OBD-II trouble code
P0274: Cylinder 5 Injector Circuit High
SAE J2012 APR2002: cylinder 5 injector circuit high. The 2008 BMW M5 memory line is a short to B+ and a 5000 rpm limit. The printed pair is one injector after the plug is checked.
Quick facts
- System
- Powertrain
- Category
- Fuel Injectors
- Severity
- Medium severity
- Drivable
- Usually safe to drive short-term
- Repair cost range
- $768 – $953 (one fuel injector replacement, parts and labor, after the 2008 M5 harness step or the G8 continuity checks; a wire-to-wire short and the module are outside this pair)
- DIY difficulty
- Shop recommended
Browse every code in P0200–P0299, or start from the full code library.
What does P0274 mean?
SAE J2012 APR2002 names P0274 Cylinder 5 Injector Circuit High. A VAG-group list prints 16658 P0274 as injector 5-N83, short to positive. The 7.5–16 V Type A G3 procedure, AllOEMManuals G3 L4-1.6L and gm.saturn.team 7725/145178, has no cylinder 5, so its terminal 1 ignition and terminal 2 control test is not this page. Document 8100/175665 swaps those terminals and is also a four-cylinder chart.
The 2008 BMW M5 (E60) S85 page files 276B - P0274, electrical diagnosis of cylinder 5's fuel injector, memory line a short circuit to B+. Terminal 15 on and battery voltage above K_ED_PlusMin. Check the plug and the wiring harness, then the valve, replaced as indicated. Rough idle, speed limited to 5000 rpm, power reduction, MIL after two engine runs. The 2010 page that uses hex 276B for P0273 is a short to ground and a 3500 rpm limit. The 2008 page that uses 276B for P0205 is an open load, also at 5000 rpm. Do not collapse those three pages into one fault.
The 2008 G8 3.6L setting line for P0274 is a control circuit shorted to voltage for greater than 4 seconds or for a cumulative of 30 seconds. The open is P0205. The short to ground is P0273. Enable: greater than 80 rpm, 10–18 volts, injector commanded on and off at least once, Type B. Test order after the multi-way is off: supply lamp on the ECM side, and the note that this ignition feed also supplies other components so every shared circuit or component gets the short-to-ground check. A dark lamp plus an open fuse is a feed short to ground. A dark lamp plus a good fuse is an open feed. Only then does the control pin to ground get read. A lamp that lights there is the short to voltage. ECM only if the wire tests normal. The 2.6–4.6 volt step is the open check and comes after. Upper intake comes off before the injector connectors are separated for the continuity checks: OL between the ignition feed and the control wire, less than 1 ohm along each wire, OL from the control wire to ground, and OL from this control wire to every other injector control wire. A reading less than OL on that last check is a wire-to-wire short, not a failed injector. Coil resistance is 12–16 ohms.
Common causes
- On the 2008 M5, a short circuit to B+ on cylinder 5, fault 276B
- A short to B+ in that injection valve's plug or harness
- On the G8, a short to voltage for greater than 4 seconds or a cumulative of 30 seconds
- A short between cylinder 5's control wire and another injector control wire
- The ECM, after that control wire tests normal
Symptoms
- P0274 stored
- On the 2008 M5 page, speed limited to 5000 rpm
- A G8 control-pin lamp to ground that lights
- A meter reading less than OL between cylinder 5's control wire and another injector's control wire
- P0205 stored if the circuit is open instead
Diagnostic steps
- 1.On the 2008 M5, check the plug and harness on cylinder 5's injection valve before replacing the valve. Keep the 5000 rpm line on the short-to-B+ page. The 3500 rpm line belongs to the 2010 ground page, P0273.
- 2.On the G8, disconnect the multi-way with the ignition off and expect P0201–P0206. Prove the supply lamp. Account for other parts on that ignition feed before calling the wire open.
- 3.Control pin to ground must stay dark. If it lights, test the short to voltage, then the ECM. Do not replace the injector for a lit lamp.
- 4.2.6–4.6 volts, key on, ECM side of the multi-way, is the open check. Out of range: open/high resistance, then the ECM.
- 5.After the upper intake is off and the injector connectors are unplugged, OL between feed and control, less than 1 ohm end to end, OL to ground, OL to the other control wires. Less than OL between control wires is a wire-to-wire short.
- 6.12–16 ohms across the injector if the wiring has already passed. Depressurize before it comes out. The printed pair is that injector. The short and the module are outside it.
Repair cost
$768 – $953 (one fuel injector replacement, parts and labor, after the 2008 M5 harness step or the G8 continuity checks; a wire-to-wire short and the module are outside this pair)
RepairPal's national fuel-injector replacement, last updated 3 September 2026, is $768–$953 (labor $304–$446, parts $464–$507). Printed for the one injector those charts replace after the wiring passes. A wire-to-wire short, a feed repair, and an ECM or DME are outside. Diagnosis is $125–$183 labor, separate. The 2026 Tucson line at $456–$604 is not the national average.
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DIY vs shop
Leave this one to a qualified shop. The barrier here is high-pressure fuel components, where residual pressure remains after shutdown and escaping fuel can penetrate skin. DIY attempts often produce a more expensive problem than the original code.