Hi all; I have a question my 2001 2.2 seems to run rich as the inside of the exhaust is always black. I gave it a bit of a blast last night and the inside was still black. It is ok on fuel, i can get between 31 and 33 average but doesnt seem that quick. It gets upto 120 ish indicated at 5,400 rpm but acceleration doesn't feel much quicker than my old 2.0 e36. Does anyone have any suggestions, it has done 39k miles , maybe i am used to it but i find it difficult to believe the book figure of 7.7 seconds to sixty altough the exhaust note is ace
Best thing would be to find a local rolling road and ask them to do a power run measuring BHP, Torque and Air Fuel Ratio. Then you will be able to tell if it is really runing rich, the guys at the RR should be able to tell you straight away if anything is wrong but if it is not right likely culprits are the Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor and/or the Lamba Oxygen sensor in the exhaust but again the guys at the RR should be able to spot it. A RR session should cost you around £40-50 and better than any diagnostic at a dealer.
must admit, everyone says it sounds bloody great does yours feel quick off the mark or is it more midrange ? does your exhaust get black inside, sorry to ask all the questions but just want to know if its normal. cheers
What grade of fuel are you using they are designed to run on the high octane stuff. I use shell v power or tescos millenium which is 99 octane and it really does make a big difference. Your engine will run a lot cleaner and power will increase and if you trail the throttle on the overun it will really pop and crackle
I would say that if your mpg figures are accurate and there's no smoke from the exhaust and she's not burning oil then you don't have anything to worry about. There aren't really fast cars unless you go for an "m" but they are smooth, torquey, look cool and sound lovely which more than compensates for any lack of straight line acceleration, in my book at least.
cheers guys, i have found a rolling road place in hinkley just down the road which do diag and 3 runs for about £60. I have tried various places for petrol and both 95 and 98 ron - what do you guys recommend rather than the supermarket rubbish.
pedro20001 wrote:cheers guys, i have found a rolling road place in hinkley just down the road which do diag and 3 runs for about £60. I have tried various places for petrol and both 95 and 98 ron - what do you guys recommend rather than the supermarket rubbish.
I always use Shell V Power, never touch the BP stuff which is actually only a stones throw away from me rather travel a mile or so for the good stuff. Having said that although I have not used it the Tesco 99 stuff is supposed to be quite good from what I have heard but in any case use at least 98 as the BMW 6cyl engines revel in it.
I suppose £60 aint too bad for 3 runs what rig setup have they got and just make sure they can give you a AFR printout as well as not all can, this is what will tell you if the engine is running right across the rev range.
Yes - your consumption etc loks pretty average for a good 2,2, but 95 octane unleaded always leaves a black tailpipe - just try a tankful of 97/98 and see what happens after a decent run.
Rolling road? Far too many people on this forum can think of nothing better than advising others to have a rolling road run, instead of using their heads a little first!
cheers mike, sounds like good advice. It is far too easy to use cheap 95 ron supermarket petrol when its only 1 mile down the road when i really should use 98 ron. Just out of interest, have you ever tried sainsbury's super 98?
2 weks is really not enough to make a difference - try a month or tow.
My 2.8 has been fed on 98 octane for the last 7 years in France, and the exhaust 0 even after 117000 miles - remains clean - you can see the metal of the tail pipes.
I remember when living in the UK - in the SW, where it is a case of 95 or nothing - the tailpipes were always black.
I have seen the same on motorcycoles too - black for 95 octane use, and white/grey for 98 octane.
my 2001 2.2 seems to run rich as the inside of the exhaust is always black. I gave it a bit of a blast last night and the inside was still black. It is ok on fuel, i can get between 31 and 33 average but doesnt seem that quick. It gets upto 120 ish indicated at 5,400 rpm but acceleration doesn't feel much quicker than my old 2.0 e36. Does anyone have any suggestions, it has done 39k miles , maybe i am used to it but i find it difficult to believe the book figure of 7.7 seconds to sixty 
does yours feel quick off the mark or is it more midrange ? does your exhaust get black inside, sorry to ask all the questions but just want to know if its normal. cheers
