E36 328i Sport - Cold niggles
Discussion
Hi All,
Just wondering if I could call on your collective experiences to put my mind at rest on a few issues with my 328i which seem most noticeable in the cold weather!
1. It has the winter pack with heated nipples, mirrors and door locks, but they don't appear to work. The fuse looks good so the next step is to bypass the thermostatic switch in the air duct behind the front bumper. But, before I do, I was wondering if there are any known "common" faults with this system - anything which could save me a precious half hour outside in these temperatures would be appreciated
2. The engine gets up to temperature, but takes *ages*. By ages, I mean half an hour including 60mph motorway sections. The first section of the temp gauge is passed by the time I'm at the end of the road, but then it will literally sit there for 20 minutes. Even then, the needle will never actually make it right up to the middle like it did back in the summer. I did replace the viscous fan coupling a while back which, compared with the old floppy one, seems quite rigid at these temps, so now I'm wondering if the engine is actually overcooled? I've had stuck thermostats on previous cars, but in general they would just stay totally cold except in traffic.
3. When cold, if I disengage from fifth gear, the gear lever will stay over at the right hand side, rather than springing back to the centre between 3rd and 4th. The behaviour generally improves after the gearbox has warmed up a bit. Hope it isn't bad/expensive!
Any advice gratefully received!
Thanks,
T.
Just wondering if I could call on your collective experiences to put my mind at rest on a few issues with my 328i which seem most noticeable in the cold weather!
1. It has the winter pack with heated nipples, mirrors and door locks, but they don't appear to work. The fuse looks good so the next step is to bypass the thermostatic switch in the air duct behind the front bumper. But, before I do, I was wondering if there are any known "common" faults with this system - anything which could save me a precious half hour outside in these temperatures would be appreciated
2. The engine gets up to temperature, but takes *ages*. By ages, I mean half an hour including 60mph motorway sections. The first section of the temp gauge is passed by the time I'm at the end of the road, but then it will literally sit there for 20 minutes. Even then, the needle will never actually make it right up to the middle like it did back in the summer. I did replace the viscous fan coupling a while back which, compared with the old floppy one, seems quite rigid at these temps, so now I'm wondering if the engine is actually overcooled? I've had stuck thermostats on previous cars, but in general they would just stay totally cold except in traffic.
3. When cold, if I disengage from fifth gear, the gear lever will stay over at the right hand side, rather than springing back to the centre between 3rd and 4th. The behaviour generally improves after the gearbox has warmed up a bit. Hope it isn't bad/expensive!
Any advice gratefully received!
Thanks,
T.
1- heated mirrors work all the time with the ignition on, the sensor in the brake duct just works for your nipples.
Heated door locks operate when you lift the handle and wait for about 5 seconds.
2- as said, your thermostat is sticking open.
3- not sure about that one, shift linkage getting sticky maybe? Or odd oil spec in the gearbox?
Heated door locks operate when you lift the handle and wait for about 5 seconds.
2- as said, your thermostat is sticking open.
3- not sure about that one, shift linkage getting sticky maybe? Or odd oil spec in the gearbox?
bababa said:
3. When cold, if I disengage from fifth gear, the gear lever will stay over at the right hand side, rather than springing back to the centre between 3rd and 4th. The behaviour generally improves after the gearbox has warmed up a bit. Hope it isn't bad/expensive!
Very common and not really that bad but annoying.If you want to sort it you can try replacing the decade old gearbox oil with something fresher:
http://www.z3mcoupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=106...
And if that doesn't do it then the parts needed for a fix are under £20. From the looks of the guide though you may want to pay someone to do it for you:
http://www.bmwowner.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&am...
Thanks for the responses, guys!
Yep, I'll get the thermostat sorted ASAP. I had a brainwave this morning and decided to pull into a car park when the temperature gauge was at about a quarter, pop the bonnet, and feel the temperature of the top hose - quite hot, so the thermostat is definitely opening before it should.
Just to confirm, it's the 92C thermostat I need for the M52 engine, isn't it?
Yep, I'll get the thermostat sorted ASAP. I had a brainwave this morning and decided to pull into a car park when the temperature gauge was at about a quarter, pop the bonnet, and feel the temperature of the top hose - quite hot, so the thermostat is definitely opening before it should.
Just to confirm, it's the 92C thermostat I need for the M52 engine, isn't it?
Yes, it's the 92 one, available for 8.95 from GSF (176BM0110)
I've got identical problems (on my identical car!) and am just about to undertake the thermostat replacement myself.
Lots of people recommend replacing the thermostat housing (plastic) at the same time, with a metal one. Haven't decided whether I will do that yet.
A BMW specialist advised me that the problem with the gear-stick, could actually be a problem with the actual box. Sounds like I ought to get a second opinion on that, before committing to replacing that!
I've got identical problems (on my identical car!) and am just about to undertake the thermostat replacement myself.
Lots of people recommend replacing the thermostat housing (plastic) at the same time, with a metal one. Haven't decided whether I will do that yet.
A BMW specialist advised me that the problem with the gear-stick, could actually be a problem with the actual box. Sounds like I ought to get a second opinion on that, before committing to replacing that!
Thanks again for the advice, guys...
Well I'm finally getting round to doing the thermostat (taken me long enough!) and I've bought the replacement along with an aluminium housing to replace the plastic one.
I'm all set to get started when I wondered if I should do the water pump at the same time as preventative maintenance.
If replacing the water pump, I guess I should buy one with a metal (alu?) impeller rather than the composite/plastic one.
I don't mind paying more for genuine BMW if it's "the right thing to do", but :
1. Do BMW now produce the water pump with a metal impeller, or is it still plastic?
2. Are the aftermarket units good enough to risk the cooling of my engine with?
Cheers,
T.
Well I'm finally getting round to doing the thermostat (taken me long enough!) and I've bought the replacement along with an aluminium housing to replace the plastic one.
I'm all set to get started when I wondered if I should do the water pump at the same time as preventative maintenance.
If replacing the water pump, I guess I should buy one with a metal (alu?) impeller rather than the composite/plastic one.
I don't mind paying more for genuine BMW if it's "the right thing to do", but :
1. Do BMW now produce the water pump with a metal impeller, or is it still plastic?
2. Are the aftermarket units good enough to risk the cooling of my engine with?
Cheers,
T.
wow random, i have #2 and #3 on my car currently/last week!
as for the thermo, i just had mine replaced and it works perfectly again now! I got another plastic housing as the original lasted 150,000 im sure it will last as long as i have the car.
As for the gearbox, Mine has started doing the exact same thing and i thought i was just going mad. weirdly mine started doing this AFTER having the gearbox oil changed. I changed it with the stuff bought from BMW dealer!!
I didnt think gearbox oil could have this effect!
as for the thermo, i just had mine replaced and it works perfectly again now! I got another plastic housing as the original lasted 150,000 im sure it will last as long as i have the car.
As for the gearbox, Mine has started doing the exact same thing and i thought i was just going mad. weirdly mine started doing this AFTER having the gearbox oil changed. I changed it with the stuff bought from BMW dealer!!
I didnt think gearbox oil could have this effect!
Wow, just replaced the thermostat and the speed the car comes up to temperature and also the heater performance are night and day compared with before!
The old thermostat is dated 07/98 which is a month before the car's build date, so it looks like the original thermostat. I wonder how many years the car's been running cold for!
I tested both old and new thermostat in a pan of water. The new one opened at 92C exactly, but the old one started opening at about 66C and was wide open by 70C.
One interesting point - although it's the original thermostat, it was installed 90 degrees out of alignment (the little embossed arrow was pointing to the side). Friday afternoon on the assembly line (does the "friday afternoon" concept even exist in Germany?), or somebody clueless farting around in there since... I wonder!
Again, thanks for your advice for getting this sorted guys. I've had thermostats fail completely open in cars before, but becoming "weak" and opening too soon was a new one on me!
ETA: I had a full fluid flush done by an Indie a month or so ago (including gearbox) and the sticking gear lever is *slowly* getting better. It still does it when very cold, but to a far lesser degree. Also, it will normally pop back to centre by itself after a couple of seconds, whereas before it would need assistance from me
The old thermostat is dated 07/98 which is a month before the car's build date, so it looks like the original thermostat. I wonder how many years the car's been running cold for!
I tested both old and new thermostat in a pan of water. The new one opened at 92C exactly, but the old one started opening at about 66C and was wide open by 70C.
One interesting point - although it's the original thermostat, it was installed 90 degrees out of alignment (the little embossed arrow was pointing to the side). Friday afternoon on the assembly line (does the "friday afternoon" concept even exist in Germany?), or somebody clueless farting around in there since... I wonder!
Again, thanks for your advice for getting this sorted guys. I've had thermostats fail completely open in cars before, but becoming "weak" and opening too soon was a new one on me!
ETA: I had a full fluid flush done by an Indie a month or so ago (including gearbox) and the sticking gear lever is *slowly* getting better. It still does it when very cold, but to a far lesser degree. Also, it will normally pop back to centre by itself after a couple of seconds, whereas before it would need assistance from me
Edited by bababa on Sunday 6th February 18:24
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