[alexjblake]

Afternoon all!

Hoping I can call upon the great BMW community for some 3 series heartache!

I've recently bought my second F30 after enjoying a 320D so much I thought I'd have a play with a 330e and so far I have absolutely loved it!

2018 registered, 330e MSport Shadow Edition, 115k miles, stock everything. Runs really nicely, pulls well and has been getting mid 50 MPG on motorway runs.

Around New Year I drove to Scotland (from south of England) with no troubles at all but on the return journey after driving for about an hour I turned off to some back rounds and found the car a little juddery under acceleration, thought I imagined it at first but after a couple more bends it became worse and worse to the point I couldn't accelerate hard without the car violently shuddering - and I mean felt like it would blow a piston! I made it back home with no dramas and haven't thought much about it since. Until this weekend past where again, after about an hour of motorway driving the same thing happened, only this after an hour of gentle driving when I went to accelerate the engine cut out, Transmission Malfunction error popped up on the dash and I was only left with the E-Motor at 70 mph! The engine re-started after I pulled over and cycled the start stop button but it left me a little nervous.

Symptoms:

• Has only occurred after an hour + of driving
• Only happens in the 1500 - 2000 RPM range
• Seems to be any gear and at any speed
• If I drop a gear on the paddles and the revs raise to 2500 - 3000 RPM the car will pull like a train again
• doesn’t matter which driving mode it’s in or the hybrid mode/charge state

I've diagnosed the car with ISTA and attached the error messages - nothing jumped out at me? Was really hoping misfire or something. Transmission temp was 77c the last time this happened if that gives any clues.

I did an oil & filter change after new year and plan to do the spark plugs and ignition coils to rule those out.

Really interested if anybody has any thoughts on this, it feels like it's going to be a nightmare to get accurately diagnosed!

I've got a working ISTA so happy to do any diagnostics people would recommend!

[TurboWeasel]

80 degrees is the operating temp of the ZF8 if that is the trans the 330e uses, so I wouldn't worry about that.

Flex ray sometimes comes up if the engine isn't running so that can be ignored as well. That's the optical bus I believe.

I'm not a 330e guru by any means but it seems that a lot of 330e issues can be attributed to the secondary battery, which I guess fault code S 0398 could be hinting at? Also a code for the 'digital motor' but not sure what the complete sentence is as it's cut off.

I'm not one for firing the parts cannon at cars, but given how common it is for the e cars to suffer from weakened auxiliary batteries over time, I would be tempted to replace that as it's 6 years old now, clear the codes, and see what comes back after a drive?

[Allworth]

I would start by checking crankshaft pulley for any damage.
A bit more involved would be to check a driveshaft.

[alexjblake]

Hey all, thanks for the thoughts above.

With regards to the battery I had a check of the secondary battery this weekend and it looks to be dated 02/23 which suggests to me it has been changed recently? And it’s a genuine BMW battery too.

I will also give it a good visual inspection on that crank pulley but I’m curious how this would cause the juddering after an hour of driving or so?

I changed the spark plugs at the weekend but after an hour of driving this evening the violent judder remains so I’m still a bit lost. Unsure whether a BMW Indy or a specialist gearbox place would be the better investment for diagnostics at this stage.

[330ed]

The problem definitely is in the driveline of the car somewhere and not the engine. This is a really common problem, it should really be a recall as its happening on most of these at this stage and is a safety issue.

If you take it to BMW they will tell you it needs a gearbox and will want 12k for a new one.

[Allworth]

Originally Posted by alexjblake

I will also give it a good visual inspection on that crank pulley but I’m curious how this would cause the juddering after an hour of driving or so?

A heat from an engine transfers to Crankshaft pulley's rubber making it softer, thus vibration worsens if there is a crack. A visual inspection and a light wobble by hand can give a good picture about pulley condition, normally there is no need to take apart anything to access it, is unlikely to vibrate heavily, but is so easy to check its worth doing it as preventative anyway.
I had an episodes on my N47 where cold start is OK, but after 11 miles once I made my commute to work it started to make an oscillating noise due to crankshaft pulley vibrations.

[330ed]

Originally Posted by Allworth

A heat from an engine transfers to Crankshaft pulley's rubber making it softer, thus vibration worsens if there is a crack. A visual inspection and a light wobble by hand can give a good picture about pulley condition, normally there is no need to take apart anything to access it, is unlikely to vibrate heavily, but is so easy to check its worth doing it as preventative anyway.
I had an episodes on my N47 where cold start is OK, but after 11 miles once I made my commute to work it started to make an oscillating noise due to crankshaft pulley vibrations.

It's an interesting theory, I haven't heard anyone else attribute it to this problem. I'm not sure though as most who've solved the problem involved full box replacement. Definitely worthwhile checking as you say.

[330eSHQ]

Add one more to the list. My 2016 330e doing exactly the same thing. Juddering badly but again only when it’s warm and only on petrol. If I switch to
Electric the judder disappears


330ed I have been following your posts about the judder that you are getting with your bmw. I am Getting exactly the same issue on my 2016 330e.
Took it to bmw and they said nothing wrong with it. Then took it to independent zf specialist in high Wycombe (Hillclimb garage) and they could Not find anything but a bulletin from bmw regarding something to do with wheels.
No faults at all.

I followed your posts till you 11 Oct but then saw a post where you said u have had the gearbox rebuilt etc and still getting the issue.

This car issue is really stressing me out and wanted to check if you got a solution after all?

[330eSHQ]

I might have a solution to this issue.
Let’s see the car goes to the mechanic on Wednesday so I will
Help you guys updated