If your BMW was manufactured between the late 1980’s and 1995, you should be able to pull diagnostic codes out of the car via the check engine light.
To read these codes, turn the key to position two (run), but do not start the engine. Within 3 seconds of turning the key to position 2, you will need to stomp the gas pedal from idle (not touching the pedal) to WOT (wide open throttle, to the floor) and back, 5 times. If you successfully do this within the 3 second window, the check engine light will turn off, then a long on, then off again, and then begin flashing the codes out to you. If there are no stored codes, it will still flash something out, as there is a code for that too. If you get a constant lit CEL, turn the ignition off and try again.
The code for “no codes stored” is 1444, which would be presented as on-off-on-on-on-on-off-on-on-on-on-off-on-on-on-on-off-on-on-on-on followed by a long off, a long on, and then repeating.
| System Error | Code |
| DME Control Unit | 1211 |
| Air Mass/Volume Sensor | 1215 |
| Throttle Potentiometer | 1216 |
| Output Stage, Group 1 | 1218 |
| Output Stage, Group 2 | 1219 |
| EGO(O2) Sensor 1 | 1221 |
| EGO(O2) Sensor 2 | 1212 |
| Lambda Control 1 | 1222 |
| Lambda Control 2 | 1213 |
| Coolant Temp. Sensor | 1223 |
| Intake Air Temp. Sensor | 1224 |
| Knock Sensor 1 | 1225 |
| Knock Sensor 2 | 1226 |
| Knock Sensor 3 | 1227 |
| Knock Sensor 4 | 1228 |
| Battery Voltage/DME Main Relay | 1231 |
| Throttle Idle Switch | 1232 |
| Throttle WOT Switch | 1233 |
| Speedometer A Signal | 1234 |
| A/C Compressor cut off | 1237 |
| A/C Compressor | 1242 |
| Crankshaft Pulse Sensor | 1243 |
| Camshaft Sensor | 1244 |
| Intervention AEGS | 1245 |
| Ignition Secondary Monitor | 1247 |
| Fuel Injector 1 (or group 1) | 1251 |
| Fuel Injector 2 (or group 2) | 1252 |
| Fuel Injector 3 | 1253 |
| Fuel Injector 4 | 1254 |
| Fuel Injector 5 | 1255 |
| Fuel Injector 6 | 1256 |
| Fuel Injector 7 | 1257 |
| Fuel Injector 8 | 1258 |
| Fuel Pump Relay Control | 1261 |
| Idle Speed Actuator | 1262 |
| Purge Valve | 1263 |
| EGO Heater | 1264 |
| Fault Lamp (check engine) | 1265 |
| VANOS | 1266 |
| Air Pump Relay Control | 1267 |
| Ignition Coil 1 | 1271 |
| Ignition Coil 2 | 1272 |
| Ignition Coil 3 | 1273 |
| Ignition Coil 4 | 1274 |
| Ignition Coil 5 | 1275 |
| Ignition Coil 6 | 1276 |
| Ignition Coil 7 | 1277 |
| Ignition Coil 8 | 1278 |
| Control Unit Memory Supply | 1281 |
| Fault Code Memory | 1282 |
| Fuel Injector Output Stage | 1283 |
| Knock Control test Pulse | 1286 |
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