I have a BMW 318i that's been parked for 8 months. How do I start it safely, now?

Question

I haven't even turned the engine over in all that time.

Answer 1

First remove the four spark plugs, then add few drops of motor oil in each spark plug holes (prefer mystery marvel oil) this will loosen any binding piston rings,if you have a good battery crank the car, but not run for few seconds.Install spark plugs and start the car ,keep it runing till the old oil is warm.Turn off engine and drain the oil. Renew the oil along with the coolant.

Answer 2

No worries, I left my car for 4 years w/o starting, and it still started up. I now have a standard routine whenever I need to wake up my sleeping beauty. Here's what I normally do.

Do an oil and filter change. Change out the air filter. In my case, my air filter has a sponge layer, which would deteriorate and crumble by the time I change it out. I normally would also change my spark plugs. Check radiator level, visually check brake fluid level (they normally should be fine).

THEN...

Buy and install a new battery. Other than disarming the alarm (if it trips) when you first reconnect the battery, don't do anything else. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. This is to let the battery recharge the system - including the batteries/capacitors in the dash and ECU...etc.

Move the key to step 1, (where all the lights come on), this step would tell you if the power system is charged... if it is not charged, the needles and warning lights will go crazy. If it does that, turn off and leave the car for another 10-15 minutes.

If everything seems fine, just start it. You may find that you might need to keep the starter spinning longer and needing to press on the accelerator pedal. Once it starts, all you need to do is to make sure your tire pressure is good (if not, fill up ASAP), and you're good to go.

I usually follow up with a good wash and wax... and I also drain and fill my radiator (because I do it once every 3-4 years).

Answer 3

pull the valve covers off pour oil down the head s. give the tank fresh fuel, check all hoses. With the ignition disconnected crank the engine over get fresh oil up the galleys and the rocker arms. then start it :)