Traction control on old BMWs

Wan60

Wan60

Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2013
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82
Location
Malaysia
Do the old BMWs have traction control activated or is there a threshold of slip before they engage? Because A few weeks past, I drove the E36 and I slid the rear wheels while cornering into a lane. Fortunately enough just a slight countersteer got me under control,

And my E34 always had some wheelspin when shifting my gears into D, especially on loose rocks or sand. Even the E36 spins its wheels on fine sand and small rocks.
 
The E36 didn't have traction control. It has 'stability control' and the system is pretty stupid as things go. It detects unequal wheelspin and chops the throttle above a certain threshold on the early cars; the later cars can have the brakes come in as well. It does *not* have a yaw sensor or accelerometer, it runs purely on comparing the ABS wheel speed sensors.

Neither system works anywhere near as well as a real LSD.

Also, you shouldn't have any wheelspin when you shift from park to drive, not with your brakes on like you should have. In fact, the car shouldn't move other than a thump or jerk as it engages and loads up the drivetrain.
 
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Spectre said:
Also, you shouldn't have any wheelspin when you shift from park to drive, not with your brakes on like you should have. In fact, the car shouldn't move other than a thump or jerk as it engages and loads up the drivetrain.
Click to expand...

Oh yes, I forgot to include a detail. The E34 went through an engine repair as around 6 months ago because the engine block warped. So the block was milled or something and after the car was done, a few things went a bit, umm, different.

For instance, on the first start the car would start up fine, and after a while driving then I switched off the engine, like for filling up petrol, then the car wouldn't start for a few times. The car could start again third time I turned the key. Plus, engaging into N or P after D, like parking after driving, would cause the engine to rev up to 1000rpm, or the number 1 on the rev meter.
 
Sounds like you need to investigate your wiring harness, sensors and other electrical systems under your hood - apparently someone didn't put it back together properly or damaged something. Most likely a bad idle air controller or maybe a throttle position sensor. If you have the later throttle-by-wire system, it could also be a defective throttle body, which is sadly not uncommon.
 
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Some E36s did not have any traction management. The 95 M3 I drove the other day certainly did not.
 
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