E39 M5 Not starting

[Murdoch]

Sure thing! I'll give that a try in the morning -
Ok so just to confirm exactly what i'm doing;

putting key into ignition barrel
turning ignition switch with screwdriver to see if if behaves differently

I leave the ignition switch plugged in though right?

[Murdoch]

Tried turning the ignition switch with screw driver and key in barrel and same problem :-( I'm going to pull up the seat today and check fuses under right hand side seat

[Smokey Bear]

Is there 12v at the ignition switch? You should check it seeing as all the shrouds are off.

[Murdoch]

Hey,

I have not yet - but I thought that with the obd screen lighting up and working that it was getting power - worth a try still I guess!

I chexked the fuses under the right hand side seat with a continuity check and they're all OK.

There was a tiny bit of moisture but everything looks good in there .

greenshot

[Valdelisbmw]

check fuses in glow box and think its in the boot . check ground wire from body to the engine ,or even get jump start leads and connect from car or other battery straight to the engine .

[Murdoch]

I checked the fuses in the glove box & in the boot. They are seem OK.
When you say plug straight to engine - do I connect my battery in the boot also or just a separate power source to the engine?

Does this look like an immobiliser to you guys? the wire coming out of it is going up in behind the dash...
It came with this key also but I can't find where it goes; I also couldn't find any information about this system either (GT Alarms?)

I stripped apart where all the areas where I thought an immobiliser / alarm could be hidden but I found nothing....

[Smokey Bear]

That key connects to the two contacts next to the red LED.

When he said plug straight to engine he means use jump leads to the shock tower negative pole on the passenger side for LHD car and the positive pole which on those v8’s I think is located on the opposite head to the oil cap under a cover which looks like the oil cap.

You should still check if there is power at the ignition switch and if not then trace those wires back to their source if there is no power. That would be my first port of call seeing ass there is no ignition lights. If the alarm is your problem you will most likely find that it is breaking one of these wires and not completing the circuit so check before and after where that alarm is tapped in with your multimeter.

[rebel.ranter]

Is it just me or do the contact points on the immobiliser look corroded? Would it help to clean them out a bit with contact cleaner and a cotton bud?

[Valdelisbmw]

is that alarm in working condition ? I mean did U still use it ?

[Murdoch]

Hi

I think the alarm (or immobiliser?) is in use. The LED is flashing always. And I read on the manual of the next link, that it dis-activates the car after 20 seconds - which would explain the "intermittent" problem I was having. It looks exactly like this

The key I have is not the same brand as what I linked - so I need to find where they installed it and see if I can swap it out for another one with working keys!

I should add... this all started happening after I disconnected the battery for a few days.

No receipt came with the car for this thing.