Car starts then immediately stops?

KEBIRDIE

MEMBER
2006 BMW X3
3.0L
6 CYL
4WD
AUTOMATIC
160,000 MILES

It's been driving absolutely fine, but today as I started it, it began to rev up and down. I turned the engine off and plugged in my OBD reader. I tried starting again, now the car will just about start then die immediately. No codes. I'm hoping this is just a battery issue. The current voltage from the battery reads 11.80. I'm going to try a jump start first, but is there anything else I should check?

Sunday, June 4th, 2023 AT 11:24 AM

1 Reply

KEN L

MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
51,782 POSTS

The battery voltage is low, which is what I would address first. Also, I would check the charging system.

Here is a guide to help us get started:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-a-car-alternator

Also make sure the cables are clean and tight.

Here is a guide to help:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/everything-goes-dead-when-engine-is-cranked

Here are guides to help you change out the battery and have it checked/replaced. If everything checks out, I would do a CAN scan which is different than a simple engine scan. You can get a CAN scanner (Controller Area Network) which will work on most cars from Amazon.

Here is a video to show you how:

https://youtu.be/u-4syLc-ifQ

and

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/can-scan-controller-area-network-easy

Here is one for about $99.00 if you need it:

https://amzn.to/3ZixY4v

Check out the images (below). Let us know what happens and please upload pictures or videos of the problem so we can see what's going on.

Images (Click to make bigger)