E39 M5 oil temp and coolant temp off the scale
Discussion
Hello all wondering if anyone can relate or help with my M5. I was driving along on the motorway doing no more than 60 - 70 mph as usual I glanced at the gauges and the engine coolant temp went off the scale and the oil temp was reading aroung half way . The car still ran ok this has happened a few times now, all motorway journeys. After pulling over and checking the coolant level and oil levels all were normal . After switching the engine back on the gauges read normal. Any ideas guys please.
Thank you FatmansV8
Thank you FatmansV8
fatmansv8 said:
Hello all wondering if anyone can relate or help with my M5. I was driving along on the motorway doing no more than 60 - 70 mph as usual I glanced at the gauges and the engine coolant temp went off the scale and the oil temp was reading aroung half way . The car still ran ok this has happened a few times now, all motorway journeys. After pulling over and checking the coolant level and oil levels all were normal . After switching the engine back on the gauges read normal. Any ideas guys please.
Thank you FatmansV8
I had exactly the same thing on mine, a 2000 pre facelift car. It was the radiator.Thank you FatmansV8
Replaced with a new one.
fatmansv8 said:
Hello all wondering if anyone can relate or help with my M5. I was driving along on the motorway doing no more than 60 - 70 mph as usual I glanced at the gauges and the engine coolant temp went off the scale and the oil temp was reading aroung half way . The car still ran ok this has happened a few times now, all motorway journeys. After pulling over and checking the coolant level and oil levels all were normal . After switching the engine back on the gauges read normal. Any ideas guys please.
Thank you FatmansV8
Its a common problem/fault with the E39 M5. If your temp gauge was off the scale right across past the red & then oil temp was normal (about half way), turn the ignition off & restart the car & the temp gauge will read normal again for a while. You need to change the thermostat. I had the same problem shortly after buying my M5. Its well documented & plenty of threads on M5 board. Change the stat & it will sort your issue. Thank you FatmansV8
Hope the sat nav's still working ok, i did sell my E39 M5 in the end & bought the E60 M5.
Cheers
Simon.
Hi Simon hope your well . Yeah sat nav is A OK thank you. Got yourself another beauty hey, congratulations man . I'm pretty sure the oil temp goes up as soon as the temp goes off the scale. The oil temp is normally around just over the quater mark and heads for the hundred mark when the temp goes crazy. I'll have another look when it happens again.
Thanks Simon
FatmansV8
Thanks Simon
FatmansV8
Try this website for part numbers for just about everything on most BMWs:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/
Interesting, I very rarely get this with the water temp just not making sense. Have had a new radiator and thermostat at the last inspection 2 as well.
My question is where do peoples temp gauges sit on a normal journey and how long do they take to get up to temp?
If I drive carefully until all the lights are off on the rev counter I'll be joining a motorway and it will take forever to get even to the lower dot on the gauge and neither will get anywhere near half way if cruising on the motorway.
I'm thinking that the thermostat may be stuck open and causing this (even though it's less than a year old), but any other thoughts of what to check?
My question is where do peoples temp gauges sit on a normal journey and how long do they take to get up to temp?
If I drive carefully until all the lights are off on the rev counter I'll be joining a motorway and it will take forever to get even to the lower dot on the gauge and neither will get anywhere near half way if cruising on the motorway.
I'm thinking that the thermostat may be stuck open and causing this (even though it's less than a year old), but any other thoughts of what to check?
The engine should get up to temperature quite quickly, the oil takes longer.
When cruising the temp gauge should be just below 12 O'clock.
By far the most likely problem if you're running cool is the thermostat, they can easily fail within 6 months. If it's a genuine BMW part then it will be guaranteed for 2 years which includes parts and the labour to fit them.
Check the temperature using the hidden OBC menu, it should be no lower than 79C. Press and hold the right button on the cluster, after about 8 seconds it will show 'Test 01'. Click the right button until it says 'Test 19', click the left button. It will say 'Lock On'. Look at your VIN, add up the last 5 digits. Click the left cluster button until the number is the sum of your VIN digits. Click the right button, the menu is now unlocked and will say unlocked until you lock it again or disconnect the battery. Use the right button to select Test 07, click the left button and it will show 'KTEMP : xx C' monitor the temperature and see what it does. If it never reaches 79C the thermostat is faulty. If it goes above 79C and then drops back below 79C again, the thermostat is faulty. Cruising slowly (60-70mph) on a motorway when it's really cold outside is a great way to test the thermostat.
When cruising the temp gauge should be just below 12 O'clock.
By far the most likely problem if you're running cool is the thermostat, they can easily fail within 6 months. If it's a genuine BMW part then it will be guaranteed for 2 years which includes parts and the labour to fit them.
Check the temperature using the hidden OBC menu, it should be no lower than 79C. Press and hold the right button on the cluster, after about 8 seconds it will show 'Test 01'. Click the right button until it says 'Test 19', click the left button. It will say 'Lock On'. Look at your VIN, add up the last 5 digits. Click the left cluster button until the number is the sum of your VIN digits. Click the right button, the menu is now unlocked and will say unlocked until you lock it again or disconnect the battery. Use the right button to select Test 07, click the left button and it will show 'KTEMP : xx C' monitor the temperature and see what it does. If it never reaches 79C the thermostat is faulty. If it goes above 79C and then drops back below 79C again, the thermostat is faulty. Cruising slowly (60-70mph) on a motorway when it's really cold outside is a great way to test the thermostat.
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