Ok so I have a 97 328is with 56k on it and it won't hold an idle! This is the second time it has done this. The first time it did it I was able to start it after a few hours. This time it won't. I'm really upset because I'm supposed to take to get new tires and rims put on Monday. I was talking to a friend about it and the first question he asked me was If I've ever ran the car completely out of gas. Which unfortunately I had to reply honestly that I had done so...twice, like a moron. He has a feeling it might be the fuel pump getting burnt up when I ran the car out of gas. There's absolutely no electrical problem's! I need some experienced advice, please help! -LoGaN

Wait ... are you saying it won't start, or it won't idle after it starts?

You can test the fuel pump or sender ( I do hope you have a bentley). Second, check to see if you have any vaccum leak. Third, check your ICV. If all fails, then its a trip the your local mechanic..

Good luck

The same thing happened to my 323is a week ago. I was in a panic. It would start for a split second and die again. It would stay going when I held in the gas pedal a little bit, but as soon as I let it off it would die again.

I had left the car without starting it for a few days and the ICV (Idle Control Valve) had gummed right up and stuck closed. When I took it apart and cleaned it and put it back together it was like a brand new car.

Search on google for ICV cleaning for BMW. That should take care of it. On my engine it was directly beneath the intake manifold and behind the throttle body. It was an pain to get at, but the result was worth it.

Robert

Hopefully it's just the ICV