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Psycho

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Since: Feb 26, 2005
Posts: 73



(Msg. 1) Posted: Sun Oct 29, 2006 3:43 am
Post subject: 89 325i cooling issue...
Archived from groups: alt>autos>bmw (more info?)
I am having a cooling issue with my 89 325i and am looking for
ideas. I removed the thermostat yesterday to rule it out. I believe I
am either looking at a plugged radiator or a faulty water pump. I am
pretty sure the system is well bled so that isn't the issue.

The problem has came on slowly and not all at once. I am running
well over normal temp at various times. The car also gets warm very
quickly when it's first started up. All of this is reading on the
guage and I haven't actually lost any coolant due to overheating. Is
there a way to actually check the water pump? I thought about running
some radiator flush through the system but I'm not sure it would do
any good. How do I go about diagnosing this without throwing parts at
the problem?

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retroman2128

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Since: Oct 30, 2006
Posts: 1



(Msg. 2) Posted: Mon Oct 30, 2006 2:41 am
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
take the hoses off the heater core and turn it over or start it for
just a second... you'll quickly see if it's pumping coolant around.
also check and make sure your fan clutch works... warm the car up to
mid-range on the temp gauge and get a pencil or small stick or
something and stick it in the fan blades... they should not slow down
or stop... if they do then you need a fan clutch. in my e30 the a/c
doesn't work so I just took the compressor belt off and hit the a/c
button... this will make the secondary electric fan run which will help
cool the engine.

good luck!


Psycho wrote:
> I am having a cooling issue with my 89 325i and am looking for
> ideas. I removed the thermostat yesterday to rule it out. I believe I
> am either looking at a plugged radiator or a faulty water pump. I am
> pretty sure the system is well bled so that isn't the issue.
>
> The problem has came on slowly and not all at once. I am running
> well over normal temp at various times. The car also gets warm very
> quickly when it's first started up. All of this is reading on the
> guage and I haven't actually lost any coolant due to overheating. Is
> there a way to actually check the water pump? I thought about running
> some radiator flush through the system but I'm not sure it would do
> any good. How do I go about diagnosing this without throwing parts at
> the problem?

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Fred W

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Since: Dec 28, 2005
Posts: 275



(Msg. 3) Posted: Mon Oct 30, 2006 7:36 am
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
retroman2128 RemoveThis @gmail.com wrote:
> take the hoses off the heater core and turn it over or start it for
> just a second... you'll quickly see if it's pumping coolant around.

> also check and make sure your fan clutch works... warm the car up to
> mid-range on the temp gauge and get a pencil or small stick or
> something and stick it in the fan blades... they should not slow down
> or stop... if they do then you need a fan clutch.

The fan clutch will not cause the engine to overheat "quickly" as the OP
wrote. It will also only allow the engine to overheat when the car is
driving very slowly or stationary. Any time it is moving it will have
enough air flow to keep it cool.


--
-Fred W
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no one

External


Since: Feb 12, 2006
Posts: 1



(Msg. 4) Posted: Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:07 am
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
On Mon, 30 Oct 2006 07:36:17 -0500, Fred W wrote:

> retroman2128.RemoveThis@gmail.com wrote:
>> take the hoses off the heater core and turn it over or start it for
>> just a second... you'll quickly see if it's pumping coolant around.
>
>> also check and make sure your fan clutch works... warm the car up to
>> mid-range on the temp gauge and get a pencil or small stick or
>> something and stick it in the fan blades... they should not slow down
>> or stop... if they do then you need a fan clutch.
>
> The fan clutch will not cause the engine to overheat "quickly" as the OP
> wrote. It will also only allow the engine to overheat when the car is
> driving very slowly or stationary. Any time it is moving it will have
> enough air flow to keep it cool.

I disagree. My fan clutch went in the summer time, and it affected
temperature while driving, as well as the usual stop/go traffice thing.
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Bob Smitter

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Since: May 11, 2006
Posts: 59



(Msg. 5) Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 10:49 pm
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
"Psycho" <psycho DeleteThis @tbcia.net> wrote in message
news:iqlik25uvgj55lpj2fu83c10to5ms9b12r@4ax.com...
> Final diagnosis of this problem. Running down the road today, the
> car stays very cool however as soon as I start sitting still, the temp
> starts to climb. I popped the hood and stuck a pen into the fan only
> to find that the clutch has gone bad. I'm a bit annoyed as the damn
> thing is about six months old (replaced it once before due to
> overheating issues an d the problem partially went away). Looks as
> though I'll either be fusing the clutch to make it a continuous fan or
> I'll be replacing it with an electric unit. The electric is the better
> choice as it takes less in the form of horsepower to operate.

I won't say that your fan clutch hasn't gone bad again, but don't forget
that you already have a 2-speed electric fan on the E30. And it should
be seeing some action if your temperatures are climbing above 90 C.
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Fred W

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Since: Dec 28, 2005
Posts: 275



(Msg. 6) Posted: Thu Nov 02, 2006 2:34 pm
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
no one wrote:
> On Mon, 30 Oct 2006 07:36:17 -0500, Fred W wrote:
>
>
>>retroman2128@gmail.com wrote:
>>
>>>take the hoses off the heater core and turn it over or start it for
>>>just a second... you'll quickly see if it's pumping coolant around.
>>
>>>also check and make sure your fan clutch works... warm the car up to
>>>mid-range on the temp gauge and get a pencil or small stick or
>>>something and stick it in the fan blades... they should not slow down
>>>or stop... if they do then you need a fan clutch.
>>
>>The fan clutch will not cause the engine to overheat "quickly" as the OP
>>wrote. It will also only allow the engine to overheat when the car is
>>driving very slowly or stationary. Any time it is moving it will have
>>enough air flow to keep it cool.
>
>
> I disagree. My fan clutch went in the summer time, and it affected
> temperature while driving, as well as the usual stop/go traffice thing.
>

Then the fan clutch was not the only problem.

--
-Fred W
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Psycho

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Since: Feb 26, 2005
Posts: 73



(Msg. 7) Posted: Thu Nov 02, 2006 7:08 pm
Post subject: Re: 89 325i cooling issue... [Login to view extended thread Info.]
Archived from groups: per prev. post (more info?)
As of the other day, it was coming on but it's not enough to keep
the temp down. I'll remember to check it again when I go back outside.

On Wed, 1 Nov 2006 22:49:15 -0500, "Bob Smitter"
<bsmitter RemoveThis @nospamcox.net> wrote:

>"Psycho" <psycho RemoveThis @tbcia.net> wrote in message
>news:iqlik25uvgj55lpj2fu83c10to5ms9b12r@4ax.com...
>> Final diagnosis of this problem. Running down the road today, the
>> car stays very cool however as soon as I start sitting still, the temp
>> starts to climb. I popped the hood and stuck a pen into the fan only
>> to find that the clutch has gone bad. I'm a bit annoyed as the damn
>> thing is about six months old (replaced it once before due to
>> overheating issues an d the problem partially went away). Looks as
>> though I'll either be fusing the clutch to make it a continuous fan or
>> I'll be replacing it with an electric unit. The electric is the better
>> choice as it takes less in the form of horsepower to operate.
>
>I won't say that your fan clutch hasn't gone bad again, but don't forget
>that you already have a 2-speed electric fan on the E30. And it should
>be seeing some action if your temperatures are climbing above 90 C.
>
 >> Stay informed about: 89 325i cooling issue... 
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