BMW E46 Starter Relay Location – What You Might Not Know

Even experienced drivers may not be able to grasp all the installation positions of important parts inside the car.

In particular, some vehicles have a slightly different engine management design, making it difficult to find, repair, and even maintain spare parts, such as the BMW E46 starter relay location.

If you are still struggling to find the answer to this problem, you have come to the right place!

Through this article, I will guide you through the exact location of the starter relay and provide a few signs of deterioration of this part.

Starter Relay- Overview 

Before coming to the detailed location of the starter relay, you need to have a complete insight into the overview of this part first. Join me to learn about its uses and classification through the information below!

Relay’s Uses

A relay is an electrical ignition switch in the form of an electromagnet/coil intended to operate the transmission mechanism inside the motor.

Once a relay contact opens, the updated power is sent to the required circuit.

Thanks to ignition coil relays, current management becomes much easier (one low-current circuit manages one/of many high-current circuits).

Besides, the relay also allows connection with the thinner ground cables to save space and weight.

Thanks to it, power is routed to the required devices by the shortest path, helping to reduce voltage losses.

Relay Types

Modern vehicles today mainly use the following two types of relays:

• Mechanical relay: this product mainly consists of only one coil (electromagnet), spring, and one/many contacts to operate. Its advantage is that it can handle large loads (especially in industrial applications) but wears out easily and has a slower switching speed than the solid-state relay.
• Solid state relay (SSR): This product has no moving parts. It consists of 2 control circuits (input and output) and a drive circuit. Since there are no physical contacts, it limits wear and tear over time and increases shock/vibration resistance during operation.

What Is The BMW E46 Starter Relay Location?

According to the manufacturer BMW, the E46 6-cylinder starter motor relay is located on the left side of the rear engine and below the intake manifold.

It’s not an easily accessible location, but it offers various approaches.

I usually access the relay holder from below by pulling the intake manifold, as this is quite convenient, but the working space is limited.

If not, you’ll need to lower the subframe before accessing the starter motor.

How Do You Check The E46 Starter Relay?

Normally, taking the car to a repair center and the professional mechanics there will do all the work for you,

But if you want to experience checking the secondary air pump relay for yourself, that’s not a problem. The problem is too big with the process below.

Remove the relay from the top of the pot. Then connect the tester to the ground and then connect the tester’s lead to the touch pin 30.

If the light doesn’t come on, you’ll need to look for breaks between the anode and pin 30 of the relay connector. Do not hesitate to replace a new relay for your 4-wheeled friend if necessary.

Symptoms Of E46 Relay Diagram Failure

Like most other car parts, the relay will also send the fault signal to the driver.

If you encounter one of the warnings below, it’s best to schedule an inspection with professional mechanical experts as soon as possible.

Car Stalling

Once the ignition key is turned on, the vehicle battery becomes lighter and releases a source of electrical energy.The starter motor receives power and proceeds to rotate the engine.

It can start the circuit completely before reaching the car’s starter but also affect the battery current on the way through.

A faulty relay will not allow any electrical signal to be transmitted from the battery to the starter motor.

That’s why no matter how often you try to turn the key, the engine won’t respond, leading to stalling.

The Start Relay Is Active All The Time

When you turn off the ignition switch, the motor and starter solenoid will stop working individually because they have interconnected contacts.

But when the relay has a problem, it will keep the motor stuck in the operating state, leading to damage to the circuit, starter, relay, and many other related parts.

Clicking Sounds From The Starter 

The starter switch relay makes a suspicious click while the engine is not spinning.

It shows that the starter motor is not getting the required power due to a dead battery, a low battery, a corroded relay, or damaged contacts.

Energy capacity less than the specified level can damage the entire vehicle starter.

Therefore, you should regularly check and clean the contacts, replace the old relay, and use a sandpaper/ gravel scraper to remove the corroded surface of the relay.

Car Starts Intermittently

Trapped debris, dirt, and contaminated objects cause corrosion and deposits, resulting in limited current flow.

As a result, the relay operates but cannot provide a steady power flow to the starting motor.

The starter relay has very few moving parts, so it is very rare to fail.

Therefore, carefully check the surrounding wiring connections and signs of corrosion before suspecting a relay conductivity problem.

FAQs

What Is The 2003 BMW 325i Fuel Pump Relay Location?

In the 2003 BMW 325i, the fuel pump relay is directly behind the glove compartment box inside the vehicle’s multifunction control module holder.

If you want to access it, please remove the glove box on the passenger seat.

What Is The BMW E46 Fuse Box Location?

You will find the BMW E46 fuse box diagram just below the glove compartment box. More specifically, it’s below the black plastic cover to the right of the gas pedal.

Before reaching it, remove the glove box and the fuse diagram box’s small plastic cover.

What Is The BMW E46 Abs Relay Location?

First, you need to open the engine compartment and face it.

In my experience, the location of the BMW E46 relay diagram is in the leftmost corner of the engine compartment, which is surrounded by lots of steel pipes.

Some Last Words

Knowing about the BMW E46 starter relay location and the telltale signs in case it has a problem is the key to identifying the problem’s source and carrying out repairs most effectively.

I hope you have correctly located the starter relay on your vehicle through this article. Let me know when you complete this challenge. And now, see you in the next articles!