[tom.gnade]

I installed MILVs and of course new valve cover gasket etc. I tried to install the new tune from AA and iFlash says it can't wake up the ECU. The car has power, cranks, I can hear the fuel pump priming, but it just won't start. It will crank for quite a while but just won't fire up.

I was very careful with the job, everything is back right where it was, as far as I know. Any ideas? Has anyone else experienced this?

I suppose this is why I should have just paid someone to do the job. Oh well.

[tom.gnade]

Hoping its just a grounding cable? The code scanner can't communicate with the ECU.

[sirantsE90]

double check the connection didn't come loose on the crankshaft positioning sensor or if your replaced it make sure its seated properly.

[tom.gnade]

I didn't go anywhere near the crankshaft sensor. The vanos solenoids and eccentric shaft sensor I did pull and reconnect, but those I triple checked.

Can anyone out there show me a picture of the correct ground connections from the ECU and motor to chassis? Does anyone have a picture of the red terminal and it's connections, so I can verify I put it back correctly?

I should have taken pictures as I went. I didn't anticipate having a problem that stalled me for 5 days. I was expecting to be done Sunday night. I had some trouble recalling exactly what went where. I believe the ECU is not properly grounded right now, since I can't get it to wake up or connect even to my ODB port reader.

I also wonder if maybe I incorrectly re-initialized the valvetronic motor? I basically just inserted it, and it went smoothly right to the mounting points. I bolted that in snugly, then used a hex wrench to turn the tensioner counterclockwise until it started to resist. Is that not correct?

[AdrianE36]

This might be a dumb question but did you happen to unplug the DME (or anything in the DME compartment) when replacing the VCG?

[tom.gnade]

AdrianE36 yes, I unplugged one harness, but plugged it back in within a minute. I had to remove the top of the ECU so I could pull the 3 wiring looms out of the way, they have like a rubber stopper thing that holds them into the ECU box, and it was a bit in the way so I moved them.

I've double checked all ground points, including the two beside the ignition coils, the main one for the motor, the main ECU grounds and the big fat line that connects to the positive charger terminal lead.

I tried to flash an AA tune, which I've done several times before, and it just cannot contact the ECU at all.

I thought maybe it was my battery, so I connected my battery charger to the leads, and sure enough it showed 0volts and a "SUL" warning - which the instruction guide says means the battery is somehow "sulfinated"?? No idea what that means.

So, I just took the battery out of the car, and connected it directly to my charger, and it shows the battery is 100% fine - 12.4 volts, all good, no issues at all.

How is it possible that my charger can't get a reading on the battery at all when connected to the positive lead in the engine bay, with negative (black) attached to the chassis (as per the instructions, and I've done this many times to trickle charge the battery, never failed before) - but it reads just fine when connected directly to the battery?

This is bizarre. Did I somehow maybe break or crack that big fat cable that comes across the top of the motor? All I did was move it gently out of the way to get the valve cover out.

Anyhow, now I'm even more lost, because I thought for sure it was just a dead battery. Yeah, no, it's fine. What is the next thing I could check if I can't get a good connection to the battery at the engine bay positive lead?

[Jros]

I would try manually rotating the vvt motor to full lift with ignition off if i remember correctly using 4mm hex clockwise, then disconnecting it and trying to start the car. It would run in limp mode but it will start if the problem is a bad valvetronic motor. Maybe check power gets to it. Something like this happened to me couple years ago.

[Jros]

By your symptoms i guess your power cable is somehow damaged. Mine was corroded in the battery bay by an accumulation of water. Changed it and then opened the drains in the battery bay, the are there but mines were strangely capped off with a plastic cap...

[0l0dom0l0]

Use a multimeter to check that you have 12v to the connection point under the bonnet. If you don't ( which it sounds like you don't) then the ECU won't be getting power.
Did you disconnect the battery when working on the car? If not you may have blown a fuse or fried a module.

[tom.gnade]

Update: I pulled the battery and directly charged it, it's perfectly fine. I reinstalled it last night. Voltage now checks fine using the engine bay leads. The 40A fuse is fine in the ECU. All ground points are correct. I did find this interesting lead:

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=748552

User @MykD said "I'd love to know what was up with this. My 07 328i is throwing that code after valvetronic motor replacement and won't start."

And I just found this post too:

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=976004

@Delusive

"You are correct, there are two ways for it to relearn either ISTA/D or just pure mechanics.

To the OP, there are two ways you can do this either relearn it with ISTA/D or remove the valvetronic motor and with a screwdriver push the eccentric shaft gear as far back anti clockwise as it can go. Insert the valvetronic motor and connect its 2 pin plug. Then switch the ignition onto position 2 and within a space of 15 seconds, depress the accelerator pedal down to full throttle 10 times and you will hear the valvetronic motor program itself back to factory spec."

While this seems like some kind of voodoo I will give it a try this am and see what happens.

[tom.gnade]

Ok, I got it working. I don't have a great explanation, because I didn't change or fix anything under the hood. I did, however, set the "ignore driver signature" setting correctly in Windows 10, and the Active Autowerkes' iFlash program was finally able to successfully connect, so it is very likely that the USB driver was failing all along. The flash went on without a hitch.

It definitely pulls harder, more insistent. I'll get the headers on next and see how the two play together.

[e90yyc]

So you think it might have been a software issue? Either way, glad you got it fixed!

You’re gonna love headers.

I recently purchased headers from the people who make them for AA... They were about a third of the cost, but with shipping the final bill was about half. If you haven't purchased any yet let me know and I'll share some details. Nothing secret at all, but figured I don't need to write a novel here.

Nobody here seems to mention this, but AA's headers are made in China. The quality is good, but you can get that same exact quality for way, way less. I know that many off-brand and eBay headers ARE pieces of crap, so I understand the sentiment about those and people's reluctance to buy something that isn't recommended by the community. That said, if you head over to some E46 M3 forums where you can buy made in Germany OE Euro headers, people dismiss AA's alternative as vastly inferior. It's all relative.

So, I'm not at all talking trash about AA's headers. The product is solid. Just saying you can save some serious cash by going straight to the source . I plan to make a post eventually when I have more time.

[tom.gnade]

e90yyc yes, the headers definitely bumped up the fun factor. I still have stock exhaust though so there isn't much difference in the sound yet. I have a feeling once I match up a good exhaust I will get some hp that has been left on the table for now.