This video just saved me big $ , I always had problems with slow start since I got the car last year. Thinking it was the battery the whole time. Was planning to replace it when the cold weather hit. One day, got in the car and it turned over VERY slow, then nothing. Did your trip grounding the engine to chassis and started up no problem. Found the engine/chassis ground and it was toast. This is why I love KZfaq!!! Thanks for your video!!

Great video! Ran into similar issue - stubborn hiccup at startup - obd2 logs / electronics having issues - thought its battery, new battery though - double checked battery ground - little loose. Tightened, instant startup and all electronics smooth as butter! check all your grounds including the one at battery in trunk :) - cheers

Thank you for the video. This is a big help for me on my BMW 2004 530I. I couldn’t figure out what was wrong I didn’t notice my wire is green and split . I got something to look forward to now to fixing this problem. I really appreciate you. Thank you. 👍

Thanks for the tip! I have the same problem, it’s the ground not the starter

Great Video! People don’t realize how important the ground strap is and can cause a bunch of problems. Like the jumper cable test you did, smart and thanks-

Super Interesting, thank you for making these videos M.E....

Thank you! I had not thought about this until I ran in to your video. It makes perfect sense. I’m experiencing a slow start, I had my battery check and it checks out good; but it will still start slow. The odd thing is that it doesn’t start slow all the time and when it does, sometimes it sounds like it is not going to start at all.

Wow this could be it! Thank you!

Thank you 😊 I will be checking today with jump leads its only just started to slow start like bogging then dead like battery dieing but I have new battery fingers crossed 🤞 it's the ground 😀

My 2007 BMW x3 would not start after i stopped for coffee and i also had a slow crank for a while before. After watching this video i grabbed a piece of 14/2 cable that i luckily had in my car and made a connection between my negative bolt under the hood and an engine, i shoved the cable in to a tight spot next to an oil filter. Car started immediately, and i would like to thank you for your video and saving me a good amount of money!

THNXS! Edit: and this is also very common fault on BMW 1 series so its worth to check out for sure easy job;)

AWESOME! Struggled for a solution for several days before giving up to reluctantly make an appointment for the tow truck and BMW dealer.......tried the grounding cables and the Bimmer started strong! Cancelled the tow whom had not shown up after several hours :). Going to find a thick grounding strap at Lowes :)

Solved! Your the man.

Air filter always make sure you rig it so you can take every cover off reap quick to change coils

I have the same bmw 128 like in your video ...my car does the same thing …….great video will see if I have the same problem.....In the morning when I go take a look at it …:)

YOU ARE A LIFESAVER 🎉🎉

My 2006 118i E87 sounds the same. After two days of not driving it, it wouldn't even start. Changed the battery but it wasn't that. I am most definitely gonna try this. Hopefully it's not an expensive solution like the starter :D

I have a feeling it’s the battery on mine because the previous owner didn’t set the new battery, but I’m going to try this anyway. Thanks for the video!

I have a 2014 x6. the compartment is completely covered. I can't even find a part of the engine to do the ground test. I also can't find a single ground wire to even check coming from the engine. Any idea where it would be on my car? I have done numerous searches for its location and just get forums complaining about them

Thanks man!!! Big help✌✌

I will try this on my e90. I have slow crank only if I left the car over the weekend. But on weekdays were I drive it everyday, it won’t happen. I was close to go ahead and order a starter. Hopefully this fix the problem. Thanks again for everything

Don't know why, but can't find part number? I have a 2011 328i (E90) xDrive. Thx!

So I was able to fix it for good.. buy a new Cabel and then go to a auto parts store and get a electrical tube cover it's a hard plastic that helps it not get wet or let anything touch it ..its been years and no problems at all.

Any idea where the earth/ground strap would be located on an e90 330d, M57N engine?

Would you recommend making your own out of copper perhaps. some zero gauge battery wire with terminals gold plated on the ends and then solder them and then put protective boot over the connections or perhaps some liquid electrical tape after tightening it ?up to prevent corrosion?

Your VDO is very helpful. How to grease up this ground cable ?

What other problems can the grounding strap course if not goid I've noticed on my e90 330d that I have alot of vibration whats just came on random sounds quiet ruff from before anyone

This was helpful. Thanks!

Wow! Good find! Thanks for sharing! Couldn't u just insulate & heat shrink that ground cable to make it last longer??

Hii brother..my bmw f30 318 takes along to start don't know what to do now. Is there anything i can try ..because I've changed the the petrol pump but still

tanks you for videos

Anyone know what you can spray on ground wire driver side tire . I'm thinking do what he did from the post to the engine rig it like that permanent till you change the actual ground

Seems pretty helpful except I wish people would zoom out in these videos so I know where to look.

nice one

Your video helped me start my car, I appreciate it! Now that the engine is running, is it safe to remove the jumping cables completely and drive off? Wouldnt that damage the battery ? Thanks in advance

Yep. Often that driver's floor ground strap is already green and broken off at one end. After that the starter goes to shit.

thank you soooooo much god bless you

Thank you for the video! My BMW is starting slow. Once starts and is warmed up, if I turn it off about 40 minutes later, it won’t turn crank. I have to let it cool off before it cranks again. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Sorry. I have a 2009 BMW 535i E60 - Slow starting - Did what you showed - It helped - But can't find the grounding strap - It's underneath right? Drivers side or Passenger Side? I gotta jack the car up to get my big head under there. Thank-you for the video - Might (FOR ONCE) be something cheap to fix.

Hi, is this located on the 2013 328i 2.0 L also??

Where do I found this wire I think this is the problem on my car?

I have the same problem with the BMW X5 E53 2004 slow start of the engine note the battery has changed and the problem is not solved, can the problem be solved the same way, thanks

I changed my batterie starter gaskets relays and unplugged my ibs and stilll no start ... Then i watched this video snd wanted to shoot myself, lol, you live you learn.

On my E90 (2008 335XI model) My mechanic replaced my grounding cable 2 weeks ago. One week later when I was driving on the Parkway as soon as I approach around 68-70 MPH the car gets a weird loud vibration like some plastic or rubber panel in vibrating really rapidly from I guess the wind under the hood from reaching that speed. The flapping loud vibration type noise is coming from under the hood on the driver's side of the car. Is there a panel (from replacing the grounding cable...You mentioned a splash shield), that they may not have tighten up properly when they did the grounding cable replacement... This is such a weird vibration type noise. The car, by the way, even with the noise drives smooth and perfectly normal, just has this really loud vibration type noise. *When I slow the speed to under about 68MPH the noise goes away....only above that speed it is present. Thanks... Phil NYC Area

Kool

Where did you get the part from

I'm sorry I'm confused with the jumper test. It looks like you have 2 jump cables on the video or is it not correct? You hooked up one black side to the battery's negative and the side of the cable that you hook up to the engine looks black as well. Is that the second jump cable? What do you do with the red ends? Sorry for maybe a dumb question but I really need to figure this out. Thank you

I have 2006 750li when i try ti start some times i lose all power. They i open and close door and power come bk on, sometime have to do 3 or 4 times to get to start, and rarely will lose poweer driving for a half dec if that. and help////, think is a ground wire or a starter.it clicks sometimes,.like loseiing a connection somewhere

i have 328i. the issue i have seen today is when i gave it a gas. it goes too slow like its gunna stop or shut down then goes normal after few seconds. any help please and i just had my recall service from BMW dealer and they are closed now due to holiday?? whats this issue? can someone explain?

Definitely the grounding strap causing all different kinds of problems.

what if the bolt on the starter positive wire is not tight. What method to test to distinguish?

People always blame the battery first but do you know how much battery it actually takes to crank so if your starter is cranking and cranking and cranking and not starting you're killing the battery like ultra fast and then when it's time to test the battery the battery is low....

so the positive cable clamp isn't connected right only the negative?

Do I need to disconnect the battery to remove the ground strap or is it safe to remove as long as the engine is off?

2001.bmw m-43 engine slow start how to fix it

Hi M.E. hey thank you for helping us and making these videos... i just bought a BMW 2007 X5 3.0 and the seller PROMISED me it was in excellent condition??? as soon as i bought it ..the next day the message said battery had been disconnected ? and low charge ?? one minute it does this one minute says all systems OK? what can i do? thank you... i used all my money to buy it and now i'm stuck with it in AZ and the heat season is here? and I have a new bourn?

I struggle to start when I drove for a long while during the day, as soon as I switch off and try to start again it doesn't want to, what could it be please help

2008 bmw x5 3.0si had same problem after replaced ground strap 3 montths ago problem was solved than the truck was stopped for a months now seeing the same problem ! is it possible the ground starp again gone bad in 3 months ?

Can I do this by myself?

I have a e93 2007 330d n57 engine... it starts fine after 2 to 3 secs ... but sometime I get long cranks randomly like every other day or so... its not even cold in UK... can someone help?

usefull information is between 2:16 and 5:06, skip the rest

Whats that called bro I think i need one Brand new battery and its hard to turn over Just subd!

was your positive cable connected to the vehicle as well

My car has a hesitant slower start decently frequently but not all the time. Could this still be my issue? Car only has 38k miles

bmw clicks upon start and won't turn over. Had a flat battery sat through all winter. Re-charged it, and it lights up the car again. But now it clicks. What could it be? The battery read 13.90V now it's down to 12.80

Can someone help me, so I have a 2006 bmw 325i my problem is that my car would sit over night when I try it & start it in the morning it won’t start until like the 3 try

Unfirtunately i thiught it was my starter and pulled it out to bench test it... yup screwed it up. Replaced it with new one.... still the having problems. Trying this tomorrow.

My n54 won’t even crank but when I turn it off the airbag light comes on but they’ve never deployed

Anyone who the link to this ground wire on ebay. Would help everyone.

Trying the negatives test didn't work. Car still sputtered as if the battery was dying but the battery and alternator tested just fine. I've given up on BMW's at this point.

The wire i am having an issue with is not braided it is red and it is fine on my e53 3.0i. The wire sits beneath my ac and goes to the frame. I fucking broke the bracket that the wire bolts on and it slow cranks now. After seeing this i now know that that goddamn thing is my issue. But because i broke the bracket im likely going to have to drill out an other one next to it to get the issue fixed. Any advice?

Where exactly did u put the positives

How would i suggest to my mechanic? Im a girl but i dont know what parts am i supposed to tell/fix

Is same in X5 E70 3.0si N52 engine?

Hey, after grounding with jumper cables and the car starts, can you remove them and drive?

You connect both positive? To where?

Where you connect red positive?

Hello! I have a e38 725 from 1996 When the engine is cold, it stars perfectly without any problems Bit when the engine is hot (like if I drive it for 15 min) it will start really slow, it has to spin like 10 seconds before starting Any idea what's happening and how to solve it? Thanks!

Where did you get the new cable

Did you get A0B4 code engine start stater operation?

Very nice , My bmw , Audi and Mercedes Benze all have this probelm.. it's a European bad design..

SO MY BATTERY IS PERFECT BUT I'M REALLY HOT DAYS IF I'VE USED THE CAR A LITTLE BIT AND TURNED IT OFF WHEN I TRY TO START IT AGAIN IT DOESN'T CRANK AND THEN I HIT THE BUTTON AGAIN AND IT CRANKS AND IN THE WINTER TIME WHEN IT'S REALLY COLD OUTSIDE IT'LL SLOW CRANK UNTIL IT DRAINS THE HELL OUT OF THE BATTERY AND THEN THE WHOLE THING'S OVER. THE BATTERY HAS BEEN CHANGED THREE TIMES BY THESE IDIOTS WHO KEEP SAYING THAT IT'S THE BATTERY WHEN I KNOW IT'S NOT. COULD THE GROUND BE MY ISSUE OR DO I HAVE A WEAK STARTER?

But did it fix the problem?

have a x3 2007, bought pre-owned. It's not starting at all, we checked the amperage and everything seemed good with the battery. So we replaced the starter, It worked for two days and now its not starting up again. I'm really new to car repair but do you think your solution would have any relevance to my current problem. Would appreciate any help you could give thanks.

Awful design from bmw, i replace them with generic for 10 bucks

Remove the splash shield just in front of the what? Automatic then the next word was just s jumble lol

Man you speak alot, gotta be bit precise on video.

Helpful video, but speed it up. Should have been a 2-3 minute video

Good advice but one hell of a long video just to say check the earth to the engine! Americans! ... why use one word when you can use 50 :) LOL

You explain all this about the grounding with you have 2 positive connected up 🤣🤣🤣 you don't explain anything about the lives