BMW 3 Series E30 car engine ignition system

Ignition system — general information
The ignition system produces an ignition spark, which ignites the air-fuel mixture in the cylinders at a certain moment. To produce an ignition spark of...

Operation of the transistor ignition system
The transistor ignition system is contactless. Instead of a breaker contact, the ignition distributor has an inductive sensor that does not require...

Functioning of the parametric ignition system
In a parametric ignition system, the optimum ignition timing is determined depending on the current engine operating mode. The control parameters are engine...

Safety precautions when working with the ignition system
Electronic ignition systems contain high voltages of up to 30,000 V. Under adverse conditions, such as high humidity in the engine compartment, voltage peaks...

Checking/adjusting ignition timing
To check, you will need a speed meter with a closing angle indicator and a stroboscope. Note: On engines with Motronic, the ignition timing can only be...

Ignition timing / CO content / engine idle speed
To check the ignition timing, the vacuum hose is disconnected from the vacuum diaphragm of the ignition distributor. When checking the CO content, the vacuum...

Removal and installation the ignition distributor
Removal Disconnect the ground wire from the battery. Four-cylinder engine Remove the protective cap from the ignition distributor. First disconnect the ground...

Checking the ignition coil
The ignition coil is checked using an ohmmeter. Disconnect the ground wire from the battery. Remove the protective cap from the ignition coil. Disconnect the...

Checking the ignition wires
Disconnect the ground wire from the battery. Remove the distributor cap and disconnect the spark plug tips. Caution: When doing this, grasp the tip, not the...

Spark plugs
The spark plug consists of a central electrode, an insulator with a housing, and a ground electrode. The ground electrode is hermetically secured in an...

Maintenance work on the ignition system
The electronic ignition system does not require any maintenance in principle, except for checking the contacts of the connections and spark plugs as part of...

Ignition system fault diagnostics
Malfunction: the engine starts poorly or does not start at all

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Similar sections for other types of BMW cars:
Power unit: Ignition system BMW 5 Series E12 (1972-1981)
Power unit: Ignition system BMW 7 Series E32 (1986-1994)

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