M3 E36 EVO oil temp

[snowen250]

Hello all,

Quick question. Picked up a great E36 M3 yesterday, so far im loving it but i do have a minor question.

The previous owner (great guy and member here) said never to "give it beans" before the oil hits 90 degrees. But with my car that literally takes about 25 min of driving. It also sometimes climbs to this under use, but then in traffic falls down to around 80 again.

Is this normally, should i still be driving it in the lower revs at 80, or is it safe to give it some go at this temp?

Thanks guys, its a great car. so happy with it otherwise, just dont want to damage it!

Simon

[scarebus]

Yes they do take a while to warm up, start to give it some beans progressively once the temperature has stabilised.

[benm3evo]

I'm pretty sure mine has a warning sticker on the dash saying not to exceed 4000rpm before the oil reaches 50 degrees (which is basically when it starts to register on the oil temp gauge).

Haven't got the car with me to check but I'm sure it's something like this, sorry it's a little vague!

[scarebus]

Thats about right, the e46 M3 has a maximum 4000rpm red line when stone cold...

[M3Charlie]

It's about right. I always start mine up and leave it running for 10mins before I set out otherwise I miss out on all the good roads.

[E36GUY]

I keep it to max 2500 rpm until over the 70 degrees mark.

[scz4]

M3Charlie said:

It's about right. I always start mine up and leave it running for 10mins before I set out otherwise I miss out on all the good roads.

Problem is your gearbox & diff won't have warmed up, so you leave the driveway and floor it since your engine is warm. Also read of other negatives of doing this, something to do with moisture buildup in the engine, but can't remember the specifics.. Either way, best way to warm the car up is to drive it gently.

Anyway, my M3 Evo took around 10 minutes of driving to warm up. But it was never used during the winter in the colder weather which may explain the longer times you've experienced.

[Crackie]

snowen250 said:

Hello all,

Quick question. Picked up a great E36 M3 yesterday, so far im loving it but i do have a minor question.

The previous owner (great guy and member here) said never to "give it beans" before the oil hits 90 degrees. But with my car that literally takes about 25 min of driving. It also sometimes climbs to this under use, but then in traffic falls down to around 80 again.

Is this normally, should i still be driving it in the lower revs at 80, or is it safe to give it some go at this temp?

Thanks guys, its a great car. so happy with it otherwise, just dont want to damage it!

Simon

Hi Simon,
I'm delighted you're happy with the car .
Dave.

[snowen250]

Dave,

I am indeed delighted with it! The ABS light is sometimes on sometimes off, its booked in Saturday morning to have this sorted. I have to keep reminding myself the M3 parked on the drive is mine! Its also acquired a name from my friends.....Barney. As its old (to them) Purple and we happened to be watching jurrasic park the night they first saw it...

Thanks for the responses guys, leaving it running for 10 min involves getting up before 6 rather then just after so erm, il just have to grin and bear it!

Thanks for info regarding RPM and temps, very useful.

I should have some good photos up in the readers cars section soon.

Simon

[Crackie]

Waiting for the oil ( and everything else ) to get up to temp is always a good plan imho. It is an iron block but I would still imagine that it warms up faster ( and expands faster ) than the hardened bearing shells during warmup so waiting a while for the oil means your less likely to spin a shell too. ARP rod bolts are the way forward if you're going to the track though

[bull996]

You can usually hear when they are ready for the beans.

When stone cold they are often a biy noisy and trashy-once warm enough they sound ace.

[snowen250]

Dont think il be tracking it just yet! Its taking some getting used too! I'm proud of the low 30s mpg though. And i go through a few tunnels on the way to work, so er, its getting some proper use.

But thanks for tips, just wanted to make sure im looking after it correctly, Sunday was a bit info overload so just ensuring i didnt miss anything. Its currently covered in grit though. Cheers council, still better then icy roads.

[MarkwG]

I don't exceed 3000rpm until the oil temperature registers: with the ambient temp really low at the moment it can take a while...

[chippy17]

MarkwG said:

I don't exceed 3000rpm until the oil temperature registers: with the ambient temp really low at the moment it can take a while...

this is what I do, I also don't tend to take it over 4k until she is, bascially, fully warmed up

[_Neal_]

Good advice above, kept to below 4k myself before temp started to register, then gradually used the rev range as it started to warm up. Also made sense to me to warm the car (box/diff fluids as well as engine) on the move, rather than leaving it idling before I set out.

Enjoy the car, looks like a great example.

[m3ben]

I tent not to rev my evo above 2.5k until the oil temp starts moving, then not above 3.5k until its fully warm. This does take a while at this time of year but its worth being safe with these engines. Its definately true that you can hear when the cars ready to be given the beans, I also go by the feel of the gearbox, which is next to useless when cold!