Timing chain?

[Paulnc]

I posted earlier about my 325ix skipping in the morning after about 5-10 minutes of driving and then the misfiring would get progressively worse to the point that she would stall after about 10 minutes. But then in the afternoon she drove great and at night it drove great but every morning like clockwork she stalls.
My 'new' mechanic is saying the timing chain has slipped or broke or something $$$$$ and is the reason its still codeing with errors for misfiring and camshaft sensors. Could this be the real problem before i sink some money in her. Thanks

 

[Big Daddy]

It could not have broken or the car would not be running at all! It could be a malfunctioning camshaft position sensor.

 

[Kirby]

If it drives fine sometimes and then acts up, and then drives fine the next day, it is 99.9% NOT the timing chain. If the timing chain slipped it would drive like crap all the time, if drive at all.

Camshaft position sensors are a common failure item, I think there are two on the E46? Have they both been replaced? There was also a recall on some E46s for bad coils which can cause the problems you describe.

Is this mechanic a BMW specialist or dealer? Timing chain slip is almost unheard of on BMWs, there are alot of other things to look at first.

 

[Kirby]

Hehe Dan, we wrote the same response at the same time!!

 

[Big Daddy]

Yes we did, now that is "Timing"...