice so far since the rebuild. I did not get the adaptations reset yet. Got 2500 miles on rebuild, changed the pan and fluid at 500 miles. Feels stronger than before getting a lot of traction issues. Need new tires 😂

Nice video. I have a 2003 325xi and having the opposite problem. After I floor it, the car keeps accelerating for another second or so... I've found another post on the web with the same issue but couldn't find out the cause. Wonder if you can help?

Hi Timm, Can you tell the car to get ready just by pushing the "Sport button" at the shifter instead of doing all that? Just wondering! My BMWs don't have that button as yours does!

I have a 08' 550i msport with a N62TU engine . It takes off best when in 2nd / 3rd, but if I were at a red light and floor it, it takes a second as you mentioned ... Even in sport mode . I believe it's because I lose traction ?

Hi Timm - I've an e46 325Ci, what's the difference between left and forwards, and using the kickdown on the pedal? Both seem to downshift and do the same thing - apologies in advance if I'd missed something in the video.

Hi Timm I have an e63 645. Cold morning today had a rough idle / seemed to be misfiring and “increased emissions” on the screen. Any ideas?

When I am coming to a stop the car jerks into first gear. I have a 2005 645ci

Hi there I have an E92 M3 manual. The same thing happens, juddery movement on low gear pull away. Will this fix work on it?

YOU ARE AWSOME thanks for the information hah mustang masculinity that's a good one ;)

Okay I have a 2024 x 4 in package Bmw so how would I fix mine cuz I'm having lag in the pedal as well

Xhp also helps (transmission software)

I keep my '20 M5 competition in sport plus all the time. I couldn't imagine driving it in any other setting.

The nicest BMW driver on the roads 😄

I drive my E91 330 with the trans in Sport mode almost 100% of the time. Much better throttle response and power

what causes the big hesitation at 1,600 rpm - 2000 rpm in second gear, is that also the torque converter? mostly happens when cold temps, once the car is heated up its not as noticeable

Lol. That’s what I do when I’m in the expressway. It works Al the time. You’ll be able to feel the horses kick again.

2009 650i can I use the paddle shifter to get the same power response?

I think this counts for other brands as well.

Im planning to buy a 630i e63 do you think its worth it?

I have 2008 650i. When the engine is cold me car accelerates fast from a stop. But when the engine warms up and I floor the gas from a stop there is very little power of acceleration until it’s hit 2000 rpm’s. What could this be. I have no check engine lights or anything.

If knock sensors are removed, what exactly happens?!!

What if you’re at 60mph downshift and it sputters before acceleration? What’s the issue ?

thank yo

Left and down on my E38. All of this adaptive transmission stuff is a waste of time, in my opinion, the problem is on a powerful car you want to feed the power in progressively as you pull out to overtake. Applying full power while still behind the thing you are going to overtake is a very bad idea with a powerful car...

I know you aren't a fan of sport mode ( I am I have a 6spd manual) why not just press the sport button and mash the foot to the floor?

I almost thought you're in South Africa.

are you wearing cycling shorts 007?

Ditch finder tyres won't help either in wet weather.

Next episode.... "How to fix your damaged hood/bonnet insulator hanging down"😁

I've found the best way to solve this is a remap I have E39 e60e53 all did this all have been remapped and it was not happening after the remap on all cars

remove the carpet from the pedal 🤣🤣

Too EZ fixed your sparkplug gap

There’s no way that can be good on an old automatic transmission

Or just buy a manual ;)

because it's a crappy bmw, that's why

I have a f11 535i with paddle shifters, I'm guessing I can just drop a gear using those and the same thing will happen? or is it better to use the gear stick?

My x5 with the n62 goes into this mode automatically when going up steep hills and it takes a while to let go when at the top. After a while of revving quite high it will finally settle down and go back into economy mode. Not sure if that's normal or not

NEED UR HELP 🙏🙏 MY 01 BMW E39 530I WAS RUNNING GREAT ,3 WEEKS AGO WAS OMW TO WORK AFTER GETTING GAS IN MY TANK GOT ON FREEWAY AND BOUT 20 MINUTES INTO DRIVING WHEN STEPPING ON ACCELERATOR CAR JUST SPUTTERS !!! SO TOOK TO SHOP I ALWAYS TAKE MY BMWS TOO AND THEY SAID NEED YO REBUILD MY VVT SO $2,000 LATER STILL NOT WORKING,WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS , ALSO KEEP GETTING CAMSHAFT POSITION SENSOR EVEN THOUGH REPLITHEM